“Don’t go to music school”

Tags

arts, Education, music industry

“Penguin questioning by mimooh” by Mimooh – Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons – http://bit.ly/1Nkzxok

Hmmm… 

When I made the decision to become a music major, I didn’t allow the question of practicality into my head. I remember saying things like, “Mooooom, it’s what I do!” “It’s meeeeee!” and “I can’t live without it!!!”

At times, musicians who are already working professionally have acquired a comprehensive education in music before reaching college. A music degree would not necessarily enhance their careers. Language study, literature, or history might make more sense.

Lately, though, I have gotten to know several accomplished musicians (not yet professional level) who have either double-majored (solo instrument/biochemistry, solo instrument/computer science, solo instrument/liberal arts) or chosen other fields while hoping to continue with music, professionally or “on the side,” after college.

Students’ reasons for going to college seem to be far different in 2015 than in past decades. Tuition has become so expensive, fewer students can afford to spend time in college exploring their interests and deciding what kind of job they might want to have post-graduation. Priorities have shifted, making it far more important to choose a major that corresponds with the best job prospects. Student loans go on and on, so having a decent salary soon after graduation is paramount.

Schools with which I am familiar have stopped offering “fun” courses, concentrating on business training instead. At UMass/Amherst, for example, it was easy to sign up for private music lessons for one credit through the university whether one was a degree student or not. The Continuing Education department offered tap dancing, drawing for beginners, and adult piano class for years. Now the summer catalog features classes in arts management, languages, and wind energy. Take a look at the Fall Continuing Ed. course listings here. Want tap dancing? Photography? Drawing? Try someplace else.

In Connecticut, students would hang out at the jazz department at The Hartt School in the evenings. Faculty would jam along with students for camaraderie and fun. What an opportunity! For the past few years, though, the place has been quiet after 5:00 p.m. One professor told me that students just want their piece of paper (degree).

In addition, I have heard that high school guidance counselors have been recommending against going to music school. Why? The changing job market is undoubtedly a major consideration. What is happening to pursuing things one is curious about? That seems to be more elusive.

Funding has shriveled so much recently that concert series have been canceled. Orchestras, opera companies, and smaller groups have disbanded. Players in surviving organizations have taken major pay cuts.

It is true that only a small number of those pursuing a major career in music will actually “make it big.” Even with a great deal of talent, luck is required. Having money and knowing influential people both make a difference, Being ready for one’s luck is crucial. And even then, there are no guarantees.

Do these scenarios sound familiar? Is this why Bert Stratton recommends, in his New York Times op-ed piece, not going to music school?

A different writer provides an accurate list of what is needed to make it as a pro.

Paul Weller of Salon talks about the music industry today.

Further thoughts…

With all this in mind, my goal in teaching has always been to instill a love of music in my students. When a child is grown, I would like for him/her to know what is happening when attending a concert, listening to a soundtrack, and educating his/her own children later on. Isn’t this where informed audiences come from? Future supporters of the arts? Savvy board members? Donors with an eye on sustaining the arts for generations?

Audiences and financial support are crucial. Aren’t people who were exposed to music as children more likely to be enthusiastic participants in adulthood?

… and links

Top 10 Reasons to Support the Arts, by Randy Cohen

From kidsmusiccorne.co.ukr:
Why is music important?

12 Amazing Things Scientists Discovered about Music This Year

Throw out the bath water! An excellent article about breaking down fences, expanding the definition of art to be friendlier and inclusive:

Each of these articles is relevant to the place music occupies in today’s world. In the interest of a civilized society, we all need to care so music remains in our schools, our concert halls, and all of our lives.

What in this dialogue resonates with you? Would you send your students to music school? Your children? How are you engaged in encouraging creative expression?

★ ☆.•*´¨`*•.¸¸.• ヅ★

Please take a look at my e-book!

“Goal-oriented Practice”
Are you practicing safely? How do you approach physically demanding works? Do you power through when the pressure is on? How do you guide your students?

Do you have a plan for putting difficult pieces together at performance tempo?

This book will help you take a step back, save practice time, learn more music, and perform with confidence.

50% off!!!  Absolutely NO JARGON!  Even my non-musician little sister says so.

Click on the link to see the book intro, table of contents, and reader comments.

What did you find here?  What would you like to see? Comments welcome!

If this post has been helpful and you think your friends and contacts would benefit from reading it, please share.

I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks!

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Further discussion: ergonomic instruments, injuries, perfect pitch

Tags

Don Ehrlich, ergonomic instruments, ergonomic viola, injury, music education, pedagogy, perfect pitch, recovery, surgery, updates

Town crier in Plymouth, Devon, England, 2014. By Sullivanthepoet. (Own work.) [CC0], via Wikimedia Commons

New information updates previous blog posts!  Recent input informs the way we handle injuries, where each of us is in the perfect pitch conversation, and ergonomic instrument development.

First, Don Ehrlich, who plays an ergonomic viola, posted this comment on Facebook:

Don:  Hi Gretchen, An interesting point in time that this [link to my guest post] reached my computer. You don’t know this: The injury to my right thumb got worse and worse. For example, I played a performance of Bach’s 3rd Brandenburg Concerto, where in rehearsals I couldn’t get my bow to behave as I wanted it to. (It did work out in the performance, thank heavens.) Turns out to have been a broken tendon. I found a Very Good hand surgeon in Kaiser South San Francisco. He operated on me on April 13. I’m only now in recovery, trying to regain my skill, strength and endurance. Today I had an appointment with my physical therapist, one recommended by my surgeon. He is weaning me off my range-of-motion exercises and giving me strengthening exercises. Life is never easy, I guess. There is a new-styled frog for violin/viola bows, the Galliane frog. It’s supposed to be ergonomic, though I don’t know how. I was hoping to have it in place already, for my recovery, but that hasn’t happened yet. I can keep you posted, if you like.

Gretchen:  Thanks for being in touch, Don. I was unaware that tendons could break. Best of luck, and yes, please keep me posted.

OK if I add your comment to your guest post?

Don:  Of course.

My physical therapists usually like to say to avoid surgery at all costs. Well, for me it became intolerable, and surgery became necessary.

Gretchen:  Thanks, Don. I know 2 other people who have had tendon surgery (a finger was trapped in closed position for both). They are completely back to normal now; one is a pianist.

I’m glad you did it, given the circumstances.

Don Ehrlich’s guest post:

http://gretchensaathoff.com/2009/11/07/guest-post-by-don-ehrlich-s-f-violist/

A previous post about playing with pain and ergonomic instruments:

http://gretchensaathoff.com/2009/10/31/are-you-playing-with-pain-ergonomic-instruments/

A related article:

Ergonomic Advice for Specific Instruments
http://www.artist-musikerhalsan.se/en/musician-ergonomics/3-ergonomic-advice-specific-instruments

Another Facebook find, from Beth Parker:

Science Has Great News for People Who Can’t Sing
http://www.interlude.hk/front/science-great-news-people-cant-sing/

A related discussion:

Perfect pitch and relative pitch: how do they differ?
http://gretchensaathoff.com/2015/05/14/perfect-pitch-and-relative-pitch-how-are-they-different/

and my e-book!

“Goal-oriented Practice”
Are you practicing safely? How do you approach physically demanding works? Do you power through when the pressure is on? How do you guide your students?

This book will help you take a step back, save practice time, learn more music, and perform with confidence.

50% off!!!

What did you find here?  What would you like to see? Comments welcome!

If this post has been helpful and you think your friends and contacts would benefit from reading it, please share.

I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks!

Many thanks to Don Ehrlich and Beth Parker. 

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The single most important thing you can do right now to improve your practice sessions

Tags

Music, music education, piano pedagogy, practice

Image via Wikipedia

 

​How often do you spend hours practicing, only to realize later that much of that time was wasted?  Do you find that you need to revise your plan as you go along from time to time?

If the answer is anything other than “occasionally,” you can do something about it.  Practicing does not have to be unconscious.

Life happens.  You get a phone call, expecting it to be brief, and it turns into something else.  Or someone comes to the door.  Your child’s school calls, and now you have to drop everything to pick up your daughter.  Schedule changes happen ever 5 minutes some days, it seems.

You had planned on having a block of uninterrupted practice time, and then this happened.  Sticking to your original plan won’t work.  How are you going to learn all that music?

Deciding what to do when you need to change plans

Make a plan for this practice session based on what you can realistically touch upon in the time available.

If some of your planned time has been derailed today, make a new plan.

• Less time per piece/section
• Save some repertoire for next time
• Look at the music you need to do soon
• Keep notes about what you left out; be sure to look at it next time

Adjusting your plans results in better practice than attempting to do everything, regardless.

Reserve part of your consciousness in order to self-journal your practice in your head.

• How much time have you spent on one passage?
• After a few minutes, are you making progress?

You may want to switch to something else for the time being.

If taking a minute every so often to assess your progress just doesn’t happen, try setting an alarm for every 20-30 minutes.  Sometimes musicians, myself included, become completely involved in the music and don’t want to stop.

Tailor today’s practice to the way you feel.

• If you are tired or under the weather, practicing at performance tempo can wait a day or two.
• If you are feeling pressured by deadlines or having too little time, practicing faster and faster is not likely to help.  If you are conscious of this as a tendency, you can set a slightly slower tempo and see better results.  The hardest part of doing that is realizing that you’re caught up in going faster because of a time crunch!

If you find yourself yelling at the composer, the instrument, the editor, the publisher, the wrong notes, or yourself, something is wrong.  None of that is helpful.  Take a step back, take a deep breath, and try another approach.

It’s not about the time you put in.  It’s about the music.

Identifying what needs to be done today, right now, can help you meet a deadline.

During college, I felt that putting in a certain number of hours per day/week meant that I was progressing. And then I found a wonderful teacher who was able to convey what was important. Learning the music well is the game plan, not awarding points for time spent.

I know from personal experience that revising one’s practice plan on the spot is easier said than done. But it is possible, and you’ll be saner for it. By being aware of how we use our practice time, we can obtain better results. Even if we reach the end of our available time today without realizing what happened, we can refocus tomorrow.

Do you have a habit of self-monitoring your practice sessions?  Or do you have regrets after you’re finished for the day?  Please share your thoughts in the comment section below!

Updated from March 2010

Related articles

• Debunking the Myth of the 10,000-Hours Rule: What It Actually Takes to Reach Genius-Level Excellence, by Maria Popova
  
• Do you practice with self-compassion? (gretchenspianos.wordpress.com)
  
• Learn music like a crossword! (gretchenspianos.wordpress.com)
• How to learn piano and organ fugues (gretchenspianos.wordpress.com)
• How to improve your sight-reading (gretchenspianos.wordpress.com)
• After your audition (gretchenspianos.wordpress.com)

For more about practicing, all in one place, take a look at my e-book!

Goal-oriented Practice
New review by pianist and conductor Andrei Strizek

Introduction, Table of Contents, Reviews, Readers’ Comments.

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Remembering Jean Ritchie, 12/8/22-6/1/15

Tags

Daily Kos, Jean Ritchie, Long Island Hall of Fame, NPR, NY Times

Jean Ritchie with her sons, Peter (L) and Jon Pickow

Jean Ritchie, the wonderful folksinger who was born in Appalachia and brought the dulcimer to a much wider audience, died on Monday at the age of 92.

Harp on the willow tree, now it is hung.
One man, one faith, one God, to them I clung.
Sweet were the songs of life, now they are sung.
Harp on the willow tree, now it is hung.

– Jean Ritchie (from Epitaph for Myself)
from Jon Pickow’s Facebook page

I had the pleasure of meeting Jean at a Christmas party at her home in Port Washington, Long Island.  Her son Jon had invited the entire Norman Luboff Choir.  We were on break from a tour.

Meeting Jean and being at the party was such a delightful experience, one I shall always remember.

My impression, on hearing the guests, all folksingers, share songs in turn:

Six or eight songs had been sung, and now it was Jean’s turn.  She was standing with her back to the room, washing dishes.  Had that been me, I may have asked others to sing, delaying my contribution until I had finished what I was doing.  Not Jean.  She continued washing dishes and sang beautifully!

Isn’t that wonderful? It wasn’t a show. She had no need to change a thing: she didn’t turn to face the audience, didn’t put on more makeup or change clothes. She didn’t ask for more light. There was no printed program. She just sang. Singing wasn’t something different. It’s who she was. I have always admired that.

You can find more about my impressions of the party and the wonderful folksinging guests here:

Authenticity in Performing

New York Times obituary by Margalit Fox:
http://nyti.ms/1AOebha
Be sure to scroll down to watch a video of Jean singing “Shady Grove” while accompanying herself on the dulcimer.

from NPR:
http://n.pr/1RI8kOE

The Wall Street Journal
http://on.wsj.com/1QcmvOS

Lexington (KY) Herald-Ledger editorial:
Jean Ritchie, a righteous voice of Kentucky

The Courier-Journal:
http://cjky.it/1GpeL7p

Jean Ritchie’s Induction into the Long Island Hall of Fame:
http://nyti.ms/1EYlOwL

from AMP, Alternate Music Press:
http://alternatemusicpress.com/features/jeanritchie.html
includes discography and books by Jean Ritchie

from The Mudcat Café:
http://bit.ly/1APmU2O
featuring an exhaustive list of related links

from DailyKos.com:
http://bit.ly/1QabRbh
More videos!

Jean Ritchie’s memoir:
Singing Family of the Cumberlands

DVD:
Mountain Born:  The Jean Ritchie Story
KET Teacher’s Guide

Memorial donations:
http://www.appalachianvoices.org/

Rest in peace, Jean.  We will miss you greatly.

If your think your friends/network would find this useful, please share it with them — I would greatly appreciate it. 

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Recent discoveries: links to continue previous conversations

Tags

blog-related articles, congregational singing, links, music education, pedagogy

Source:  Wikimediacommons
File:  Nuovo_regno,_fine_della_XVIII_dinastia,_conversazione,
1352-1336 ac ca, da el amarna poi hermopolis.JPG

The links provided in this post will take you to articles related to recent posts on this blog.  Links to my posts are also listed here.  Please take a minute to look around! Comments welcome!

on Congregational Singing:

From TheologyInWorship.com, “Why We Should Still Be Using Hymnals”

Which points do you agree or disagree with?

Also from TheologyInWorship, “Solutions for a Church that Just Won’t Sing”

What do you think?

Thanks to Nancy Andersen for posting both links on Facebook!

For your convenience, here are links to each blog post in my series on Congregational Singing:

Part I
Why choosing music that is singable by untrained congregants is crucial.

Part II
What to look for when choosing music for congregations.

Part III
This rock song could be adapted for congregation, choir, or both (video).

Part IV
An astute reader’s comment.

Part V
How to introduce new hymns/worship songs.

Part VI
Readers’ responses to Part V.

Part VII
Resources for alternatives to standard hymns.

*****

on Perfect Pitch:

From the University of Chicago:  “Acquiring Perfect Pitch May Be Possible for Some Adults”

Thanks to Beth Parker for this!

My post about perfect pitch (64 comments!)
“Perfect Pitch and Relative Pitch:  How do they Differ?”

*****

on Practicing:

From Interlude.HK:  “Ten Tips for Productive Practice”

Practice tips from my blog:

“Optimize Your Practice Time!”
How do you manage your precious practice time?

How Much does Practice Factor into Elite Performance?
with a link to an article in the New York Times.

“A Wonderful Practice Day”
Every practice day is different.  This is one scenario.

“What is a “Bad” Practice Day?”
We all have them…

“How Do You Return to Practicing after a Hiatus?”
We all end up taking breaks from time to time.  How do you handle it?

and my e-book!

“Goal-oriented Practice”
Please take a look!
My book will save you time.  In addition, you will soon be learning more music.  You will gain insight into teaching students as individuals.  Both you and they will perform with confidence.

50% off!!!

What did you find here?  What would you like to see? Comments welcome!

Happy practicing!

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How can we improve congregational singing? Part VI

Tags

alternative harmonizations, anthem, church choir, church music, congregational singing, Education, Hymnal, music education, new hymns

Source: Pixabay

The following conversation, in response to Part V of this series, took place on Facebook:

• Contributor Hi Gretchen, what’s your suggestion making sure the congregation doesn’t get thrown off when using alternative arrangements to accompany congregational singing (as opposed to using them when the choir is singing a hymn as an anthem)?
• Gretchen Saathoff  Hmm… I’ll think about it! At Riverside, it’s not a problem. Have the choir sing the melody, disperse the choir throughout the congregation, try the Hymn of the Month approach, Try practicing the alternative arrangement for 2 minutes with the congregation, then use it in the hymn. Use the traditional harmonization for all verses except the last. That way, the congregation has been singing the tune for several verses already.
• Gretchen Saathoff  And try not to go too far afield with the alternate harmonization. The green Lutheran hymnal that replaced the red one had so many funky arrangements, they made very little sense. So why would anyone want to sing them.
• Contributor  Thanks, Gretchen. Good advice here. There is a new red Lutheran hymnal, the ELW, that kept some of the old arrangements from the green LBW, and has lots of new hymns without harmonization, just melodies. So that helps. (But they left off the time  signatures, which leads to confusion.) But if the hymn is new, even if only the melody is printed, the alternative arrangement still challenges the ear. And about the funky arrangements, people who can sing parts, oftentimes can sing even the funky ones, and some need to do that, because the melody is too high for them. I like the idea of practicing the alternative arrangement with the congregation – hadn’t thought of it as a possibility before!
• Gretchen Saathoff  No time sigs? Not especially helpful, I’d think.
  Also, there is no need to use only the arrangements in the book. Change it so it works. Keep some parts and not others. Write a new one. If the melody is too high, something needs to change, such  as trasposing down or maybe singing the melody an octave lower. The congregation needs the choir to sing the melody in unison on alternate harmonizations. When they can hear it, they sing better.
• Contributor  Great advice!
• Gretchen Saathoff  There are lots of alternative harmonizations out there: volumes of hymns for organ, choral anthems, hymnals from other denominations, AGO website, etc. Plenty of hymn improvisations can be heard on YouTube.
• Gretchen Saathoff  Free association, you understand… and now it’s time for dinner! Back later.

★ ☆.•*´¨`*•.¸¸.• ヅ★

And a followup Facebook Message from yours truly:

During services in various denominations, I sometimes would play an alternative harmonization from a funky organ collection (The Sunday Morning Organist, I think). Just leave out the whiz bang awful parts when they don’t work.

Similarly, there are plenty of anthems that work, for the most part, but also have spots that don’t.  One example is asking the choir to hold the last note for 8 bars.  Does this make the ending better?  Does singing a high note improve the message?  That all depends on the choir, what else is going on (i.e. the keyboard part might be just fine on its own).  Sometimes a “festive” ending will be tacked on that isn’t really needed.  When the rest of the piece works well, I omit the parts that don’t work.

There may be one stanza of an anthem that splits into 8 parts, for example.  When you have 6 people in your choir that Sunday, you have to think on your feet and find something that works.  What do you have to keep?  The melody and the bass line?  Is the alto part more interesting than the tenor, or vice versa? 

If one stanza is too elaborate for your circumstances, then sing the rest of the anthem and omit that one.

If the printed introduction is too long or too short, or is confusing to your choir/congregation, then by all means change it!

Thanks so much to my contributor, who prefers to remain anonymous.

Which approaches have the most success in your church?Comments and suggestions welcome!

Please see previous posts in this series.

★ ☆.•*´¨`*•.¸¸.• ヅ★

While you’re here, please take a look at my ebook,

Goal-oriented Practice.  Now available at 50% off, only $10!

Free of musical jargon, it will save you time.  By identifying practice goals, you will soon be able to learn music more accurately, resulting in confident playing.

Click on the link to see reviews, book intro, and table of contents!

Thank you!

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How can we improve congregational singing? Part I

Tags

Alice Parker, congregational singing, Hymn, Iowa Through the Lens, Ministry Today, song, video

Marble Collegiate Church, New York. Photo source: Pixabay

Congregational singing, along with church attendance, has declined.  With this post, I am beginning a new series that looks at various aspects of the problem and suggests some steps we can take to improve on the current trend.

A Facebook friend, Joe Kenney, posts wonderful photographs on Iowa Through the Lens. He also writes songs for his church and plays them on guitar, as I recently discovered. When messaging each other about this, he very kindly shared two songs with me.  The songs mentioned here are both written by Michael W. Smith.  Joe has promised to send me some of his own compositions as well.

“It’s a little repetitive cause it’s meant to be a simple group anthem,” he said about the first song.

Upon listening to the audio, I felt that it was just repetitive enough for congregational use.  I responded, “Great rhythm, and nice variety with the guitar and then no guitar, and then it comes in again.”

Although large churches in major cities are well-attended, that is not the case in smaller towns.  Marble Collegiate Church (pictured above), The Riverside Church, and All Souls’ Unitarian Church, all located in New York City, have many congregants who are professional musicians, even opera singers.  Everyone should experience the singing of such congregations at least once!

Smaller congregations may not be so fortunate.  When their congregations are asked to sing, people in attendance are often reluctant to make an attempt.  In order to encourage participation, it is helpful to choose hymns/worship songs that are either familiar or easy to learn and remember by exactly that group of people.  Many, if not most, do not read music.  The range of most untrained voices is limited.  Highly syncopated rhythms are just too complicated to master quickly.

So, once again, repetition is helpful.  Having the melody, rhythm, harmony, and even the words repeat (think of the refrain, especially) results in greater comprehension and, thus, participation.

Joe’s second example featured a repetitive ending.  Again, perfect for a congregation.  I responded, “People could walk away singing the ending.  It’s a winning strategy.”

In “Why Isn’t Your Congregation Singing?“, an article in Ministry Today, Don Chapman says:

Bottom line:  Choosing worship songs that are singable by normal mortals will create a more unified, participatory worship experience for your church.

Do you agree?

Take a look at a master, Alice Parker, teaching a hymn to workshop participants.  Alice is the first to say she doesn’t have a great voice.  Notice, though, her modeling of the style, rhythm, and text emphasis.  She teaches songs without using the piano, even though she plays very well.  In fact, her teaching in this video, from a hymnal she compiled, is unusual in that she and the singers are using the music.

Please let me know what you think, either in the comments or via the contact form in the left sidebar.  And be sure to check back for the next installment, and upcoming guest posts!  We will continue to explore ways to encourage participation in congregational singing. There is a lot more to say!

Also, while you’re here, be sure to look at my ebook, “Goal-oriented Practice.”  It will save you practice time!  You will know the music securely and still have a chance to go outside and work on that snowman!  50% off!

A listening recommendation

Tags

Bill McGlaughlin, broadcast, classical, listening, Music, podcast, radio, subscribe, WFMT

Bill McGlaughlin, radio host of the syndicated “Exploring Music” on the WFMT radio network. Source: http://www.exploringmusic.org
Author: WFMT

As a follow up to my previous post, “Why listen?,” I want to let everyone know about a radio program I discovered only about 2 weeks ago.  It’s called Exploring Music.  The host, Bill McGlaughlin, has the unique ability to draw us in, resulting in our hearing even the most familiar works in new ways.

Last week, dedicated to the music of Tchaikovsky, the host talked briefly about first piano concerto, saying at its conclusion, “I’m amazed that Martha Argerich was able to stand and take a bow after that, rather than collapsing [paraphrase].”  I, for one, am very familiar with the piece and had never thought of it that way before.  I found it delightful.

Here is Argerich performing the piece:

In another of his programs, McGlaughlin chose a bassoon concerto, playing the recomposed version for viola and orchestra.  I have played the piano reduction with bassoonists, but was unaware that there was another version.  Due to the range difference and the change in timbre, I heard the piece in an entirely new, and most enjoyable, way.  The host took the time to find an excellent recording.

Exploring Music is available free on various radio stations and on the Internet.  There are also subscriptions available.  I can’t recommend it highly enough.

Happy listening!

 

 

A tribute to Robin Williams

Robin Williams. Source: Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain. Photographer’s Mate Airman Milosz Reterski – Navy NewsStand.
Actor/comedian Robin Williams entertains the crew of USS Enterprise, December 19, 2003 (cropped)
Actor/comedian Robin Williams entertains the crew of USS Enterprise (CVN 65) during a holiday special hosted by the United Service Organization (USO). The show took place in the ship’s hangar bay and featured the visiting Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Richard Myers, NASCAR driver Mike Wallace, and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) celebrity Kurt Angle. The shirt worn in the picture is the popular “I Love (Heart) New York” translated into Arabic.

So many people are posting on Facebook upon learning of Robin Williams’ apparent suicide.  I posted, too, then tried to do something else.  I feel compelled to post here as well.

Read the NY Times article

Depression needs to receive much more press and public discussion.  Comedians, actors, artists, musicians, dancers, writers… often struggle a great deal, unbeknownst to the public.

Toni Nadal, who is Rafael Nadal’s uncle and coach, once said in an interview that people just don’t get it.  They see what happens during the performance (or, in his case, the tennis tournament) and think that represents the artist’s/player’s daily life.

I agree.  People don’t see what happens in everyday life, whether it’s jet lag, lack of sleep, performing/rehearsing when under the weather, altitude changes, relationship issues, sleeping in a different bed every night… it’s a very long list.  In tennis, even the balls are different from tournament to tournament.  They come off the player’s racquet differently, react to weather conditions, and travel through the air differently in each location.

From what I’ve read, people with a well-developed sense of humor are often depressed.  Harvey Korman, for example, was known to have struggled with major depression throughout his life.

So Robin Williams’ death, in some ways, should come as no surprise.  We need to pay more attention.

R.I.P., Robin Williams.  Thanks for all you gave us.

Please share your thoughts.

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“Hit the Reset Button in Your Brain”

Reset button. Source: Wikimedia Commons

A fascinating piece by Dr. Daniel Levitin of McGill University appears in today’s New York Times.

Dr. Levitin writes about the way we arrive at solutions, advocating dedicated project times interspersed with listening to music, taking a walk, or just plain daydreaming. He suggests that our brains, which assimilate so much more information with ever-improving data delivery, need to take breaks in order to function well.

He goes on to suggest that we check email, text messages, and voicemail only during certain times of day, turning off our devices at other times.

Very interesting!

Speaking for myself, I will hear my phone beep when a text message arrives or Facebook sends an alert to my phone.  I always want to know who it is!  I will stop doing whatever task is at hand, whether that is computer work, practicing, or something else like reading a book.  Then I will call the person back, comment on Facebook, or send an email.

During one recent practice session, I was awaiting directions to a rehearsal venue.  So I practiced with my phone on.  You can guess what happened:  I texted quite a bit more than I practiced.

I have turned off my devices for years in order to practice or get other work done.  It’s refreshing to read Dr. Levitin’s suggestions about doing exactly that.

What do you think?

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