“Make the most seemingly insignificant part feel good for the rest of the ensemble.” -Wynton Marsalis The Musician’s Way, p. 123 We musicians spend vast amounts of time practicing alone. But to make music collectively, we need skills beyond those we rely...
“Whenever you practice or perform a composition, celebrate its unique message. Feel the excitement of listening to the music for the first time.” –The Musician’s Way, p. 74 All of us musicians learn and then set aside countless pieces. Sometimes, we...
“Don’t give notes. Give the meaning of the notes.” –Pablo Casals, cellist The Musician’s Way, p. 34 What does it take to give meaningful performances? To begin with, we have to awaken our imaginations so that every pitch we play or sing vibrates with life. Then,...
“Wherever you hope to travel on your musical journey, practice is the only route to getting there.” –The Musician’s Way, p. 3 Although deep practice is essential to musical excellence, in my experience, only a minority of rising musicians practice...
“The purpose of technique is to free the unconscious.” –David Mamet, playwright & director On Directing Film, p. 6 When we acquire robust technical skills, barriers to musical expression drop away. We internally “hear” musical gestures, and then we...
“Many musicians perform freely in front of people but become self-conscious when recording.” –The Musician’s Way, p. 222 For countless aspiring musicians, recording sessions are trying affairs. All too often, when the recording gear switches on, artistic and technical...
“To achieve your musical potential, you have to commit to the creative process, take risks, and follow your heart.” –The Musician’s Way, p. 112 To gain a deeper understanding of something, it often helps to consider its opposite. So, in the interest of helping you...
“Creativity requires the courage to let go of certainties.” –Erich Fromm, psychologist and author Is there a state of mind more adverse to creativity than rigid certainty? I doubt it. To create, we have to generate ideas that take us beyond the familiar confines of...
“Breaks are as vital to musicians as they are to athletes.” –The Musician’s Way, p. 75 If you’re like me, you typically become absorbed during practice sessions, so much so that it often doesn’t seem that breaks would be necessary. But even when we feel mentally...
