The Good Musician

This is Part 4 in the Competencies Series. See also Part 1 (Personal Comeptence), Part 2 (Social Comeptence) and Part 3 (Scientific Competence).

Finally, you’ve mastered the skills covered in this series so far, but now comes the critical point: Putting it all to practice. Practical Competence defines your ability to take your personality, your relationships and your knowledge to the stage and perform.

The subtle step we’re taking is from Know-What to Know-How.

There are 4 main points to develop:

1. Motivation: You need an urge to achieve and perform. We’ve spoken before about musical depression and ruts, make sure you stay on top of things and don’t get bogged down if you (seemingly) aren’t progressing. See also this post about the 4 keys to motivation.
2. Practice Sessions: Practicing perfectly will make you perform perfectly. In discussing length of a single session, it depends on your motivation and endurance. Personally, 45 minutes a day seems like the sweet spot for constant significant progress and adaptability in a busy schedule. See how to sculpt your practice sessions.
3. Self Definition: Whether your the best trumpeter in the world or an amateur bassist, unless you’re sure about your musical strengths and weaknesses, your niche and genre, you won’t be going anywhere. Discover your musical self.
4. Concert Situations: Try to get as many performing possibilities as you can. Chime together your friends on a weeknight for small concert, or make your parents act as an audience. Try out a few performance hacks, practice using a mirror, be prepared for concerts.

As you see, we’ve covered a lot at TGM before. Sometimes it all makes sense when things come together.

Tell me your stories, your tips and your ideas about this 4-competence model. Rip me apart, throw tomatoes or hail me with flowers and stuffed animals.

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