Practice makes perfect. The greatest performers practice their routines for thousands of hours, repeating simple movements for days on end.
But music isn’t meant to be played alone, in an isolated practice room. Music is meant to be shared. So, instead of playing for inanimate objects in the music hall, grace campus in a unique way.
You don’t need to be the next Louis Armstrong or Benny Goodman to play outside. You don’t even need to be around other people. I play in the Arboretum under the pavilion. Its conical wooden top and stone flooring and pillars allow the clarinet’s timbre to echo around the space. And then I stop for a moment, listening to the water and the wind and the birds as I continue to practice Cyrille Rose’s “Etude No. 12” on a Saturday afternoon.
As the leaves swirl around and birds move from tree to tree, I’m reminded that music, at its core, is an act of expression. It can make us laugh, cry, or dance around in front of Christ Chapel on a Friday night.
Of course, music can bring others joy as well. When I was once playing clarinet in the courtyard of Olds Residence, one of my fellow Olds women asked, “Is that Holst’s Second Suite? Can you please play the third movement?”
I did, and playing outside in a public space has allowed me to bring others joy more than once.
I don’t suggest you play your instrument outside when the temperature drops below zero, but play outside while you have the chance.
It may seem daunting, but as I’ve practiced my clarinet outside, I’ve been blessed by the unexpected. Several sheets of music have gone flying, and been discovered by friendly passerbys. Who knows — during a night on the quad, you might even meet the inspiration for your own “Moonlight Sonata.”
Many pianists in Olds serenade the dorm with everything from Ludovico Einaudi to musical theater repertoire to Ludvig van Beethoven. As everyone congregates around the piano, we connect with each other and take a break from the chaos of studying, poster painting, and essay writing. Instead, everyone focuses on the music, and the community created by it.
If you are going to play your instrument outside, enjoy. But don’t play your instrument in the Arboretum pavilion — that’s reserved for me and my clarinet.