Pianodao Wellbeing

The Year of the Horse

Fermata • The Pianodao Blog
Short Reflections by Andrew Eales

Since ancient times, the Chinese have followed the lunar calendar, New Year coinciding with the first hint of Spring’s arrival in the northern hemisphere.

New Year’s Eve 2026 falls on Monday 16th February, heralding the start of Spring Festival, which culminates two weeks later with the Festival of Lanterns on Tuesday 3rd March.

The years are traditionally named after the twelve symbolic animals of the Chinese zodiac. These are multiplied by the ‘Five Elements’ of traditional Daoist cosmology to create a 60 year cycle. Following on from the Year of the Wood Snake, we now enter the Year of the Fire Horse.

Regardless of how we view ancient beliefs and customs, it does us no harm to reflect on our lives and progress using the cycle of the seasons and calendar of old traditions as a simple tool.

Preventing Injury in Pianists

Supporting Piano Education
Article written by Andrew Eales

The problem of musicians developing injuries related to their playing has received much attention in recent years. Happily, we can learn from a growing body of performing arts medicine research, and the insights of respected pioneers who have devoted their expertise to the fields of piano technique and movement retraining.

A systematic review (2018) of existing research into the prevalence of injury makes sobering reading, suggesting that up to three quarters of all keyboard players report experiencing musculoskeletal pain. And sadly we will all most likely have encountered players who suffered injuries such as tendonitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, and dystonia.

Avoiding injury is clearly a key concern. However, increased awareness of this important issue has been accompanied by confusion and disagreement between pianists and educators both about the causes of injury, and what constitutes “good technique”.

The Year of the Snake

Fermata • The Pianodao Blog
Short Reflections by Andrew Eales

Since ancient times, the Chinese have followed the lunar calendar, New Year coinciding with the first hint of Spring in the northern hemisphere. New Year’s Eve 2025 falls on 28th January, which heralds the start of Spring Festival, culminating two weeks later with the Festival of Lanterns on February 12th.

The years are traditionally named after the twelve symbolic animals of the Chinese zodiac. These are multiplied by the ‘Five Elements’ of traditional Daoist cosmology to create a 60 year cycle. Following on from the Year of the Dragon, we are about to enter the Year of the Wood Snake.

Regardless of how we view ancient beliefs and customs, it does us no harm to reflect on our lives and progress using the cycle of the seasons and calendar of old traditions as a simple tool.

ADHD • A Pianist’s Guide

ADHD • Insights for Pianists
Andrew Eales with Louise Eales RMN, NMP

ADHD, or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, has become a hot topic of discussion in recent years, the apparent explosion of both child and adult diagnoses much commented on in the media and society at large.

This article has been cowritten with my wife Louise, who has three decades clinical experience working with children, and latterly adults, who have ADHD. She is now an advanced practitioner at ADHD 360, a leading private ADHD diagnosis and treatment clinic. We gratefully acknowledge that the Clinical Director has peer-reviewed this article prior to its publication here.

For my part, I have lived with this condition for a lifetime, only belatedly recognised and formally diagnosed in my fifties. ADHD has had a huge impact on my piano journey.

Our shared aim is to provide pianists and educators with a unique, relevant, and practical perspective which combines Louise’s clinical expertise with my personal experience, and which specifically addresses the challenges those with ADHD face in the practice room, piano lesson and at live events.

The article which follows addresses many common questions, explaining what ADHD is, its causes, history, the signs and symptoms. We then go on to apply this to piano practice, lessons and performance, offering strategies to help those with ADHD and their teachers. Finally, Louise outlines the process of diagnosis and available medications.

Download This Article as a Printable PDF

Time for an Afternoon Nap

Fermata • The Pianodao Blog
Short Reflections by Andrew Eales

“Done well, there’s something special about a nap. A short sleep during daylight hours is a moment of quiet in a world of noise… for a while, you can switch off.”

Ceci Browning, The Quiet Art of Napping

I am going to let you into a secret: whenever I can, I take an afternoon nap. I have even programmed space for it within my teaching schedule.

It’s not simply that I am getting old, convalescing from an illness, or even because I am lazy, but because I find it makes a significant difference to my overall wellbeing, mood, and productivity.

The Pianist’s Humiliation

Pianodao Wellbeing
Article written by Andrew Eales

Written in partnership with Louise Eales RMN
Louise has more than 30 years of clinical experience as an advanced mental health practitioner, with specialisms in child and adolescent psychiatry, and neurodiversity.
I am grateful for her professional insights, specialist advice, and collaboration in the writing of this important article.

WARNING: The following article discusses and includes accounts of humiliation which might trigger distressing memories or thoughts for some readers.

Humiliation is a deeply painful emotional state caused by public exposure of a person’s mistakes or weaknesses. Recognised by psychologists as one of the most potent of emotions, it can have a long-lasting impact on a person’s self-esteem, wellbeing, and mental health.

A mounting body of research shows the connection between humiliation and social anxiety disorder. Additionally, it is associated with episodes of clinical depression and linked to suicidal ideation or acts.

Humiliation is fundamentally done to us. Neel Burton M.D. explains in his article The Psychology of Humiliation, which appeared in Psychology Today,

“Whereas shame and guilt are primarily the outcome of self-appraisal, embarrassment and humiliation are primarily the outcome of appraisal by one or several others, even if only in thought or imagination. But whereas we bring embarrassment upon ourselves, humiliation is something that is brought upon us.”

Most piano educators, from local teachers to adjudicators, examiners, and conservatoire professors, would balk at the suggestion that we would ever humiliate a student. But realistically, many of us will have inadvertently done so, and will likely also have experienced humiliation ourselves.

We have fostered a culture around piano playing that leaves players of all ages and abilities precariously vulnerable. I find many adults returning to playing recount painful episodes in their piano journey where they have felt humiliated and debilitated.

A Streak of Calm

Fermata • The Pianodao Blog
Short Reflections by Andrew Eales

A few years back I purchased an app called Calm, which has subsequently become one of the most popular mindfulness apps around. With its range of guided meditations, ambient music, soundscapes, breathwork exercises and ‘sleep stories’, Calm has grown to become a superb lifestyle resource, and a deserved success.

Interestingly though, Calm also delivers user stats after each session, with a badge showing one’s ‘streaks’ of consecutive days of practice. I’ve regarded this feature with vague amusement; it seems to owe more to the culture of the gambling arcade than to the ethos of the meditation traditions.

There’s even the opportunity to share your official streaks on social media platforms, something I recently did myself having reached the modest achievement of 100 consecutive days, and curious to see whether it would generate much discussion with friends.

But then an odd, and instructive thing happened: it must have been less than a week later that I ‘missed’ a day…

Running in place of horses

Fermata • The Pianodao Blog
Short Reflections by Andrew Eales

This striking passage from a classic of ancient Chinese wisdom offers many analogies and images that are worth pondering:

“Don’t run in place of horses,
or you’ll exhaust your strength.
Don’t fly in place of birds,
or you’ll wear out your wings.
Don’t act before others,
so you can observe their examples.
If you stir, you lose your position;
Be calm, and you’ll spontaneously succeed.”

Guanzi, attributed to Guan Yiwu (725-645 BCE), translated Thomas Cleary
The Way of the World: Readings in Chinese Philosophy (2009)

Any mention of horses on a piano-themed website inevitably reminds us of Bartók’s famous quip that “competitions are for horses, not artists”.

Guanzi’s rejection of competition seems to go further, however: compete against a horse in a race, and the horse will likely win. Try to fly like a bird, and your ‘wings’ won’t prove fit for purpose.

Such competition is bizarre, unnatural and entirely pointless. Follow through Guanzi’s thinking, and you’ll soon appreciate that the only living being worth competing with is actually yourself.

Guanzi goes still further, explaining that his admonition not to “run in place of horses” means, “not taking away the capacities of the capable.” In other words, let others be their best selves. Don’t try to take away or replicate their success, steal their identity, or compete for their position.

We can observe and learn from the examples of others without taking away what is rightly theirs, or seeking to replace them. Don’t try to beat or to be somebody else‘s personal best; try to be the best version of yourself.