Month: December 2013

Sometimes I think the hours we spend in the practice room are only half of what makes us successful performers. I don’t wish to minimize the importance of practice–after all, it’s a rare and lucky soul who can achieve greatness without putting in a lot of hours–but consider all the people who practise assiduously and still bomb when they get onstage. I’m sure most of us can think of a sad story of a conservatory classmate who practised 10 hours a day but never “made it” professionally because of a lack of confidence. There’s a reason most bookstores have a large section dedicated to self-help and motivational books. Confidence is a learned skill, and it’s not always easy to learn.