Variety is the spice of life

So welcome to my new blog! I am a pianist and organist based in Crewkerne, Somerset. On this blog I hope to share some of my musical thoughts with you and give you a bit of an insight into life as professional musician. I hope you'll enjoy reading and feel free to leave comments! Do visit my website at jonathandelbridge.com if you'd like more information. So, here I am in Crewkerne in my studio and today I've been practising for a "Confounded Box of Whistles" concert I am giving on the organ at Brompton Regis as part of the Two Moors Festival as well as working on composing a "Magnificat" and teaching some pupils. Of course there's also been the usual responding to emails and doing paperwork! Quite a varied day! Sometimes it can be difficult and even a little frustrating trying to balance the teaching and performing work but at the same time the various aspects of my work seem to complement each other. I often find, for example, that when teaching a piece to a pupil I end up learning more about the music myself as we explore the work together and perhaps look at different ways of getting around a particularly tricky section. Directing a choir helps me to understand how to shape phrases and allow music to breathe in order to create the desired singing tone which isn't always easy to achieve on a piano. Composing helps me see music through the eyes of the composer and understand why certain changes of harmonies or transitions between sections need to be brought out. Would I rather just be a performing musician and be able to spend 9 hours a day practising, perfecting the interpretation of pieces and developing my technique? Would I rather just focus purely on teaching? No. I actually find having the variety to my musical life is what makes it interesting and enjoyable and I hope that through this blog I'll be able to share a little of that enjoyment with you!