What is talent?
Talent is the word we use to indicate a gift. That which is given to us at birth a.k.a. our nature. Talent is hidden within us until it is triggered, after which the process of discovery, exploration and development begins. How far you go in this depends on the triangle of nurture, motivation and ambition.
Many people know the story about ‘nature vs. nurture’. The importance of motivation and ambition is clearly recognized in sport, but in music we talk too little about it. It is looked upon as a given factor, which is not the case. In this respect, musicians can learn something from athletes.
Both need to be stimulated since the process of talent development brings it’s ups and downs. This applies to any form of physical training where the mental side plays a role. What both also need is selection, because the highest achievable level will only show it’s face in a competitive environment. This also applies to the limits of our talent.
Orchestra a.k.a. team
Talent development for the upcoming musician in classical music is based on the principle where one achieves a lot during daily studies, but not everything. Playing together (ensemble and orchestra) requires the presence of one or more colleagues. A duo, trio or quartet is easy to organize, but an orchestra is not. At the same time, in the professional domain it is expected of young musicians to bring experience in orchestral performance. The National Youth Concert Band NL (NYCB.nl) offers the possibility to gain this focussed on wind band music.