Continuing with thoughts about Eric Clapton, what percentage of people who play guitar reach his level of virtuosity and stardom? One in a million? Then there's the level just below the stars, the people who play in their bands but who aren't famous. They're also sterling musicians. Then there are the people who play in the kind of band that never gets to make a record, but plays in clubs and bars and at parties - and many of them are excellent.
And so on, down the line.
When I go to hear a violin concerto, I often wonder how much separates the soloist from the musicians in the violin section, who have to be superb to get a job with an orchestra. Is it a matter of raw talent, of the willingness to work harder than anyone else, or of personality (not everybody wants to go into the risky business of solo performance)? I can only speculate.
We have often held concerts in our home. Sometimes the musicians who perform are on an international level, and we are flattered that they're willing to play for a small audience on a piano that could be better. But sometimes they are just very good. For me, the privilege of hearing live music, in an intimate setting, compensates for the less than supreme quality of the musicians. If we could get Andras Schiff to play our piano for our friends we would be in heaven, but once a student at the Rubin Academy asked to practice his final recital for some friends in our living room, and that was memorable.
I am not good enough to play a solo recital in our living room either on flute or on saxophone, though I have played jazz with a pianist friend for his family and mine, and I have played here in a sax quartet for friends, and that was a huge success. I play baritone sax, a low, kind of clumsy instrument, that usually doesn't have much of a chance to play the melody, and I enjoy putting down the floor of a piece, so that higher instruments and build on it.
Last night, for the first time I played in the rehearsal of a small concert band and had a great time. I'd been thinking of joining it for a while, but the time and place were a bit too inconvenient for me. I'm glad I went. It was fun, even though I was sight-reading, making a lot of mistakes, and getting lost now and then. For me, playing in a group, even a group of two playing duets, is what it's all about.
It would be nice if every musician were great, and they could all put their egos on hold and collaborate, but it's okay if you're just good enough to get by.
And so on, down the line.
When I go to hear a violin concerto, I often wonder how much separates the soloist from the musicians in the violin section, who have to be superb to get a job with an orchestra. Is it a matter of raw talent, of the willingness to work harder than anyone else, or of personality (not everybody wants to go into the risky business of solo performance)? I can only speculate.
We have often held concerts in our home. Sometimes the musicians who perform are on an international level, and we are flattered that they're willing to play for a small audience on a piano that could be better. But sometimes they are just very good. For me, the privilege of hearing live music, in an intimate setting, compensates for the less than supreme quality of the musicians. If we could get Andras Schiff to play our piano for our friends we would be in heaven, but once a student at the Rubin Academy asked to practice his final recital for some friends in our living room, and that was memorable.
I am not good enough to play a solo recital in our living room either on flute or on saxophone, though I have played jazz with a pianist friend for his family and mine, and I have played here in a sax quartet for friends, and that was a huge success. I play baritone sax, a low, kind of clumsy instrument, that usually doesn't have much of a chance to play the melody, and I enjoy putting down the floor of a piece, so that higher instruments and build on it.
Last night, for the first time I played in the rehearsal of a small concert band and had a great time. I'd been thinking of joining it for a while, but the time and place were a bit too inconvenient for me. I'm glad I went. It was fun, even though I was sight-reading, making a lot of mistakes, and getting lost now and then. For me, playing in a group, even a group of two playing duets, is what it's all about.
It would be nice if every musician were great, and they could all put their egos on hold and collaborate, but it's okay if you're just good enough to get by.
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