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Wellness for Musicians
Course Description:
This beginning level online course is designed to provide musicians of all levels and genres with anatomical information about the body in movement, injury prevention, tools for coping with performance anxiety, yoga for musicians and more. This curriculum is designed to help you play and sing without pain, tension, or injury. The curriculum will also improve facility and expressiveness in playing and singing. Body Mapping ensures that music education has a secure somatic foundation.
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Course Outline (Fall 2026)
Section 1 (September 21) - Setting the Stage (Stephanie Bernards) An introductory session exploring why musician wellness matters, the body as the primary instrument, the relationship between artist and instrument. Drawing on injury and performance anxiety research and podcast clips from working musicians and their real-life experience, this section frames wellness as essential, not optional. Introduce Professor Lisa Marsh the founder and director of the Musician’s Wellness Program at Portland State University, and hear about her research and why she has poured her heart and soul into creating this program at PSU.
Section 2 (September 28) - Holistic Wellness for Musicians (Gwen Cawdron) A focus on life beyond the instrument: building sustainable daily habits, nurturing physical and emotional health, and cultivating relationships, creativity, and personal identity. Balanced musicians create sustainable artistry.
Section 3 (October 5) - Introduction to Body Mapping + The Places of Balance (Stephanie Bernards) An accessible introduction to Body Mapping for Musicians: what it is, why it matters, and how misconceptions about the body lead to tension and injury. Building on body mapping principles, this session explores key "places of balance," efficient movement while playing, laws of the spine, and the connection between physical balance and holistic wellbeing. Students are invited to continue deeper study through Stephanie's full Body Mapping courses coming January 2027, or visit bodymap.org for more information on how to get involved in the Association of Body Mapping Education (ABME). A twenty minute masterclass with one participant will follow this course.
Section 4 (October 12) - The Whole Arm + The Movements and Structures of Breathing (Stephanie Bernards) Building on body mapping principles, this session explores an overview of the whole arm, the laws of the spine, and the movements and structures associated with breathing. A twenty minute masterclass with one participant will follow this course. Guest Lisa Marsh at the body mapping session following the class.
Section 5 (October 19) - Embodied Practice: Yoga & Constructive Rest (Gwen Cawdron) A practical, guided session including a yoga sequence designed for musicians and an introduction to Constructive Rest (inspired by Barbara Conable and Lisa Marsh) as a recovery and awareness tool. Students leave with practices they can integrate immediately.
Section 6 (October 26) - Understanding & Managing Performance Anxiety (Bex Herman) What performance anxiety is (and isn't), common myths, and practical strategies for working with anxiety rather than against it. Empowering, validating, and grounded in real experience and research.
Section 7 (November 2) - The Self Map of the Artist (Stephanie Bernards) Developing awareness of internal narratives, reshaping limiting beliefs, and building a supportive inner dialogue. Mental alignment as a natural extension of physical and artistic alignment.
Questions to go deeper: Name your inner judges and identify where they come from and the stories they tell you. How do these judges play a role in your performance anxiety? How do they inform your self-map?
Section 8 (November 9) - Live Masterclass & Integration Session A live virtual session with Stephanie, Gwen and Bex present where participants can share excerpts, receive coaching, ask questions and apply course concepts in real time.
Course Description:
This beginning level online course is designed to provide musicians of all levels and genres with anatomical information about the body in movement, injury prevention, tools for coping with performance anxiety, yoga for musicians and more. This curriculum is designed to help you play and sing without pain, tension, or injury. The curriculum will also improve facility and expressiveness in playing and singing. Body Mapping ensures that music education has a secure somatic foundation.
______________________________________________________________________________
Course Outline (Fall 2026)
Section 1 (September 21) - Setting the Stage (Stephanie Bernards) An introductory session exploring why musician wellness matters, the body as the primary instrument, the relationship between artist and instrument. Drawing on injury and performance anxiety research and podcast clips from working musicians and their real-life experience, this section frames wellness as essential, not optional. Introduce Professor Lisa Marsh the founder and director of the Musician’s Wellness Program at Portland State University, and hear about her research and why she has poured her heart and soul into creating this program at PSU.
Section 2 (September 28) - Holistic Wellness for Musicians (Gwen Cawdron) A focus on life beyond the instrument: building sustainable daily habits, nurturing physical and emotional health, and cultivating relationships, creativity, and personal identity. Balanced musicians create sustainable artistry.
Section 3 (October 5) - Introduction to Body Mapping + The Places of Balance (Stephanie Bernards) An accessible introduction to Body Mapping for Musicians: what it is, why it matters, and how misconceptions about the body lead to tension and injury. Building on body mapping principles, this session explores key "places of balance," efficient movement while playing, laws of the spine, and the connection between physical balance and holistic wellbeing. Students are invited to continue deeper study through Stephanie's full Body Mapping courses coming January 2027, or visit bodymap.org for more information on how to get involved in the Association of Body Mapping Education (ABME). A twenty minute masterclass with one participant will follow this course.
Section 4 (October 12) - The Whole Arm + The Movements and Structures of Breathing (Stephanie Bernards) Building on body mapping principles, this session explores an overview of the whole arm, the laws of the spine, and the movements and structures associated with breathing. A twenty minute masterclass with one participant will follow this course. Guest Lisa Marsh at the body mapping session following the class.
Section 5 (October 19) - Embodied Practice: Yoga & Constructive Rest (Gwen Cawdron) A practical, guided session including a yoga sequence designed for musicians and an introduction to Constructive Rest (inspired by Barbara Conable and Lisa Marsh) as a recovery and awareness tool. Students leave with practices they can integrate immediately.
Section 6 (October 26) - Understanding & Managing Performance Anxiety (Bex Herman) What performance anxiety is (and isn't), common myths, and practical strategies for working with anxiety rather than against it. Empowering, validating, and grounded in real experience and research.
Section 7 (November 2) - The Self Map of the Artist (Stephanie Bernards) Developing awareness of internal narratives, reshaping limiting beliefs, and building a supportive inner dialogue. Mental alignment as a natural extension of physical and artistic alignment.
Questions to go deeper: Name your inner judges and identify where they come from and the stories they tell you. How do these judges play a role in your performance anxiety? How do they inform your self-map?
Section 8 (November 9) - Live Masterclass & Integration Session A live virtual session with Stephanie, Gwen and Bex present where participants can share excerpts, receive coaching, ask questions and apply course concepts in real time.