So You Call Yourself A Musician? - Alex Factor

Music has been around for as long as humans can remember, but did not become popular till the 14th century. Since then, great musicians have appeared including Johannes Brahms, Ralph Vaughn Williams, Gustav Holst, Duke Ellington, and The Beatles, but what is a true musician? A musician is an individual who stands out due to his or her talent in performing, expressing, and understanding of music of any genre based on how well he or she can read music or use the Suzuki Method, his or her knowledge of the basic fundamentals of music theory, how well he or she expresses the music that is written or heard, and his or her performance skills.

Many people in the present day consider themselves musicians, but have absolutely no musical talent or skill. The individual merely plays guitar or drums and cannot play a steady rhythm or can only read simple tablature. Back in the classical era, a musician was an individual who performed great symphonies written by a world renowned composer (who is also a musician) in large concert halls with a person of royalty in the audience. Now, people call themselves musicians if they have been playing any instrument for a week in his or her bedroom with no audience. The term musician has lost its meaning through time and needs to be redefined.

Music has changed tremendously since the time Bach and Vivaldi were around and the tools to perform and express music has changed as well. Even though so much has changed, it does not mean the term ‘musician’ should change along with it. More instruments have been invented over the past few centuries, but the same criteria to be considered a musician can still apply. According to Dictionary.com, a musician is “ a person who makes music a profession, especially as a performer of music”(Musician). The word originated back in the 1400s, but those considered a musician back then was very well known and was extremely talented in performing and expressing music. The musicians back in the 15th century through the 19th century actually created music theory as it is known today. These musicians also started the way true musicians read music today.

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The only way modern musicians can perform an individuals piece is by reading the music written out for it or using the Suzuki Method. Usually, musicians are the ones performing a piece a composer has written and are not the ones writing the piece. To perform the piece successfully and to its fullest, the musician must be able to read music and express the music to play it as the composer intended. If an individual cannot read music, he or she runs the high risk of missing important notes and key musical moments that are crucial to the piece. With the skill of reading music, the musician has the knowledge to play more than one style of music. As long as the pieces are written out, the musician can play the piece to the composer’s intent. In modern society, the number of individuals have gone down who can actually read notated music which lessens the amount of real musicians. In 1999, it was reported that “...40% [of eighth graders] could not read musical notation...” (Arts Education). Many people in modern society believe that they can just listen to the music and perform it without proper training, but through studies, it is not very accurate and a lot of the musicality is lost. The only other proven way for individuals to perform music to its fullest would be by using the Suzuki Method.

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The Suzuki Method is a method of learning music just by listening to the piece. This method requires the individual’s parents to start him or her in the learning at a very young age so it is easier to learn and retain the skills. The Suzuki Method makes real musicians because it requires intense training from when the students are just beginning to speak and can hear all parts of the music that they are listening to. One of the most important processes of the Suzuki Method is the repetition aspect. It is said that “constant repetition is essential in learning to play an instrument. Children do not learn a word or piece of music and then discard it. They add it to their vocabulary or repertoire, gradually using it in new and more sophisticated ways” (Suzuki Twinkler). This also comes back to the argument of not needing proper training to be able to play music accurately by just listening to a piece. There is so much that goes into a piece that makes it sound the way the composer wants it to sound and some of these things cannot even be heard through a recording which ultimately makes being able to read music the most accurate way of performing music. Along with reading music and applying the Suzuki Method, musicians need to know the basic fundamentals of music theory to fully understand what they are playing.

Music theory was invented to help set a standard for composers and musicians on how to write and understand music. Basic music theory knowledge is key to understanding music. It gives the musicians the tools to identify what key and time signature they are in, which note of a chord they are playing, and much more. According to The National Standards for Arts Education, students should “be able to read music in several time signatures, while identifying rests and dynamic notations” and “should have a basic knowledge of music theory, and should be able to identify the historical period of a piece of music” by the eighth grade (The National Standards). With this knowledge, students can understand music at a much higher level and are close to becoming real musicians. Many will argue that they can play and perform with out knowing music theory, but to actually know how to play music requires music theory. Knowing notes, note lengths, rhythms, keys, chords, and many other things music related is music theory Once an individual can read music and knows the basic fundamentals of music theory, he or she can then start expressing the music written.

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Being able to express music that is written or that is heard is one of the final steps to becoming a real musician. Expressing music is when an individual can play all the correct notes and plays the dynamics and accents, but also adds his or her own emotion into it. A composer writes music so it fulfills his or her emotions, but for the musician’s emotions to be fulfilled, he or she can add something to the music that is not written. Many people find this aspect very hard to argue with because basically anyone can express themselves in their own way even if they cannot read music or understand music theory. People can express themselves through music they have written, but when a person can do that through a piece that was composed by someone else and has its own expression, it is a true skill.

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The last qualifier for someone to be considered a musician is his or her performance skills. To perform successfully, an individual must perform the way he or she practices. Practice is where the musician works the hardest to achieve the sound he or she wants through his or her instrument and should be no difference when it comes to performing. There can be added stage presence, but if the music is not played to its highest standard, then the performance was not successful. A true musician does not allow themselves to give less effort in a performance then they would during practice.

A musician is someone who can perform, express, and understand music. The only way one can become a true musician is by being able to read sheet music or has gone through the intense Suzuki Method. He or she must know the basic fundamentals of music theory and apply them to the piece he or she is playing. The individual should be able to express themselves through another’s composition without taking anything out of the composition and they must be able to perform to his or her highest standard like he or she would when practicing.

Works Cited

"Arts Education." Issues & Controversies On File: n. pag. Issues & Controversies. Facts On File News Services, 18 June 1999. Web. 11 Oct. 2011.

Blue Knights World Championships, Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, IN. Personal photograph by author. 2011.

"Musician." Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary. Deluxe ed. 1996.

Photograph. Chester Music Theatre. Web. 18 Oct. 2011.

Photograph. Nessleemusic.com. Web. 18 Oct. 2011.

Photograph. Sheetmusicpalace.blogspot.com. Google, 25 Feb. 2009. Web. 18 Oct. 2011.

Photograph. Western Springs School of Talent Education. Web. 18 Oct. 2011.

"The National Standards for Arts Education: Music (sidebar)." Issues & Controversies On File: n. pag. Issues & Controversies. Facts On File News Services, 18 June 1999. Web. 11 Oct. 2011.

"Suzuki Twinkler | Suzuki Association of the Americas." Homepage | Suzuki Association of the Americas. 1997. Web. 11 Oct. 2011.