Dear Alma, Who says you have to be a full-time musician?
Daily Comfort ZoneOur agony aunt gets to grips with the new economy:
Dear Alma,
I’m burnt out. Burnt to a crisp like a piece of toast. I enjoy music but there’s just so much of it right now. How can I make practicing fun? I rarely look forward to practicing because I know that it will be disappointing when I can’t make my fingers do what I want them to.
Sincerely,
Burnt like toast
Dear Burnt like toast,
I hate practicing. Really hate it. I mean, I will do ANYTHING to not practice. Mow the lawn. Go grocery shopping. Change the litter. Do taxes.
Here is the problem here, BLT, you have to get it through your burnt head that practicing is not fun. Neither is brushing your teeth, picking the kids up from school, or trimming your nails. But we have to do it.
That being said, I really love music. And so do you. So let’s find a way to skip over the excruciating part where it’s all no fun and you want to tear your hair out.
I think there are two kinds of practicers. The Scheduler and The Field Hospital Doctor. I happen to be a Field Hospital Doctor married to a Scheduler. Luckily he never expects me to turn into him, and I never expect him to turn into me. Both ways work. Totally fine.
The Scheduler:
Decide how much time you will practice every day. Every single day. Put on a timer (turning it off if you go to the loo or answer the phone). Do it just like you make dinner. It’s not emotional. It’s just part of your life. Benefits of The Scheduler: you won’t get disappointed or stressed. You will always be in shape and always prepared.
The Field Hospital Doctor:
Your life is erratic, sometimes very boring and sometimes life-threatening. Practice if you want to, and don’t practice if you don’t. You can pinpoint practice emergency spots, and can wing the boring stuff. You don’t mind a bit of stress in the work environment, and feed off the excitement, while still being able to nail the tough stuff.
A couple of basic road rules for any method. Have a year-long (or multi year) calendar, and write down all of your concerts. Have that in the kitchen or somewhere where you can’t avoid it. Personally, I color code (concertos/chamber/orchestra), and I also mark in the date that I have to be concert-ready. 6 months for concerto, 1 month for chamber, 2 weeks for orchestra. This allows me to take breaks if I want to, or schedule around my busy periods so I can thin things out (hire babysitters, get take-out).
I can practice anywhere – in bed in my pjs, on the couch, in my practice room, in a bathroom. I can practice 9 hours a day or 5 minutes. My husband always practices in the same place. I always have a delicious beverage, and a little tasty snack. It’s never going to be fun, but for me, if I have some flexibility in it, I can make it a bit more pleasurable.
BLT, some people have the option to take time off. Good for them. I don’t. I have a friend who takes one week a month off. She has a normal parter. The partner works in the tech industry. I have to make the mortgage. Most musicians do. If you one of the few who have the option to take time off, do it. I am jealous. For the rest of us, we have to find a way to suck it up and plunge ahead. In the end, I always feel extremely lucky to be doing what I am doing. Especially when I talk to my best friend, who used to pay rent by stocking the shelves at the grocery. That’s seriously no fun at all.
Questions for Alma? Please put them in the comments section or send to DearAlmaQuery@gmail.com
PractiSe = the verb
PractiCe = the noun
See too:
Advise / Advice
License / Licence
Devise / Device
Prophesy / Prophecy
and many others!
What’s more interesting is that both ‘Burnt Like Toast’ and ‘Dear Alma’ mis-spell the same word!
In US English, the verb is also “practice”. Both Alma and the inquirer must be from the US. And yes, I know that it’s “enquirer” for you 😉 You shouldn’t assume that what you learned is the only correct way, not just with grammar, but with anything in life!
I recognize IPGT: The person sitting in the front row of class perpetually raising their hand …
And yet Alma goes to the “loo”…..
Missing the point here!
And this discussion, which encapsulates all my impressions of this piece, just adds to my early conclusion that it’s fake. There is no Alma, and there are no inquirers, or enquirers either.
V. Lind – yes this is a real question – it was posted in last week’s comments. You can check it. And in any case, that is besides the point. The situations are real. The problems are real.
Dear V. Lind,
This is Alma. I am a musician and write for Slipped Disc twice a week. The letters come to me via email, in the comments, and from Norman. Some are from people we talk to in person. I am real, and I very much enjoy answering these questions and looking at a career in music through different points of view.
Fair enough and good to know.
Yes – there is not an option to turn down work – good idea to just get on a practise schedule and get organized.
That would be “practice.”
Hahaha
Uh…. what’s with the photo here? I’m not squeamish about human bodies and all, I’m just trying to make sense of your choice for this particular article….
That sexy musician in the photo is exactly what I look like when I practice!
That would be “practise.”
Good ideas! I like the kitchen calendar one. I will try that.
Tasty beverage. Like that. Will add it to my routine.
Well, if dinner is just like practice in Alma’s household — a chore — it will certainly need something!
First-world snowflake problems