On Nov 28, 2010, at 2:52 PM, Stuart Walsh wrote: >> I wonder if professionals feel like this, albeit at a much higher level of >> proficiency?
It's not very productive in any discussion to draw a line between professionals and amateurs, as there are amateurs who play 'better' (in any definition you'd prefer) than many professionals. Is an amateur someone who earns a living with a decent job in stead of music, or is a professional someone who gets paid for playing but still has a bread-and-butter job? I don't know how to define either. Anyway, for whatever it's worth, as a professional I've learned how to study. I know how to achieve on my instrument what's in my head. I feel that, perhaps more than anything else, does distinguish a professional from an amateur who will 'have a go' at a piece, any piece. And, of course, I know the limits of what my hands can do in terms of speed, reach and such. So I stay away from pieces that I know I will not be able to play in concert. I still might study and enjoy these pieces for myself, obviously, but not in public. And when I do have to play the impossible pieces, I know how to get away with it by simplification, distraction or other devious ways. ;-) David -- ******************************* David van Ooijen [email protected] www.davidvanooijen.nl ******************************* To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
