Getting the Virtuoso Mindset

Last night I was shown an absolutely astonishing video on YouTube of a teenage boy playing the final movement of Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto on accordion, of all things. He played it blindingly fast, and as musically as I’ve ever heard it.

And he not only played the solo part, he played the accompaniment, the tuttis, everything. Really, it had me riveted to the screen from start to finish. And the kid must have been all of 15.

Search Tchaikovsky and accordion on YouTube and I think you’ll find it.

Anyway, that, and my practice this morning got me to thinking of the mindset behind such feats. Clearly it’s a mindset that goes beyond the discipline of hours of rote practice.

It’s a mindset that is continually asking what can be done to make this piece, this passage, this scale, this tone more communicative, more alive, more clear, more effective.

It really has nothing to do with time, in the end. It has to do with the passion to grow and explore new ways of thinking and doing things.

Some folks take something of the opposite tack to accomplish the same result.

Randy Newman is one of the best spokesmen I know for this approach.

On several occasions I’ve heard Randy Newman ask himself, and this is in front an entire orchestra, ‘how can I make this sound less shitty.’

And when he says this a lot of us laugh uproariously.

The plain and simple fact is, many musicians do have pessimistic streak in them. Yet the good ones don’t let that get in their way, either. Just constantly trying to move forward.

Anyway, sorry for the profanity just now, yet it just wouldn’t ring true of Randy if I left it out. And as you know, I think the world of him, his heart, and his music.

And speaking of heart and music, I’m just about to begin filming my next course, on the Mendelssohn E Minor Violin Concerto. If you’ve ever had the dream of mastering this most loved concerto in the violin repertoire you’ll want to keep a lookout for a special offer I’ll be making soon.

In the meantime, however, I’d be spending some good time in volumes 2 and 3 of my Kreutzer series. These lay a great foundation for what will come soon.

All the best, Clayton Haslop

P.S. Actually, I think Volume 1 of Kreutzer for Violin Mastery a wonderful warm-up for Mendelssohn as well.