Living in the moment is essential as a musician. Take every aspect of life and experience it without past and without future. I find that I am able to release a lot of tension that way. Good way to experience performance. The time for reflection and remembering is not on stage. Also good to remember that the way we think on stage as musicians is very different than how we think during the recording process. This is also true when listening back to recordings vs listening to live performance. They are two separate things. Experiencing live performance is being in the present. Experiencing live interpretation and expression is one of the truly amazing experiences as a human being both as a performer and as an audience member.

As a performer, make it so the audience really can’t do without live performance. Play pieces that audiences can’t find recordings of. Find great obscure works, new pieces, etc. build a niche audience. Concerts on Monday or Tuesday afternoon, etc. Get your local musicians union to be proactive and positive, not slow and reactionary. House concerts are important! Play house concerts and inspire people to buy pianos for their living rooms! Bring live music back into people’s homes!

Also important to forget and forgive bad performance experiences in the past. Collaborate with people you disagree with without loathing.

Aloha,

Kurt