Claudio Arrau
“I think it’s beautiful to practice. I LOVE to practice.”
-Claudio Arrau, pianist*
To be a musician is to be someone who practices.
Day after day, we musicians work in solitude to learn new repertoire, refine old repertoire, and polish our skills.
Most performers also rehearse with others, applying their solitary efforts in groups large and small.
The demands of daily practice prove too much for some aspiring artists, but affirmations can powerfully fuel any artist’s drive to work.
The Creative Power of Affirmations
Affirmations are positive self-statements that can be uttered mentally or aloud. They help generate internal states that boost creativity and motivation (see “Positive Mood Allows Brain to Think More Creatively” in Science News).
In truth, the things we say to ourselves before, during, and after practice have potent effects: “Self-talk can be positive, negative, or neutral, but it almost always has some influence on our behavior,” wrote psychologists Paul Salmon & Robert Meyer in Notes from the Green Room (p. 68).
“Self-talk can be positive, negative, or neutral, but it almost always has some influence on our behavior.”
The following 10 affirmations help generate positivity in music practice.
Try them individually or as a set, during practice sessions and throughout each day, to help unleash your creative energy and devotion.
10 Affirmations that Inspire Music Practice
- “I’m grateful to be able to make music.”
- “I open my heart to the richness of my musical adventure.”
- “I embrace challenges as opportunities to advance.”
- “I’m confident in my abilities.”
- “I trust in my capacity to grow.”
- “I look forward to today’s discoveries.”
- “It’s beautiful to practice. I love to practice.”
- “Music is my true love.”
- “I’m fortunate to be able to pursue my love of music.”
- “I’m thankful to all the people who have supported my music making.”
See The Musician’s Way for comprehensive strategies that energize music practice and performance.
Related posts
The Centered Performer
Optimizing Practice Time
Positivity
The Self-Motivated Musician
© 2013 Gerald Klickstein
Photo by Allan Warren via Wikimedia Commons
*David Dubal, Reflections from the Keyboard, (Music Sales Corp., 1997), p. 15.
Hello Gerald,
This is an interesting blog article that truly hit home for me. As a piano student, even when I was very young, I never found practicing to be drudgery. Much later in my life, I became a music major. We’re talking 37 years too late, actually! Here I was 48 years old and practicing 6-8 hours per day, 5-6 days per week. The time would fly by as I dug into my pieces. One day my piano teacher complimented me on my diligent practicing. I then let out my secret. I was enjoying every minute! This time was truly and sincerely the best time of my life.
Beautiful story, John – thanks for sharing it with the MW community. You vividly capture the personal richness of music making. I hope you’ll stop by often!
I have been playing guitar for about 7 years and I always felt that the best thing to have to really overcome adversity and strive to make beauty is to really be very confident. Even if your skill level isn’t where you want it to be confidence and having a strong sense of self worth will get you to where you want to go. Also the ability to just trust your instincts and really not stress out about it so much. I now think of music as an extension of my feelings and something my body moves towards.
Well said – self-worth and trust are crucial to creativity. We have to recognize that creative work brings meaning to our lives and then renew our commitment to create each day. That’s where affirmations come in – they remind us to access our best selves and help us act with zeal.