Dynamic Conversations

• April 14, 2020
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This is a correlation I see with music.  In conversations there will always be opportunities to take the conversations in great places.  In music there are opportunities to take music in different places.

Many times, in music it’s already written for you in the sheet music, but where they overlap is the improvisation.  To be able to improvise and take conversations and music in directions you feel they need to go. To have enough calibration and experience in both fields is a beautiful thing to watch.

I actually like Jamie Foxx doing this.  He can really think well on his feet and in conversations so you see him host shows and also do live piano while talking and having conversations.

There’s a different skillset with each, but being able to recognize what the moments needs is a skill I see in both fields.

I remember I would practice piano and my piano teacher would always say to me “you’re playing too fast” a lot!.  I was trying to show off my skills with how fast my fingers could move, but she would always direct me back to the sheet music and ask me …”does it say that’s how it’s supposed to be played?”.  She would point me to ff (fortississimo) or the pp (pianississimo) or the codas or the crescendoor decrescendo (This Wiki article on dynamics is pretty badass.   The point is that these are dynamics.  They bring emotion and tension into the music, and without tension there’s a problem.

The song Mary Had a Little Lamb has little to no tension.  It’s a simple song and after a while it gets boring.  On the other hand, Beethoven’s music has tension that lasts forever.  Classical music pieces are like in-depth musical stories.

It’s the same with conversations.  Have you ever been in a dull conversation?  Maybe people are lying.  Maybe it’s too smooth of a conversation and everyone is in agreement.  There’s no tension in the conversation.

A good solution is to inject some tension into these lame, tension-less conversations.  Call someone out on their BS.  Say something blunt and direct.  Talk in facts vs questions.  Change the subject.  Ask a group question.  Make a joke.