Tag Archives: musicality
Art and Wallpaper, Part 3: Why Wallpaper Is Not Art
As I was saying, that beautiful wallpaper … does it evoke a heart response? By looking at our three tenets of creating art (link here), it should become obvious why wallpaper is not art. Wallpaper does not engage with any of these— it is not specific in its emotional conveyance, it is purposefully unclear in […]
Five Questions to Ask Yourself
Any time you sit down in the practice room or rehearsal hall, take a minute and ask yourself a few questions … 1) Is this new? The music may not be new, but your performance of it is (or should be). If the music is new, then sell it. There’s no room for same-old-same-old in […]
What Others Say / Victor Hugo
Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent. —Victor Hugo, French poet and novelist
Are Your Relevant?
(That is, is there anyone at your concert?) One of the several blogs I keep up with is The Rest Is Noise, from the New Yorker’s music critic, Alex Ross. He really has his finger on the pulse of classical music in the modern age. There is rarely an event worth noting that makes it […]
What Others Say / Will Durant
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” —Will Durant, summarizing Aristotle, in The Story of Philosophy (1991) Good advice for all the high school musicians heading to band camp soon. And for anyone in the practice room.
Sound Bites / Telling a Story
As musicians we must always remember to be storytellers. No one will listen if you don’t tell a good story. What’s your story?
Long Tones: The Pursuit of a Life in Music 