059: How to Feed a Piano Teacher with Sarah Kenner

Finding time to cook can be a challenge for busy music teachers, but Sarah Kenner has made it her mission to help. As a professional violinist and the creator of The Hungry Musician, she shares practical tips for meal planning, simple recipes, and ways to make cooking more manageable for musicians. In this episode, Sarah discusses how to balance a busy teaching and performing schedule with healthy eating, why meal prep doesn’t have to be overwhelming, and how creativity in the kitchen can inspire creativity in music. Whether you love to cook or struggle to find the time, Sarah’s insights will help you nourish both yourself and your music.

• Sarah shared how she combines her passions for music and cooking.
• How her journey started when she realized the need for a healthier, more balanced lifestyle.
• The importance of meal planning and cooking as a way to improve focus, efficiency, and well-being.
• How musicians can make cooking easier by prepping ingredients in stages throughout the day.
• Why setting realistic cooking goals and allowing flexibility in meal choices leads to success.
• Semi-homemade cooking and using pre-prepped ingredients to save time without sacrificing nutrition.
• How busy music teachers can simplify cooking with one-pot meals and batch cooking techniques.
• Why meal prepping doesn’t have to be done all at once.
• How quick and easy meals don’t have to mean unhealthy choices.
• The connection between creativity in cooking and creativity in music, and how both require improvisation and problem-solving.
• How experimenting with ingredients can make simple meals feel elevated and special.
• Why musicians should embrace cooking as a creative outlet and a way to care for themselves.

Links Mentioned

• Free download: A Musician's Guide to Cooking in Cut Time at TheHungryMusician.com
• Sarah's Instagram Page: @hungrymusician
• Sarah's Tiktok Page: @hungrymusician
• TopCast 407: The Power of Storytelling with Andrea Dow from Teach Piano Today

Today’s Guest

Sarah Kenner is a violinist and culinary content creator based in the NYC area. Specializing in historical performance, she has been hailed as a "fireworks soloist" and regularly performs on baroque violin with renowned groups including The English Concert, Trinity Wall Street, TENET Vocal Artists, Tempesta di Mare, and New York Baroque Incorporated, and made her Lincoln Center solo debut in 2018 with Juilliard415. Other notable appearances include BachFest Leipzig, the Festival Dans les Jardins de William Christie, and on the Academy Award-winning score of the 2019 film, Joker. She holds degrees from Temple University, Manhattan School of Music, and The Juilliard School. For almost 15 years, Sarah has enjoyed creating culinary content for her popular food and recipe blog “The Hungry Musician.” On this platform, she offers delicious recipes, kitchen tips, and cooking classes with the goal of making cooking more enjoyable and accessible, especially to musicians.

About Rachel Ehring

Dr. Rachel Ehring is a pianist, teacher, music administrator, and lover of piano teaching gadgets. She holds a DMA in Collaborative Piano from the University of Colorado Boulder and a MM in Accompanying from the University of Kansas. She currently serves as Director at St. John’s Conservatory of the Arts in Orange County, CA. Previously, she held positions at Concordia University Irvine and Henderson State University. Rachel is passionate about empowering music teachers to create engaging and exciting lessons for students of all ages. When she isn’t playing the piano, you might find Rachel reading books with her son or walking her beagle Frieda.

• Visit her website at RachelEhring.com
• Visit her Instagram page: @rachelehring
• Visit her YouTube channel: @dreamlavendermusic6694
• Visit her Etsy shop at Dream Lavender Music

Thank you for tuning in!

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