That was special…only it wasn’t

I just watched a video of an individual playing an orchestral excerpt on the trumpet that every orchestral trumpet player knows and has played a thousand times.

What gets me is how he played it with such passion, eyes closed for dramatic effect, as though this performance of it will be truly special. Meanwhile, the timing was off, the dynamics were mediocre, and it was by and large an unremarkable performance of this particular piece.

Interesting how folks post things on social media as though it’s the first time it’s ever been done.

It’s cool to do a demo of something – but when everything one posts publicly is material that’s been performed millions of times already, it suggests a lack of creativity, quite frankly a lack of adventure, to step outside one’s comfort zone.

I’ve begun to wonder if I’m missing a gene sequence that makes people afraid in certain situations.

Case in point, I interviewed a fellow trumpeter yesterday, and during the interview I casually and rather shamelessly dropped the name of someone I recently interviewed who’s pretty well known in the niche. Well the person I spoke to yesterday said something along the lines of, “If I were to play for so and so, I’d be scared to death.” I immediately thought of the time several years ago I interviewed “so and so” big name trumpeter, and afterwards asked if he wanted to play some duets together. He was happy to oblige, and we both had a good time with it.

I think it’s a matter of not being aware of the situation – at least the elements of it which one might find intimidating.

I asked that big-name player to play duets because I take a “warts and all” approach to everything I do, be it podcasting, playing trumpet, what have you. I’m not afraid to make mistakes, to have moments where I’m not great, because I know there are moments where I am great. I say that with all humility and based on hard-won experience.

This business of public performance is a little scary – until it’s not. You make a mistake, fall flat on your face, and eventually realize no one really cares either way. The important thing is that you did it, put in the reps, just get up when you fall down and get just a little bit better each time you do it.

So quit doing stuff that’s been done a million times because it’s comfortable for you. Do something only you can do – or are willing to do. Are you going to fail? Yup, and how sweet it is to do so.

Get to failing, the success will come that much faster.