This book came about as a result of a limited conviction of, and at certain times despair in, my own technique ‘system’. Having been impressed on numerous occasions with the seemingly flawless and almost irritatingly fluent control of others, I had over a long period of time wondered why I appeared to struggle with what ultimately were some very basic issues (yes, being a musician is fuelled by a sinister cocktail of paranoia and self doubt!). Of course there are numerous books available covering all aspects of playing, but there appear to be few available that highlight key elements in a compact, logical, compelling and musically stimulating way. When I was studying, it seemed to be that one week I was concentrating on articulation, the next week scales, the following week something else and so on, which in many ways is what it should be like, in order to embrace all of the complexities of learning an instrument.

- Paul Edmund-Davies