Where We Live

10 Weeks to Better Drumming - Part 8


After the past 2 weeks of looking at both notes and spaces, this week we look at the present, the moment, the now. Too often we seem to be preoccupied by something other than what is happening right now. The best musicians are thinking about and playing the notes as they happen, in the moment. They are living things as they happen, not living in the future, or the past.


Where I used to live…


Don't think ahead, live in the moment/the note you are playing. Too often we are thinking ahead, worried about the next note, the next phrase, the next song. We might also be troubled by "Monkey Mind," where we are thinking of anything but the task at hand. We might be in the middle of a song and suddenly think about a TV show we watched, or the bills we have to pay, or a million other things beside the music.



Where I now live, in the moment…

Or we might even be thinking too much, trying to achieve some sort of perfection, but missing being in the moment and enjoying what we are doing right then and there.



Where I live in the future…

In all of these examples the key is to be in the moment. Don't worry about anything else, just be aware of where you are and what you are doing each moment. Savor and enjoy each note you play as you play it. Don't worry about the notes to come, as you'll get your chance to experience them. The same with notes you've already played - they are history, gone, passed. You can always review them later when you are done, but otherwise, forget them.

Live in the moment. Experience the notes as you play them.

"Be here now." - Ram Dass

~ MB

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