Tuning Slide #5.19- More on Being Professional

Weekly Reflections on Life and Music

Amateurs wait for inspiration. The real pros get up and go to work.
— Harvey Mackay

It seems to have become one of my standard ideas to expand on- the difference between amateurs and professionals. The old definition that professionals get paid while amateurs don’t is not the way to think about it- and not just because there are a lot of musicians who get paid very little to do their music and yet are truly professionals. It doesn’t take too many Google searches (usually about 1) to find a slew of things comparing the two.

One I found was on the website for the business magazine Inc. It starts with the question:

What qualities, traits, or habits set those who achieve incredible things apart from those who merely dream about it?

It is a good starting point. Far from the issue of how much you earn at whatever you are professional at, it has to do with what you achieve, moving beyond merely dreaming. For many years I was truly an amateur. Any dreams or desires I had for my music were simply that- dreams. Some of them hardly mentioned, others left behind when I graduated from college I never expected to become professional, under the more traditional definition- or any other. Then I came across some people who encouraged me to change my style, my music, and my habits. I hesitate to call myself a professional even now. At least I know I am more professional than I have ever been. Here, from that article on Inc. are some of the things that separate one from the other. My comments in italics.

◆ Amateurs stop when they achieve something. Professionals understand that the initial achievement is just the beginning.
◆ Amateurs think they are good at everything. Professionals understand their circles of competence.
[I always thought that once I did something, advanced beyond a certain point, I had arrived at wherever that achievement took me. If I got through the first section of Arban, on some level I should be able to do anything in the book. Not true. That first achievement- or even number 100 is not the end. As an amateur that is frustrating. As a professional it is energizing.]

◆ Amateurs give up at the first sign of trouble and assume they're failures. Professionals see failure as part of the path to growth and mastery.
[My “‘troubles” 50+ years ago led me to believe I wasn’t able to do the music. Hence it DID become failure, although purely self-imposed. Only when I looked back with a more realistic understanding did it begin to move me. It still amazes me!]

◆ Amateurs see feedback and coaching as someone criticizing them as a person. Professionals know they have weak spots and seek out thoughtful criticism.
◆ Amateurs focus on identifying their weaknesses and improving them. Professionals focus on their strengths and on finding people who are strong where they are weak.
[The first time I was doing some writing for a study guide for our church’s denominational publications, I got very upset at the person who was overseeing and editing the project. “How dare they edit what I’ve written. It’s so good. Fortunately, since they were a friend of mine, I didn’t say that. Instead, I learned that editing is essential in the final drafts of publications. I have since generally learned to look at advice as support, letting me see what I can do- and how to use it for what I am working on. Hence the ongoing use of the very basics of trumpet playing- long tones, scales, Arban and Clarke.]

◆ Amateurs focus on being right. Professionals focus on getting the best outcome.
◆ Amateurs focus on the short term. Professionals focus on the long term.
[As an amateur I wanted to be perfect. Every mistake I made was a failure. (See above!) Everything was about what was right in front of me- and it was often too far down the road. There was a sense of unreality. I have jokingly said that this is why I have never gotten very far in my guitar playing. I want to be able to play perfectly RIGHT NOW! I want to be able to be as good on the guitar as I am on the trumpet- and it doesn’t work that way. By the way, I am thinking about trying that guitar thing again. I'll see how well I can follow my own advice.]

◆ Amateurs show up inconsistently. Professionals show up every day.
[This can bring chaos to community-based music groups. Part of the problem is that we all usually have day jobs that allow us the freedom to be musicians. That can get in the way of our music. Some of that is unavoidable and part of the reason that while any community-based groups can be very good, we always know that we will never be at the level of the groups on the higher plane. But, if we put in our effort, make the plans to be there every day and add our part to it, our groups will achieve far more than we think we can! And that leads to the last of these:]

◆ Amateurs believe that the world should work the way they want it to. Professionals realize that they have to work with the world as they find it.
[Acceptance and mindfulness; knowing our current limits but not giving up on where we can go; going to work at our “day jobs” while allowing the music to grow within and through us. That’s what works!]

My biggest issue is that I can easily fall back into the old ways. Because I don’t earn my living playing music I can find myself thinking about backing off and being satisfied with wherever I am. That’s still my inner amateur at work. Just because one has been able to get past the early amateur shortcomings, doesn’t mean that one is able to always be “professional.” It is always a work in progress. I and my music are always works in progress. As long as I am moving in that direction, I am no longer just an amateur. I am a musician.

Where are you able to be professional today? Pick one or two and begin to think about how you can improve your musical game.

Tuning Slide 5.15- Teamwork as Harmony

Weekly Reflections on Life and Music

You don’t get harmony when everybody sings the same note.
— Steve Honey

The teamwork required of musicians is something we can

~ take for granted,
~ ignore (at our own peril), or
~ find ways to take hold of and learn to use.

It seems to me that musicians playing in ensembles of any size absolutely must find ways to build that teamwork. We all know that part of it is to learn to listen while we play, paying attention to the dynamics of the group, and learning how all the sounds meld together into a sound richer than the sound of any one instrument. A few years ago Esther Murimi wrote an article on the website for the Merriam School of Music highlighting nine lessons that musicians can give about successful teamwork. It came from members of a group called “A Far Cry”. Reflecting on music and life and how they can interact will almost always come to look at this. In my (sort-of) humble opinion, the lessons from musical teamwork are as significant as what can be learned from athletic teamwork.

Here are several of them, in italics, with my comments included between them.

• Play Your Part
      ⁃ The musicians [in the group] spend countless hours scrutinizing their individual parts so that they not only play their individual roles well but also to ensure their interpretation of the music is accurate. This requires a significant level of human thoughtfulness.

~~ I will be the first to admit that I don’t always know my part well enough I really have to. The quintet had a few new numbers and when we rehearsed last week I was not prepared on one of them. I thought I knew it well enough to get by at that rehearsal, but I didn’t. It was not that the part I was playing was difficult, it was how my part fits with the others. I was not prepared for that. I just could not put it together with the whole quintet sound. This week I am working at it and listening to a recording of the piece to get the feel of the overall fit. Teamwork!

• Don’t Compare
      ⁃ Although any good musician will have several external influences, he or she will ultimately need to let go of comparisons and make the music personal.

~~ There are all kinds of ways to make comparisons of ourselves. Sometimes it is to show how much better we are than others; then it can be how much worse we are (as an excuse to give up?); or it can be the style of some mentor or famous musician. Some of this might be helpful when trying to get the feel for something new or to learn a new style. In the end, though, what is YOUR style, not just you, but you and the group? Make it yours!

• Spend Your Energy Wisely
      ⁃ When a violist’s part is similar to that of the violin, the violist should put his or her energy into adding depth. In contrast, when a cellist’s part is a variation on the melody, he or she will try to echo the other instruments’ parts while giving it his or her own spin.
• Anticipate Needs
      ⁃ Musicians need to watch one another intently so they can sense where they are taking the music and how the rest of the group should support that.

~~ These two remind us that we are each to play our part- and sometimes our part isn’t the most important at that musical moment. Sometimes it is our task to support another part. My colleague trumpet player in the quintet and I were working on a couple pieces together one evening. We came to a certain place and I realized that what I was doing should not be played “forte” like the music indicated. I was a sound floor under a far more interesting first part. We decided that I should stay at no more than a “mezzo forte” to give the more interesting part something to build on. It worked- it was teamwork.

• Know The Score
      ⁃ When there’s no conductor to point out changes in the melodic or harmonic structure, each musician must fully understand what other players are doing so they can fully understand what they need to do to enhance the overall performance.

~~ The big band ensembles I have been playing with, like the quintet, do not have conductors. Our biggest issue can often become an understanding of the whole picture. No matter how good we may be at listening, what is happening in our part will often skew what we are hearing. How do the trumpets, whose sound goes out over the top of the band, help the sound merge into a balance? That’s where all of us working together in rehearsal can point out what any one of us individually is unable to hear. We often don’t know what is supposed to be happening in the score at certain points. We need to let each other know. Teamwork!

It is important to remember that each team is a unique blend of personalities, skills, and levels of ability. Teamwork takes those differences and helps us meld into a cohesive organization. Each team has a set of goals for that particular project, music, or performance. When we take the time to listen, distill the differences into strengths, and then put the parts into a whole, the vital importance of teamwork becomes the foundation. In music, business, athletics, or just plain old play, Ken Blanchard says it well:

None of us is as smart as all of us.

(Link for the nine lessons on teamwork.)

Tuning Slide 5.14- Acting Like a Pro- Attitude

Weekly Reflections on Life and Music

Discipline is for professionals.
Motivation is for amateurs.
― J.R. Rim

I know I must be a professional musician- I’m not getting paid. (Rim shot.) Okay, just kidding. But I got to thinking one day about one of the most surprising aspects of what I have learned over these past five years of growth and musical development. Professional musicians are often just like non-professionals- just different in how they think. When I first connected with the group of musicians at Shell Lake Big Band Camp and the Trumpet Workshop, I came at playing and practicing trumpet just like I always had. I was, I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that I was an “amateur” and I would never be anything but an amateur.

1. a person who engages in a pursuit, especially a sport, on an unpaid rather than a professional basis.
2. a person who is incompetent or inept at a particular activity. (Google)

I knew that the first was true, and the second? Well, if I wasn’t inept, I was at least less than many others. I didn’t think about becoming a professional. I just enjoyed playing the trumpet at whatever level I was able to reach and then just try to maintain it. What I discovered in the group at Shell Lake was that there is something different about professional musicians- their mindset. They have a different attitude, they have an outlook on playing music that is far from what I was doing. That quote at the top of the post this week is one of the things I learned. Motivation and discipline produce different results, although motivation can, and does, often lead to discipline and the resulting change of mind. (But that’s a whole other story for a different time. See Daniel Pink’s book, Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us.)

For this week I just want to talk about what it is that I have experienced with this change in mindset.

On their website, the magazine Inc. has an article about motivation vs discipline. In it retired pilot David Burke, who spent 23 years as an elite fighter pilot, says that:

"More than any other quality, discipline is what drives a person to succeed when faced with adversity. And that's what the real world is: adversity." Discipline, Burke continues, is what "drives you to do the work you don't enjoy, but is required. Discipline conquers fear. Discipline keeps you going when your curiosity, motivation, and excitement evaporate." (Link)

When I walked away from my first summer at Shell Lake, I was motivated! Man, was I motivated. But I wasn’t yet disciplined. It wasn’t that I didn’t know how to become disciplined, (I've been a professional in other fields for 40 plus years), I just didn’t think it was anything special in this area. After all, I was “only an amateur.” It was after a number of months of increased practicing, discovering a daily routine and the inner joy of just playing music at a higher level, that I ran across the dreaded “boredom.” Long tones! Clarke 1, 2, and 3! Over and over. Day in and day out. I was learning and growing, but the excitement did begin to evaporate. So I switched to willpower. But (and this is also for another day) I knew that willpower is a limited resource. If I had used too much of it just to get through the day, I wasn’t going to have any to pick up the horn.

That’s when discipline began to set in. Back to the article from Inc. Jim Rohn is considered to be America's Foremost Business Philosopher. He says:

"It takes consistent self-discipline to master the art of setting goals, time management, leadership, parenting and relationships. If we don't make consistent self-discipline part of our daily lives, the results we seek will be sporadic and elusive."

"It takes a consistent effort to truly manage our valuable time. Without it, we'll be consistently frustrated. Our time will be eaten up by others whose demands are stronger than our own," writes Rohn.

"It takes discipline to conquer the nagging voices in our minds: the fear of failure, the fear of success, the fear of poverty, the fear of a broken heart. It takes discipline to keep trying when that nagging voice within us brings up the possibility of failure." (Link)

What kept me going was that I had changed my attitude, my mindset. I know that sounds like willpower, but it wasn’t. It was routine and habit. It was not a whim or a “well, let’s try this now” kind of attitude. That is what the professionals really bring to the table and what we can learn from them.

There is one aspect of this that I can’t overlook- I had to believe it was worth the time and effort, or else why would I do it? If all I got out of it was a sense of drudgery, boring long tones and scales, well, that isn’t enough to keep going. I also began to experience what I am sure drives most professionals in any field, including music- the sense of accomplishment. Disciplined and intentional practice began to give better results. I was enjoying the music and the routine. The habit was real- and I began to feel like a musician. Yes, that is motivation producing because my goal became I wanted to continue to improve. I was no longer afraid of succeeding or willing to say that at my age, why try?

Consistency, done daily, with good time management overcomes the fears Rohn mentioned above. It conquers the nagging voice that says, “Yeah, that’s nice, but you’re just an amateur!”

Not any more. No, I am still not getting paid for being a musician. But thanks to that incredible group of trumpet players I engaged with at Shell Lake, I am in the midst of becoming a “pro.”

Find a group of people who challenge and inspire you, spend a lot of time with them, and it will change your life.
— Amy Poehler

Tuning Slide 5.3- Advice for a New Season

Weekly Reflections on Life and Music

Don't only practice your art, but force your way into its secrets; art deserves that, for it and knowledge can raise man to the Divine.
— Ludwig van Beethoven

Back in March, I found a post by Melissa Chu titled 25 “No-Nonsense” Lessons on Mastering Your Craft, According to Beethoven. As we all get ready for the post-summer back to basics time, I picked out and edited 7 of the 25 that seemed like good thought starters for this new year of The Tuning Slide. As usual with these types of posts, my reflections are in italics following each idea.

1. Work around your obstacles.

At age 26, Beethoven began experiencing hearing difficulties. Over time, his hearing worsened to the point that he became completely deaf. He was devastated and had suicidal thoughts, since he believed that this meant his music career was over. But later, he changed his mindset and was determined to continue producing music…. Beethoven composed some of his greatest works while he was deaf, including pieces such as Moonlight Sonata and Fur Elise. Everyone faces obstacles at points in their life. Instead of making excuses for why something won’t work, find a way to overcome your challenges.

[Many times the obstacles can actually help us by forcing us to get out of our comfort zone and find new ways to work and live. Most of us won’t be faced with anything as drastic as Beethoven’s deafness, but we can still get stalled. Don’t let that happen.]

2. You are never too good to get help.

Beethoven was acknowledged as a child prodigy by his father…. In his adult years… he was gaining popularity and success, but he still sought the instruction of others for feedback and improvement. The world’s best in any field have coaches and instructors to guide them in becoming even better.

[Find teachers at any age. I love learning and I have discovered that learning from others is one of the best ways. I have met a number of new teachers in the past few years- and the results have been astounding.]

3. Surround yourself with people who will contribute to your successes.

Beethoven moved to Vienna in the hopes of meeting Mozart. In the process, he was introduced to other important people in the process who would act as mentors and financial supporters. He surrounded himself with people who were enthusiastic about his work, enabling him to get motivational and financial support to continue his art. Your environment is one of the most important factors for your growth. By placing yourself somewhere that aligns with your goals, you can reach them much more quickly.

[But it isn’t just teachers who are around us. Don’t overlook your friends as part of your movement and growth. They don’t have to be only musicians, either. The right group of positive and supportive friends is always helpful!]

4. Be willing to wait.

Part of being strategic in releasing content is waiting for the right time. Sometimes choosing to act at a later time is wiser. Although Beethoven’s reputation as a piano virtuoso was rising, he chose to withhold works from publication until they would have a greater impact. Two years later, he had his first public performance. He decided to have his works published then, which proved to be a large financial success.

[Four years ago I thought that within a few months of intentional, regular practice I would be a truly superior trumpet player. I wanted to excel quickly. Well, that never happened. Some of the biggest and most significant changes that I worked for only happened in the past six weeks! I didn’t just sit and wait, though, which leads to the next one…]

5. Expect and plan for failures.

On the road to success, there will be a number of ups and downs. Instead of giving up or stalling, expect and plan for them. Although Beethoven was well-renowned during his life time, there were many times when his works were not well-received and his personal and family struggles made it difficult to make ends meet. Instead of becoming frustrated and giving up, he took a step back and evaluated his work so far. Doing so brought about a change in musical style as he decided to move in a different direction. His move influenced the shift in Classical music at the time.

[Failure isn’t the end. Ups and downs occur; plateaus happen. I came to realize that a plateau usually means I am about to make a move forward. My Inner Game self 2 knows that now and sees that as times of consolidation of resources to move on.]

6. Your tastes and preferences will evolve over time.

Beethoven’s work is divided into three periods: early, middle and late. In each period, he was influenced by different composers and environments. His own personal development and maturity affected his musical style as well. As we get older, our outlook on life and work changes. We might spend time being influenced by different people, or have events occur that change our approach to things.

[For me the change was in my outlook on life and how to move forward. I listened to my teachers, friends, and colleagues. The result was I discovered new things that I would never have expected to like. I continue to deepen my understandings of more contemporary jazz, for example, and have learned new understandings of mood, melody, and musicality as a result.]

7. There is always room to improve.

Even if we think we are good enough, we can always get better at something. This could mean putting in more work to improve our skills, or taking a different direction. Beethoven was quoted as saying:

“I am not satisfied with the work I have done so far. From now on I intend to take a new way.”

Midway through his music career, Beethoven had already composed a number of works. Yet, he still wanted to do even better. And if Beethoven thinks he can do better, then all of us can always strive to get better at what we do.

[That says a lot right there!]

The barriers are not erected which can say to aspiring talents and industry, 'Thus far and no farther.'
— Ludwig van Beethoven

So as I move into this fifth year of The Tuning Slide, I am as excited as I was when I began. These ideas from Beethoven will be woven in and through the posts in the year ahead. More ideas will be in the next couple of posts and then we will dig deeper. I am hoping to be a little more expansive in many posts and move beyond the specifics of the trumpet- but even when I stay with my main instrument, I plan on expanding into more general applications.

As always, if you want me to look into something, email me.

Barry[at]tuningslide[dot]net.

Tuning Slide 4.49- On Playing Together

Weekly Reflections on Life and Music

If I'm playing with a good band, I can last all night but a crappy, loud, out of tune band croaks my chops.
— Unknown

As that quote implies, the people we play with in our bands can make a big difference in how we play. While we may at times like to be the serious, top-shelf musician in our band, the truth is that such a position is not one that we truly want. In the long run, the best type of band to be in is one that is good and yet challenges us to be more than we have been. That begins with the idea of teamwork. In surfing the Internet I came across a number of articles that focus on this aspect of music and life. The first was from Engauge, a company in Great Britain that is in human resources and management consulting. The article, written by Vandy Massey was titled “Orchestras are a model for good teamwork”. There were seven elements in the list and they tell us a great deal about what we can learn in a band of any type that can then be applied to so many areas. As is my habit in these posts, the original material is in normal type and my comments are in italics.

◦ Knowledge – it’s important that everyone knows the repertoire. If not, there are bound to be hold-ups, mistakes or inconsistency as the wrong sheets of music are read, and confusion causes cacophony.

Another description for this is that knowledge keeps us all on the same page. That requires communication among the members of the team. Even for an orchestra, jazz band, or ensemble, it is more than just the repertoire, it is about the team environment and how we express that to each other. Often such communication needs to be a two-way circuit- each member needs to give helpful feedback to continue working on the same agenda.

◦ Resources – ensuring that everyone has all the equipment they need. Are the music stands in place, and is there enough seating, in the right order and at the correct distances from each other? It’s impossible to make sublime music without the right kit.

While this may not always apply to each of us individually, but resources are also part of the communication and knowledge system. Talk with each other; find the areas of uncertainty; make sure each member of the team is willing to do their own part on providing for the growth and betterment of the team.

◦ Culture – Is there a culture of participation or competition? Do all the musicians co-operate to ensure the right collection of instruments play at exactly the right moment at the perfect volume? Or are there some divas who make sure their sound is heard above all others – even when that’s not going to create the best overall experience for the audience

You can also call this the ambiance or environment of the group. Does the group feed you or drain you of energy. It is not about the individual, for example, it is about working together. If that is not a commonly accepted goal, it can be difficult. Sometimes groups have to work hard to fix a broken culture; other times the group just falls apart. With the right culture, built on the other things in this list, a group can grow and improve.

◦ Resilience – What happens if someone skips a beat? Do other members help carry the music? Or does blame culture mean that individuals are pilloried rather than supported.

If the team isn’t communicating and in agreement about the group’s purpose, it is hard to be resilient as a group. Group resilience is, as they say here, how do we respond when there is a mistake, someone makes a mistake or for some reason or another ends up in the wrong place at the wrong time? Positive and creative support allows the group to grow, to respond, to succeed.

◦ Commitment – Months of rehearsal and planning go into a performance. To make sure all the preparation pays off, every member must stay focused and committed to the last note.

If you are in a volunteer group, this can be the source of some of the greatest difficulties. The place of the group in a person’s priorities can get in the way of a commitment. While in any group there can be different levels of commitment, the focus of the group must remain important. Commitment means practicing the music and a willingness to make it the best music you can play. It means supporting the others in the team and being willing to work together.

◦ Sensitivity – Are individual members sensitive to and aware of the needs of the others? If they aren’t, there’s the potential for one person’s difficulties to diminish the overall listening experience. If everyone is aware and responsive, the conductor can adapt the sound at the flick of a baton.

If all I care about is my sound and my needs and my situation, the group will never make it, the teamwork will fall apart.

◦ Leadership – is the whole orchestra inspired and poised to entertain? Do they trust that their conductor will lead them through a flawless performance to rapturous applause?

Each of us is a leader to those around us, but a good group needs a team leader who can make a difference. In smaller ensembles we can learn “shared leadership,” but there is often one who leads if only by serving the whole team or helping set vision and direction. Is there one or sometimes two people in the group who have the ability to inspire you or others? How do YOU contribute to that leadership?

The last question I asked about your contribution to the leadership may be the central focus of the post. Be honest with yourself- are you a help or a hindrance? (Yes, any one of us can be a hindrance. Sometimes it is due to our own egos or just being in a bad mood.) Do you take the time to know the needs of the group and help provide them? Do you support the culture and positive environment of the group, helping it to be resilient? What is your commitment level and how sensitive are you to the other group members' needs? Put them together, how is your leadership helpful to the group and what can I do to continually improve?

Next rehearsal- take a moment to do this personal inventory and then build on it.

Tuning Slide 4.46- Being Free #2

Weekly Reflections on Life and Music

If you keep doing what you’ve always done, you will keep getting what you’ve always gotten.
— Various

Last week I started a series based on a blog post at Planet of Success. It is about 10 powerful ways to free yourself if you are stuck. I took the concepts and riffed on them from my own experiences in the last 8-10 years to overcome self-defeating attitudes that kept me from changing and growing in my trumpet playing. Last week I looked at the first three:
1. Face your fears
2. Break your routine
3. Effect change, one step at a time

This week we take the next three and see where they can take us as we work to keep from staying stuck. Again, my thoughts are in italics.

4. Overcome the perception of impossibilities
✓ Feeling stuck in life … paralyzes us and diminishes our ability to see exciting new opportunities. Instead, we feel as if the options at hand are impossible to execute. If every solution you can think of seems impossible to accomplish, you’ll get even more stuck. … no progress can be made. nstead of getting trapped by these thinking patterns, try to explore your options… [T]ry to find the one solution that you like the most and commit to the decision.

It is not impossible to start a new career at least twice in one’s lifetime. Nor is it really too late to do it. I have seen many people over the years just kind of waste away into retirement- and spend many years moving toward it. It is not impossible to find new opportunities. As I have talked about with my trumpet playing, I was convinced that it would be impossible at my age (any age after about 40), to do anything about my shortcomings. Fortunately, I was wrong.

5. Be honest with yourself
✓ If we do want to break free from being stuck, it’s necessary to be honest with ourselves. Astonishingly, we almost always have the answer within ourselves. It might take some time to discover it, but it’s always there. The problem is that we do not act upon this knowledge. We prefer to keep this answer locked within ourselves.
Have the courage to at least think about the possible solution. It might be challenging to even consider acknowledging that you took a wrong path in life. But ultimately, it might prove to be better than suffering from this decision for the rest of your life.

Honesty. I have talked about this as part of the trio of honesty, openness, and willingness. The first honesty is to call BS on yourself when you say “I can’t do that!” or when we say “I don’t know what to do. It’s beyond me!” Neither is true. Because I had that moment of uncertainty at age 18, it does not mean I can’t do it now. Because I am trained in one area of life doesn’t mean I can’t get new training in my mid-40s or mid-60s for that matter. Admit that the biggest obstacle to getting where you want to go is YOU. That’s the first step of courage. The second is to say, “… and I don’t have to continue to block my own way!”

6. Change your perspective
✓ When we feel stuck in life, we most certainly do not have a good overview of the situation. Unfortunately, the feeling of being stuck in a rut can heavily affect our perception of life. It’s time to broaden your perspective!

▪ Stop walking the same path you’ve always chosen.
▪ Explore new perspectives by taking other paths.
▪ Ask yourself what your real goals are.
▪ Explore what you’re passionate about.
▪ Discover what it is that truly energizes you.
▪ Find your true purpose in life.
▪ Challenge yourself to have a vision for your life.

Discovering your vision and the pursuit of your passions can create a powerful drive. It can help you to liberate yourself from the vicious circle of being stuck.

That list above says more than I can absorb in a few moments. In essence, it replays that old cliche that if you keep doing the same things you will keep getting the same results. As long as I said I can’t change, that people my age can’t do that, someone with my history will fail, or I don’t know how that could happen- it won’t happen. Nothing will change if I don’t change. Nothing will improve if I don’t take the steps to make the change and improvement. That means looking at life from a whole new angle and finding out what I really want to see happen.

Remembering the first three things needed to get unstuck:
1. Face your fears
2. Break your routine
3. Effect change, one step at a time.

These were the prelude to everything else. I remember being asked to join a brass quintet, which I had never done in over 40 years of playing. (All three of those.) I remember deciding to get a trumpet teacher and then asking him. (All three of those.) I remember sitting with my teacher and him mentioning music camps and my then signing up for the Shell Lake Adult Big Band Workshop. (All three of those.) That’s when this week’s list came into play.

1. Things were no longer impossible. I did things I had never done before and began to see results, changes in my playing and increases in my skills.
2. I got honest with myself. I had been getting in my own way, but I also saw where I needed help in improvements. So I asked for help. My fears had been lessened, I had broken my routine of decades. I was taking it slowly, one issue at a time.
3. My perspective was changing. For one I began to see my third career in life included music. I was actually beginning to see myself as a “musician” and not having to excuse it away. Getting involved at Shell Lake with Mr. Baca’s trumpet workshop then gave these three items even more power and direction. I could see a vision, a movement, an honesty that was refreshing and exciting!

These first six things, interacting with each other and my new experiences, were life-changing on a surface level. That is where all change begins. We act our way into a new way of thinking, one small step or change or action at a time. After that, the changes get internalized, normalized. But that’s for next week.

Last week I asked you to take time this past week to find a fear that needed to be confronted or something in your routine that can be changed. Did you find a way to make a change? In the next week

• begin to look at those from last week and how your perception is changing,
• how you are no longer getting in your own way.
• What are you still saying is impossible?

Take it deeper- and keep moving forward.

Tuning Slide 4.29- Getting Technical Beyond Will

Weekly Reflections on Life and Music

Be stubborn about your goals and flexible about your methods.
–Unknown

One of the great fallacies of human endeavor is the idea of “willpower.” We often will hear that all something takes is enough willpower and we can do whatever we want. I did a quick Google-search on willpower and found many quotes that will tell you that willpower is what makes the difference between success and failure. Well, sadly, this is a myth, misconception, and almost surefire road to failure in the long run.

Willpower alone won’t do it.
No one has enough of it to get everything done.

Yes, you need the “will” to do something; you have to have the drive and desire to do what needs to be done. But just depending on willpower alone won’t cut it. Researchers in a number of fields with different experiments have shown that willpower is a limited quantity. If you spend your whole day exercising willpower to make sure you can get everything done, you will get home at night exhausted- your willpower will be shot, gone, depleted. It is actually more like a muscle than some hidden secret strength.

If I want to ride thirty miles on my bike, it will take more than exerting my “willpower” to complete it. I will not have the stamina, the physical strength, or the mental endurance to accomplish it. At least not without training.

Which is what my musical practice routine is- training to accomplish more. But there’s the catch of finite amounts of “willpower.”

Over the past month I have been focused on my physical exercise. I am working hard to losing weight and improving my overall health. I have been exerting more “willpower” to motivate myself to get to the gym and do my routine. During that time I was having a more difficult time getting beyond my basic daily trumpet routine. In fact, to be honest, I missed some days on the trumpet- often the days when I had to exert more “willpower” to get to the gym. It also impacted the time I have spent writing- the third of my personal trinity of self-growth.

Sometimes we have to suck it in and Just Do It!

Which is what I finally managed to do last week. First, I sat down and just played the horn with iReal Pro to get my creativity going again. Second, I pulled out the computer and just started writing. Third, I got in enough exercise to boost the energy. But I still need some work on how to fit all these together- the balance.

It seems to me that “willpower” is not one thing; it is several.
◆ Desire- the “want-to-do-it”;
◆ Discipline- the “plan-to-do-it”;
◆ Habit- the “do-it-every-day” pattern;
It is the combination of the three, as well as others, I am sure, that make what we call “willpower” successful.

Josiah Boornazian, one of the regular contributors at Learn Jazz Standards (https://www.learnjazzstandards.com/), had a post two weeks ago that explained why the habit part of “willpower” is important. The post is about what he calls Three Pivotal Exercises that can help one’s jazz technique. These three exercises are learning how to utilize technical studies of intervals, chords, and arpeggios in jazz. He makes sure to point out that there are many good and very useful technical studies that one can use, of course. (Link)

First, though, he gives his philosophy of using technical studies and urging people to think on three levels. While he is talking from the jazz genre, it applies just as well to any kind of skill we want to get better at.

#1: Firstly, we want to develop muscle memory and sharpen our physical intelligence. I call this “thinking with our fingers.”

#2: Secondly, we want to improve our ability to recognize chords and melodies by ear. I call this “thinking with our ears.”

#3: Thirdly, we want to sharpen our understanding of jazz theory, especially scale/chord theory, because it is so helpful for learning how to improvise fluently. I call this “thinking with our (theory) brains,” “thinking with our intellect,” or “thinking using concepts.”

I like his phrase “physical intelligence” to describe what we often call “muscle memory.” I have often been amazed at how practicing some of the basic technical studies like he recommends can apply so quickly and easily in so many different settings. It happened again recently in the community band I play in for the winter. We are playing the Carmina Burana suite which I surprisingly have never played before. In the 3rd movement there is a four measure run of tongued and slurred quarter notes in the basic G major scale. My brain with Self 2 recognized it immediately, although not consciously. My fingers responded with little hesitation and got it right the first time through. That is muscle memory, developed from jazz and technical studies.

The technical studies in the back of Getchell’s First Book of Practical Studies give a way of training for the physical, but also with the intervals to recognize the chord structures. I have been amazed at times how working these allows me to know what a piece of music is going to do- or at least be prepared for it. Whether it is a standard wind band piece or some comping behind a solo in a big band, that “aural” intelligence and awareness is invaluable.

That easily leads to Josiah’s third level, theory. We practice the technical studies, hear, and then experience the theory. Somewhere in our Self 2 we go- “Oh yeah! I know what that means” which gives Self 1 no reason to jump in and get worried.

One more thought related to the technical studies and their importance is to make sure we play them conscious of their sound and their musicality. It is difficult at times to get beyond simply playing it technically correct but with dull sound or poor musicality. Without looking at the sound and music, we will get bored. But with that awareness, we will develop the ability to play musically, no matter what the study!

It is always the music; always the sound. But more on that another time!

4.27 Tuning Slide- More Time In the Zone

Weekly Reflections on Life and Music

When the zone calls, you must listen. You never know how long being in the zone lasts. It is a cardinal rule - you must take advantage of every second that you are in the zone.

― John Passaro

There is a family story that my wife has enjoyed telling since, well, for a long time. It goes back to right after we were married. It was a wondrous Sunday afternoon and we were doing nothing. We were both in the living room. I was reading and she was doing something. I was aware she was talking to me. I would make a sound of assent and keep reading. Suddenly she stopped and was laughing.

“Did you hear what I just said?” she asked.

“Uh….[pause] [guiltily] No, what?”

“I said that the pink elephants are coming down the street trampling on all the flowers.”

Which I had said “Uh, huh” to without hearing.

I didn’t know about “flow” at that time. But I was in a state of flow in my reading. A few months ago I talked about flow as part of Barry Green’s music mastery pathway of “concentration.” He called it the “spirit of the zone. In that post I wrote:

Psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi named the concept of “flow in 1975 and been widely referred to in any different fields. It is also known as “being in the zone.” Flow

is the mental state of operation in which a person performing an activity is fully immersed in a feeling of energized focus, full involvement, and enjoyment in the process of the activity. In essence, flow is characterized by complete absorption in what one does, and a resulting loss in one's sense of space and time. (Link)

Requirements for flow can be:
◆ Intense and focused concentration on the present moment
◆ Merging of action and awareness
◆ A loss of reflective self-consciousness
◆ A sense of personal control or agency over the situation or activity
◆ A distortion of temporal experience, one's subjective experience of time is altered
◆ Experience of the activity as intrinsically rewarding

Very clearly I was in some kind of zone, or even state of flow as I was reading. I still experience that feeling when involved in a book- I am hyper-focused, I am not all that aware of what is happening around me, time is lost, and it is intrinsically rewarding. You can begin to see why this can apply to playing or listening to music, I am sure.

Digging a little deeper in that Wikipedia article I came across Owen Schaffer’s list (he studied under Csikszentmihalyi.) In 2013 he proposed 7 conditions for flow that summarize the above list:
◆ Knowing what to do
◆ Knowing how to do it
◆ Knowing how well you are doing
◆ Knowing where to go
◆ High perceived challenges
◆ High perceived skills
◆ Freedom from distractions
(Link)

Again the connections with music are hopefully clear. One thing it means is that to get into flow is not just something that happens on its own. It is not some magical, mysterious event that occurs when Self 2 gets in charge. Even the best Self 2 cannot get in the zone playing trumpet if it doesn’t know anything about the trumpet, music, or whatever. The Inner Game doesn’t just happens, it is planned for, developed, and, of course, the result of deliberate, focused practice.

Flow can come from, as the list indicates:
◦ Knowledge from learning (being taught), experience, and time. (What to do and how to do it.)
◦ Self-awareness and trust in Self 2 as you have grown and improved. (How well you are doing and where to go next.)
◦ Moving beyond the basics and pushing yourself to new heights that you know you can achieve. (High challenge and perception of your skills.)
◦ Focus, focus, focus, or mindfulness, mindfulness, mindfulness. (Freedom from distractions.)

When these conditions occur whether in the practice room, rehearsal hall, or on stage, the possibility for flow increases. Of course you still have to pay attention. We cannot forget in a performance that we are not observers. I remember a concert a few years ago when the band was playing an incredibly wonderful piece. I had a long passage of rests, probably at least 32 if not 64 measures. I fell into a listening zone (as opposed to a performance zone)- and almost missed my entry. But, as a result of working hard at knowing the piece and some of the above conditions, I heard the music moving to where I was to come it. It was intuitive as I picked up the horn and played. (But it was close!)

The Inner Game and Flow both show that “attitude” in an important piece of moving in the right direction. Attitude and action go together. Most of the time before we get into flow it is the actions that propel us forward. The old saying is that it is easier to act your way into a new way of thinking than think your way into a new way of acting. That can be called developing a habit, or experiencing the joys of what you want, rewiring the brain, or just plain grit. Attitude must come. If you continue to think you can’t- you won’t.

I found the following list on the Website “Play in the Zone” that we can take into the practice room and rehearsal hall to get us ready for Self 2 to work us into the zone.

9 Attitude Tweaks That Hold the Secret to Playing Your Best
1) Play freely. Don’t play to “not play badly”
2) Love the challenges
3) Accept what happens rather than getting frustrated or upset
4) Don’t care too much
5) Trust in yourself
6) Hear each note clearly before you play it
7) Be decisive, and commit fully to every phrase
8) Be relaxed about nerves
9) Focus on process, not outcome
(Link)

Three of those stand out for me this week.
• Play freely Don’t play to “not play badly.”
⁃ What a way for me to undermine and sabotage my goals, my practice, and especially my sound. I can only play as good as I can today, of course, but I have to play as good as I can today. It is not healthy to say “Well, as long as I don’t suck too badly…” I can’t go there. It won’t work. I will always suck.

• Love the challenges!
⁃ Sometimes the challenge is playing the Arban’s single tonguing exercises as well as I can play them, good sound, clarity, etc. Sometimes it is playing Arban’s Characteristic study #1 better than I did last time. Both are challenges. If I don’t take the challenge of the beginning of the Arban’s Book (or Clarke, Goldman, Getchell, etc.) I will never get to the challenges later in the books.

• Focus on process, not outcome!
⁃ Process does not mean doing it mechanically. It always means playing musically with good sound. Those are assumed. But how do I improve my skills if I don’t have a plan and a direction to what I am doing. Process, the steps and stages from here to there?

Which of the above are things that are important for you? These are all the marks of being a good student of your instrument. I will look at more of that next week and do some expanding on this.

Until then- build your attitude and enjoy what you are doing.

Tuning Slide 4.10- Mastery of Music #2: The High Road

Weekly Reflections on Life and Music

Success is not final, failure is not fatal:
it is the courage to continue that counts.
― Winston S. Churchill

A few weeks ago I posted the first in a series discussing the “pathways to true artistry” that Barry Green outlined in his book, The Mastery of Music, his follow-up to the groundbreaking Inner Game of Music. In each of them he looks at musicians and outlines a different pathway they embody. The first was “communication”- the silent rhythm as found in conductors and ensembles. For the second pathway he looks to the French horn and percussion for his ideas. They, he says, can teach us about

Courage: Choosing the High Road.

Music, Green tells us, has little (to no) tolerance for error. Unlike many sports where errors can win games (or lose them), music is far less flexible. Imagine if Doc Severinsen missed one of every 15 to 20 notes he played. It doesn’t sound like a lot, but we, the audience would get the feeling that it was time for him to retire. Every time we play in performance we get only one chance to get it right. We could come in early or late, loud or soft, crisp or mushy articulation, in one or out. All kinds of things can happen in the middle of the piece. Four measures before, we can’t call a time-out to make sure we are ready; we can’t ask for a do-over.

Green says it takes courage to face this performance after performance. He goes on to look at courage from the inside. Watching someone be “courageous” we may often think that they have no fear. In fact it looks like the opposite. In reality we are seeing fear that someone knows how to deal with. “Keep going,” the horn player reminds us as they play one of the trickier instruments. “Don’t stop,” says the percussionist who is almost always a soloist. This is, Green reminds us, “to go for it in spite of the fear of negative consequences should you fail.” That is “choosing the high road.”

That Green says is a “joyous choice.”

They “go for it” because of the “beauty of music and the joy of playing it.” Any musician who has played in a public performance knows that beauty and joy. Last week the director of the local community band arrived at rehearsal literally beaming. We were going to sight-read what he felt was one of the greatest wind band numbers- one that most of us have never played or even heard of. He was joyous that he could direct and we could play the piece. And no, it wasn’t a simple piece. But we played it- sight-reading the whole 15-minute piece.

Yes, it was a joy! Of course it didn’t take courage to do that in rehearsal. But it is in rehearsal that we learn the music and the beauty it has so we can play what it takes when it comes to the performance. Later in the same rehearsal we played another piece that was new to many of us. We got to the end and the three of us trumpets sitting together looked at each other. “That was hard,” one of us said with a smile. “Yes, but wow, was it fun!” another said. We all agreed.

The music goes on and the parts must be played! If we can’t deal with our fears and doubts we better decide to do something else. We will inevitably get stuck in that spot. I have told that story of my nearly 50 years of fear of a solo here before. It kept me stuck in many ways. It prevented me from taking a new leap into my musicality. I lacked the courage to fail. Again.

Let me be clear that the courage Green and I are talking about is not the courage to face those potentially life-altering events of ultimate success or failure. If I fail in a solo or play that F natural when it should be an F# the world, mine or anyone else’s is not going to fall apart. But courage is a very broad term that can have all kinds of subtle or explosive meanings. It takes my own courage to get through my fears. Even when it is “simply” playing the solo in the 2nd movement of Holst’s Second Suite.

When we come to those moments, Green calls it a fork in the road. (No Yogi Berra jokes.) One fork leads to the music in it’s beauty and power; the other leads to doubt, hesitation, or paralysis, says Green. So how do we move into the musical fork? He gives us four ways.

1. Be prepared. Practice- and then more practice- increases the familiarity with the music and reminds you that you are ready. Courage can often just be preparation. When you doubt you have the skills or haven’t prepared, Green reminds us, we are choosing to fail- to take the low road.

2. Don’t panic- keep focused. Stay with the music. Feel it, get its sense and rhythm and flow. Go with it. Know what you can do, not what you can’t.

3. Remind yourself of what brought you to this moment. Why do we do this crazy thing called music? Why do I take the time every day, day in and day out, to practice? Why did I get started in it in the first place? Play with that passion.

4. Believe in yourself. Self 2 can do this. Let it happen. When we have practiced and know the music, we can play with conviction and that will show in the music that comes out.

Channel your fear and courage. Take the adrenaline that pumps in the fear response and use it to the positive production of your music. It is extra energy that can be focused into heightened sense and increased awareness. The mindfulness that ensues will allow your self 1 to let go and trust self 2.

This is the courage to follow dreams. As we do this, we find that our soul will be enriched and skills will be strengthened that we can use to move the music into places we never thought we could go. In the end courage is not really overcoming fear, Green says, it is knowing that you are ready to give as honest a performance as possible.

And maybe even more!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Here is the piece that our director was excited about. It is Holst’s Moorside Suite. The third movement, The March, is incredible.

3.51- Beyond Luck

Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.
— Helen Keller

Character:
1. the aggregate of features and traits that form the individual nature of some person or thing.
2. moral or ethical quality:
3. qualities of honesty, courage, or the like; integrity:
4. reputation
5. an account of the qualities or peculiarities of a person or thing.
6. a person, especially with reference to behavior or personality:

How does an individual develop “good character?” What difference does it make? How might that impact my music and my musicianship?

As I am writing this, I have some sore muscles and joints. I worked out earlier today and, while didn’t push too hard, I did have to make some effort to get in all the reps on the third set of a couple exercises. As I understand it, muscle has to be broken down a little and then rebuilt. That’s what exercise is all about. (It is probably more technical than that but that’s all I need to know.)

That usually means that when I do my workout I have to exert some energy. It would do a tiny bit of good if I just moved my muscles with no added resistance or weight, but it wouldn’t build much endurance or strength. I could also just sit and watch a TV show about exercise or read a book about it, but unless I put some pressure on the muscle, it won’t grow.

As musicians we know the truth of that. There was a time when playing for 10 minutes would tire me out- physical (lips) and mental (inability to stay focused). Today I practiced for a total of 80 minutes in two separate sessions- a daily routine of about 30 minutes and practicing for upcoming concerts for about 50 minutes. Yes, my lips were tired at the end, but it’s a far cry from getting exhausted after 10 minutes in mid-staff!

Character- who we are as a person- is the same. That’s what Helen Keller meant when she said that only through trial and suffering can character be built. It is also where we get inspired and can move toward success. We have to stretch; we have to move beyond our comfort zones; we have to be challenged. Otherwise we won’t know what we are capable of or what we stand for.

The kind of person I become is built on our past experiences- easy and difficult. It is those qualities- reputation, honesty, and courage, for example, that we also bring to our musicianship. I am sure there have been mean and dishonest musicians. There are musicians who easily ignore others who they feel less talented than they are. And, yes, they can be very successful. But they can be so difficult to deal with that they can face all kinds of other problems.

Another of the lessons from the Trumpet Workshop is that:
• The music is #1;
• Other musicians are #2;
• The audience is #3; and
• I am #4.
None of the first three are there for my benefit alone. Sure, I can definitely get something out of it, but it is the music that gets it started. Then I need the others to help me to what I want to do with the music in mind. Why? So the audience can be entertained, moved, excited, or uplifted. If I can be part of something that does that, I will be more than pleased.

I find that the harder I work, the more luck I seem to have.
— Thomas Jefferson

It isn’t luck. It isn’t even just talent. Sure we have to be in the right place at the right time and we have to be able to do what we want to do. But let’s be honest, the way to “overnight” success is years of hard work.

Tuning Slide 3.47

Weekly Reflections on Life and Music

We all have two lives. The second one starts when we realize we only have one.
— Tom Hiddleston

As many of you may know from following this blog over the past three years, I am (sort of) retired from my “day job.” For the past 4+ years I have been part-time at my “second career” as an addictions counselor. When I started out in my “first career” as a minister (at age 25) I would see “older, retired” pastors continuing to preach and take appointments at churches. I would shake my head in disbelief. “Why don’t they retire and enjoy life?” I would ask myself. “Relax. Life is too short to keep working.”

Now, forty-some years later, I am still working at my current career. Why doesn’t he just retire and enjoy life? After all, it is too short.

Several years ago I met Herb Alpert, now in his 80s, and still performing.
Last year I met Doc Severinsen, now in his 90s, and still performing.
We had a local doctor featured in a news article who is still active and working in his 90s.

Nobody is saying they should retire and enjoy life, that life is too short.

It is because they enjoy what they do! The old saying that if you love your work you will never work a day in your life may be an exaggeration, but the truth is in there! I can’t speak for the others mentioned, but I do know that is true for me. It is true when I get the opportunity to preach and it is true every day I go in to work as a counselor.

I am having fun. I love it. It is not the only thing I do with my time, either. I write, and read, and ride my bike. And I play trumpet. I am having fun. I love it!

There have been a couple times in my life when the truth of the opening quote above came home to me. I realized as a teenager when faced with family deaths that life is short and not guaranteed. I learned at mid-life when I faced some personal issues of addiction that life is precious and much too important to be unhappy. I am, of course, one of the fortunate ones who has had the means and opportunities to do what I love. Not everyone has that. But many of us do have the ability to look at life from a different angle. Many of us can choose to look at the opportunities instead of the barriers. We can make a decision to make the most of what we have and run with it.

When we truly do realize that the life is the only one we have and that it should have direction and hope and meaning, we have begun to do this life in greater fullness. That is what this Tuning Slide is all about. The interplay of life and music. If you love making music and playing it with others, you will be happy doing it. If it is a chore, work that is done simply because it’s there, you will not be making heartfelt music to the extent you are able.

We can use all kinds of words to describe this- passion, intensity, joy, wonder, awe. Yes, there are days when I say, “The hell with it. I’ll take the day off from the routine.” But I know that will not make me feel joy or wonder or passion. Maybe some guilt, or remorse that I didn’t practice when I could. Which is why I haven’t miss a day in over 14 months now. Because I have learned that when I go to my practice room and play that middle staff “G”, holding it and then moving through the long tones, my life will feel better- and be better.

Now I am not as good at this in other areas as I would like to be. I am working on it. Doing a daily or weekly exercise regimen has been harder than the music. I say that it’s because it takes more time- driving there, exercising, showering, driving home- but it is more than that. I don’t (yet) have the passion for it. I know I can do it- I do it every day with my trumpet. So I know I can do it with exercise.

Life is inherently risky. There is only one big risk you should avoid at all costs, and that is the risk of doing nothing.
— Denis Waitley

Am I willing to take the risks involved in enjoying l life and living it to its fullest? Am I willing to take the time needed? Am I willing to do the work to prepare and expand what I can do? Am I willing to make choices between things that I like and things that give me joy and are filled with my passion? Working well into the “retirement years” is one of those. So is my research and writing. And it is definitely true with my trumpet.

What is the risk? Well, I may have to make decisions- choices- that could be difficult. I may have to be better at budgeting and managing my time and daily schedule. I may have to be more intentional about not staring aimlessly at post after post on Facebook. I may have to be more responsible about my life and relationships, making sure that things happen as and when they should.

Most of the risks we face in life are of this type. They are not “dangerous” but they can be uncomfortable. They may have us discover uncomfortable things about ourselves.

For some of us taking the risk of moving beyond our musical comfort zones is huge. We have to face our insecurities and self-esteem worries. We may realize we need more work or practice. We may find that we aren’t the best musician in the band- or even the section.

Take the risk- play the music. Be you! It is the only life you have- and you are the only you there is. Live it!

Song for the week from the wonderful people at Playing for Change:

Tuning Slide 3.45- Success

Weekly Reflections on Life and Music

Success is not final; failure is not fatal:
It is the courage to continue that counts.
— Winston S. Churchill

Another week of looking from life to music, instead of the other way around. Lessons learned in life about life are just as applicable to playing music and being a musician of any level. When I first looked at the quote from Winston Churchill I read it wrong. I expected it to say that failure is not final. But he headed down a different path. Perhaps a more important path.

Success, just as much as failure, is not final. Think about that a moment. You have been working and planning and striving for success at some thing or another. Then, there it is. You have achieved your goal. Success is yours.

What next? Where will you venture next? What new goal will you set? Or will you just stop and say, “Well, that’s my success. I think I’ll quit now”?

I don’t think so. Many of us have had that one solo or ensemble piece that we have worked hard at. It may be something that challenges you to be a little bit better than you have ever been. So you push, and work, and “woodshed” until it is what you had hoped it would be. You get to the performance and you nail it. It comes across with all the joy and energy that you put into it. You have succeeded! You take the moment to receive the congratulations of family and friends.

You then go back to the practice room and start on the next goal.

Or you blow it. You get lost in the middle of the performance. You don’t shine like you had hoped to. Your family and friends still congratulate you on your efforts. But you are bummed. You failed at that attempt. At least that’s how you see it. You smile and walk away.

You then go back to the practice room and start on the next goal.

You can quit after either event, but what good would that do? You may decide this isn’t for you after the “failure”. You put the horn away- perhaps just as you were ready to make a leap forward. Or you decide that this success is as good as it will be and you stop. You miss the opportunity to do even more than you can imagine.

Neither success nor failure is an end. As the wonderful quote from the movie The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel says:

Everything will work out in the end. If it hasn’t worked out yet, it isn’t the end.

Which easily brings me to the second quote from one who embodies these ideals, Helen Keller.

No pessimist ever discovered the secret of the stars, or sailed to an uncharted land, or opened a new doorway for the human spirit.
— Helen Keller

When Keller was less than two years old she lost her ability to see or hear. Through incredible training and perseverance she succeeded and became a prolific author, political activist, and lecturer. She was the first deaf-blind person to earn a bachelor of arts degree. She knew that to be pessimistic was what could be truly fatal to one’s ability to succeed. The movie The Miracle Worker is the story of how her teacher, Anne Sullivan pushed and inspired Keller.

There are many reasons to be pessimistic. None of them will get you where you want to go, unless you want to fail, or at best, be mediocre. One reason for pessimism is to keep from being disappointed. Too many bad things could happen that will keep me from succeeding. In order to prevent those things, I can adopt pessimism. Another reason is the fear of failure- or being held accountable for what you said you would do. Set low, pessimism-based standards, and you won’t have to explain when you don’t succeed.

I tried that the other year when, at trumpet camp, my friend, Jeff, looked at one of the parts of the “routine”, pointed to the high F or G way up there above the staff, looked at me and said, “By next year you’ll be playing up in that range.”

I laughed. “Never!” I said. I can never do that. I’m not a “screamer”. Be pessimistic. Set the bar low and you don’t have to go anywhere. It was, I will admit, a cover-up of fear. I wanted to be able to play those notes. I had never been able to play that high C on any regular basis, let alone go up another third, fourth, or fifth! That’s crazy to even think about it.

Crazy good! Because I wanted to.

The next year I had to go up to Jeff and admit that I had lied to him the year earlier. I wasn’t soaring up in those notes, but I was able to play them. I have continued to work on them. No, they are not flowing easily. Not yet. They may never for any one of a number of reasons. But I am now willing to be optimistic that things will work out in the end.

The song for this week is an old number from Frank Sinatra and the movie A Hole in the Head. Fun… and a song I’ve loved for years…. High Hopes.

Tuning Slide 3.44:

Weekly Reflections on Life and Music

First, I know there wasn’t a post last week. Life caught up to me in several ways and I had to do other things. Like work and practice my trumpet. Oh, let’s not forget eat and sleep. So I figured it would be easiest to skip a week of the `. What that did give time to work out the ideas for the rest of this third year. I’m going to try things around and start with life.

Yes, the blog is subtitled “Reflections on Life and Music.” But most of the time we start with the music and move toward applying our lessons from music to life. Well, for the rest of the blog’s third year I will be going the other direction. I have found a bunch of quotes about living life from all kinds of sources. I have enough for two quotes a week through July 5, week 52 of the year’s posts. I will do my usual improvisational riffs on the quotes as they might apply not only to life, but to musicianship and music as well.

Let’s see where it takes us.

Lighten up, just enjoy life, smile more, laugh more,
and don't get so worked up about things.
— Kenneth Branagh

After the past month or so in my own life, this was the perfect way to start. Life happens and we have to get through it. The ups and downs of life also happen and we have to know what to do. Stress can be both a help and a hindrance. Stress is needed to keep us on our toes; and stress can send us into illness if it is too much. On top of that all of us have different levels of stress that we can tolerate on average, as well as in many different situations.

A secret to life is to learn how to deal with stress. Well, I guess that isn’t truly a secret. We all know that. It’s just that some of us learn to do it better than others, while some of us fall into all types of unhealthy ways of reacting. So I Googled “best ways of coping with stress” and got this from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

• Take care of yourself.
  
  • Eat healthy, well-balanced meals
  • Exercise on a regular basis
  • Get plenty of sleep
  • Give yourself a break if you feel stressed out
• Talk to others. Share your problems and how you are feeling and coping with a parent, friend, counselor, doctor, or pastor.Avoid drugs and alcohol. These may seem to
• help with the stress. But in the long run, they create additional problems and increase the stress you are already feeling.
• Take a break. If news events are causing your stress, take a break from listening or watching the news.

Nothing earth-shattering in any of those. We are simply better able to cope with stress if we do these simple things. I have a friend who did stop watching the news in the past five months. Their blood pressure dropped to a healthy level! It can really work.

Another way to say this may be learn to “go with the flow.” Here’s where music can be of great assistance. Many of us know the idea of being “in the groove”. There may be that time in the practice room when every note flowed from your horn as if it was straight from a heavenly source. Or in the midst of a gig all members of the band just clicked into place.

There can be a lot of stress that we place on ourselves in music. We want to perform well- as close to perfect as is possible. We want to push ourselves to get better. We want to make music that impacts others and leads them into the groove or the flow with us. I am convinced that in order for us to be able to do that, we need to learn to relax, deal with the stress, laugh and learn, practice with ease, lose the tension. We all know when it happens; we just have to learn how to get there. Having the attitude to

Lighten up, just enjoy life, smile more, laugh more,
and don't get so worked up about things.


That might make a huge difference. Which brings us to the second quote for this week:

To succeed in life, you need three things:
a wishbone,
a backbone, and
a funny bone.
— Reba McEntire

Simply put:

A wishbone is the desires and hopes we strive for. These are our goals and directions, the values and directions of our lives. Essential or we just drift into an aimless wandering that exhausts us- and probably those around us.

In our music this takes us back to the need to set goals; to be able to say why we are doing what we are doing; how we want life to be changed through what we are doing. Where is it you want to be in six months or a year. Make the plans. Life the direction of your dreams.

A backbone is courage to do the things we need to be doing. This encompasses the discipline it takes to move toward our dreams. It includes the willingness to say “No!” to those things which go against who we are and “Yes!” to the things that will lead us there. It means stand up for yourself and others and take the time to practice to get where you want.

Just having dreams isn’t enough. We have to find the ways to get there. And that takes work. Not just the many hours and years of practice, but the discipline to do it right. It is the courage to choose what is important and then make that a center point of your life. It will mean making some tough choices. It will mean having to sacrifice and give up some things for others. That’s where the stress stuff from the CDC above can come in. Look for help- a teacher or mentor. Go for it. With courage.

A funny bone is keeping all things in perspective. Life can be a lot of fun. There are many things to laugh at and enjoy. Look for them. Aim at them. Find the goodness and joy no matter where you are.

In the end, while these are important, the more seriously you take yourself, the more difficulty you will have moving in the right direction. Being too rigid will get in the way. Not being able to laugh at yourself will keep you from being able to relax at what you are doing. Go with the flow of your music, laugh at your mistakes - and then get back to doing the right things to move forward.

Yep, I know these sound like those platitudes that can be so sickly sweet that we get tooth decay from them. But they have stood the test of time. Remember to have fun. Life is too short not to.

Each week in this series I’ll end with a video of a song that gets to the heart of what I’m saying. No better place to start than with the Beatles.

Tuning Slide-3.40: Looking Out for #1

Weekly Reflections on Life and Music

Trumpet players see each other, and it's like we're getting ready
to square off or get into a fight or something.
-Wynton Marsalis

I knew I had to address this myth sometime again. It crops up regularly. So I figured what better time than the week before April Fool’s Day. (How’s that for setting up a problem for the reader and the writer? Neither you nor I will know if I am being serious or not. Actually, I have a hunch that by the end you will figure it out!)

Here it is, then. Our myth or misconception of the week:

• Trumpet players are obnoxious, self-centered, prima donnas who only care about what they play.

Look up “trumpet player” on the “Urban Dictionary” and you will find:

A trumpet player is someone who:
a) plays the trumpet. obviously.
b) kisses amazingly. Trumpet players not only have the strongest lips in the entire marching band, it makes them great kissers.
c) In marching band, the best section there ever was. The lead part. Without this section, there is NOTHING. If you are a trumpet player, you are the best
d) Most are cocky, love to show off, and [brown nose the] band directors and get what they want.
Obviously, the trumpet player is the backbone of any band.

Perhaps the two most common trumpet jokes:
Q: What's the difference between a trumpeter and God?
A: God doesn't think he's a trumpeter.

Q: How to trumpet players traditionally greet each other?
A: "Hi. I'm better than you."

I know I have used some of these comments before. It is hard not to address this issue since it is so prevalent. It is also difficult to address the issue since we have all known trumpet players who fit the stereotype. Sometimes that trumpet player is us.

(Not to leave other musicians out, I have also known many instrumentalists and singers who also fit the stereotype. Old joke: What do you call the music department? The war department.)

Let’s start out with the obvious. The trumpet is a loud instrument. It is often given the lead. It has the ability to soar above almost every instrument in a band. The trumpets are expected to be strong and lead in many situations. I am told it is also a difficult instrument to learn to play. I learned so long ago, that part is lost in the myths mists of time.

Because of all this and perhaps more, it does take a certain kind of personality to become and remain a trumpet player. One has to be ready to be seen and heard. One has to be willing to take certain risks. One has to be open to calling attention to themselves simply because of the instrument they play. Not everyone can do this. Some of it is skill; some is personality; some is mental. (I realize that this, too, is a stereotype. But I must admit that when I see an otherwise shy child say they want to learn trumpet, I do believe they will succeed- and it will change them. But then again, music changes all who play or sing.)

But, and this is never to be forgotten, we, ourselves, are number 4 out of the 4 most important things about making music:

• Music is #1
• Fellow musicians are #2
• The audience is #3
• You, the indiidual musician, are #4.

• I look at the music on the stand in front of me. 
• That is more important than I am.
• I look at the other musicians I am playing with. 
• They are more important than me.
• I look at the audience who has come to enjoy the music. 
• They are more important than me.
• I look at what myself, and my needs and concerns are fourth in line.

The only time a trumpet player is the most important player in the band is when they have a solo. And even then I wonder.

In reality if we are to make music that is powerful and interesting, none of us can do it alone. With the rare exceptions of outstanding soloists playing music for one- and only one- instrument, we are all important to each other. We need the others- they need us. We work together. Just because the trumpet may be the loudest or most visible at times, does not make us any more essential than all the others.

During the last concert I played in this past February I sat there in awe of what we were playing. It was an amazing concert with some difficult and interesting music. At one point I had something like 40 or 50 measures of rest. The sound of the horns and clarinets mesmerized me; the bass clarinet solo was spiritual. I almost lost count I became so entranced. That piece needed all of us.

Life is something like a trumpet.
If you don't put anything in, you won't get anything out.
-William Christopher (W. C.) Handy

It takes all of us doing our best on our parts to bring the whole together. It is not our job as individuals to outshine the others in the band. It is not our task to single-handedly turn a group into something better. It is not who we are to be in music to make sure everyone knows we are good. If our music doesn’t do it, nothing will.

So this week’s Holy Truth, and it is not an April Fool’s joke:

• It’s the music. Always the music!