The Musician's Way Blog

“A concert may end when the applause fades, but your artistic work and your responsibilities as a performer are far from complete.”
–The Musician’s Way, p. 196

As you exit the stage at the end of a performance, how do you typically feel?

Then, when you interact with listeners and coperformers, how do things go?

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“Successful musicians will do things that faltering musicians won’t”
–The Musician’s Way, p. 306

The April/May issue of The Musician’s Way Newsletter features a unique collection of news, tips, inspiration, and resources. Continue Reading

Benny Goodman & Ella Fitzgerald

“People have often said to me, ‘You’re so relaxed when you play.’
Relaxed my elbow. It’s practice.”
–Benny Goodman, clarinetist (The Musician’s Way, p. 199)

It may seem that elite musicians like Benny Goodman excel on stage because of inborn traits.

But despite any genetic factors that might affect our musical potential, the mastery that experts display under pressure actually results from their having amassed specific performance skills. Continue Reading

“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 optimally.

Fortunately, though, practice skills can be learned, but musicians first need benchmarks against which to gauge their habits. Continue Reading

“The route to becoming an accomplished musician is seldom smooth and trouble free.”
–The Musician’s Way, p. 202

We musicians may dream of performing brilliantly at every show, but, in reality, things don’t always go as well as we’d like.

Especially for students, playing or singing in public can bring upsetting surprises: shakiness, memory slips, music wafting off the stand – you name it. Continue Reading

“I get an audience involved because I’m involved myself. If the song is a lament at the loss of love, I get an ache in my gut. . . . I cry out the loneliness.”
–Frank Sinatra, singer (The Musician’s Way, p. 188)

Some concerts provoke such deep feelings that audiences remember them for years.

How can we musicians put on unforgettable shows night after night? Continue Reading

“The road to improvement is paved with evaluations.”
The Musician’s Way, p. 296

Whatever our level of artistic development, we’re always aiming to grow.

And one of the primary ways that we advance is through critiques – especially from colleagues and mentors. Continue Reading

“To get to authenticity, you really keep going down to the bone,
to the honesty and the inevitability of something.”
–Meredith Monk, singer and composer (The Musician’s Way, p. 19)

A music student performs a new piece, but numerous things go awry – technical glitches, rhythmic hiccups, memory slips.

He’s puzzled because he believed that he had practiced the music thoroughly. What’s the student missing?

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“Learning the basics in a rote, unthinking manner
almost ensures mediocrity.”
–Ellen Langer, psychologist (The Power of Mindful Learning, p. 14)

How does mindfulness apply to music making? When we’re mindful, we notice. We attend to our sound, emotions, execution, and coperformers.

We perceive accurately, without judging ourselves. We bring fascination to every note we play or sing. Continue Reading

“The most important practice session of the week isn’t the one right before your lesson; it’s the one right after.”
–The Musician’s Way, p. 296

As lessons or performances approach, many music students ramp up their practice time; then, afterward, they ease off.

I think that’s backwards. Continue Reading