How Southside Studio embraces music and yoga
At Southside Studio, located on Market Street across from the Chattanooga Choo Choo, flexibility is key—both physically (in the yoga realm) and conceptually. Founded by the husband/wife team of David D. Dunn and Chattanooga native Bryony Stroud-Watson in 2014, who moved here from New York in 2013, Southside Studio is a music classroom, performance venue, yoga studio, home, pop-up art gallery and place for gatherings such as “Café y Conversación,” a monthly meeting with Spanish speakers.
“We live above ‘the shop,’ a common idea in urban life historically that is somewhat new in Chattanooga,” said Stroud-Watson, via email. “We have created an environment that is positive, radiantly artistic and flexible.”
“You are first greeted by an urban garden, and on the front door under the logo, it says ‘PRACTICE BALANCE,’” said Stroud-Watson, a versatile violinist who plays with the Chattanooga Symphony, among other groups. “To me it is a reminder that the only constant in life and in teaching is to expect the unexpected. We do not find balance as a permanent place; we practice moving towards balance through a combination of effort and letting go.”
Formed from an idea that had been gestating for 10 years, “Yoga4Musicians” is a developing project that combines yoga and music education in meaningful ways.
“Growing up, the great violinist Yehudi Menuhin was my North Star,” said Stroud-Watson. “He practiced yoga every day alongside the violin.”
“In music, we improvise most commonly over a structure, and in yoga, we vinyasa, which in Sanskrit means creating a logical sequence that leaves you feeling transformed, energized and relaxed,” said Stroud-Watson. “Practicing yoga changed how both of us approached our instruments, how we care for our bodies, and how we teach.”
Stroud-Watson cited her practice of Neelakantha Meditation in her battle against breast cancer.
“Even in the darkest days after surgery, I practiced meditation and breath work,” said Stroud-Watson. “When I practice the violin, I take yoga breaks rather than smoke breaks. A good bit of practice is spent visualizing and audiating the music.”
“As a music student, I would often stay inside, in my practice room for too many hours,” said Dunn, a reedist who studied the clarinet at the Hartt School of Music and Rutgers University and who is also a certified sommelier and graphic designer. “I now know the importance of movement to those of us who are sitting in front of our music stands for too long.”
Both Stroud-Watson and Dunn are teachers of the Suzuki Method on violin and recorder, respectively, who advocate its non-musical benefits, such as building a community and sharing responsibility in group settings.
“The method can be summed up by Dr. Suzuki’s quote, ‘Beautiful tone, beautiful heart,’” said Stroud-Watson. “Suzuki teachers care about the whole person and seek to build a triangular partnership with parents, who know their child best, to work together to create an at-home environment conducive to loving music and building a solid musical and technical foundation.”
“I feel my teaching style can be described by my desire to expose my students to a broad spectrum of music from composers of the last five centuries, and to point out the similarities,” said Dunn. “Baroque music is so similar to jazz, and modern-day students focusing on music of the 20th and 21st centuries can often learn a great deal from the composers of the 16th and 17th centuries.”
Southside Studio presents a monthly performance hour called “Saturday Spot Light” and has hosted eclectic events, including a show from the music/video-art duo Elka Bong and one that merged cello and dance.
Two notable upcoming Southside Studio events are “Sailing Rumpus” on October 14, featuring a trio of seasoned improvisers (Russian guitarist Misha Feigin, violist LaDonna Smith and electric guitarist Davey Williams), and a November 11 recital from the Chattanooga Clarinet Quartet.
“Being a native New Yorker, I attended many new music performances in very small venues, sometimes in private apartment living rooms,” said Dunn, who strives to foster audiences for new music and experimental performances. “Ultra-intimate performances can be very powerful for both audience and performer.”
“My observation is that in Chattanooga, we are blessed with diverse venues and styles of music, but patrons tend to pigeonhole themselves,” said Stroud-Watson. “It is not that we don’t have enough people to attend all the shows, but that those people think that they only like one genre of music.”
“I would love for musicians to see our Salon Series at Southside Studio as a fantastic opportunity for intimate collaboration, to branch out and try something new and for musicians and patrons to mix it up,” said Stroud-Watson. “Music is not something to be exposed to—it is a way of life.”