Why Do We Do What We Do? COVID-19 Edition

We are at a strange time in world history.  COVID-19 has no doubt changed all aspects of the music industry.  For musicians, live performances are few and far between; many artists are having to turn to pre-recorded, streamed, and engineered performances.  By now, most of us have watched Hamilton on Disney+, which brought musical theatre into our homes at a time when musical theatre is not happening live.  We see concerts, auditions, and competitions being canceled each day. Literally, as I write this, I received a notification that a major marching contest in my area has been canceled.  Some areas of the world are stripping funding from music education, which could be a whole different blog post in itself.  However disappointed we are by what is occurring, we must ask ourselves one simple question: why do we do what we do?  Some of the expected reasons are for the social aspect, to share music with others, to reach competitive goals, to reach new musical heights, or to have a healthy hobby.  With competitions and concerts being canceled, whether it be solo, concert, marching, jazz, chamber, etc., we must set new goals for ourselves based around why we do what we do.  If it is for the social aspect, find a practice buddy or practice group.  FaceTime, Zoom, or call someone or a group when you are practicing to share your musical experience, help one another out, and just enjoy your time together.  If it is to share music with others, create an instagram page for your practicing and show your progress; perform for others on it.  If it is to meet competitive goals, find competitions online to enter; they are still out there during this time.  It can be a challenge to compete with people online because there is such a wide range of ability level, but entering a competition can be a gratifying experience regardless if you receive any feedback or results.  If you want feedback, ask a professional who played your instrument to listen to your recording; never overlook taking private lessons either.  Private lessons can give you weekly or biweekly goals that can motivate you to reach for new heights.  So, get creative; come up ways to help you feel gratification through your answer to why you do what you do.