Expanding your horizons

We all know the joke: “How do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice, practice, practice…”

Sure, but practice what? All young musicians go through the mandatory phase of learning technical skills to be able to play their instrument. Their ideas and goals in their practice will be shaped by their teachers, their musical environment and the players who inspire them. At some point they will learn skills more related to music-making and artistry, which will shape their musicianship for years to come. Once they are done with school, it will be up to them to shape their own ability to grow as musicians. That is when having an open and curious mind is key to the growth process. Are you going to keep aiming for goals set for you by your former teachers or your environment or will you be able to set new goals for yourself? Will you even have the ability to look at your playing from the outside in an objective manner, without the benchmark that was given to you by others?

I know how easy it is to get stuck in one process, the one we are used to, that is familiar to us.

Yet the most uncomfortable explorations will be the most rewarding. If you spend your whole life working on the same things over and over again, you will be very good at them indeed, but you are depriving yourself of much richer ventures. But it takes courage to be willing to reconsider your playing honestly, take stock of what is good and what could improve. It takes courage because we all like security. Yet without risk, no progress is possible. And risk will be uncomfortable, not only on stage but also in the practice room. I always remind myself when I am frustrated with my own playing that it just means I am striving for something that I have not yet reached, and that being uncomfortable is normal at that point. I know some day I will get closer to my goal and understand it was all worth it. I explore ideas and concepts now that I would not have judged worthy of my attention a few years ago and I am happy to move past some of my former beliefs if I feel it makes me a better musician today.

Life as a musician is fascinating if you approach it this way because you are never done, your mind is always expanding itself to new ideas and growing from this process. You remain a student your whole life, even if you are fully aware of your own capabilities. So next time you are in the practice room, think for a second: how many of the ideas you are about to work on are new to you?