Technique Vs. Musicality
A challenging balance for musicians
Playing any musical instrument at a high level takes many years of dedicated practice and study with a teacher.
While learning the fundamentals of technique for your particular instrument is essential, people don’t want to pay to hear someone play a scale or etude. They want to hear music.
However, it’s a fine balance because your musical gestures and ideas can get lost in translation if your technique or intonation isn’t solid.
As a student, balancing my technique and musicality was a constant source of frustration. I found that playing with passion and really getting into the musical aspect of the performance came naturally to me. However, when I was swept up with emotion, other aspects of my technique, most notably intonation, took a holiday.
While the average audience member probably didn’t notice anything amiss, my performance approach was met with opposition from my professors and peers.
It was infuriating at the time because I knew I played at a comparable level to the “top students” at my school, but my technique was not up to par. Nowadays, I look back and think that it’s absolutely ridiculous to rank your peers and harshly compare yourself to others, but it’s hard to see it that way while you’re a music…
