Good morning and happy new year! As we all embark on 2014, reflecting on our successes of 2013 and making new resolutions, I wanted to talk about the psychology of success.
In the world of community, development and/or educational music, it can be surprising how the basic psychology of your organisation can affect long term results. Have you ever noticed that some organisations (particularly schools) can grow a basic type of psychology? … ever noticed that the students in a particular school achieve similar results in both specific school subjects, and also on a larger long-term scale? I assure you it is not just about demographics and the quality of their teachers (although some teachers could seriously use a conducting course!)
To fully articulate the basic premise, watch this video entitled “The blue-eyed/brown-eyed experiment” (you’ve probably already heard of it). What affected me most about this video, is that the kids’ academic performance was affected depending on whether they considered themselves superior or inferior.
The psychology of ensembles is similar, and of course it echoes the tried-and-true concept of positive re-enforcement. But there are finer nuances to this that you may not have considered.
For example, do you provide your ensemble with the opportunity to perform at significant, valued events? Or are they limited to the odd end of term assembly? Although that might be the standard that they’re at, it subconsciously communicates back to the band that that’s all they’re good for. So where’s the inspiration? Imagine the sense of achievement and pride that they would get for preparing and performing for something BIG. Maybe the school’s end of year performance/show, school fete or at the local shopping centre. The kids would walk out of rehearsal 2 inches taller thinking that they had a valued place in the school community, and that would give them reason to practice.
I have just been through this with my (now) A-grade concert band, and I’m sure they wouldn’t mind me talking about it here. I have been with the band for 5 years, and last year we entered A grade (NSW Band Association) for the first time in well over a decade. The results: we came second by just a few points, and actually won the sacred item element. The kicker: in all those years in B grade before this, we never actually won. Read that again: We never actually won B grade, yet now we were a serious threat to the A-grade champs. Just like the kids in the video who were told they were superior based on their eye colour, we had convinced ourselves that we could step up to the A-grade challenge, merely by deciding to call ourselves A-grade. In the lead-up to the competition, many players subconsciously experienced a mantra of “oops, that wasn’t A-grade, let’s improve it” during rehearsal, and it didn’t have to come from the podium. This A-grade concept was a just-add-water solution to making my players think more analytically. This self-saucing pudding became the new psychology of the ensemble. And the proof is in the pudding: we came second by just a few points, and the adjudicator referred to both bands as ‘world class’. Not bad for a community concert band that had been grasping at 2nd or 3rd place in B grade for the past few years. By the way, check out my thoughts on creating a 5 year plan, in the lead-up to making a leap like this. In short, – and you know this already – success breeds success.
There is another concept to consider in the psychology of success, and I’ll leave you to dwell on it and report back your findings. How long do you rehearse a piece before performance? What I’m about to say is probably most relevant to adult or self-analytical ensembles (i.e. not 8-year-olds), but I reckon your rehearsal time – like a goldfish who will grow to the size of his bowl – will fill as many rehearsals as you’ve got, with the same results. Of course you know you can over-work pieces to death, but imagine if you told your ensemble that they have 5 rehearsals to prepare an eisteddfod piece – thereby removing the option for them to be still learning their parts in 3 months – would they step up to the challenge? Send me an email or leave a comment here and let me know your experiences with this!
Whatever you do, enjoy your music.
Cheers,
GG
PS! There are still TWO spaces left for the Summer School January 22nd-25th. I will be working with YOU one-on-one to show you how you can get the most out of YOUR ensemble, with plenty of ideas to keep your program growing throughout 2014. You will also learn conducting at any level, from basic “where do I put the beat” through to fancy hand-dancing. Includes meals, accommodation and an open bar and you will REVOLUTIONISE YOUR ENSEMBLE! http://greysen.com.au/summer/
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