Winter Professional Learning Day

MTASA Winter Professional Learning Day 2025

REGISTRATIONS OPEN FROM 12.30PM ON THE DAY

The Mystery of the Musical Mind — keynote presentation by Amanda Handel
The Mystery of the Musical Mind explores the interplay of the conscious and subconscious minds in our neurology, showing how we can deliberately utilise their distinguishing features for highly effective learning and rewarding performance. Providing anecdotes from her studio, Amanda emphasises the importance of crafting language wisely to penetrate the subconscious mind with clear intention. Delving into the power and impact of metaphor, she shows how lasting emotional and physiological change can be created — transforming unhelpful habits and impediments. Amanda highlights how the body’s natural physiological response mechanisms can be maximised through the imagination, and teachers will discover ways to positively influence their students’ subconscious minds for authentic, expressive and confident music making. She touches on why our neurology needs sharpened awareness during repetitive practise for gaining neurological security.

Masterclass and Discussion — with Amanda Handel
Based on Amanda's compositions from the AMEB syllabus: Stalactite, Dream Boat Blues, and The Seduction of Andalusia.

SAMii — Launch of Collaborative Partnership with MTASA, presented by Pete Barter
More info: https://www.samii.au/about

Wizard Tone Studios — Presentation and Conversation with Sam Lench
More info: https://www.wizardtonestudios.com/

Plus a word from our Major Sponsor: Credit Union SA

Keynote Presenter Bio: Amanda Handel

Amanda is an active composer, pianist, singer and teacher based in the Blue Mountains with thriving teaching practices in Katoomba and the Penrith Conservatorium. She has also lectured in harmony, analysis and composition at Western Sydney University, where she graduated with a compositional research Masters’ degree in 2004.

Published by Wirripang, her compositions represent a wide range of diverse and eclectic influences. She has composed numerous pieces for piano, a number of chamber works in various combinations — including string orchestra — as well as many solo works for classical guitar and woodwind instruments. Some of these appear in AMEB publications and syllabi. Amanda has written many works commissioned by various performers and arts organisations for festivals and recordings. She has released two original piano-based CDs: Ghosts & Angels and Gardens of Stone, collaborating with an electronic artist and a didjeridu player respectively. Both albums received excellent SMH reviews and extensive ABC radio airplay.

Her music has been described as “hauntingly beautiful, creative, cohesive and compositionally advanced,” “engaging and evocative, seductive with a Spanish tinge, and a lot of grit.”

Beginning with classical piano, Amanda’s knowledge and experience now extends into other world genres. As a vocalist, she led Canto Latino Quartet performing a repertoire of traditional Argentinean tango and Latin music for over ten years.

Having graduated with her Diploma in Hypnotherapy and Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), her musical profile now has new dimensions of expertise — including certification as a BodyMinded™ (Alexander Technique) practitioner. These fascinating new fields of knowledge have become the cornerstone underpinning her musical life.

Currently Amanda is adapting these powerful tools and techniques to provide specialised studio teaching and intensive training workshops for musicians. Her vision incorporates writing a book elaborating on how to deliberately engage and optimise the subconscious mind in learning and performing.

Please visit
https://www.amandahandel.com
https://www.youtube.com/@amandahandelmusic/videos