Fostering Competition...

How about it? Competition. It exists in everything we do in life, from promotions at your place of employment to bidding for items on eBay, rushing for that coveted parking spot in a crowded lot to fantasy football leagues with your college friends. In regards to music, there's the audition, the concerto competition, festival appearances, marching/WGI/DCI competitions, talent shows, scholarships, job interviews, or simply trying to get ahead of your competitors in the music business world.

Is competition such a nasty thing for artists, or is it a fact of life? Should it be nurtured, taken with a grain of salt, or denounced?

As the fall semester is upon us, I cannot help but think of the arguments for and against. In my studio, I tend to foster some friendly competition on a number of levels. The most recent was to ensure the 40 rudiments are firmly in the hands of all students, from memory, at reasonable tempi, dependent on their individual development. The final round took place in front of my music appreciation class with the 70+ general ed students as the panel. After a split verdict, the student athletes in the class demanded a head to head "drum off" of improvised solos that was incredibly entertaining (and very impressive)! In the case of the two students in the "drum off," one marched snare with the Cavaliers this past season and the other is a frequent competitor in drum set solo competitions around the region. Their musical lives are surrounded by competition.

As a youth, I competed in team sports where 50% of the participants were winners and 50% were losers. As an adult, I raced bikes on the Northern California road and mountain bike circuits. Bike racing has one winner and 100 losers. It was here that my opinions on competition developed. I lost my share of bike races, but grew immensely as an athlete, physically, technically, and mentally. The key was keeping perspective. There were races I was in peak condition and didn't finish top 10 and races I won on days I was there simply for the training.

The same can be said in music, and for that reason, carefully creating competition amongst my studio allows an opportunity to address the realities of our mutual career choice, foster an outlet for those motivated extrinsically, and ensure proper perspective is kept.

Two questions for you:

1. How do you feel about competition?
2. What types of competitions do you foster?

Thanks for reading!

Visit my website at www.jameswdoyle.com

James

Guitarists have good ideas too!

My good friend and colleague Roberto Capocchi is a fantastic guitarist, freelancer, recitalist, recording artist, and educator. It's always a pleasure to spend time discussing music, music as a career and lifestyle, and teaching. He recently started a blog where he addresses the topics often repeated each year to students. Check it out for some wonderful thoughts on practicing and much more!

Roberto Capocchi

Under Destinations, scroll down to blog and instantaneously become a better musician...

Staying Connected- a new website

Informal education is easier than ever with the constant growth of online resources. One not to miss is a new website, http://drumchattr.com/

Check it out, stay informed, participate, and continue to learn.