Posts about Music Ensembles
On October 29th
covering Bands, creative partnerships, Ensembles, Music Ensembles
I returned from the CMJ Music Marathon where I was immersed in the pragmatics and problems of the indie-band life, and went straight into a 3-day seminar at the Kennedy Center on boards of nonprofit arts organizations. I have so much to talk about I don’t know where to start.
The central thing this is all about is creating a structure that supports creativity. That’s it. Either an organizational structure, a business model or a way of working.
I have some gems to share from far-seeing luminaries as diverse as George Clinton, True Master and Michael Kaiser.
Soon.
On October 4th
covering Bands, creative partnerships, Music, Music Ensembles, Teams
This is the heart of why I’m doing this blog and all the other things you’ll see if you look around my site. (This post is inspired by Merlin Mann’s great talk on how to blog. )
I was a musician before I was a psychologist — low on the food chain and too much of a generalist (ahem, dilettante) to compete at a satisfying level in either the hard-core classical world or the jazz/ studio world.
I got to play in garage bands, jazz ensembles large and small, orchestras, chamber groups, new-music ensembles, early-music ensembles, theatre orchestras and a bunch of ad-hoc groups and gigs. They all had one thing in common. When they were going well, it felt unbelievably great. But every group could devolve at any time into sheer misery, a big soul-destroying bowl of suck. Read more »
On October 1st
covering Music, Music Ensembles
It’s always been on my list of things I absolutely believe even though I could not prove. Playing music helps the different parts of the brain work together. Furthermore, there’s obviously something very powerful and complex about playing and singing music together with others in real time.
I’m glad that some researchers are doing the hard work of looking into this.
Now, if you’re a musician, you’re probably asking “if playing music helps integrate brain functioning, why are my fellow musicians the way they are?”. Some things are still unknown.
On September 30th
covering Business, creative partnerships, Culture, Group psychology, Music Ensembles
Since I listen all day to the anxieties of people, I’ve gotten an earful this week. And it’s only Tuesday. The mega-environment is becoming rough and uncertain. Money, especially money for new projects, is expected to be harder to come by, and a lot of things will become difficult.
Doing well in this climate will require psychologically resilient people and organizations — those with the capacity to resist despair, fear, and retreats into fantasy, to keep doing what needs to be done. Flexibility, an unfazed grasp of reality, persistence and patience will serve people well. (Sometimes it will require the flexibility to abandon projects that are checkmated and move on to something else with a minimum of handwringing). Groups that can manage discouragement and anxiety and support one another will do all right. Teams and groups who sink into finger-pointing when times are tough will not make it. Read more »
On September 24th
covering Bands, Music, Music Ensembles
I’ve noticed there are a lot of ways to destroy a band. I thought it would be helpful to compile a list of different ways to make a band fail, so people who are seeking failure can destroy their bands more efficiently. This is a first pass at an authoritative reference. Please add your own as a comment. Read more »
