Every instrument has milestones that you have to hurdle to reach the next level as a musician. Whether that’s getting over the break, mastering shifting, or playing bar chords that actually make a sound, we all experience a moment when what was easy and fun becomes anything but. These hurdles can leave you with all the pain of bruised shins and skinned knees, but they are a valuable opportunity to learn the lesson of perseverance.
The Struggle
The most significant hurdle in my early career was learning to play high C. Reaching the third octave is an important rite of passage for all trumpet players that most students learn sometime during high school. Due to my small-town private education, however, I was blissfully unaware of that standard. I arrived at college as a starry-eyed freshman ready to dazzle people with my talent, and I was immediately blindsided by my lack of experience. Everyone around me seemed like they had all mastered skills that I had never even attempted, and, chagrined, I went into my first collegiate lesson feeling incredibly embarrassed but resolved to catch up.
At first, the results were encouraging. I practiced more than I ever had before, and my playing improved by leaps and bounds. But eventually, I had to face that high C hurdle, and t smacked me right in the gut.
After months of hard work, my range plateaued. I drilled range exercises religiously but always stalled out on the same notes. As I watched my peers, I grew frustrated. I practiced just as hard if not harder than they did, and they played those notes easily, why was it so difficult for me? Doubts flooded my mind. Maybe I wasn’t a very good musician after all. Maybe I wasn’t cut out to be a trumpet player. Maybe my decision to major in music as a huge mistake.
The Turning Point
I can’t tell you how many tears I shed agonizing over these thoughts, but I didn’t give up. I kept practicing even though I didn’t see the results I wanted, and something miraculous started to happen. I improved. It wasn’t by leaps and bounds, and it certainly didn’t happen overnight, but little by little my range got better. I started to hit the notes at the top of my range with greater accuracy, and my range slowly increased one half-step at a time. From day to day, it didn’t look like much progress, but when I looked back over the previous months, I could see how far I’d come.
The Lesson Learned
As difficult as they are, moments like these are the ones that shape you the most both as a musician and as a person. Music is a pursuit that can bring immeasurable joy to your life, but it also has its challenges. Rather than shrink from these, however, as parents and music teachers, we should lean into these valuable opportunities to teach ourselves and our children and students perseverance.
Life throws challenges at us that we can’t avoid by simply packing the trumpet away. Although learning to play high notes may seem insignificant in the grand scheme of things, lessons like these have a huge impact on not only musical skills but their character. I have seen this growth in myself and watched my students go through similar struggles and emerge as stronger and more confident individuals on the other side. The journey will be difficult, and the progress may seem nonexistent sometimes, but at the end of the day, the rewards will be worth it for both your musical career and your life.
Learn these valuable lessons and more by signing up for lessons with one of our instructors.
- Jordan Koehlinger, Music Instructor at Vibe Music Academy.
