A Musician Receiving a New Instrument

Shakuhachi Flute

For a musician, receiving a new instrument often marks the beginning of a new way of being. It is like receiving a new voice. It can also be like receiving a long-lost piece of self, thus providing a greater sense of completion and wholeness. Receiving a new instrument can be a rite of passage for a musician.

The event requires a special state of mind, and some degree of ceremony. The musician has to be able to look at the new instrument and say, truthfully and reverently, “I will listen to you, I will understand you, and I will meld with you. Together we will create music.” The musician has to take care not to think of it as an everyday object, or a mere sonic implement. The musician has to treat it with respect and reverence from the beginning, and must properly acknowledge the beauty of the instrument if it is to become an extension and expression of self, as any musician would hope.

Part of properly receiving a new instrument is accepting the flaws. Again, this requires a special state of mind. Not all newly acquired instruments are pleasing to the eye, and it is often difficult to make a pleasing sound at first. It takes time to understand and fully bond, and therefore a certain amount of trust in one’s musical abilities and the instrument’s construction. Any instrument can be sonorous if you learn how to actually play the one you hold, not just the idea of it.

As a musician, and one who received a new instrument today, I can honestly say there is no experience quite like it. It is truly a momentous occasion.