Photo: dra_schwartz/iStockphoto.com
Violist Sam Bergman (of the Minnesota Orchestra and the Inside the Classics concerts/blog) writes this week about the seemingly endless parade of studies that determine that orchestral musicians are a deeply unhappy lot:
Every few years, someone does a study of orchestra musicians, and comes up with the staggering result that many of us are deeply unhappy. Or if not actually unhappy, at least deeply dissatisfied with our work life. These studies are always duly reported by the arts media with the requisite degree of incredulity (How could people who are getting paid to play great music possibly be unhappy? What is wrong with these people?), and there are usually a few backlash commentaries appended in which unhappy people who get paid to write about great music order those of us who get paid to play it to cheer up and grow a sense of perspective.
Find out what Sam thinks about these studies and what might be done here.
One reply on “unhappy? perhaps…”
Sam’s post raises some interesting questions about the psychology of orchestral musicians. He writes, “But if there is a kernel of truth in these studies, it can be found in the conclusion that orchestral musicians can grow to feel stifled by the very nature of orchestral life.” Substitute just about any other profession for ‘orchestral musician’ and the conclusion still rings true. What is it about “the nature of orchestral life” that can feel stifling at times?
The article that inspired Sam’s post delves into the differences between a mindfully performed concert and a mindLESSly performed one, and how a conductor might go about achieving the former. In my experience, no single factor weighs more heavily in achieving a mindful performance than the trust a conductor has for the musicians. If a musician feels he or she has permission to perform with autonomy, the creative juices start to flow. If a performer feels the need to play defensively so as not to upset the conductor, neither autonomy nor creativity will be present, and the process of preparing and performing concerts can start to grow stale.