Attending Live Performances

Any musician will tell you that every student must practice to find success. Beyond practicing, many musicians will prescribe various other habits. Attending live performances has contributed the most to my musical development, after practicing. I’m disheartened by many of my peers who do not make an effort to attend performances. They miss out on an opportunity to enrich themselves and support fellow musicians.

Musicians also overlook chances to see performers outside their discipline. I have gained invaluable insight from watching other musicians perform who are not saxophonists or pianists. Of course I’ve seen great performers on those instruments, but it’s to our advantage to hear as widely as possible. Some of the most memorable performances I’ve witnessed include Itzhak Perlman, Joshua Bell, Wayne Shorter, Brian Blade, Joe Lovano, and Olga Kern, to name a few.

Listening to other musician’s performances contributes significantly to our own abilities and views. Hearing extraordinary musicality is the most apparent reason. Other reasons include the study of performance practice and interpretation.  A couple of weeks ago this was very apparent when I watched a video in class. A prominent, American, violinist was performing a Mozart concerto in Europe. She was doing a nice job until the cadenza began. My reaction was “What the hell is she doing?” Not only was the cadenza very romantic, but it was also much more technically difficult then the rest of the concerto. It didn’t work with the piece. I felt like I was in the guitar solo scene from “Back to the Future.” I could follow her, but the cadenza was so out of place that it was a disconcerting. Had I not done as much listening and studying of music, I may not have noticed. However, now I realize the importance a stylistically appriate cadenza.

Live performance ≠ Recording

Listening to music will never be the same as experiencing a performance. It’s not uncommon for me to hear, “I can open Itunes, or Spotify, or Grooveshark. Why would I spend time and money, to hear the same music?” A recording will never be the same as a live performance. Not only is the audio quality sacrificed in most digital formats, but the listener misses out on emotional aspects of the live performance. I really believe that the observational aspect of live performance also makes experiencing unfamiliar works a more approachable. Usually the performer will point out the important elements beforehand and the listener has more to grasp on to than just an aural experience.