tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10680113.post3083737009232406840..comments2024-03-23T11:40:13.092-05:00Comments on Musical Assumptions: Excellence Impostor Complex RambleElaine Finehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248422399226824168noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10680113.post-13183502424409390442013-12-26T10:50:43.356-06:002013-12-26T10:50:43.356-06:00Thank you, Anonymous. Despite the personal (and a...Thank you, Anonymous. Despite the personal (and always self-motivated) creative activities that distract me, I so often feel like a bowl of chopped liver (as in, "what am I, chopped liver?"). It's nice to know that people care. Elaine Finehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14248422399226824168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10680113.post-28108308423945276912013-12-26T10:37:00.567-06:002013-12-26T10:37:00.567-06:00When push comes to shove, Mozart was buried in a p...When push comes to shove, Mozart was buried in a pauper's grave. If one were subtract all -- all -- the musicians who teach in universities and conservatories from the population sample because they don't "blow a horn" for a profit, the measure of music, musician and all with materialism's benchmark of money would show most musicians "poor." Indeed what was Bach's economic and political status that allowed us to lose many works to the dust? And what measure is it that Van Gogh was dirt poor? I reject the measure of the materialist world, and this includes that will-o-the-wisp, popularity. The alternative, as it has ever been for artists, is to persevere. And so you do. Yippee for a small corner of Illinois.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10680113.post-53516278584105039652013-12-20T10:38:18.803-06:002013-12-20T10:38:18.803-06:00You too make me blush, Anonymous. But when push co...You too make me blush, Anonymous. But when push comes to shove, I haven't had a real job in music since I was 21, and haven't had a full-time job (you know, the kind that allows you to pay the rent and eat) since I was 25. In the current environment of impostors vs. people who are not, there is a certain amount of monetary recognition that slopes my lot towards that of an impostor. <br /><br />Thank goodness I am in a position (i.e. I am married to someone who supports me both financially and morally, and finds value in what I do) where I can do the things that I do without having to rely on profiting from them in order to live. My tax return is laughable, so I am pretty thrifty, and I try to pretend that the fact that I could not support myself where I live doing what I prefer to do doesn't matter.<br /><br />I do feel fortunate that I have time and space to do the things I do, but rarely do I get much in the way of support from all but a handful of people who live in my town. If it were not for the musical groups that I have basically created--with cooperation from my cohorts (punctuated by occasional chances to play out of town), I would have nothing to do in the community where I live except teach a single music appreciation class at the local community college.<br />Elaine Finehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14248422399226824168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10680113.post-30814758469856577462013-12-20T09:32:16.905-06:002013-12-20T09:32:16.905-06:00Based on what I know of classical musicians of all...Based on what I know of classical musicians of all sorts, while you might not be at the absolute top rung of that ladder, I venture to say you exceed the accomplishments of many, and especially of many musicologists who can barely play one instrument, or twelve-tone advocates who cannot sing their favorite row. Let's see: flute, violin, viola, viola da gamba, piano and putting out a rather serious and long-running blog. Based on simple comparisons, I'd say you are doing quite well for yourself. Are there betters? You bet, but there are demonstrably a whole lot of lesser, so puff up some pride, Madame Faux Impostor, you just might be the real thing after all, just in your own way.... Best wishes.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10680113.post-8400662701475544202013-12-17T09:00:21.063-06:002013-12-17T09:00:21.063-06:00Thanks, Margie. You make me blush.Thanks, Margie. You make me blush.Elaine Finehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14248422399226824168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10680113.post-85456929741573726992013-12-16T22:20:55.631-06:002013-12-16T22:20:55.631-06:00We need more people like you, Elaine! In my opinio...We need more people like you, Elaine! In my opinion, there are too many "specialists" who fail to see the big picture. You possess such humility! You are a brilliant woman with a tremendous capacity for enlightening others and enriching lives. It is refreshing to learn from one who is curious about so many facets of music, life, and learning.<br /><br /> Marjorie Kransberg-Talvihttp://mktalvi.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.com