There are not, and never have been, any wrong notes.  If you live near the ocean, you may hear a seagull squawking in one key, a dog barking in another key, the roar of the ocean out of tune with the other two sounds, and birds singing in clashing rhythms with all of these, and you’ll say, “Beautiful!”  But if human beings pick up instruments and do the same thing, the average listener won’t be able to stand it.

I love this observation from Kenny Werner in Effortless Mastery.  He goes on to share that we are programmed to believe in a certain order of things musically.  But at what point does that confine our spirit?  When does too much sensitivity to the rightness and wrongness of notes make us tentative and clumsy in our performance?  And does that uncertainty rob even the right notes of their power?

I once had a jazz musician remind me that there are no wrong notes as long as you know where it is going….how it resolves.  When I finally grasped that concept, it created a sense of freedom in me.  No longer did I have to worry about the note itself, only how if fit within the development of the musical line.  Wouldn’t it be great if we could adapt that same idea in our lives, no longer having to worry about any mistakes we might make, as long as we know where we are going….how it resolves?

Make Today a Magnificent Day!

Gary L Rupert

Lead Mentor/COO

II:Leaders Creating:II Leaders

LCL Mentors @ Marching Arts Education