Einstein on Staying with Problems Longer

Tuesday Quotes are short explorations of music, life, and the daily endeavor of practicing classical guitar. Find more here. Enjoy!

  “It’s not that I’m so smart; it’s just that I stay with problems longer”.

                    Albert Einstein

In our journey with each piece of music, we come to certain predictable landmarks.

And each of these landmarks marks a completion of some aspect of our learning.

For instance, when we finally get all the notes in hand, we (rightly) pause and pat ourselves on the back.

But if we stop here and move to the next new piece, we never rise above “just playing notes”.

Getting the notes, while no small feat, is only the first step in playing a piece of music.

Once we have the notes in hand, we can work on the balance of melody versus bass and accompaniment. We can mold the sinews that tie one phrase to the next. We can craft little details that give listeners psychological insights into the character of the music.

In our explorations of a piece, we may discover a musical opportunity that is beyond our current technical ability (such as playing the bass notes short and separated while the melody is flowing and connected). So here we find something new to practice.

Einstein would ponder problems for years. He taught himself to be comfortable with open-ended questions. He accepted that some things just take time to come together.

We can bring this patience and dedication to our music. We can go beyond hacking out notes. We may not always know exactly what to do next. But if we stay with it, we’ll grow as musicians. We’ll enjoy deeper relationships with our music. We’ll discover more meaning and fulfillment than simple notes can offer.