Schumann r. life rules for musicians. Topic: “Life rules for musicians” by R. Schumann

02.04.2019

Robert Schumann, 1850

Hearing development is the most important thing. Try with youth recognize tones and modes. A bell, a glass frame, a cuckoo - listen to the sounds they make.

Play scales and other finger exercises diligently. But there are many people who believe that this is all that is achieved, who spend many hours every day doing technical exercises until they are very old. This is approximately the same as reading the alphabet out loud every day and trying to do it faster and faster. Make better use of your time.

Play rhythmically! The playing of some virtuosos is similar to the gait of a drunk. Don't follow their example!

Learn the basic laws of harmony as early as possible.

Don't be afraid of words: theory, harmony, counterpoint, etc.; they will greet you warmly if you do the same.

Never hit the keys! Play with meaning and don't stop halfway through the piece.

Delaying and rushing are equally big mistakes.

Try to play easy pieces well and expressively; this is better than performing difficult ones mediocrely.

Always take care to keep your instrument tuned clean.

It is necessary that not only your fingers master the piece, but you must also be able to hum it to yourself without the help of an instrument. Sharpen your imagination so much that you can retain in your memory not only the melody, but also the harmony that accompanies it.

Even if you don't have good voice, try to sing from sight without the help of an instrument; this way you will develop your hearing. If you have a beautiful voice, don’t hesitate for a minute and develop it; consider this as the most beautiful gift that heaven has given you.

Always play as if someone is listening to you great artist. When you play, don't worry about who's listening.

If you are asked to play an unfamiliar composition from sight, then first run through it with your eyes, in its entirety.

When you're older, don't play fancy compositions. Time is precious. You must have a hundred human lives to get acquainted only with all the good things that exist in the world.

All the rubbish of the passages is of transitory significance; technology has value only where it serves higher purposes.

Do not distribute bad writings; try in every possible way to block their path to fame.

You should neither play bad compositions nor listen to them, unless you are forced to do so.

Don't strive for brilliance. Try to make the music produce the impression that the author had in mind; no more is needed; anything beyond this is distortion.

Consider it disgraceful to change anything in your essays. good composers, skip or, what’s the best, add newfangled decorations to them. This is the greatest insult you can give to art.

When choosing plays for work, consult with your elders; This will save you a lot of time.

Gradually become familiar with the works of famous composers.

Do not be deluded by the success that so-called great virtuosos often win.

Let the approval of artists be more valuable to you than the recognition of an entire crowd.

Everything fashionable goes out of fashion; If you chase fashion, then, when you grow old, you will be a dandy who will not inspire respect from anyone.

Playing a lot in society is more harmful than beneficial.

But never miss the opportunity to play together in duets, trios, etc. This will make your playing full of life and meaningful. Accompany singers more often.

If everyone wanted to play first violin, it would be impossible to form an orchestra. Therefore, respect every musician in his place.

Love your instrument, but in your vanity do not consider it the highest and only. Remember that there are others who are just as beautiful. Remember also the existence of singers; do not forget that the highest in music finds its expression in the choir and orchestra.

When you grow up, communicate more with scores than with virtuosos.

Play diligently the fugues of great masters, especially J. S. Bach. The Well-Tempered Clavier should be your daily bread. Then you will definitely become a thorough musician.

Look among your comrades for those who know more than you.

You can learn a lot from singers and singers, but don’t trust them with everything.

But what does it mean to be musical? You are not musical if, fearfully staring at the notes with your eyes, you have difficulty finishing your piece; You are not musical if, when someone accidentally turns two pages for you at once, you stop and cannot continue. But you are a musician if you new play you roughly guess what will happen next, but in a friend you already know it by heart - in a word, when you have music not only in your fingers, but also in your head and heart.

But how to become musical? Dear child, the main thing is sharp hearing, quick receptivity - given, like everything else, from above. But abilities can be developed and improved. You will not become musical if, in solitude, you spend all day doing technical exercises; you will get closer to your goal if you maintain lively, multilateral communication with musicians, and, in particular, if you constantly deal with the choir and orchestra.

Study from a young age the limits and properties of the human voice in its four types; especially listen to the voices in the choir; find out in which registers they have the greatest strength, in which expressions of softness and tenderness are available to them.

Listen carefully to everyone folk songs; This is a whole treasury of the most beautiful melodies, they will open your eyes to the character of different peoples.

As early as possible, notice the sound and character of various instruments, try to imprint their unique sound coloring in your hearing.

Never miss a chance to listen to a good opera.

Don’t judge a piece by listening to it once: what you like at first is not always the best. Masters require deep study. Much will become clear to you only in adulthood.

Someone argued that a good musician should be able to imagine even a complex orchestral piece heard for the first time in the form of a score. This is the highest perfection imaginable.

There is no end to learning.

Translation from German by A.G. Gabrichevsky and L.S. Tovaleva

Hearing development is the most important thing. Try to recognize tones and modes from a young age. A bell, a glass frame, a cuckoo - listen to the sounds they make.

They invented the so-called “dumb keyboard”; try playing with it a little to make sure it is completely unsuitable. Dumb people cannot be taught to speak.

Play rhythmically! The playing of some virtuosos is similar to the gait of a drunk. Don't follow their example!

Learn the basic laws of harmony as early as possible.

Don't be afraid of words: theory, harmony, counterpoint, etc.; they will greet you warmly if you do the same.

Never hit the keys! Play with meaning and don't stop halfway through the piece.

Delaying and rushing are equally big mistakes.

Try to play easy pieces well and expressively; this is better than performing difficult ones mediocrely.

Always take care to keep your instrument tuned clean.

Even if you don't have a good voice, try to sight sing without the help of an instrument; this way you will develop your hearing. If you have a beautiful voice, don’t hesitate for a minute and develop it; consider this as the most beautiful gift that heaven has given you.

Always play as if a great artist was listening to you. When you play, don't worry about who's listening.

If you are asked to play an unfamiliar composition from sight, then first run through it with your eyes, in its entirety.

If you have completed your daily musical work and feel tired, do not force yourself to continue working. It is better to rest than to work without desire and vigor.

When you're older, don't play fancy compositions. Time is precious. You need to have a hundred human lives to become acquainted with all the good things that exist in the world.

You can never grow a child on sweets, cookies and candies. healthy person. Spiritual food, just like physical food, should be simple and healthy. The great masters took sufficient care of such food; stick to it.

All the rubbish of the passages is of transitory significance; technology has value only where it serves higher purposes.

Do not distribute bad writings; try in every possible way to block their path to fame.

You should neither play bad compositions nor listen to them, unless you are forced to do so.

Don't strive for brilliance. Try to make the music produce the impression that the author had in mind; no more is needed; anything beyond this is distortion.

Consider it disgraceful to change anything in the works of good composers, omit them, or, what’s more, add newfangled embellishments to them. This is the greatest insult you can give to art.

When choosing plays for work, consult with your elders; This will save you a lot of time.

Gradually become familiar with the works of famous composers.

Do not be deluded by the success that so-called great virtuosos often win.

Let the approval of artists be more valuable to you than the recognition of an entire crowd.

Everything fashionable goes out of fashion; If you chase fashion, then, when you grow old, you will be a dandy who will not inspire respect from anyone.

Playing a lot in society is more harmful than beneficial.

But never miss the opportunity to play together in duets, trios, etc. This will make your playing full of life and meaningful. Accompany singers more often.

If everyone wanted to play first violin, it would be impossible to form an orchestra. Therefore, respect every musician in his place.

When you grow up, communicate more with scores than with virtuosos.

Play diligently the fugues of great masters, especially J. S. Bach. The Well-Tempered Clavier should be your daily bread. Then you will definitely become a thorough musician.

Look among your comrades for those who know more than you.

Take a break from yours music lessons, diligently reading poets. Wander more often in the fields and forests.

You can learn a lot from singers and singers, but don’t trust them with everything.

There are many people living in the world. Be humble! You have not yet invented or invented anything that others have not already invented or invented before you. And even if you succeeded, then consider your discovery a common property.

Studying the history of music, supported by live listening to exemplary works from various eras, is likely to cure you of conceit and vanity.

Thibault's study "On the purity of style in music" - wonderful book. When you get older, read it.

If you pass by a church and hear the organ being played, go in and listen. If you are lucky enough to sit on the organ bench yourself, then test your small hands on the keys of this instrument and marvel at the power of our art.

Don’t miss the opportunity to practice the organ; There is no instrument that would so quickly take revenge for sloppiness and dirtiness in composition and performance.

But what does it mean to be musical? You are not musical if, fearfully staring at the notes with your eyes, you have difficulty finishing your piece; You are not musical if, when someone accidentally turns two pages for you at once, you stop and cannot continue. But you are a musician if in a new play you can roughly guess what will happen next, and in a familiar one you already know it by heart - in a word, when you have music not only in your fingers, but also in your head and heart.

Listen carefully to all the folk songs; This is a whole treasury of the most beautiful melodies, they will open your eyes to the character of different peoples.

Practice with early age in reading old keys. Otherwise, many treasures of the past will remain inaccessible to you.

As early as possible, notice the sound and character of various instruments, try to imprint their unique sound coloring in your hearing.

Never miss a chance to listen to a good opera.

Highly honor the old, but also welcome the new with an open, warm heart. Do not be prejudiced towards names you are unfamiliar with.

Don’t judge a piece by listening to it once: what you like at first is not always the best. Masters require deep study. Much will become clear to you only in adulthood.

In judgments about music, distinguish whether the work belongs to the field of professional art or was created only for amateurish entertainment; Stand up for the first, don’t be angry about others!

“Melody” is the battle cry of amateurs, and indeed, music without melody is not music. Understand, however, what they mean: they recognize only a melody, easily perceived, rhythmically attractive. But there are others, of a different kind, and wherever you open Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, a thousand melodies are looking at you various types; the wretched monotony, especially typical of new Italian opera melodies, will hopefully soon become boring.

If you pick out small melodies on the piano, this is, of course, very nice, but if they appear on their own, and not behind the instrument, then rejoice even more - it means that your inner musical consciousness is awakening in you... Your fingers should do what your head wants , but not vice versa.

When you start composing, do everything mentally. Only when the piece is completely ready, try to play it. If your music flows from your soul, if you feel it, it will have the same effect on others.

If heaven has endowed you with a living fantasy, then in your hours of solitude you will sit enchanted at the instrument, trying to pour out your inner self in harmonies, and the more mysterious you will feel, as if involved in a magic circle, the less clear it will be for you. at this time the kingdom of harmony. These will be the most happy hours of your youth.

Beware, however, of giving in too often to the attraction of talent, which tempts you to waste time and energy on creating seemingly ghostly images. Mastery of form, the power of clear embodiment will come to you only with musical notes. So, create more than imagine.

Get to know conducting as early as possible. Watch good conductors more often; You can slowly conduct with them. This will bring you clarity.

Observe life carefully, and also become acquainted with other arts and sciences. Moral laws are the same as the laws of art. With effort and diligence you will always achieve higher things.

From a pound of metal worth a few pennies, you can make thousands of clock springs, the value of which will increase hundreds of thousands of times. Use the pound you received from God conscientiously.

Without enthusiasm, nothing real is created in art.

Art is not meant to make you rich. Improve yourself as an artist, the rest will come naturally.

Only when the form becomes completely clear to you will the content become clear to you. Perhaps only a genius fully understands a genius.

Someone argued that a good musician should be able to imagine even a complex orchestral piece heard for the first time in the form of a score. This is the highest perfection imaginable.

There is no end to learning.

Take care of yourself!!! We love you!

P.S. If you have any questions, you can contact VK Khvostova E.N. or your conducting teachers.

From the editor. It is hardly worth writing an extensive introduction to this publication - there is simply nothing to add to what Schumann said. It is a pity that these aphorisms of the great German composer They have not been reissued in Russia for a very long time - in fact, several generations of musicians have already grown up, most of them not familiar with them. Which is very sad, since this work can open your eyes to a lot that is hidden from the eyes of beginners and which is sometimes forgotten modern teachers. In addition, we are sure that "Rules" will be interesting for wide range lovers of academic music, since, in addition to purely professional problems, they raise issues that concern many people.

Robert Schumann

Life rules for musicians

(1850)

Translation from German by A.G. Gabrichevsky and L.S. Tovaleva

Hearing development is the most important thing. Try to recognize tonalities and individual sounds from a young age. A bell, a windowpane, a cuckoo - listen to the sounds they make.

Play scales and other finger exercises diligently. But there are many people who believe that this is all that is achieved, who spend many hours every day doing technical exercises until they are very old. This is approximately the same as saying the alphabet every day and trying to do it faster and faster.

Make better use of your time.

They invented the so-called “dumb keyboard”; try playing with it a little to make sure it is completely unsuitable. You cannot learn to speak from the dumb.

Play rhythmically! The playing of some virtuosos is similar to the gait of a drunk. Don't follow their example!

Learn the basic laws of harmony as early as possible.

Don't be afraid of words: theory, general bass, counterpoint, etc.; they will greet you warmly if you do the same.

Never strum! Always cheerfully play the piece to the end and never quit halfway through.

Delaying and rushing are equally big mistakes.

Try to play easy pieces well and beautifully; it's better than playing difficult ones mediocrely.

Try, even if you don’t have a big voice, to sing from sight without the help of an instrument; the subtlety of your hearing will constantly increase from this.

If you have a good voice, don’t hesitate for a minute and develop it; consider this as the most beautiful gift that heaven has given you.

You must develop yourself enough to understand music by reading it with your eyes.

When you play, don't worry about who's listening.

Always play as if the master is listening to you.

If you are asked to sight-play an unfamiliar composition, then skim it first.

If you've done your daily musical work and feel tired, don't force yourself any further. It is better to rest than to work without desire and vigor.

When you're older, don't play anything fancy. Time is precious. You need to have a hundred human lives to become acquainted with all the good things that exist in the world.

You can never raise a child into a healthy person on sweets, cookies and candies.

Spiritual food, just like physical food, should be simple and healthy. The great masters took sufficient care of such food; stick to it.

All the rubbish of the passages is of transitory significance; technology has value only where it serves higher purposes.

You should not spread bad writings: on the contrary, you should do your best to prevent their spread. You should neither play bad compositions nor listen to them, unless you are forced to do so. Never seek salvation in technology, in so-called bravura. Try to make the music produce the impression that the author had in mind; no more is needed; anything beyond this is distortion. Consider it disgraceful to change anything in the works of good composers, omit them, or, what’s more, add newfangled embellishments to them. This is the greatest insult you can give to art. When choosing plays for work, consult with your elders; This will save you a lot of time.

Gradually get to know everyone

significant works

all significant masters.

But never miss the opportunity to play together in duets, trios, etc. This will give your playing freedom and liveliness.

Accompany singers more often.

If everyone wanted to play first violin, it would be impossible to form an orchestra. Therefore, respect every musician in his place.

When you grow up, communicate more with scores than with virtuosos.

Play diligently the fugues of great masters, especially Yog. Seb. Bach. The Well-Tempered Clavier should be your daily bread. Then you will definitely become a thorough musician.

Look among your comrades for those who know more than you.

Take a break from your musical studies by diligently reading poets. Be in the lap of nature more often.

You can learn a lot from singers and singers, but don’t trust them with everything.

People also live behind the mountains. Be humble! You have not yet invented or invented anything that others have not invented or invented before you. And even if you succeed, consider it as a gift from above that you must share with others.

Studying the history of music, supported by live listening to exemplary works from different eras, is likely to cure you of conceit and vanity.

If you pass by a church and hear the organ being played, go in and listen. If you are lucky enough to sit on the organ bench yourself, then test your little fingers and marvel at this omnipotence of music.

Don’t miss the opportunity to practice the organ; There is no instrument that would so quickly take revenge for sloppiness and dirtiness in composition and performance. But what does it mean to be

musical There is no instrument that would so quickly take revenge for sloppiness and dirtiness in composition and performance.“Dear child, the main thing is acute hearing, quick receptivity is given, like everything else, from above. But abilities can be developed and improved. You will not become musical if, in seclusion, you spend all day doing technical exercises; You will get closer to your goal if you maintain lively, multifaceted communication with the musicians and, in particular, if you constantly deal with the choir and orchestra.

As early as possible, understand the scope of the human voice in its main four types; especially listen to the voices in the choir;

find out in which registers they have the greatest strength, in which expressions of softness and tenderness are available to them.

Listen carefully to all the folk songs; This is a whole treasury of the most beautiful melodies, they will open your eyes to the character of different peoples.

Practice reading old keys from an early age. Otherwise, many treasures of the past will remain inaccessible to you.

As early as possible, notice the sound and character of various instruments, try to imprint their unique sound coloring in your hearing.

Never miss a chance to listen to a good opera.

Highly honor the old, but also welcome the new with an open, warm heart. Do not be prejudiced towards names you are unfamiliar with.

Don’t judge an essay by listening to it once;

what you like at first is not always the best. Masters require study. Much will become clear to you only in old age.

When starting to compose, do everything mentally.

Only when the piece is completely ready, try to play it. If your music comes from your soul, if you feel it, it will also affect others. If heaven has gifted you with a living imagination, then in your hours of solitude you will sit enchanted at the instrument, trying to pour out your inner being in harmonies. I

; and the more mysterious you will feel, as if involved in a magic circle, the less clear the kingdom of harmony will be for you at this time.

These are the happiest hours of youth. Beware, however, of giving in too often to the attraction of talent, which tempts you to waste time and energy on creating seemingly ghostly images.

Mastery of form, the power of clear embodiment will come to you only with musical notes. So, write more than imagine.

Get to know conducting as early as possible. Watch good conductors more often; You can slowly conduct with them. This will bring you clarity.

Observe life carefully and also become familiar with other arts and sciences.

The laws of morality are the same as the laws of art.

With effort and endurance you will always achieve higher things.

From a pound of metal that costs pennies, you can make thousands of clock springs, the value of which will increase hundreds of times. Use the pound you received from God conscientiously.

Without enthusiasm, nothing real is created in art.

Art is not meant to make you rich. Become an increasingly greater artist, the rest will come by itself.

Only when the form becomes completely clear to you will the content become clear to you (der Geist)

Perhaps only a genius fully understands a genius.

Someone argued that a complete musician should be able to imagine even a complex orchestral work heard for the first time in the form of a score. This is the highest thing you can think of.

There is no end to learning.

Additions to the "Life Rules"

Let's give each era its due! The new era also has brilliant achievements. At all times there have been bad composers and fools who praised them. If you have to play in front of someone, don't break down; do it right away or give up right away.

You must love not only one masters There were many of them.

Don't think that

old music

outdated. Like a beautiful, truthful word, beautiful, truthful music can never become outdated.

“I liked it” or “I didn’t like it,” people say. As if there is nothing higher than people liking!

Shedding light into the depths of the human heart is the calling of an artist!

No one can do more than what he knows.

Nobody knows more than he can.

Anyone who does not know the most significant phenomena in literature is considered uneducated. In music we should have achieved the same position.

* Don’t amateurs strive to get rid of in an instant what artists have pondered over for days, months and years? Thibault Anton Friedrich - German scientist, professor of law at the University of Heidelberg, amateur and expert classical music

. The mentioned book "Uber Reinheit der Tonkunst" is devoted to issues of musical aesthetics.

Schumann - Novelettas for piano

1. Hearing development is the most important thing. Try to recognize tonalities and individual sounds from a young age. A bell, a windowpane, a cuckoo - listen to the sounds they make.

2. Play scales and other finger exercises diligently. But there are many people who believe that this is all that is achieved, who spend many hours every day in mechanical exercises until they are very old. This is similar to trying to pronounce the alphabet faster and faster every day. Make better use of your time.

3. Play rhythmically! The playing of some virtuosos is similar to the gait of a drunk. Don't follow their example.

4. Study the basic laws of harmony as early as possible.

5. Don’t be afraid of words: theory, general bass, counterpoint, etc.; they will warmly meet you halfway if you do the same towards them.

6. Never strum your instrument! Always play the piece to the end with a fresh feeling, never quit halfway through.

7. Delaying and rushing are equally big drawbacks.

8. Strive to play easy things correctly and well; this is better than performing difficult ones mediocrely.

9. Always take care to keep the tuning of your instrument clean.

10. It is necessary that not only your fingers master the piece, you must also be able to hum it for yourself without an instrument. Develop your imagination so much that you can retain in your memory not only the melody of the work, but also the harmony related to it.

12. You must develop yourself so much that you can understand music by reading it with your eyes.

13. When you play, don't worry about who is listening to you.

14. Always play as if a master was listening to you.

15. If you are asked to sight-play an unfamiliar composition, then skim it first.

16. If you have completed your daily musical work and feel tired, do not force yourself any more. It is better to rest than to work without desire and vigor.

17. When you're older, don't play anything fancy. Time is precious. You need to have a hundred human lives to become acquainted with all the good things that exist in the world.

18. No child will grow up to be a healthy person on sweets, cakes and candies. Spiritual food, just like physical food, should be simple and healthy. The great masters took sufficient care of such food; use it.

19. You must not contribute to the dissemination of bad works; on the contrary, he must do his best to prevent this.

20. You should neither play bad works nor listen to them unless absolutely necessary.

21. Never get carried away by brilliance, the so-called bravura. Try to make the music produce the impression that the author had in mind; no more is needed; anything beyond this is distortion.

22. Consider it disgraceful to change anything in the works of good composers, to release or, even worse, add newfangled decorations to them. This is the greatest insult you can give to art.

23. When choosing things for work, consult with your elders: this will save you a lot of time.

24. Gradually become familiar with all the significant works of all outstanding composers.

25. Do not be deluded by the success that so-called great virtuosos often win. Let the artist’s approval be more valuable to you than the recognition of an entire crowd.

26. Everything fashionable becomes unfashionable over time, and if you chase fashion until you are old, you will turn into a veil that no one respects.

27. Never miss the opportunity to participate in playing together - in duets, trios, etc. This will give your playing freedom and liveliness. Accompany singers more often.

28. If everyone wanted to play first violin, it would be impossible to form an orchestra. Therefore, respect every musician in his place.

29. Love your instrument, but in your vanity do not consider it the best, the only one. Remember that there are others, and just as beautiful. Remember also about the existence of singers: do not forget that the highest in music finds its expression in the orchestra and choir.

30. When you grow up, communicate more with scores than with virtuosos.

31. Play diligently the fugues of great masters and, above all, Johann Sebastian Bach. The Well-Tempered Clavier should be your daily bread. Then you will definitely become a thorough musician.

32. Look among your comrades for those who know more than you.

33. Take a break from your musical studies by reading poets. Be in the lap of nature more often!

34. You can learn a thing or two from singers, but don’t trust them with everything.

36. Studying the history of music, supported by listening to exemplary works of different eras, will most quickly cure you of arrogance and vanity.

37. Don’t miss the opportunity to practice the organ; There is not a single instrument that would as quickly take revenge for sloppiness and dirtiness in composition and performance as the organ.

38. Sing diligently in the choir, especially the middle voices. This will develop your musicality.

39. But what does it mean to be musical? You are not musical if, fearfully staring at the notes with your eyes, you effortlessly play your piece to the end; You are not musical if, when someone accidentally turns two pages for you at once, you stop and cannot continue. But you are musical if in a new piece you feel approximately what should happen next, and in a familiar piece you know it by heart - in a word, when you have music not only in your fingers, but also in your head and heart.

40. But how can you become musical? Dear child, the main thing - keen hearing, quick perception - is given, like everything else, from above. But abilities can be developed and improved. This cannot be achieved if, in solitude, you play mechanical exercises all day long; live, multilateral musical communication is necessary: it is especially important to deal with the choir and orchestra.

41. Understand early the volume of the human voice in its main four types; listen to voices, especially in the choir; explore in which registers they have the greatest strength, in which expressions of softness and tenderness are available to them.

42. Listen carefully to all folk songs; it is a treasury of the most beautiful melodies; they will open your eyes to the character of different peoples.

43. Practice reading old keys from an early age. Otherwise, many treasures of the past will remain inaccessible to you.

44. Begin early to pay attention to the sound and character of various instruments; try to thoroughly imprint their unique sound coloring in your auditory memory.

45. Never miss an opportunity to listen to a good opera.

46. Highly honor the old, but also go with an open heart towards the new. Do not be prejudiced towards names you are unfamiliar with.

47. Don’t judge a work by its first impression: what you like at first is not always the best. Masters require study. Much will become clear to you only in adulthood.

48. In judgments about music, distinguish whether the work belongs to the field of art or serves only for the purposes of amateur entertainment; Stand up for the first, don’t be angry about others!

49. “Melody” is the battle cry of amateurs, and indeed, music without melody is not music. Understand, however, what they mean by this; they recognize only a melody that is easy to understand, with an outwardly attractive rhythm. But there are many others, of a different kind, and wherever you open Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, you will see a thousand different melodic types; pathetic monotony, especially typical of new Italian opera melodies, hopefully you will soon get bored.

50. If you pick out small melodies on the piano, that’s very nice, but if they appear on their own, not behind the instrument, then rejoice even more - it means your inner musical consciousness is awakening in you. The fingers should do what the head wants, but not vice versa.

51. When starting to compose, do everything mentally. Only when the piece is completely ready, try to play it on the instrument. If your music flows from your soul, if you feel it, it will have the same effect on others.

52. If heaven has endowed you with a living fantasy, then in hours of solitude you will often sit as if chained to an instrument, trying to pour out your inner self in harmony; and the more mysteriously you will feel involved, as if in a magic circle, the less clear the kingdom of harmony will be for you at this time. These are the happiest hours of youth.
Beware, however, of giving in too often to the attraction of talent, which prompts you to waste time and energy on creating seemingly ghostly images. Mastery of form, the power of clear embodiment will come to you only with musical notes. Therefore, give more time to recording than to improvisation.

53. Get acquainted with conducting as early as possible. Watch good conductors more often; Together with them you can slowly conduct yourself. This will bring you clarity.

54. Observe life carefully, and also become familiar with other arts and sciences.

55. The laws of morality are the same as the laws of art.

56. With diligence and perseverance you will always achieve higher things.

57. From a pound of metal that costs pennies, you can make thousands of clock springs, which are very highly valued. Use the “pound” given to you from above as conscientiously as possible.

58. Without enthusiasm, nothing real is created in art.

59. Art is not meant to make you rich. Become an increasingly perfect artist, the rest will come by itself.

60. Only when the form becomes clear to you will the content be clear to you.

61. Perhaps only a genius understands a genius to the end.

62. Someone expressed the idea that a complete musician should be able to imagine an orchestral work heard for the first time in the form of a score. This is the highest thing you can think of.

63. There is no end to learning.

Life Rules for Musicians (or how to become a professional)

Robert Schumann (1850)

Just over 150 years have passed since one of the most popular works of the great German Romantic composer Robert Schumann, “Album for the Young,” appeared.

The history of the creation of the “Album for Youth” is closely connected with Schumann’s personal, paternal musical and educational experience.

In addition to the musical material, the draft manuscript included instructions young musicians, in a brief aphoristic form, revealing Schumann’s artistic and educational credo.

Below are “Rules of Life for Young Musicians” by R. Schumann, translated by another great composer - P. I. Tchaikovsky.

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Hearing development is the most important thing. Try to recognize tones and modes from a young age. A bell, a glass frame, a cuckoo - listen to the sounds they make.

They invented the so-called “dumb keyboard”; try playing with it a little to make sure it is completely unsuitable. Dumb people cannot be taught to speak.

Play rhythmically! The playing of some virtuosos is similar to the gait of a drunk. Don't follow their example!

Learn the basic laws of harmony as early as possible.

Don't be afraid of words: theory, harmony, counterpoint, etc.; they will greet you warmly if you do the same.

Never hit the keys! Play with meaning and don't stop halfway through the piece.

Delaying and rushing are equally big mistakes.

Try to play easy pieces well and expressively; this is better than performing difficult ones mediocrely.

Always take care to keep your instrument tuned clean.

Always play as if a great artist was listening to you. When you play, don't worry about who's listening.

If you are asked to play an unfamiliar composition from sight, then first run through it with your eyes, in its entirety.

If you have completed your daily musical work and feel tired, do not force yourself to continue working. It is better to rest than to work without desire and vigor.

When you're older, don't play fancy compositions. Time is precious. You need to have a hundred human lives to become acquainted with all the good things that exist in the world.

You can never raise a child into a healthy person on sweets, cookies and candies. Spiritual food, just like physical food, should be simple and healthy. The great masters took sufficient care of such food; stick to it.