Should You Join A Recorder Group?
Maybe you’ve been playing the recorder all by yourself in your living room for a while, and you’re starting to wonder if playing with others might be rewarding.
Maybe you just picked up the recorder during Covid, or you’re coming back to it after many years, and you know you want to make music with others, but you’re worried it will be beyond you, or that you’re not ready.
Maybe you’ve thought about joining a recorder group, but you just haven’t quite mustered up the courage.
Many of my students have found themselves in this space before, trying to decide whether to join in or stay on the sidelines. I know because they’ve told me! And if you’re one of them, read on for my top five signs you' should join a recorder group!
#1: YOU LOVE MUSIC
A single line of melody can be lovely. But melody and harmony? Multiple melodic lines interweaving? That can be absolutely exquisite. If you’re a music lover, being able to make music that has multiple parts is a major upgrade!
#2: YOU ENJOY SHARING A PURPOSE
To me, there’s something beautiful about coming together with others to move collaboratively toward a goal, particularly when that goal is something that all of you love. Music is a particularly special kind of collaboration because, unlike many kinds of projects, much of your communication and interaction is both nonverbal and taking place in real time!
#3: YOU’RE COMFORTABLE WITH BEING UNCOMFORTABLE…
…or you’re ready to learn to be that way! Playing in a group often feels vulnerable. And because many groups contain people who have been playing for many years, it can seem daunting, scary, or intimidating. You might worry about messing up, or getting lost, or brining the group down. And the truth is, you will mess up. You will get lost. You will make sounds you, and possibly others, don’t enjoy. And you know what? That’s OK! Actually, it’s more than OK, because it means you’re learning. The only way to get better at playing in a group is playing in a group, and in order to do that, you have to be willing to screw up. Plus, guess what? Every single person in the room with you has also been a beginner– they already know how you feel.
#4: YOU’RE READY TO GROW
Playing in a group can motivate you to expand your skills like nothing else. It forces you to practice things like sight reading, following your line amidst conflicting inputs, and listening and playing at the same time. It can inspire you to pick up a new size of instrument, or work to improve skills like pulse keeping or your ability to pay in tune. It will stretch you in ways that would be difficult, if not impossible, to achieve on your own.
#5: YOU LIKE SNACKS!
Ah, the snacks! Recorder players are, almost without exception, lovely, interesting people who happen to really excel at snacks. Just make sure to bring a toothbrush!