A kind of entertaining moment happened at Church last Sunday. I was determined to go to Church after being gone for four weeks on kind of a stressful trip, but I really shouldn't have. I came home from my trip exhausted, but trying not to give in. Then I had a fit of chills and shivers through the night on Saturday. (Likely a fever, but I couldn't tell because I was so cold.) By morning though, I thought I was fine, so I went to Church.
I began to lead the opening hymn, but felt faint by the end of the second verse. A woman noticed my distress and jumped up and took over for me. I was still feeling weak for the next hymn, so my granddaughter led that one. Then for the closing hymn neither my granddaughter or the first lady knew it. So they passed the duty off to another lady across the aisle.
Needless to say, many people came up to me afterwards --- very worried. I got a lot of advice. "You should rest. You shouldn't try to do too much too soon. You should simplify your life right now." But what I really needed was to go home to rest and recuperate.
They couldn't have known it, but that word SIMPLIFY has always irked me.
I began to lead the opening hymn, but felt faint by the end of the second verse. A woman noticed my distress and jumped up and took over for me. I was still feeling weak for the next hymn, so my granddaughter led that one. Then for the closing hymn neither my granddaughter or the first lady knew it. So they passed the duty off to another lady across the aisle.
Needless to say, many people came up to me afterwards --- very worried. I got a lot of advice. "You should rest. You shouldn't try to do too much too soon. You should simplify your life right now." But what I really needed was to go home to rest and recuperate.
They couldn't have known it, but that word SIMPLIFY has always irked me.
Sometimes in this busy world of ours, we are asked to SIMPLIFY. You know, to stop filling our lives with non-essentials that make us crazy or to stop taking on so many projects that we are constantly burning the candle at both ends. But some well-meaning people will take that to mean "just do what is SIMPLE and EASY -- you shouldn't have to work too hard." For a musician, the word "SIMPLE" can be mystifying.
I have always had a hard time with the word SIMPLE when it comes to being a musician. Most people equate SIMPLE with EASY. In my estimation, there is nothing SIMPLE or Easy about learning to play or sing or conduct or compose or engineer sound. We musicians value quality so we practice until we get it right. That takes work and many hours of diligence.
I have always had a hard time with the word SIMPLE when it comes to being a musician. Most people equate SIMPLE with EASY. In my estimation, there is nothing SIMPLE or Easy about learning to play or sing or conduct or compose or engineer sound. We musicians value quality so we practice until we get it right. That takes work and many hours of diligence.
Practicing to play a hymn What do we answer to the Church leader who says to "keep it simple - just play a hymn." They have no idea that playing a hymn takes years of practice to acquire enough skills to do the job. That request is never SIMPLE or Easy! And what about conquering the nerves to be able to play in public? That may be even more challenging!
Okay, when non-musicians ask musicians to do something musical, many times they put the musician on the spot. The musician is expected to perform without any preparation. They may rightly even refuse to do it. (Like the ladies at Church did.) And yet, when the musician asks for an opportunity to perform (with enough time to prepare), they are brushed off. It seems that people in charge of some activities do not want to plan ahead enough to insure the quality of the entertainment. They know that they want entertainment, but they don't know what it takes to make it happen.
Possibly, we musicians make singing or playing or conducting look effortless, so it looks like we do it so naturally that a beautiful performance happens spontaneously like in the movies. But that isn't reality. In real life, we cannot get around the fact that we need PREPARATION and PRACTICE. So, in my opinion, where we still have to work to prepare and practice, we can SIMPLIFY by carefully choosing the projects we take on and the methods we use to do those projects.
We can SIMPLIFY by EDITING. It still takes work (and that is not EASY), but it does strip away the non-essentials that clutter up our lives.
I can live with that definition. (By the way, I am feeling better now.)
Okay, when non-musicians ask musicians to do something musical, many times they put the musician on the spot. The musician is expected to perform without any preparation. They may rightly even refuse to do it. (Like the ladies at Church did.) And yet, when the musician asks for an opportunity to perform (with enough time to prepare), they are brushed off. It seems that people in charge of some activities do not want to plan ahead enough to insure the quality of the entertainment. They know that they want entertainment, but they don't know what it takes to make it happen.
Possibly, we musicians make singing or playing or conducting look effortless, so it looks like we do it so naturally that a beautiful performance happens spontaneously like in the movies. But that isn't reality. In real life, we cannot get around the fact that we need PREPARATION and PRACTICE. So, in my opinion, where we still have to work to prepare and practice, we can SIMPLIFY by carefully choosing the projects we take on and the methods we use to do those projects.
We can SIMPLIFY by EDITING. It still takes work (and that is not EASY), but it does strip away the non-essentials that clutter up our lives.
I can live with that definition. (By the way, I am feeling better now.)
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