In memoriam: Barbara Schneiderman

Earlier this week I was saddened to learn that Barbara Schneiderman had passed away after succumbing to pancreatic cancer. She was a wonderful colleague and teacher from Del Mar, California. You can read an appreciative tribute to her life and work on the Suzuki Association of the Americas web page here.

I had the privilege of adjudicating competitions with Barbara from time to time, and I always appreciated her wise insights about the performances that we heard together. Her book, Confident Musical Performance, gets heavy use in my studio, as I find it to be one of the most helpful resources for understanding the art of performance preparation. Both of the copies on my shelf are worn, ear marked and almost illegible in spots from the heavy highlights and underlines.

With her passing, our circle of friends--pianists, teachers and thinkers--has diminished.