You’re not a cat!

Posted on January 20, 2020 by Jen

You know how cats are. You can buy them a gagillion fancy (and expensive) toys and a princely bed and an over-the-top “cat condo” and they will eschew it all for a discarded cardboard box. And typically, the mankier the box, the better they like it.

Who knows why? They’re cats, it’s what they do.

But you? You’re no cat. At best, you’re staff to a cat, the human tasked with finding towers of treats, truckloads of toys, loads of litter, in the vain hope that your cat will deign to love you back. So, why are you in a box?

“What box?” you ask. The box of your playing life! We express this box in many ways:

“I’m not very good”
“I’m going to be a beginner forever”
“I could never learn by ear”
“I’ll never be able to read”
“I will only ever play in my living room”
“I know lots of tunes; I just can’t play them”
“I’ll never be prepared enough to play on stage”
“I don’t want to get too good”
“There’s so much I haven’t learned yet – I’m not ready”
“I only play well documented, ancient, traditional cadenzas published by Schirmer”

I have heard all of these (ok, except that last one, I made that one up). But here’s what I hear you actually saying:

“I’m afraid”

I’m scared. That’s why I sit here in this manky, tattered old box. I have convinced myself that I like it here. And even though it’s small, I’d rather be smooshed in here than free in the unknown.

Because fear is a powerful force. Just a tiny kernel of fear can paralyze a fully grown, capable, talented, inquisitive smart person. And we plant that little bit of fear in the box with us so we can grow together – so we forget where we end and the fear begins.

So, how are you going to break out of the box? There are many ways but here are seven that are may help with your harping:

Acknowledge you’re in a box. It’s not a bad thing, it just is (unless it’s preventing you from growing and moving – then it is bad).
Define the box(es). What does your box look like? Remember that a box can be made of many things and have multiple sides – so try to get them all. Always play solo/alone? Never really mailed down a particular phrase? Only play one type of music? Always playing a 1 – 5 – 8? Never leave your home? Call your box by its name.
Pick one of the less terrifying fears you’ve just identified. Really break it down – why does it scare you? Be honest. For example, are you afraid to read because everyone else reads better? This common fear has a fairly simple solution – first, remember that reading takes practice (even though no one wants to do stuff that is hard – keep practicing and it will get easier…remember first grade? you learned to read books by practicing e-v-e-r-y day) so add some reading into your practice schedule. Second, the next time you’re with other people reading music, spend a moment watching them – and notice that you are likely not the only one having a bit of a struggle. Don’t compare yourself, just notice that you’re not alone.
Get to work! Now that you know what you’re fear is and how to take action on it, actually take it on! Do the work.
As the fear recedes (and the sides of the box get lower) – rejoice! Enjoy the feeling.
Move on to the next fear – lather, rinse, repeat.
Be vigilant – these little fears can build a box so quickly and quietly, you might not notice a new fear building a new box around you. So, check in occasionally, see what you’re avoiding and take it on.

And if you’re not really ready to get out of your box, you can still acknowledge that it exists and learn what it looks like – then you’ll be that much farther ahead when you decide you’d like to move!

What’s printed on the side of your box? Willing to share it in the comments? Think your musical fear is a little more than you can take on by yourself? You can work with me to learn and apply approaches to take those fears on and cut down the box – just contact me for coaching.

It’s “Make Your Dreams Come True” Day – don’t waste it!

Posted on January 13, 2020 by Jen

Today is “Make Your Dreams Come True” Day. Wow!

Ok, first, who knew?!? Second, how cool is that? A whole day dedicated to that thing everyone always says they want. Third, I could not make this up!

Which begs the question – how will you observe this auspicious day? Because, hey, it says right on the calendar that this is the day. And it only comes once a year. I didn’t set to to go on about development again, but hey – you might as well use this day as intended.

Of course, to make your dreams come true, you have to know what your dreams are. I have found though, that when I ask people what their dreams are, the answers are often empty unsatisfying nonexistent. That is, either I get a (clearly) ridiculous answer (“my dream is to be the Queen of Siberia” – duh, not a country, and no monarch, and no pathway!) or the more likely response which is…no answer at all.

That’s horrifying to me. No dream? Not “I’d rather not say” or “I don’t want to tell you, you’ll think it’s silly”. Just a blank stare. Ouch!

I hope you have a dream for your harp life. A desire (secret or not) for yourself and your harp. If you don’t, don’t despair – you can make one. Today is not too late.

Having a dream will help keep you motivated and can help guide your growth…and by extension, your entire harp life.

Need to build a dream? You can. And more importantly, you can build dreams again and again. What you dreamt of as a baby harper (as a friend of mine likes to call budding beginners) may not be what you dream of as a musician of mature harp years. If you were a child when you began to play, you may view the landscape of your dreams differently later in your life. If you began to play as an adult, you might have thought you needed to govern your dreams because you were starting later (BTW – don’t fall for that cop out!).

You have dreams that change. You can have multiple dreams. You can have evolving dreams. They’re your dreams – make them what you need and want them to be! But I hope you have some.

How do you form a dream? First, you don’t force it. Just collect some ideas. Spend a little bit of time (probably quietly and by yourself – but do it your way). Gather your thoughts about what you dream of doing. You could sleep and actually dream of your dream. Or make a dream board of images that express your dreams. Or draw/paint/sculpt a representation of your dream. Or write it out. The point is simply to capture that dream so you can hold onto it. You may discard this later if needed, but as your dream is forming, this will help you hold on to the wisps of it.

Your dream does not have to be enormous or grand – it just needs to be yours.

Ok, now that you have a dream, how do you move toward it? Well, if you have captured it (as above) you might be getting some ideas. But perhaps most importantly, you have to believe that you can actually move toward this dream.

Note – I didn’t say achieve. This is not another whack at goal setting in a different guise! This is about identifying what you think would be a cool potential outcome and moving in that direction. I dream of playing Smetana’s Vltava at the Musikverein in Vienna. It might seem unlikely, but at least I could define a path to make that dream come true! (for instance, I could start by learning Vltava!)

Define what about the dream is the “dream” part and what is the “work” part. You can definitely do the work part. You might have to break it down into small, manageable, bite-sized chunks, but you can do it. Of course, making a plan will help – otherwise, you’ll only dream but never make a dream come true.

Always keep dreaming. When I was a pup (in harp years) my first dream was simply to not suck. I think I can say that I got that dream. My next dream – that I was confident would n-e-v-e-r happen – was to play on a stage with one of my harp heroes. I got that one wrong. Turns out the dream wasn’t to get to play with an amazing musician – it was to have that person as a close friend…and play on stage together!

You can keep moving toward a dream and perhaps you’ll achieve it. Whether you achieve it or simply hold on to working toward your dream, the important thing is to be enthused and to use that enthusiasm to keep on keeping on – usually with joy!

So, Make Your Dreams Come True Day is specifically for doing just that. I know you won’t want to waste it so, what will you do to further your dreams? Willing to share your dream? Leave a comment below – I’m looking forward to being inspired by you!

Clear vision for 2020

Posted on January 6, 2020 by Jen

It is now 2020 – Welcome to the new year and the new decade!

Just like every new year, we are encouraged from many sides to develop resolutions – to define those things we need to “fix” to improve ourselves.

How about this – in 2020, the year of clear vision – just give it a rest. Resolve to make no resolutions. Don’t set any goals.

After all, if the goals were important, you’d have set them right when they became clear. If you need to work on specific things, you would have started right then – if you wanted that to become a goal!

There’s nothing special about short cold days for achieving anything. Up to 91% of people who set resolutions drop them, most before the middle of January! So, setting resolutions is really not a useful thing to do, unless you like to set yourself up for failure and to give yourself a specific thing to beat yourself up about not accomplishing.

Then what should you do? How about you take on just these four things:

Just Stop. New Year’s resolutions really seem to be about false notions of self-improvement and possibly about self-aggrandizing virtue signaling. And really, unless you made a significant wager with someone, no one else really cares if you make it, so stop pillorying yourself about having resolutions, goals, visions, whatever. Use that energy to – just play!
Be Nice. Be kind to yourself – if you’re not where you want to be, you probably not only know it, but you likely also know how to get across that gap. You might just not be ready to spend that energy. And if you are not sure how to get there, work with your teacher (or me!) and keep reading (because you know that here, we’ll talk about ways to improve!).
Take a smarter path. The path forward that begins by recognizing the reality of your life will be a smarter path. And possibly there’s more to your life than playing the harp – like family, friends, day jobs, other hobbies, other instruments, and myriad other things you prioritize ahead of the harp (otherwise, you’d have more time to practice). By examining your real life – and using that as the foundation of your thinking about your playing – you will be more likely to be able to find the time to practice and to better fit your harp playing into your reality! Your life is a system and it needs to be kept in balance so that you can accomplish the requirements of each of its parts. That balance starts by understanding where all the pieces lie.
Practice! You know it will all come down to this – but you need a wider definition – you have to practice:

- Practice the instrument – probably that old saw of spending at least 30 – 90 minutes a day (depending, again, on where you’re trying to get, your level of performance and development, and your real life)
- Practice fitting everything else in too (you know, like dinner, exercise, sleep, work, chores, etc.) (after all, 3 above will not happen by magic, it will take a little work to analyze what will fit, where it will fit and how you might have to adjust things to get it all into the day).
- Practice having balance
- Practice being kind to yourself
- Practice stretching
- Practice learning
- Practice spending time away from your harp productively
- Practice being present
- Practice practicing – you can’t just sit on the bench and have magic pour out your fingers – you know you need to warm up, work on fundamentals, analyze music, think about your approach and strategy for new music, work on learning, learn new things, develop musicality, hammer out new burbles, etc.
  - Practice the tunes you love
  - Practice the tunes you don’t love
  - Practice the way you play and developing your technique
  - Practice becoming more accomplished
  - Practice sharing your music
  - Practice being better
  - Practice enjoying the process
  - Practice capturing your progress so you can see your improvement
  - and practice identifying where you need to improve and practice

It’s going to be a busy year, and you’ll do exactly as much work as you fit in (and no more). Setting improbable or impossible goals will not help and could actually get in the way (by making you feel like you’re failing or not making progress when you actually are).

What will you do with all the energy you have from not developing resolutions or goals that won’t work for you? Let me know in the comments!

When injury strikes – plow on! (but carefully and smartly)

Posted on November 4, 2019 by Jen

One of my students recently broke her arm*. Really broke, with surgery and plates and screws, and other barbaric medical necessities. It was not pretty. She needed time to heal, and I encouraged her to take the time to recover so healing would go faster and more successfully.

And with good care and physical therapy (and more patience that I would have shown), she’s been on the mend. I’m delighted to have her back at the harp (with clearance from the physician and the physical therapist).

But, she’s a trooper and while she was recovering, she didn’t lay on the couch and moan! Nope – she plowed on!

Now, let me explain what I mean by “plowed on”. What she did not do is ignore the physical therapist or the physicians. She did not just sit around. So, what did she do? She did the work she could do – carefully and smartly.

She listened to music – because she knows this is a good way to perform mental practice. You may have heard the old saw, “if you can sing it, you can play it”. Listening to the tune helps you get the melody in your head, learning the patterns of the notes, the relationships of the phrases, so that you can anticipate what comes next – in your mind! So when she was healed up, she had a lot of the brain part of learning already done and she was ready to go on to the finger part.
She did her physical therapy – She told the PT that she’s a musician so the therapy could be tailored to her needs. And she actually did the exercises her PT taught her – both during their sessions and as prescribed between those sessions. She knew that although the exercises were no fun, they were fun-damental to her recovering and being able to get back to playing sooner.
She continued to play with the other hand. My students know that we will work to play the melody in both the right – and the left – hands. Sometimes we also ask the right hand to play the harmony. We do this both to exercise the left hand to make it more limber but also to make our brains more limber by switching the roles of the two hands. She was able to keep that up throughout her injury.
She rearranged some tunes – when you can only play with one hand, you rethink your harmonization. This is an interesting exercise in inversions and it’s a good opportunity to think about the shape and structure of the tune. Earlier work on hand shapes also meant that she was comfortable building harmonies in one hand…and she knew these would help transition to two hands when the time was right.
She thought before she played – asking so much from your hands really does mean that thinking first makes sense to save unnecessary movement and work. She analyzed the tune before playing to figure out how to accompany with harmony in just one hand.
She thought after she played – gaining a new perspective from playing with one hand results in new possibilities to analyze your playing, the structure of your practice, and the outcomes.
She rested – after all, your body needs time to recover so resting is certainly necessary for recovery. And practicing in a new way meant becoming more tired sooner.
She was patient – she understood that this was a serious injury and that, not being a child, it would require time to heal and to knit back together.

Being injured is never fun and injuring yourself may impact your playing. But once it has happened, it is what it is – so take care of yourself while you heal – but don’t abandon your harp! At a minimum it might soothe your hurt to play what you can!

* like any good article, this is based on a fiction derived as a composite of students. But if you break an arm – I’d suggest you be smart – just like my composite student!

Are we done stretching? Not yet!!

Posted on August 28, 2019 by Jen

So, throughout August we have stretched our artisticness away from the harp. We’ve stretched our bodies and we’ve stretched our repertoires. What could possibly be left?

Maybe the most important part. Have you stretched you?

I hear you grumbling. I’m all stretched out. Yes, I’ve stretched me.

But have you stretched all of you?

Have you stretched to playing for others, in new places? For new audiences? Have you put yourself out there to share your art? Have you stretched emotionally?

I really thought I had. I’d played for all kinds of people. What could be left? And then I was asked to play for first graders! Wow! A very different audience that I had never even thought of. They were great! Just imagine what I would have missed if I had said no. Was it out of my comfort zone? Oh yeah – I couldn’t even see it from my comfort zone! But if I had to take a chance, what a great place to land!

How about that gig that isn’t your norm? I booked that one. Now I’m learning a tune that I’d never select – a pop tune I have always hated! But, now that I’m working on it, while I don’t like the tune any better than before, I can appreciate its rhythmic qualities. And I can respect the technique that I need to play it accurately. It is drawing on skills I rarely use. So, I also got to stretch my practice routine to boot!

How about finding a new way to share with friends, family, or audiences? Have you taken the opportunity to unguard your heart (you know, the one that’s in your mouth when you contemplate something new, different, and challenging!) and share just a bit of the joy you find in playing? Or some other emotion – loss? happiness? contemplation? contentment?

Stretching to share your emotions can be very freeing. You know, after the freefall of terror. As we’ve identified before, stretching can be many (good) things, and here are six:

Stretching is the opposite of static and facing things straight on is definitely not static! Meeting your resistance to something will help you keep moving, growing, developing.
Stretching makes you flexible. When you’re sharing with others, you can telegraph what you’re feeling. Being flexible gives you the opportunity to change up what you’re doing to suit your audience (and yourself). I try to have a couple of options available for each program – for those times when noting is coming together. I want to convey to the listener that, even in the face of [pick one: forgetting how the tune goes, being unable to exert any control over my fingers, starting in the wrong key, (why yes, I have done all these things and more – in front of audiences)], I’m glad to be there with them, and grateful to know that they’re on my side, even if I can’t seem to conjure any knowledge of how to play the harp!
Stretching helps alleviate stiffness – and putting yourself out there might make you feel stiff (terrified stiff?). Nothing like working on music way beyond the pale of your favorites will help you approach new, different things with more freedom – that comes from the comfort of being less stiff as you approach the music…or the audience. Remember to “bend your knees” musically. Just imagine what I might do with that tune I hate (after I deliver it for the gig – I could completely rejigger it (perhaps literally – make it into a jig? Just an idea – I’m flexible like that!)
Stretching helps relieve stress. Don’t you ever think that you’re the only one who feels stress (nervousness, tension, etc.) when you’re performing. We all do – even your harp hero! If you’ve done the stretches we have been talking about, you will be more comfortable no matter where you play. And that will help you feel less stress while you are playing. Don’t get me wrong – you might feel a little bit of nervousness (and research suggests that this actually helps you play better) but you won’t have that heart-pounding, breath-stealing paralysis that gets in the way (ok, you can call it stage fright, but I can only focus on how I can’t breathe…until I remember that I’m looking forward to playing…once I get started!).
Stretching helps develop and maintain focus. By stretching yourself to new audiences, you have to focus on them to share all that you have brought. You will, of course, get better at this with practice, so keep at it! And remember to focus on the good – you know your music, you enjoy playing, and they will love you!
Stretching stretches you. You will definitely benefit from sharing yourself and your music with others. Open your heart and give your gift. Do not worry about receiving a gift in return – just enjoy the delightful feeling of giving! And keep on giving as you stretch yourself again and again.

So, as the end of summer nears and we have stretched ourselves in so many ways – physically, artistically, emotionally, and through our repertoire. Each of these aspects of playing are essential – and stretching in each of them helps keep you flexible – ready to take on any challenge and not only succeed but also the enjoy it! Now that you’re all stretched – what will you take on next? Let me know in the comments!

Expand your musical reach – another stretch (or 7!)

Posted on August 21, 2019 by Jen

We have talked about stretching through making art and stretching our bodies. There’s another place we need to stretch and that is in our music. And it’s the perfect time to think about it – it will be the winter holidays and all the lovely opportunities to play will be coming. I mention the holidays because they are the perfect foil for stretching our music.

The holidays are great from a repertoire perspective. There is a relatively small set of tunes to work from and each year, those that have been on our set lists for a while seem to become easier to prepare and to play. It’s also easier to knuckle under and practice – we know it’s coming; we know we’ll be playing; and we know the bulk of what we’ll bring to each performance.

That doesn’t exactly sound like stretching.

And that’s why it’s so great! There are loads of holiday tunes – so you probably don’t know them all. But you know some and so each year you can add another one or two to fill in your set list. But we have to fight the urge to be lazy and just play all the same stuff.

I don’t know about you, but I really like hearing new (to me) stuff at the holidays. From countries whose music I don’t know well, from new sources, and from the set of those songs that hardly anyone records but are just so good.

So, the holidays are an opportunity to stretch ourselves – musically.

What does stretching musically mean? Trying new things! It can be adding techniques we don’t usually use, playing music we don’t usually play, finding stuff we didn’t know existed and fitting it into our lives, arranging music we like (from other instruments) and playing it on the harp, or more.

How is stretching musically good for us? Here are seven unsurprising ways (some of these might sound familiar since they are as with making art)

Stretching is (still) the opposite of static! Static is not moving or changing. Static introduces b-o-r-i-n-g into your playing. It also means that you’re not growing as a musician. So, learn how to do some effect you think is cool…and actually use it in your playing! Do the work of technique practice. And after learning some new technique, actually add it to your playing!
Stretching makes you more flexible. By adding new music, new sources, new techniques, new practice approaches, just new stuff to your playing, you will begin to explore yourself more and bring that into your playing and performance. And you will be free to do more than you thought you could when you were less flexible.
Stretching helps defeat stress. The more you stretch your music, the more comfortable you become with playing it – because you’ll become more accustomed to being stretched. In your practice, in performance, in ensemble, in sessions – no matter where you’re playing you will be more relaxed, able to enjoy the process and product of making music. That comfort is an indication of your reduced stress.
Stretching helps overcome pain and discomfort. You might decide to stretch your music when you feel the discomfort be becoming bored. Of course, once you decide to stretch your music, you might feel self-conscious, uneducated, or ignorant. The music activities that stretch you might make you feel uncomfortable in and of themselves. But keeping at it – a little bit each day – will help you be more comfortable and soon, you’ll be interested in the flexibility of trying new music. I’d suggest adding time for creativity in your practice each day so you will be able to stretch musically with less (perceived) “stiffness”.
Stretching helps you focus. You can be mindful when you are stretching your music. Mindful of what it is about the music that attracts (or repels) you, what technique elements you need to work on, what your harp really shines with. In addition, a broader repertoire may help you to feel more accomplished and allow you to comfortably book gigs previously out of reach. Be sure to pay attention as you’re stretching your music to identify what to keep on doing.
Stretching improves your range. As you add music to your toolbox, and include the listening, reading, technique and effects the new music might require of you, you will become more able to do more things with greater musicality – and add new things more quickly.
Stretching stretches you. There’s nothing like playing something you never thought you’d be able to (or possibly even that you never thought about adding) to boost your confidence and encourage you to try even more new things!

Stretching – the gentle kind that broadens your abilities, and leaves you relaxed and enjoying making music, is just what you need. With these seven stretches you might become a better musician! What kind of music might you add to stretch yourself? What else might you do to stretch yourself musically? Tell me in the comments – I can’t wait to hear!

7th Inning Stretch

Posted on August 7, 2019 by Jen

The start of August is sort of the “7^th Inning Stretch” of Summer.

Most of the Summer is gone, but there’s easily another six (or more!) weeks to go, so it is the metaphorical 7^th Inning. For those of you unaccustomed to baseball, there are nine innings (in a regular game) so the 7^th is about ¾ of the way. Onlookers are encouraged to stand up and stretch before the end of the game commences. It is a time of frivolity, merriment, and getting the last snacks before the vendors shut down.

In our case, it’s not the inning that matters – it’s more about the stretch. So, for August, we’ll talk about stretching.

We actually started stretching ourselves in July by giving ourselves permission to cross into making art in other media. This challenge to ourselves is a type of stretching –

Stretching our creative muscles
Stretching how we think about our arts
Stretching our comfort zone to share pieces in various phases of done-ness
Stretching our world of sharing.

So many of you graciously shared your work in other media (and continue to do so – don’t stop!). This is a relatively easy way to stretch yourself.

Why is stretching so important? There are loads of reasons you should stretch yourself, but here are 7 (one for each Inning up to the stretch? Maybe 😊):

Stretching is the opposite of static! Being static is stultifying. It is not making progress of any type. It is status quo. What it isn’t is electrifying! Or creative. Or enriching. So we want to avoid being static.
Stretching makes you more flexible. The more you stretch, the more all of you can be brought to everything! Practice. Creating. Lunch with friends. Everything!
Stretching helps defeat stress. The more you stretch, the more comfortable you become with being stretched. Because you are comfortable with stretching and being flexible, you can be more relaxed in the face of stressors and this comfort allows you face every stressor more easily. And the more you create, the more flexible you will be as you create – anything.
Stretching reduces pain and discomfort. When you first start stretching you will feel self-conscious, uncoordinated, ignorant, and you might feel discomfort or pain from the activities that stretch you. But if you go gently and keep at it daily, you will soon (sooner than you think) adapt and become more flexible. So, by adding some time for creativity in each day you will be able to do so with less stiffness (e.g. “I don’t know what to draw!” or “I can’t paint!”)
Stretching helps you focus. You can be mindful when you are stretching, and your enhanced presence means you can focus on where you are rather than being focused on any pain or discomfort. By creating more in all domains, you will be able to focus on the act of creating at your harp when you are there (or your easel, your notebook, your kitchen counter – wherever you are focused and being creative).
Stretching improves your range of motion. As you might have seen by the challenge, your “range of motion” in other media might be limited – by self-critique, by lack of experience, by lack of training. Stretching will allow you to side step these things and create anyway.
Stretching stretches you. What? That might sound silly, but by stretching you are always challenging yourself to try more, new, different – and it feels good!

So, we’ve sort of gone backwards starting with stretching your creativity but that’s ok – we’re nothing if not flexible, right? As we progress through August, we’ll look at other, more conventional views of stretching. But as you’re creating, remember to stretch and be flexible. What do you do to be creatively flexible? Share in the comments – I can’t wait to hear!

PS – as I mentioned last week – if you’ve got a piece of art from another medium that you’d like to share – I will add it to the post. Haven’t finished your piece? Haven’t finished convincing yourself? Still on the fence about sharing? Just do it for yourself! When you send it to share, I will put it up. If you missed last week’s post where people shared their amazing art from other media, prepare to be amazed and check it out here:

Challenge Accepted! Updated

Posted on July 31, 2019 by Jen

You are amazing!! All I can say is “WOW!!” and “Thank you!”

So many of you were willing to make art and share it with the rest of us. You were artistic, creative, and definitely away from the harp. And you made such wonderful stuff!

I know some of you are away on vacation.

I know others of you were in “watch and wait” mode – you may have made something but maybe not been willing to share it. And that’s ok – the real point of this was to make something. The willingness to share can come later.

And I know some of you are in that place of “can’t” – that’s ok, but I think we might be having a little bit more fun over here. I hope you know there’s always room on our blanket (and there’s always an extra cookie) when you’re ready to come over here.

Here are a sample of the wonderful things people sent. We have art made from pastels, markers, textiles, pencil, and clay! Some of these pieces have been in the making for a bit and others were dashed off to participate – either way, all are welcome. I hope you find this encouraging and go off to try something new! And if you didn’t finish in time, you were full of trepidation (but now you see that really, they won’t take away your birthday!), or you just forgot but now you’re willing to share, I’m still willing to post – just send it to jeniuscreationschallenge@gmail.com and we can keep this up for a while!

New pieces added to end as they come it – thank you!

Give yourself permission – be a mixed media artist

Posted on July 24, 2019 by Jen

I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty comfortable being a musician. And that’s good. I don’t avoid the topic – I tell people that’s what I am and it’s what I do. And I guess now I can say I’m a recording artist too*. But then I become less comfortable. I have a hard time seeing myself as an artist of any kind!

That word conjures up visions of “real” artists like DaVinci, Rafael, Van Dyke, Mondrian, or Basquiat (don’t like my list? I’d love to know how you like better! Tell me in the comments.). And then I become full of “can’t”. I can’t draw, I can’t paint. I can’t sketch. Heck I can’t even doodle (no seriously, check any of my margins. They are all starkly blank!).

And that pile of “can’t” starts to weigh me down. If I can’t be an artist how can I call myself one?

How you look at something defines what you’ll see. Reframing is simply actively deciding to look at something differently. For instance, if I need to find a particular word on a page of text, I turn the book upside-down. Because it is now harder to read, it becomes easier to search. By reframing the problem, I have changed my perspective and thereby made finding the answer just a little bit easier.

And so, to become comfortable calling myself and artist, I have to think about reframing how I see – myself, art, as well as the various media within which I can work. Sometimes we need to push ourselves and allow ourselves to grow as artists. And that push is not just at the harp – we need to push ourselves to do what we don’t think we can…in another medium. We have to give ourselves permission to work in multiple media and possibly we’ll see growth across media!

Remember when you started playing the harp? It certainly is a forgiving instrument, but even so, there were probably times when you were sure you’d never learn to (Gliss accurately? Play harmonics? Get faster?). You were a beginner. When you’re a beginner, everything is a challenge, but you’re excited and curious and while you hope it will come easily, you sort of expect to not do it right immediately. As adults we have a much more difficult time adapting this beginner mindset and we stop allowing ourselves to be beginners – we expect a perfect try straight from the box. Which is ridiculous – we’d never expect other people to do that well on the first try, but we maintain ridiculous expectations of ourselves!

Being creative away from the harp will allow you to have room to grow. Working in another medium also means learning new things, practicing different things that you need at the harp and having to think differently – even if only briefly. Being creative in any medium will help you be more confident in your capacity to be creative. And while the skills you master may (or may not) transfer – the freedom certainly will.

I have a number of creative, artistic, free friends who make amazing art. They create knitwear that actually looks like clothing, paint pictures that look like actual scenes, take breathtaking photographs, write captivating poetry. They freely make and create and generate. They are all harpers. They create all the time.

I have learned a lot from them. OK, I’m still learning! What have I learned?

Be Creative. As the shoes say, just do it. Stop talking (inside your head) and make!
Don’t judge! No really.
Be Flexible. It didn’t turn out the way you imagined? Is it still kind of cool or do you need to learn some more and try again? Either way…ok.
Try things. Just try it – you might like it! Don’t know how to draw? Ok, well, pick up your pen and do something and keep working on it. And try again. You’re learning! (A friend also exasperatedly reminds me to go find a YouTube video to learn how to do something – she’s right, there’s videos for just about everything).
Identify your hang-ups. What’s stopping you? I usually know I can’t do what they’re doing so I’m tempted to not try, because it won’t be good enough (reference TWO and FOUR above). Be tough here – what is r-e-a-l-l-y stopping you? Name it!
And defeat it! Now that you have named what your hang-ups are – defeat them. Look into their metaphorically beady little eyes and tell them to pound sand!
Be Brave. What’s the worst that can happen? Your drawing of your dog looks like a firetruck? Your photo looks less like Loch Ness and more like Loch Mess? So what? It’s not like they’re going to take away your birthday! Sneer at your inner doubter and be brave!

Being creative away from the harp in another medium will allow you to have room to grow. Being creative in any medium will help you be more confident in your capacity to be creative. And while the skills may (or may not) transfer – the freedom certainly will.

I talk a big game. I am always starting to make art in other media and get caught up in “can’t”. So, let’s set ourselves a challenge. Within the next week, make some art. It doesn’t have to be large, complicated, complex, or tortured – it just has to be yours. Take a picture of it and post it in the comments and we’ll share them next week. I say this with trepidation – because, you know, I can’t draw. But I’ll be doing it too. A doodle? A sketch? Photo from your phone that you crafted? An ashtray (are these still made in art?) Whatever you want – make it, photograph it and post it and I’ll make a gallery of our work next week. We’ll all be in this together.

UPDATE: PLEASE EMAIL YOUR CONTRIBUTION TO JENIUSCREATIONSCHALLENGE@GMAIL.COM (YOU WON’T BE ABLE TO LOAD IT INTO THE COMMENTS!).

* why yes, my cd, This Moment, is available in ShamelessSelfPromotionLand.

Don’t confuse your bloopers with everyone else’s highlights –

Posted on December 1, 2014 by Jen

I saw this quote a while ago and it grabbed my attention. It really points out an activity many of us do – often without thinking or questioning.

You’ve been there – you are performing – at Carnegie Hall, at a local festival, in your church, for your cat – and you make a “unintended jazz improvisation”, an out of mode musical variation, an exciting opportunity to explore the entirety of the scale, a mistake!

In your head this diversion is accompanied by a cymbal clash, a thunderclap, and an accusatory glare from everyone within earshot. You replay it in your head in a heart wrenching loop – you focus all your energy in reliving the moment. You play it in slo-mo. You play it over and over and over. You reconfirm all your fears that you are not a good harp player.

But then you make the real mistake – you point out to yourself that (insert your Harp Hero here) never makes those errors. Your Harp Hero is perfect – you have never heard a wrong note emerge from HH’s harp! It is not possible!

The mistake you make is to replay your blooper reel incessantly with the occasional quick glance to focus on someone else’s highlights reel. You fuel your inner narrative that you are not now, nor will you ever be, as good as (insert Harp Hero here).

This is pointless and silly and you need to stop! Next time you are in the presence of a Harp Hero – really listen. It was incredibly freeing the first time I heard (and did not dismiss) my Harp Hero’s musical diversion – it helped me see that we are alike. Ok, we are separated by years of experience and practice – but underneath all that – we both have bloopers and highlights –

So the next time its Bloopers Showtime in your head, make some popcorn and watch your “Funniest Home Videos”.

Then practice and gain experience – because you never know whose Harp Hero you might be!

Jenius Creations

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