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Letting down the whole team by staying in our comfort zones
Playing or singing in a musical ensemble is the epitome of team activities. But many musicians let their teams down far more often than they realize, thinking they are doing good. Get stuck taking the lead or the bottom With generous hearts, performers find their place in an ensemble and do what they can to serve the group in that manner. Forever. Some folk turn up expecting to take first chair regardless of who else is in the ensemble. Others even turn up expecting to sit in the back row simply because they lack confidence and don’t want to be in the limelight. Neither approach helps the team. Letting the…
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Acknowledging the difference we make through musical and emotional awareness
After I conducted the London Philharmonic Orchestra in rehearsal, I had to acknowledge that my confidence completely dissipated. It’s been an arduous climb ever since, but it seems like there is now more of the mountain below me than above. Following that humiliating experience, one of the questions I constantly asked myself is “what difference am I making?” And I realized that was the wrong question. Musicians living in their heads We spend so much of our lives chasing the technical perfection of our craft, that we often forget “there’s more to music than music.” The “heart” aspect of music is outwardly poo-pooed by most professional musicians – especially classical…
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What do musicians actually do? The ability to process emotions
As far back as I can remember, there has been at least one person who actually came up to me after I conducted a concert or show to say something. Most of the time it was pleasant, but occasionally it was a passive-aggressive dig about something they didn’t like, usually shared as a “you could have done that better” demand. Or maybe even a blatant “I deserve my money back” complaint. This is music. Go figure. Here’s the thing: Everyone had space. Processing deeper thoughts, emotions and feelings Most people don’t realize it, but whether they’re silently listening to a gentle Adagio by Mahler, or yelling and screaming with lungs…
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Technical precision or delivery of “goosebump moments”…choosing your focus
You can be a better musician by choosing to focus less on technical and functional precision, and more on what’s behind the music… the event, circumstance, environment, and combination of organized sounds, that create an as yet unexplained “goosebump moment.” Both are needed. But what’s your focus? It’s easier to make good music as a Brit. You may have heard that the British are generally a “reserved” people. We live on an island where, once upon a time, most everyone in the village knew your business. Therefore we learned to keep our lip tight and not divulge TMI (too much information) – especially gossip that is actually nobody’s business. Because…
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How to grow in musicianship and confidence and play with “more feeling”
I’m thinking of a movie – perhaps it was “Fame“? – in which I hear an elderly ballet mistress with a strong accent yelling at her poor apprehensive ducklings to perform with “more feeeleeng!” Musicians get that a lot, too: “Play with more feeling!” But what does that mean? We don’t know. Only those saying it know what they are referring to, and our lessons are so focused on technical agility and perfection that there’s no time to explore this “more feeling” idea. Of course, that completely undermines students’ confidence. We think we will never get it. We don’t understand. I’m trying, but clearly I’m failing. These thoughts still go…
