1 00:00:01,240 --> 00:00:03,407 Hi , My name is Corporal Bacchus , and 2 00:00:03,407 --> 00:00:05,407 I'm a flute instrumentalist for the 3 00:00:05,407 --> 00:00:07,296 Marine Forces Reserve Band in New 4 00:00:07,296 --> 00:00:09,296 Orleans , Louisiana . And today I'm 5 00:00:09,296 --> 00:00:08,610 going to talk to you a little bit about 6 00:00:08,610 --> 00:00:10,740 practicing mindfully first . 7 00:00:10,750 --> 00:00:13,620 Mindfulness is the basic human ability 8 00:00:13,630 --> 00:00:15,852 to be fully present , aware of where we 9 00:00:15,852 --> 00:00:18,074 are and what we're doing and not overly 10 00:00:18,074 --> 00:00:20,297 reactive or overwhelmed by what's going 11 00:00:20,297 --> 00:00:23,110 on around us . Essentially , it's being 12 00:00:23,110 --> 00:00:25,166 completely aware of our place in the 13 00:00:25,166 --> 00:00:27,320 current situation . So practice 14 00:00:27,320 --> 00:00:29,320 technique number one tell the whole 15 00:00:29,320 --> 00:00:31,209 truth and nothing but the truth . 16 00:00:31,209 --> 00:00:33,264 Nothing more . Nothing less describe 17 00:00:33,264 --> 00:00:35,376 what actually is happening , not what 18 00:00:35,376 --> 00:00:37,320 you think is happening without any 19 00:00:37,320 --> 00:00:39,098 extra emotions . Once you start 20 00:00:39,098 --> 00:00:41,420 attaching emotions , other brain start 21 00:00:41,420 --> 00:00:43,531 going crazy . They don't know what to 22 00:00:43,531 --> 00:00:45,698 do with that information , and we have 23 00:00:45,698 --> 00:00:47,698 all this negativity in the practice 24 00:00:47,698 --> 00:00:49,698 room . For example , if I'm playing 25 00:00:49,698 --> 00:00:51,920 through a passage and I don't like what 26 00:00:51,920 --> 00:00:54,142 it sounds like and my immediate thought 27 00:00:54,142 --> 00:00:56,180 is , wow , I sounded awful . I took 28 00:00:56,180 --> 00:00:58,347 away the entire constructive criticism 29 00:00:58,347 --> 00:01:00,569 for that rep , and now I'm upset on top 30 00:01:00,569 --> 00:01:02,624 of it . So let's say I'm playing the 31 00:01:02,624 --> 00:01:04,513 same passage and let's say it has 32 00:01:04,513 --> 00:01:06,624 something to do with my tone . What I 33 00:01:06,624 --> 00:01:08,513 need to be thinking about is what 34 00:01:08,513 --> 00:01:10,569 actually happened . What was my tone 35 00:01:10,569 --> 00:01:12,680 doing ? What was my face doing ? What 36 00:01:12,680 --> 00:01:14,847 was my body doing ? What was my breath 37 00:01:14,847 --> 00:01:17,069 doing ? Where my ribs expanding ? Where 38 00:01:17,069 --> 00:01:19,236 was my mind ? Was my mind in the music 39 00:01:19,236 --> 00:01:22,200 or was my mind somewhere else your 40 00:01:22,200 --> 00:01:24,311 strengths and weaknesses going to the 41 00:01:24,311 --> 00:01:26,367 same thing ? You could describe your 42 00:01:26,367 --> 00:01:28,589 strengths and weaknesses with that same 43 00:01:28,589 --> 00:01:30,756 level of language . Your strengths and 44 00:01:30,756 --> 00:01:32,978 weaknesses don't need to be good things 45 00:01:32,978 --> 00:01:35,200 and bad things your strength can be . I 46 00:01:35,200 --> 00:01:37,420 have consistent airflow in the upper 47 00:01:37,420 --> 00:01:39,087 register , which causes clear 48 00:01:39,087 --> 00:01:41,720 articulation . Very descriptive , very 49 00:01:41,720 --> 00:01:43,620 truthful . Nothing but fact . No 50 00:01:43,620 --> 00:01:46,100 emotion , no extra language that 51 00:01:46,100 --> 00:01:49,190 buffers what the actual thought is that 52 00:01:49,190 --> 00:01:51,990 leads into technique . Number two don't 53 00:01:51,990 --> 00:01:53,990 should yourself . Ah , lot of times 54 00:01:53,990 --> 00:01:56,212 musicians are perfectionists . We think 55 00:01:56,212 --> 00:01:58,212 about what we want to be able to do 56 00:01:58,212 --> 00:02:00,379 what we should be able to do , what we 57 00:02:00,379 --> 00:02:02,323 could do if we had all these extra 58 00:02:02,323 --> 00:02:04,490 opportunities . The thing is , we have 59 00:02:04,490 --> 00:02:06,490 what we have now and nothing more . 60 00:02:06,490 --> 00:02:08,434 Nothing less as well . So if we're 61 00:02:08,434 --> 00:02:10,601 constantly thinking about where are we 62 00:02:10,601 --> 00:02:12,546 on our path and Onley ? Our path . 63 00:02:12,546 --> 00:02:14,712 Everybody else's path doesn't matter . 64 00:02:14,712 --> 00:02:16,934 We're gonna be more constructive in the 65 00:02:16,934 --> 00:02:19,157 practice room . We're gonna be focusing 66 00:02:19,157 --> 00:02:20,934 on what are our strengths ? Our 67 00:02:20,934 --> 00:02:23,157 weaknesses . What are our pieces ? What 68 00:02:23,157 --> 00:02:25,490 do we want to communicate ? Nobody else . 69 00:02:25,490 --> 00:02:27,712 And all of the focus turns to the music 70 00:02:27,712 --> 00:02:29,434 and what we eventually want to 71 00:02:29,434 --> 00:02:31,490 communicate to our audience . Number 72 00:02:31,490 --> 00:02:33,712 three . Observe your personal butterfly 73 00:02:33,712 --> 00:02:35,900 effect . The butterfly effect is 74 00:02:35,900 --> 00:02:37,622 something along the lines of a 75 00:02:37,622 --> 00:02:39,844 butterfly that flaps its wings in North 76 00:02:39,844 --> 00:02:42,067 America . What cause a tsunami in Japan 77 00:02:42,067 --> 00:02:44,122 now ? Obviously , that's not exactly 78 00:02:44,122 --> 00:02:46,420 the same with our instruments . But if 79 00:02:46,430 --> 00:02:49,300 going back Teoh a technical passage if 80 00:02:49,310 --> 00:02:51,532 I'm struggling to play something that's 81 00:02:51,532 --> 00:02:53,310 really fast , it might not have 82 00:02:53,310 --> 00:02:55,310 anything to do with my fingers . It 83 00:02:55,310 --> 00:02:57,143 might have everything to do with 84 00:02:57,143 --> 00:02:56,890 something that's going way down to my 85 00:02:56,890 --> 00:02:59,112 feet , because if I'm thinking about my 86 00:02:59,112 --> 00:03:01,168 fingers and I start getting stressed 87 00:03:01,168 --> 00:03:03,390 out suddenly , I go from here to here . 88 00:03:03,740 --> 00:03:06,560 If I'm here , I can't breathe . If I 89 00:03:06,560 --> 00:03:08,616 can't breathe , it's gonna affect my 90 00:03:08,616 --> 00:03:10,949 tone and my fingers and everything else . 91 00:03:10,949 --> 00:03:13,060 And now I have thio like waste reps , 92 00:03:13,060 --> 00:03:15,227 essentially , when I could be aware of 93 00:03:15,227 --> 00:03:17,393 where my feet where is my breath Where 94 00:03:17,393 --> 00:03:19,504 my fingers , Where's my face ? All of 95 00:03:19,504 --> 00:03:21,930 these things go together . We need to 96 00:03:21,930 --> 00:03:24,152 understand how they work together so we 97 00:03:24,152 --> 00:03:26,097 could be most efficient when we're 98 00:03:26,097 --> 00:03:28,263 thinking about how to think about it . 99 00:03:28,263 --> 00:03:30,319 Meta cognition . Being aware of your 100 00:03:30,319 --> 00:03:32,319 own awareness , what do you tend to 101 00:03:32,319 --> 00:03:34,541 gravitate toward ? I know for me I have 102 00:03:34,541 --> 00:03:36,652 to think about my feet . When I start 103 00:03:36,652 --> 00:03:38,763 playing hard things , I automatically 104 00:03:38,763 --> 00:03:40,874 lean forward and I start gripping the 105 00:03:40,874 --> 00:03:43,041 feet with my start gripping the ground 106 00:03:43,041 --> 00:03:45,263 with my feet . So I pay attention to my 107 00:03:45,263 --> 00:03:47,430 toes . It's an easy way for me to know 108 00:03:47,430 --> 00:03:49,652 where my breathing is at finally number 109 00:03:49,652 --> 00:03:52,290 four . Practice hard , play hard and 110 00:03:52,290 --> 00:03:55,220 rest hard . All three are important if 111 00:03:55,220 --> 00:03:57,387 we only practice . Yes , we're getting 112 00:03:57,387 --> 00:03:59,590 a lot of work done , but we have no 113 00:03:59,590 --> 00:04:02,760 payoff . We have no reason to focus on 114 00:04:02,760 --> 00:04:04,871 our why , which is the most important 115 00:04:04,871 --> 00:04:07,038 thing anyway . Why do you love playing 116 00:04:07,038 --> 00:04:09,371 your instrument ? Why do you love music ? 117 00:04:09,371 --> 00:04:11,427 Why do you continue to reach out and 118 00:04:11,427 --> 00:04:13,649 make this beautiful creation for people 119 00:04:13,649 --> 00:04:15,760 to listen to you or for you to listen 120 00:04:15,760 --> 00:04:18,040 to yourself ? But then , if all you do 121 00:04:18,040 --> 00:04:20,100 is play . You don't have this 122 00:04:20,100 --> 00:04:22,211 repertoire that you're building up to 123 00:04:22,211 --> 00:04:24,044 play well to actually be able to 124 00:04:24,044 --> 00:04:26,156 communicate the composer's intent and 125 00:04:26,156 --> 00:04:28,780 number three rest Heart resting is 126 00:04:28,780 --> 00:04:30,780 Justus . Important is the other two 127 00:04:30,780 --> 00:04:33,560 easy example is taking it into the gym . 128 00:04:33,580 --> 00:04:35,680 If you do pull ups every single day 129 00:04:35,690 --> 00:04:37,857 without resting , you're not gonna get 130 00:04:37,857 --> 00:04:39,857 anything . You're not gonna get any 131 00:04:39,857 --> 00:04:41,780 better pull ups . The all of the 132 00:04:41,780 --> 00:04:43,669 progress actually happens in that 133 00:04:43,669 --> 00:04:45,558 resting time , and the same thing 134 00:04:45,558 --> 00:04:47,780 happens with flute . Same thing happens 135 00:04:47,780 --> 00:04:47,520 with the trombone and the tuba 136 00:04:47,530 --> 00:04:50,030 percussion . All of the growth happens 137 00:04:50,040 --> 00:04:52,670 in the rest . So we need a good balance . 138 00:04:53,040 --> 00:04:55,096 You need to commit to which of those 139 00:04:55,096 --> 00:04:57,262 three that you're doing and go in with 140 00:04:57,262 --> 00:04:59,560 a plan for me . I like 2010 20 minutes 141 00:04:59,560 --> 00:05:01,640 working 10 minutes off 45 minutes 142 00:05:01,640 --> 00:05:03,751 working 15 minutes off because I know 143 00:05:03,751 --> 00:05:05,918 my brain will start checking out after 144 00:05:05,918 --> 00:05:08,029 so long . The brain . The human brain 145 00:05:08,029 --> 00:05:10,196 can only focus on any one task for two 146 00:05:10,196 --> 00:05:12,890 hours , so if it's super intensive , 147 00:05:12,900 --> 00:05:15,030 focus as well , you're not gonna make 148 00:05:15,030 --> 00:05:17,086 it two hours . Your brain needs that 149 00:05:17,086 --> 00:05:19,252 break , otherwise you won't be able to 150 00:05:19,252 --> 00:05:21,474 go back to what is actually happening . 151 00:05:21,474 --> 00:05:23,586 That takes a lot of mental focus . We 152 00:05:23,586 --> 00:05:25,808 also need to have time to just have fun 153 00:05:25,808 --> 00:05:28,030 in the practice room every single day . 154 00:05:28,030 --> 00:05:30,086 You need to have fun in the practice 155 00:05:30,086 --> 00:05:32,419 room , end with something that you love , 156 00:05:32,419 --> 00:05:34,641 something you played before , something 157 00:05:34,641 --> 00:05:34,200 you want to play . It doesn't need to 158 00:05:34,200 --> 00:05:35,922 be great . It just needs to be 159 00:05:35,922 --> 00:05:38,820 something you love . Go on to you . The 160 00:05:38,820 --> 00:05:41,650 practice room , with different practice 161 00:05:41,650 --> 00:05:43,470 techniques that you can use get 162 00:05:43,470 --> 00:05:45,359 comfortable being uncomfortable . 163 00:05:45,640 --> 00:05:47,807 There's so many people you can talk to 164 00:05:47,807 --> 00:05:49,751 you . In fact , one of my favorite 165 00:05:49,751 --> 00:05:52,090 teachers was a French horn player . Uh , 166 00:05:52,100 --> 00:05:53,933 she taught me so much about tone 167 00:05:53,933 --> 00:05:56,211 production , my senior year of college , 168 00:05:56,211 --> 00:05:58,156 that she taught me more about tone 169 00:05:58,156 --> 00:06:00,100 production than my flute professor 170 00:06:00,100 --> 00:06:02,322 actually did . Whenever you go into the 171 00:06:02,322 --> 00:06:04,267 practice room going with that plan 172 00:06:04,267 --> 00:06:04,070 going with all these different 173 00:06:04,070 --> 00:06:07,960 techniques you can use be as concise 174 00:06:07,970 --> 00:06:10,192 that you need to be when you make those 175 00:06:10,192 --> 00:06:12,303 plans , because some people will need 176 00:06:12,303 --> 00:06:14,248 to make . I'm gonna do this for 15 177 00:06:14,248 --> 00:06:16,470 minutes . That's for 10 minutes . Other 178 00:06:16,470 --> 00:06:18,526 people will need . I'm just gonna do 179 00:06:18,526 --> 00:06:20,137 this until the time runs out 180 00:06:20,137 --> 00:06:22,303 experiments . See what works for you . 181 00:06:22,303 --> 00:06:24,526 You need to be very aware of your goals 182 00:06:24,526 --> 00:06:26,748 as you're doing all of this . Know what 183 00:06:26,748 --> 00:06:29,670 you want to do by when there's no added 184 00:06:29,670 --> 00:06:31,837 pressure . Like I said , No emotions , 185 00:06:32,140 --> 00:06:34,140 but always have that playing in the 186 00:06:34,140 --> 00:06:36,362 back of your mind . If it's a recital , 187 00:06:36,362 --> 00:06:38,584 knowing what you're strong pieces are , 188 00:06:38,584 --> 00:06:40,696 what are your weaker pieces ? What do 189 00:06:40,696 --> 00:06:40,060 you need to spend more time with ? 190 00:06:41,240 --> 00:06:43,351 Ultimately , the more mindful you are 191 00:06:43,351 --> 00:06:45,518 in the practice room , the more you're 192 00:06:45,518 --> 00:06:47,740 gonna get done , the happy you're gonna 193 00:06:47,740 --> 00:06:47,070 be with it and the more you're gonna 194 00:06:47,070 --> 00:06:49,126 look forward to it , where humans we 195 00:06:49,126 --> 00:06:51,348 like when we see progress . So the more 196 00:06:51,348 --> 00:06:53,459 mindful we are , the more we're gonna 197 00:06:53,459 --> 00:06:55,570 see that progress . And we'll be able 198 00:06:55,570 --> 00:06:57,459 to very clearly articulate what's 199 00:06:57,459 --> 00:07:00,120 happening . Good luck and happy 200 00:07:00,120 --> 00:07:00,650 practicing