[TPIN] NEVER YIELD to discouragement!!!!

[Nicholas Drozdoff]

Everyone has a bad day now and then. I mean EVERYONE! I have heard legendary 
players (true legends who shall remain nameless here), who have had 
discernably off nights.

I think the way they handle it is to NOT CARE about an off nght! I don't 
mean to imply one shouldn't want to do well. However, if you miss something 
or things just ain't working the way you expect thme to or the way folks 
expect you to, forget about it! The trick is NOT MINDING or caring about the 
off nights. Let me try to elaborate.

If you miss a note, just forget it and move on. Don't rumintate or judge 
yourself because of it. It was momentary transient thing and it is gone 
along with the moment. Move on to the next one with a fresh sense of 
positive anticipation. If you're bummed out about some note you missed in 
the past, you're going to set yourself up for missing it again in the 
future. By ruminating on a bad moment you are unconsciously defining 
yourself as a failure of sorts and you're going to do it again. If you 
"don't care about MISSED notes" and care more for making fresh music, you 
will miss fewer notes. You will also recover peacefully over the ones that 
get away from you.

If practice sessions on which you are stiving for some progressive steps are 
becomign discouraging, you can use a similar approach. Quite worrying about 
that high note you can't seem to get. Become very introspective about what 
you need to do to adjust. Get into your head, but keep it positive and 
reflective. In this way you be alert to the moments when you are getting it 
right and you'll be in a better postion to repeat that move again. If your 
feeling discouraged, you are expecting failure and your expectations will 
certainly be realized.

There is a fine line with being cocky and humble. You want to play with a 
sense of almost cocky abandon, but, IMHO we all must have a sense of 
humility about what we are EXPRESSING. Again alertness is imperative.

Whenever problems with ones playing progress tries to discourage, LOVE your 
way out them. You love to play. You love the music. You love to share that 
music with an audience about to be uplifted by your art. You love to 
practice. With all that love going on, there should be no room for 
discouragement.

When I saw the previous post o nthis matter, I felt compelled to babble a 
bit. I've been through it. I understand. Try a different way of thinking. 
You'll be fine. The repsonse I read was also very nice. I hope my $.02 worth 
here helps a bit.

Peace!

Nick Drozdoff
"No Man Is An Island"
http://www.mp3unsigned.com/NickDrozdoff.ASP
NYTC Stage 1
http://www.newyorktrumpetcompany.com/
Eclipse Flugelhorns
http://www.eclipsetrumpets.com/2005/welcome.htm
Jazz Player Radio
http://www.jazzplayerradio.com