Playing Music

Posted Sun Feb 8, 2004 in

I watched the Grammy Awards last night. I don’t usually watch them, but I did this time. It was interesting to see what the academy thought of last year’s music.

What was far more interesting was to watch performers of this class work, because of the variety of styles and talent, among other things.

While watching Martina McBride perform, I noticed that look in her eyes. I immediately recognized that she was inside herself, in that place where the music comes from. She was there, taking the music from that place and giving it to the rest of us.

All good musicians do this. They don’t get good at music unless they know this place well. It’s way down deep in the soul.

I’ve been around music most of my life. I’ve noticed that there are people who play who aren’t very good at what they do. Usually they lack motivation or talent or both.

Then there are those players who are technically brilliant. They can be virtuosic in skill, but there is something lacking in their playing. It’s cold. It has no emotion.

My favorite players (and I include singers in this group) are those who know where the music comes from. They know that place inside them that makes the music real. They go there, retrieve some of the music, and share it with the rest of us. They are real musicians in that the convey the passion and emotional content of music.

I saw this in Martina McBride last night and it showed. I am not a big fan of country music. But, when I hear and see musicians who know where the music comes from, it’s always good and I always enjoy it. The genre becomes immaterial at that point.

  1. Thank you for putting my feelings into words. She sang from the heart. It was just beautiful music..how refreshing to see that... — toxiclabrat    9 February 2004, 09:03    #

  2. ...one of the reasons live performances can be so powerful, -no? — dan    9 February 2004, 15:06    #