Living With Music...

Music has an unquestionable and yet not-quite-tangible ability to inspire, to move, to 'mean' something. Its capacity to do so, indeed its very nature, suggests that music is so much more than the combinations of notes we read on the page. The score, in other words, is in so many different ways only the beginning of a process in which a piece of music is brought to life. 

Sometimes, however, it's easy to lose sight of this ephemeral aspect of music-making, especially during the learning stages. There are various reasons for why this happens, and they more or less operate in conjunction with each other. When a piece of music seems boring or uninspiring, for instance (this probably applies more to beginners or intermediates), it may be to do with the teacher's inability to infuse or encourage a sense of musicality in the piece. Or it might be that the piece is genuinely a boring piece of music, as any beginner who despairs over having to play 'Three Blind Mice', seemingly ad infinitum, might testify. Related to this is the necessity, in any piece of music, of playing (or singing) the correct notes. The frustration that may often result from this can be quite detrimental. Certainly, it has the ability of taking over as the number-one priority when learning a new piece, marginalising the importance of musicality itself (this can apply to more advanced players as well as beginners and intermediates). The technical aspects of reproducing a musical work are undeniably very important, but should always be at the service of the music itself: that thing which we can hear and feel, but not actually touch. 

Not surprisingly, many professional performers are advocates of learning music away from one's instrument - this includes the voice. It allows for a sort of objective contemplation, imagining the way a phrase or even a few bars might sound if performed in several different ways, without technical considerations getting in the way. In short, it means living with and getting to know a piece of music intimately. This sort of approach can and should be instilled amongst younger players and singers, or anyone in their formative years of development as an instrumentalist. Interesting repertoire and the sort of encouragement that simultaneously places a piece in its proper musical context should stimulate the ability to think critically about a musical work, and to engage with it emotionally as well as technically. 

Ultimately, it's all about asserting one's own individuality as a musician. For in as much as music is some deep expression of ourselves, forging a convincing, personal interpretation of a piece of music is probably the most important thing one can learn to do.