Have you ever heard the expression, "... is 20%
physical and 80% mental" from a coach or trainer. It is true that your mind (emotions, doubts,
insecurities) has the power to enhance or negate the training and preparation
you have accumulated for a given task.
However, I am not referring to that definition of mental in my title. I am referring to the difference between
having an intellectual knowledge of something versus having the physical
ability to be able to perform it.
Traditional
grade school in the USA consists mostly of intellectual activities. Within the study of academic subjects,
students strive to achieve a mental understanding of the material. They prove their mastery of the material by
being able to answer academic questions about the given subject. This
reality is the cause of frustration for many of my academically bright public
school students while studying the subject of instrumental music.
They
approach the study of instrumental music as if it were a purely academic
subject. They memorize the correct
answer to questions like "How many beats is a half note held for?"
and "What does the symbol P mean?"
However, when their music contains a half note they do not hold it out
for a full two beat, and when it contains the symbol P they do not play
softly. Why is that?
The
discord between their mental understanding of music and their application of
that knowledge in musical performance is a result of their lack of treatment of
instrumental music as a physical activity.
I use illustrations from physical education class to try to relay this
point to my students. For example, I
could explain to them the proper way to shoot a basketball. They could understand every point about this
technique and still have difficulty actually making a shot. The only way to truly master the skill is to physically
practice it repeatedly. Their muscles
need to feel the action while they observe the results of their technique. Then they can make adjustments based on the
observed results until they finally master the skill.
Instrumental
performance is a unique subject in that it is both academic and physical. There are many deep concepts to be studied
within the field of music. Possessing an
understanding of these concepts aids tremendously in one's ability to perform
music. However, the leaning of our
public school system toward purely academic studies causes many students to lack
the ability to apply knowledge to physical performance. In addition, it is possible to perform a
piece of music correctly through rote repetition with little understanding of
the musical concepts that piece contains.
It is impossible to perform a piece of music, however, without repetitious
and effective practice.
This is
why I say that playing music is 20% mental and 80% physical. In order to achieve a level of mastery within
a musical performance, one must achieve a level of mastery of the physical
activities associated with that performance.
Wind players and singers need to know how to manipulate the air they
supply to their instrument so that they can produce a beautiful and consistent
tone regardless of range of pitch or dynamic level (or vowel/consonant being
pronounced in the case of singers). String
players need to be familiar with the proper feel of the bow as it moves across
the string with excellent technique.
Piano players need a physical awareness of the distance between keys and
the exact force and technique needed to express various dynamics and emotions. These, and many other performance skills, can
only be achieved through habitual practice.
There
are those who think about music and those who play music. No matter how much knowledge you obtain about
music, the only way to truly perform it skillfully is to maintain a regular
practice routine. The more time one
spends physically playing music on his instrument, the better he will become at
playing music. That is why I say, "Playing music is 20%
mental and 80% physical."
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