World-renowned new music specialist and all-around genius Robert Dick did a three-day residency at University of Wyoming last month, and he was inspiring on so many levels. As the host, I got to spend the most time with him drinking wine and driving between Denver and Laramie (not at the same time), so what he said in front of the students and what he said to me has gotten all mixed up in my brain. But it was all a consistent message, and I will just leave a few of the most precious bits here for you to do with what you wish...
*Playing the flute and making music are not necessarily the same thing. There is a level at which you are merely a technician, and then there's the level beyond that, in which you use your technical skills to actually say something with the sounds you are making. You must always strive to be at this level.
*We are all actors on the stage (and I would add, to some extent, in the studio).
*Listen, listen, listen. Not just to that one piece you are learning, but to all things related to it, however tangentially. Listen for pleasure, but with awareness. Listen because this is your art.
*Learn who you are and what you want from your musical life and make it happen; don't just force yourself to fit into a ready-made, imposed formula.
Also, please listen to his latest CD, The Galilean Moons. It is amazing. Can you wear out a CD? I might be halfway there.
Thanks for everything, Robert!!
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| Robert performing Flames Must Not Encircle Sides at University of Wyoming, April 23, 2017. |
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