...is that musical information/knowledge is not owned by any one person. It is for everyone.
You NEED to ask questions to get better... so swallow your pride and ask.
You NEED to share your experience and knowledge to help others get better... so realize that you don't OWN any part of music exclusively.
(Musicians who are scared of letting go of their 'secrets' are usually scared that others will become greater than them if they share their knowledge so they try to shroud it in mystery - these people eventually alienate themselves)
If you meet someone like this who tries to evade answering a question directly, simply move on and find someone who will answer it, do the required work, and then start looking for the next question you need to ask.
Finally, it should be the case that all of us will always be on both sides of the fence here, in the sense that one should always have questions to ask and answers to share. I'm not sure that one could ever be so good that there are no more questions left to ask...
Friday 25 November 2011
Friday 18 November 2011
Be KIND to yourself
The following is a lesson I learned (and am still learning) from Kenny
Werner's book 'Effortless Mastery':
BE KIND TO YOURSELF!
As musicians we have created a culture of competition. Everyone is out there trying to be better than the next guy. This causes us to hate ourselves, and good music in general, because every time we hear incredible music by a talented musician we start making excuses for our own lack of ability. We end up harbouring resentment for the musician who is better than us, and get down on ourselves for not being better.
The TRUTH is this... There will always be someone 'better' than you... And MUSIC is not going to stop if you get upset with it... BUT there will always be enough music to go around for all of us to play and enjoy it.
The SOLUTION... Be KIND to yourself.
In other words, accept that where you are in your development is not a bad place, just another point in a long journey. Be THANKFUL for the giftings of others. Make a decision to learn from them. Remember that they didn't get there through luck. Hard work did it for them and will also do it for you.
The moment you learn this lesson you will free yourself from the burden of competition, and start to build relationships with the musicians who you now respect. And as I have said in this blog before, if music is about anything, it's about COMMUNITY.
The fine print: This only works if you are working at developing your own abilities. If you are not, you cannot learn to be kind to yourself because your problem is laziness and a lack of love for music.
Werner's book 'Effortless Mastery':
BE KIND TO YOURSELF!
As musicians we have created a culture of competition. Everyone is out there trying to be better than the next guy. This causes us to hate ourselves, and good music in general, because every time we hear incredible music by a talented musician we start making excuses for our own lack of ability. We end up harbouring resentment for the musician who is better than us, and get down on ourselves for not being better.
The TRUTH is this... There will always be someone 'better' than you... And MUSIC is not going to stop if you get upset with it... BUT there will always be enough music to go around for all of us to play and enjoy it.
The SOLUTION... Be KIND to yourself.
In other words, accept that where you are in your development is not a bad place, just another point in a long journey. Be THANKFUL for the giftings of others. Make a decision to learn from them. Remember that they didn't get there through luck. Hard work did it for them and will also do it for you.
The moment you learn this lesson you will free yourself from the burden of competition, and start to build relationships with the musicians who you now respect. And as I have said in this blog before, if music is about anything, it's about COMMUNITY.
The fine print: This only works if you are working at developing your own abilities. If you are not, you cannot learn to be kind to yourself because your problem is laziness and a lack of love for music.
Tuesday 8 November 2011
How much do we really love music?
Very quick one today:
Think of your favourite foods. Now imagine a table full of them, and only you to eat them. Now imagine that you have to choose between eating the food or practising your instrument for an hour... Which sounds more appealing?
One of the problems with us musicians today is I think we often claim to love music much more than we actually love it. And if we don't love it that much, what will drive us to be better at it?
Something to think about...
Think of your favourite foods. Now imagine a table full of them, and only you to eat them. Now imagine that you have to choose between eating the food or practising your instrument for an hour... Which sounds more appealing?
One of the problems with us musicians today is I think we often claim to love music much more than we actually love it. And if we don't love it that much, what will drive us to be better at it?
Something to think about...
Monday 7 November 2011
You don't have to be a good musician to be a great musician...
I was talking to my Grade 9 music class the other day about what makes a great musician, and a thought struck me... Who is the ultimate judge of what is great music?
Us musicians believe that other musicians are the ones we should try to impress, and we spend hours and hours honing our 'chops' so we can play faster and more technically. We believe that if we could just nail that one Keith Jarrett solo, or play freely on 'Giant Steps' then we would be known as a 'great' player. The problem is there are already thousands of other guys who can do those things already, and although they may be good many of them have not achieved 'greatness'.
So ultimately it cannot be your playing ability alone that makes you great. In fact, I'd like to suggest that it has almost nothing to do with it... I believe that what makes a great musician is the story that is told through their music every time they play. You see, your audience doesn't care about your 'chops'. They came to see you play because they want to feel your music and be moved by it. If you do this for them they will tell others about it, and these others will come to receive the same experience. Do this enough times for enough people, and you will have become 'great', because having an audience (or following) who believes in what you do is the only way to be great in ANYTHING.
Nobody in history became great by hiding in their room and talking to themselves - so why do we (musicians) think it'll work for us?
Us musicians believe that other musicians are the ones we should try to impress, and we spend hours and hours honing our 'chops' so we can play faster and more technically. We believe that if we could just nail that one Keith Jarrett solo, or play freely on 'Giant Steps' then we would be known as a 'great' player. The problem is there are already thousands of other guys who can do those things already, and although they may be good many of them have not achieved 'greatness'.
So ultimately it cannot be your playing ability alone that makes you great. In fact, I'd like to suggest that it has almost nothing to do with it... I believe that what makes a great musician is the story that is told through their music every time they play. You see, your audience doesn't care about your 'chops'. They came to see you play because they want to feel your music and be moved by it. If you do this for them they will tell others about it, and these others will come to receive the same experience. Do this enough times for enough people, and you will have become 'great', because having an audience (or following) who believes in what you do is the only way to be great in ANYTHING.
Nobody in history became great by hiding in their room and talking to themselves - so why do we (musicians) think it'll work for us?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)