Klarinet Archive - Posting 000203.txt from 2002/06
From: Neil Leupold <leupold_1@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [kl] Majoring in Clarinet Performance
Date: Thu, 6 Jun 2002 12:40:03 -0400
> --- Hornz96@-----.com wrote:
>
> I battle constantly between majoring in clarinet performance or in business
> administration. Did some of you on the list have mixed feelings pursuing the
> clarinet instead of another interest that might make you more money? Do you
> regret, perhaps spending money/time on that education? What made you make up
> your mind? Thank you all!
I followed my dreams first, going into business only as a fall-back position
after my life was turned upside down by a three-year long family crisis. You
only live once, my friend. Faced with the unknown, clarivoyance (sp and pun
intended) seems to be a common human desire. Most people are highly risk averse,
seeking positions in life of predictable comfort and stability upon finding them-
selves at one of those proverbial forks in the road. I don't know who was the
very first to say it, but a bit of wisdom was imparted at a Juilliard School
commencement address by the keynote speaker not long ago. She said, to para-
phrase, that if you can "live" doing something other than music...if you have
other interests and don't perceive your love of music as a "life fulfillment
vs. death" proposition, then do that other thing to make your money and enjoy
music on the side. The pursuit of success in music as a profession is not
for those who would put only one foot in the water and keep the other on land
for safety's sake. Personally, I think those who try to do this are robbing
themselves of the potential rapture and heightened aliveness that a headlong
pursuit of the aforementioned success represents, which is not to say that
it's impossible to -- nor that one shoudln't -- acquire some other marketable
skills on the side. I'm certainly glad that I did. People are different,
and not everybody is one of those obsessive all-or-nothing creatures. I
think the aforementioned speaker's advice is sound and worth heeding, de-
pending how much vision a person has for themselves. She was trying to
make the point that it's a tough world among aspiring artists, and can be
a punishing lifestyle amidst the poverty, sacrifice, and single-mindedness
necessary to survive the competition.
What kind of dreams do you have for yourself? Is music an all-consuming
passion? The gap between having talent and developing all of the other
components that must coalesce in order to make a viable go of a musical
career requires enormous dedication and focus to bridge. "Stick-to-it-
iveness", as it were. There are hundreds...thousands...of people, tal-
ented players, in conservatories all over the world, each with their eye
on the same brass (mpingo?) ring. If it's an either/or decision about your
major in college (as opposed to doing a double major), and you don't "need"
to do music as the primary focus in your life in order to feel like a com-
plete human being, it might be a wiser decision to concentrate on your bus-
iness degree for professional career purposes and keep music active on the
side. One does not need an undergraduate music degree in order to derive
immeasurable, continuous, and lifelong enrichment from the pleasures of
playing.
Neil
P.S. And in answer to your other question, no, I personally have never
regretted my decision to major in clarinet performance in college. But
then, I'm one of those obsessive all-or-nothing creatures whose life
would be incomplete without a substantial diet of applied music, so my
answer may not be of great benefit to you.
Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! - Official partner of 2002 FIFA World Cup
http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com
---------------------------------------------------------------------
