Joanna Grace
This summer, 2024 marked the Summer Olympics in Paris, France. I found myself watching for the first time: artistic gymnastics, fencing, climbing and hammer throwing. And I also watched familiar sports like table tennis, skateboarding, volleyball and running.
What contributes to an athlete succeeding? How do they respond to a trip or fall?
Watching professional world athletes competing on a global stage reminds me of skill levels for musicians wanting to play music. Professional musicians, amateur musicians and those taking music lessons are looking for self-expression, achievement and fun.
So what do musicians and Olympic athletes have in common?
1. Determination Being focused on a goal and continuing to strive for it is crucial. Wanting something bigger and better than the current level of achievement is common between musicians and olympic athletes. Can you think of a time where you really wanted to achieve something? Maybe seeing someone else master it helped you step into a greater version of yourself.
2. Mindful Practice Beginning music students may have the goal of getting the right notes, or understanding how to read music. Even more seasoned music performers will need carefully selected strategies to learn music well similar to those strategies used in sports training.
Mindful practice involves planning before starting. This can be looking through a piece of music before playing it. For athletes, they prepare their body with sleep, food and stretching so they can execute the task.
There’s a balance of being aware of one’s self and also the bigger picture of what needs to happen.
3. Resilience This can be a tough one for a lot of people. I view resilience as the ability to recover from unexpected events/ situations. A musician that plays a wrong note and stops the show by walking off stage is an example of someone giving up. Resilience would be continuing with the music and doing the best they can. Resilience for an Olympic athlete might look like not finishing the first round, but coming back in the second round to have a brilliant score.
I don’t like to fail, and you probably you don’t like to fail either. However, when we accept that making mistakes are common when trying something new, we can agree that it’s part of the learning process.
4. Stamina A person that hasstamina means they are able to do something physically or mentally demanding and continue doing it. Musicians and Olympic athletes alike are prided when something looks easy to the spectators. We may never know how easy or difficult it is for a musician or athlete to perform what we witness. What matters in a great performance is that the musicians or athletes complete what they set out to do.
5. Encouraging Coach Olympic athletes have coaches. Coaches are with them in training practices and observe them in performances. We may accept 100% that Olympic athletes need coaches. But where are the coaches for the musicians?
Musical coaches are the music teachers at music schools and private music teachers for that student’s instrument or voice. Encouragement may also come from parents or family members that encourage that music student to keep going or give them time and space to work on improving their playing.
A teacher in Toronto, I’m a piano teacher, french horn teacher and a coach. I intend to find out what my student’s interests and learning styles are and craft a customized path to get them there. I listen to the language they use when describing how their practice week went. When I demonstrate a new concept, I make sure they understand it and can replicate it at home. When a student expresses doubt in being able to do something, I might simply ask them to try it. How amazing it is for us to discover that, yes, it makes sense and they can do it! Or we might find that there is something else to be learned before they can shift in how they see their own abilities.
If you or someone you know is looking to start piano lessons in Toronto or french horn lessons, all new students are welcome to experience a 30 min. Lesson with me for free.
