Practice, or praxis, is something that cannot be disconnected from living, from being. Praxis is everything that you do, that you are. You are a musician, in body and mind, as an individual and as a social being, whether you are currently in the act of making music or not.
The Symposium: Music as a Way of Life - towards a culture of practice took place in the Royal Conservatoire on 4-5 February 2023. Judging by the enthusiasm of the students, teachers and staff that attended, the quality of the content, and amount of new connections between people, we would have to conclude it was a great success!
The idea behind the event was to create a space where members of the Royal Conservatoire community could share their expertise, inspire each other, and talk about what is important for musicians. Fifteen workshops took place, offered by our teachers, staff and students which made it an event for us, from us, and about us. The workshop themes covered different aspects of musicians’ health and learning for body (e.g. nutrition, Tai Chi), mind (e.g. mindfulness, focus strategies), as well as innovative approaches to music-making (both historical and contemporary), and creativity (e.g. guided improvisation).
The workshop day on Saturday was introduced by our new director Lies Colman and was followed by a powerful keynote lecture by Helena Gaunt, principal of the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. Her insights challenge us all to look at our own ‘practice’, as well as our responsibility as artists, teachers and institutions in society.
Practice for musicians encompasses physical, intellectual and emotional dimensions, cultural heritage and experiences, learning styles and ways of doing things as an artist and as a professional. […] But practicing also reveals and can develop a whole human being in terms of their identity and purpose as these are influenced by multiple social, cultural and political dimensions […] the notion of practicing is increasingly understood to be neither distinct from health and well-being, nor distinct from cultural, social and political dimensions. They are all present, in the mix, whether explicit or not.
A video and transcript of the keynote speech will be made available on the KC Portal, in the Your Health and Practice space. The day ended with a wonderful student concert in which Master students from various departments shared a poster which included information on their Master Project, in which their artistic development, research and professional integration activity comes together, and performed repertoire which was linked to their Master Project.
On Sunday morning a brainstorming session took place where themes, ideas and questions for the future were discussed in detail with the workshop leaders, facilitators, and management, based on the feedback from the workshop participants.
The Symposium, in all its layers and events, was a big inspiration for me. There is so much to be done in Music as a Way of Life!
