Practicing Savoring
Optimizing Mindset for Playing
The idea of “savoring” experience that is part of the Science of Well-Being has become something I am tuning into often throughout my day, which informs my practicing and playing.
I am noticing that I am now enjoying experiences throughout the day instead of simply “moving through” them. For the things that I enjoy, like ice cream, eating has become a more satisfying experience. Noticing the rich vanilla flavor as it fills my mouth, the spread of the cold cream on the tongue on a humid day, and the feeling of swallowing it, not wanting the experience to end. This is SO much more than downing a bowl of ice cream, taking in calories in stress eating mode. The calories are worth it when you really taste.
I realize how much of a multidimensional experience walking in the woods is. Every day I am immersed in the sounds and terrain of the forest, the beauty of the trees, and roots. I look out for other dogs that I need to avoid (my dog is reactive) and feel all of the adjustments that take place within the body to locomote. Walking in the woods has become an all-encompassing experience. My sense of time even changes, as I enjoy the process I lose a sense of time.
Okay, back to music-making…
All of my writing in Practicing Turned Upside Down has been about enjoying the experience of music-making, in other words, savoring the moments. Approaching playing from novel perspectives fosters skill development and expression.
In terms of mindset, can you picture how being in the moment offers you choices as you play? Instead of thinking about a brilliant last note, making it through a challenging piece, you are actively crafting phrases filled with colors, rhythmic subdivisions, and connections that will transport your listener into the richness of the present moment.
How can you practice savoring today? Eating, walking, working, what can you savor? This practice will allow you to access savoring as you play because you have found ways into this practicing through low stakes activities.
Some suggestions to savoring in playing…
Savor the relationship of your feet and the ground as you play. Many people have no idea what their feet are doing or where they are as they play. This disconnection makes ALL movement more effortful.
Savor the movement of air. I like to go to my rib movement, but you could go to experiencing the movement of air over your lips as you play. Feeling the air move across lip tissue would release excess holding tension, almost like magic.
Savor your sound and the sounds in the space. Can you hear your sound resonate in different ways in different areas of the space? Can you notice how your sound interacts with ambient noises? Air conditioning, street noise, television…
Be curious, the possibilities are literally endless.
P.S. I LOVE ice cream. I have used the pandemic to try as many different kids of ice cream as I can. The results could be a whole blog in itself. When I look back on 2020 I will remember the ice cream!