Another book i brought with me on my current trip that i am on is " Mindfulness in Music" by Mark Tanner who is a reknowned Pianist and Author. When i travel i like to bring a certain amount of books with me, there is a lot of time to dig into reading on long flights and layovers. I always look at being away from home as a good time to re-invent myself in a certain way. When I go home I always view things from a different perspective. Observing other cultures and how they live is a great way to stay in the moment. Reading, "Mindfulness in Music" has been very inspiring, it is a fairly short book, with each chapter illustrating a different aspect of mindfulness with regards to music and performing. When I see a great performer playing long intricate pieces, I am always blown away and i wonder how they do,The answer is, It is a lot of dedication and hard work. I always look at myself as a beginner, constantly going back to the basics of whatever i am learning. By reading books on neuroscience and mindfulness, i feel like i just got the most amazing computer in the world that has 86 billion parts to it. The rate of development and understanding that Scientists have discovered about the brain over the past 20 years is incredible. Dr Norman Doidge's book, "The Brain that Changes It's self" really got me into reading this subject. There is no such thing as normal and everyone is completely unique. Last night i was watching a band and I was really impressed by the lead guitarist, They were playing mostly "Thai" songs that had a jazzy feel to them, Watching him made me re-evaluate my guitar playing, he played so effortlessly , in a style completely different from me, But i bet if i played something for him he would be impressed by my playing, We each view things with our unique brain and how we play music is so tied into our way of thinking. Mindfulness is just another way of saying, PAY ATTENTION!
