As an organist and a pianist, we beings are versatile as we can play several notes at once and can "hold our own" in solo musical situations. The other end of this spectrum are solo instruments that play single melodic lines like the violin, flute and clarinet. These instruments can also play on their own but usually they are accompanied by other instruments, such as the piano or involved in an instrumental ensemble.
During my high school years I took up the violin as a second instrument and I did find it very enjoyable because it widened my experiences in music. Firstly, I had to actually work with an accompanist and counting did matter. When performing on the piano, only you are responsible for everything that happens on stage. So if you happen to rush through a section or jump a bar, nobody else is affected. However, if you're being accompanied by somebody then they have a much tougher gig rescuing the performance.
Let's fast forward for now into the present day. I'm an organist, which is still pretty much a one person show but it also provides varied opportunities. Firstly, as a liturgical organist you get to accompany a congregation and perhaps a choir. You're probably expected to do this on an ongoing basis so the frequency of working with others (directly or indirectly) is much greater than just a solo pianist. You're thrown into the deep end in regards to learning material very quickly, or even sight-reading. A much different mindset to the traditional pianist who can spend months and years on a few pieces to absolute perfection.
Of course I'm only talking about one type of organist here—the liturgical one, the one that plays for church services. An organist can also be a solo performer that plays literature outside these services. Let's name this organist the recitalist or concert organist. I'd probably consider myself to be both—a quasi jack-of-all-trades, master of none! I enjoy both aspects and perhaps some moments in my life I leaned to one more than the other.
So where am I right now? Given the current global situation and the forced quarantine, isolation, restrictions or whatever you want to call it, I'm now on the side of working with other musicians. If you asked me the same question over the last three years, I would have been 100% committed to flying solo and having complete control over what I wanted to do and how I wanted to do it. There's just something musically satisfying about working with others, as long as you can choose whom to work with...
Reminiscing over my musical journey from an early age, through school and young adult life to now really opened my eyes to the missed opportunities I could have experienced. Of course, I'm not blaming anyone or even myself, but you realise what's actually important. Music is to be shared and enjoyed and I believe this can't be achieved if you limit yourself to flying solo. Be open to new experiences, work with others, learn from others and make music with others. Back in my day, classical music was so taboo that I was embarrassed of my ability to play such music. I kept it to myself which limited my musical experiences with others for many years until the past decade.
If there's one piece of advice I could give myself all those years ago, I would say to build musical and social relationships with like minded people early on and to not be self conscious about your musical interests. Music making with others is one of the most rewarding aspects a musician can experience, plus you won't end up old and bitter on your own.
You give many ideas to ponder about here. To me flying solo is something I don't regret doing. Here perhaps you and me are different. But for collaborations to work everyone involved must be equally professional and have the same goals. The least satisfying thing would be to worl with someone who is just following orders. Or worse, arguing about it without contributing new ideas.
You make a good point. It's hard to collaborate when it's forced upon you. I wouldn't want to do that. Equally frustrating is following orders from someone who doesn't share the same vision as I do.
Yes but when you have 2 or more people who are on the same page, then you all are unstoppable.
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