If you’ve been following my posts, you’ll know that after a 50-year hiatus (more like a 50-year escape) from playing the trumpet, I’ve recently picked the instrument back up.
During my years of study, I was trained by classical musicians who drilled into me the need to read the notes, know the key signatures and the appropriate rhythm for each piece. In my new chapter, it’s all about jazz.
The realization came swiftly that, while I could learn to play a wide variety of music—from classical to rock and jazz—it all needed to be on the page. But jazz is all about improvisation.
It’s taking an idea and using creativity to sculpt passages within the scheme of the key and beat.
My mind is a blank page in this area. It occured to me that if I wish to continue, I’m going to need to learn this craft. As I sat behind the music stand last Sunday, listening to others explore their creative chops, it hit me full force: improvisation is kind of like Chapter X.
As a financial life planner—key word being “planner”—everything was focused on helping people look into the future and map out their unique path. But the truth is, a plan is only as good as the steps inside and the goal becoming a reality.
It doesn’t always turn out the way we conceive, so learning to improvise is pretty damned important. You might know the framework of what lies ahead, but it’s up to you to make the music and live the life that brings you joy.
