Music as a Hobby 

Coming Around Again

There are many reasons why a person might want to learn to play a musical instrument. Parents may encourage them as children, or they may have a strong curiosity based on a concert experience or a musician they idolize. Not surprisingly, those teenage dreams of becoming a rock star or a concert pianist seldom materialize for most, though many musicians do find fulfillment in community groups or with friends in a band. But most who continue to play do so for their own enjoyment or as a focused side hobby to balance out other aspects of their lives.  

Years ago, the mother of some of our students who sat in on her children’s piano lessons eventually signed up for lessons of her own. She had played piano as a girl and suddenly realized how much she loved and missed it. About a year into our relationship she confessed to us that practicing piano had become her “me time.” Her therapist had originally recommended that she keep a journal, but she knew her kids would eventually snoop, find it, and read it. Instead, for her, playing piano became her mindfulness exercise and time to herself for reflection.

Currently we have three young adults who we had known as students growing up. After many years, we said our farewells after they had graduated and moved off into the world. This is, of course, the natural conclusion to our relationship with most of our students. After 30+ years that’s a lot of names and faces. But from the first day we opened our studio, we decided it was never our goal to create and mold professional musicians. Should any of our students come back to music as a hobby later in life, that would be wonderful. We’d met our goal in guiding them through their early years but, in all likelihood, we’d probably never know.

That’s why having three former kiddos return to us for “overtime” or “extra innings” is just so very special! One of them never really stopped playing. Another is returning to playing after a hiatus. And the third has goals to build a new skill, learning a different instrument than what they had studied with me initially, evolving from the traditional student to the musical hobbyist. 

The aspect they all share is that for them, music is a release from their workday. It’s time they give back to themselves, to keep in touch with their inner child, and embrace the gift of music they were given by their families long ago. 

We are touched and honored to participate in these next stages of musical growth with these amazing people. It is simply not something we take for granted.

He’s a Magic Man

One of our favorite stories about enjoying music as a side hobby is from Magician Penn Jillette. I’m certain that we read this in his book God, No! in which he states that to be a magician one has to be perfect; a master of your craft. And for him, being one half of the legendary magic duo, Penn & Teller, he’s been an expert at sleight of hand and lying to audiences for so long that he could do his job in his sleep. And so, he took up the Upright Bass. 

He reasons it was something to do that he would likely never be good at, but he could grow with it and develop the skill. It was a gift for himself and no one else. This stuck with us and we made a point of seeing Penn & Teller’s Las Vegas show at the Rio when we traveled there in 2013. 

We heard that Penn played with pianist and composer Mike Johnson before the show and that attendees were invited to the stage to inspect what would be one of their magic tricks later in the show. 

The pair were set up on one of the balconies to the side with a spotlight on them while the audience arrived and milled about. Penn looked happy and at ease as they played some jazz standards and took turns soloing. Now, when jazz musicians solo, they have a catalogue of “licks” in their brains that they will insert into their noodling. So, when Penn inserted a well-known lick from REM’s Blister in the Sun, Andy and I very loudly responded *CLAP-CLAP*…*CLAP-CLAP*.  Penn’s head whipped up to look out into the crowd. His smile widened because not only was someone listening, but they played along with him. 

After the show, Mike Johnson, Teller, and Penn were set up in three separate areas in the Grand Foyer to greet each and every attendee that wanted to meet them. It was incredibly impressive how they accomplished this. Audience members got a quick photo and were allowed a few seconds to chat with them. We made sure Penn knew the Blister in the Sun clapping came from us. He lit up. He knew he wasn’t the best player, but his playing was his pride and joy.  

You Bring Me Joy

When music is your side hobby, people see how the joy you derive from it affects you differently than other passions you partake in. While interviewing Eric Idle on his podcast, Conan Needs a Friend, Conan O’Brien and Eric were discussing the intersection of comedians and musicians. Eric touched on the well-known relationships he and the cast of Monty Python had with some major rock stars in the 60s and 70s (The Beatles, Rolling Stones, etc.)  Over the years, Eric hosted parties at which people could jam and sing. Conan responded, “It’s funny you say this because I love playing guitar. I could never make a dime off of it, but it is my hobby, and I really love doing it. I got to perform at the Newport Folk Festival a month or two ago and there is footage of it. I’m up there playing with all these amazing people and Jack White came. But the comment that shows up every time I’m up there is, ‘This is the most joyous I’ve ever seen Conan. He seems so much happier doing this than comedy’ I love comedy, but they are not wrong, and I love that!”

Serendipity

Years ago, Andy had a different pair of adult students. For the longest time, we didn’t know they knew one another. They’d actually started their lessons a few months apart. But one day one of the gentlemen told us that to keep motivated they were playing their assignments for one another at dinner parties. They were both beginners and instead of shying away from playing because they didn’t think they were very good yet or because their songs were super simple, they both leaned in and embraced the joy of sharing their new skill and how they improved from week to week. 

We loved watching the progress and experiencing their camaraderie. Sadly, one of the gentlemen was diagnosed with lung cancer. He took lessons all the way up to one month before he passed. We think about him and his friend often.  

What Have You Got to Lose?

It’s a new year and the ideal time to start new adventures. Perhaps you’ve been thinking about taking up the piano that you once played as a child? Or maybe, stretching yourself with flute lessons after playing the trumpet for years? Or is there a chance you’ve secretly always wanted to learn to play the guitar? Now is the perfect time to take up music as a hobby. What have you got to lose? Reach out to us today to learn more.