In addition to the piano course, you have the possibility to sign up for a workshop with Valentine Buttard : “Mindfulness in stillness and movement - Acquiring a more conscious experience of your body”. Attending the workshop is optional, but we strongly recommend that students take advantage of this free offer to enrich their musical experience.

Mindfulness means to be fully present, conscious and open-minded in the moment and to bring all your attention to the experiences and perceptions of this moment.

The practice of mindfulness can help us to be calmer, to find strength in stillness, to come into contact with our body and our emotions, to develop a better way of dealing with stress, fear and difficult situations, to support and maintain our health, to let our inner resources open up and to experience life more fully, directly and consciously.

For musicians, the practice of mindfulness can also be an excellent support for a relaxed, concentrated, joyful and conscious way of practicing their instrument and preparing for concerts or exams. In addition, it helps to avoid injuries, exhaustion or excessive demands, such as over-practicing.

The participants will be divided into groups and each group will attend two sessions of 120 min. We will practice mindfulness-meditation and easy exercises in order to feel your body while sitting, lying, standing and moving. There will also be time for exchanges in the group, for questions and for topics like mindful piano practicing or dealing with stage fright.

Born in 1986 in Belfort/France, Valentine Buttard works as a concert pianist and piano teacher. She studied at the Hochschule für Musik, Theater und Medien Hannover/Germany (2005–2015) with Prof. Roland Krüger, Prof. Wladimir Krajnew and Prof. Matti Raekallio.She gives concerts in Germany, France and Switzerland and teaches in Berlin. Besides her musical activities, she has been intensively practicing mindfulness and Vipassana-meditation with Renate Seifarth since 2009. In 2016-2017 she completed a training program at the Mindfulness Institute in Germany to become an MBSR teacher (MBSR=Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction). She now gives mindfulness based stress reduction courses, combining in this way her meditation, yoga and mindfulness practice. She is very committed to accompanying others on this path.

More about Valentine Buttard: www.valentinebuttard.com