Visibility Over Discernment: Mistaking Applause for Percussion Excellence
TL;DR
- Visibility in the percussion activity has replaced discernment, leading to applause being mistaken for excellence and obscuring critical evaluation of technical execution and clarity of intent.
- Playing in prestigious ensembles does not automatically confer teaching or leadership skills, as performance success is distinct from the ability to diagnose, communicate, and build culture.
- Long-term relevance for educators is determined by teaching fundamentals, communicating time and space, safely developing students, and consistently raising standards, not by social media visibility or viral clips.
- The pursuit of being "seen" can mislead emerging educators into believing visibility equates to readiness for teaching, leadership, and upholding the integrity of the activity.
- A community's failure to maintain standards of excellence results in a downward shift, where the line of quality moves lower rather than disappearing entirely.
- True readiness for teaching and leadership involves developing skills beyond performance, focusing on pedagogical competence and the integrity required to advance the activity.
Deep Dive
The percussion education landscape is prioritizing visibility over genuine excellence, leading to a critical disconnect between performance recognition and teaching readiness. This trend risks undermining the craft and misguiding the next generation of educators and performers by mistaking fleeting applause for lasting mastery.
The core issue is that widespread visibility in the percussion world, often driven by viral clips or famous ensembles, has begun to supplant rigorous discernment. When a group is highly visible or players are recognizable, audiences and peers often cease to evaluate the fundamental qualities of performance, such as cleanliness, transition control, clarity of intent, and ensemble responsibility. Instead, there is a tendency to equate recognition with inherent success, leading to pronouncements like "they're set for life" or "they'll have amazing careers" based solely on their performance status. This is a flawed assessment because playing in a prestigious ensemble, while an accomplishment, does not automatically confer the skills necessary for effective teaching, diagnosis, communication, leadership, or culture-building. These are distinct professional competencies that require dedicated development beyond mere performance proficiency.
Furthermore, the nature of performance careers in this specific activity is often misunderstood. Outside of a very small niche, the percussion world is primarily educational, not performative. Consequently, long-term relevance and success will not be determined by flashy appearances, follower counts, or viral moments. Instead, enduring impact will stem from the ability to teach fundamentals effectively, communicate concepts of time and space with clarity, develop students safely, and consistently elevate their operational standards. The metrics of social media and fleeting public attention--likes, views, subscriber counts--do not translate into the foundational skills required for teaching and sustained contribution to the field.
This emphasis on superficial visibility creates a dangerous fantasy for emerging players and educators. Many young individuals believe that simply being "seen" equates to success. However, being seen is fundamentally different from being ready--ready to teach, ready to lead, ready to be responsible for students, and ready to advance the activity with integrity. The community, therefore, must re-learn how to listen critically, using their training, standards, and studied knowledge rather than relying on visual cues, biases, or fandom. When the standards for excellence are not maintained, they do not disappear; they simply shift, typically downwards. For young players, this realization that significant work is required is not a deterrent but the actual starting point for building a genuine career.
Action Items
- Audit visibility metrics: For 3-5 ensembles, measure correlation between viral clips/followers and teaching effectiveness (fundamentals, communication, safety).
- Create teaching readiness checklist: Define 5 criteria (diagnose, communicate, lead, build culture, teach fundamentals) to assess readiness beyond performance.
- Measure content impact: Track for 3-5 content pieces the relationship between likes/views and actual skill development (e.g., clean transitions, reduced ticks).
- Develop ensemble evaluation rubric: Define 5 objective criteria (cleanliness, clarity of intent, ensemble responsibility) to assess performance beyond applause.
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View Episode Notes →Key Quotes
"Not everything that gets a loud applause is excellent. And and I I understand that that sentence alone is going to make some people uncomfortable. But listen, if if you've been around this activity long enough, you already know that that's true. We've reached a moment in the percussion world, and honestly, in fine arts as a whole, where our visibility has started to replace discernment."
The speaker argues that external validation, such as applause or viral clips, has begun to overshadow genuine quality in the percussion and fine arts communities. The speaker suggests that this trend leads to a decline in critical evaluation, where recognition replaces the assessment of fundamental skills and artistic merit.
"Look, playing in a prestigious ensemble does not automatically mean that you can teach, or that you can diagnose, that you can communicate, that you can lead a room, or that you can even build culture. It simply means that you played well enough on that day to earn a spot."
The speaker clarifies that participation in a high-profile group is not equivalent to pedagogical skill or leadership ability. The speaker emphasizes that earning a place in such an ensemble is a performance achievement, distinct from the multifaceted requirements of teaching and mentoring.
"Which means your long-term relevance will not be determined by how flashy you looked or how many followers you gained or how viral your clip went. It will be determined by how well you can teach fundamentals. How clearly you can communicate time and space. How safely you can develop students and how consistently you can raise the standard in which they operate."
The speaker posits that enduring success in the educational sphere of percussion is rooted in teaching proficiency rather than superficial metrics like online popularity or visual appeal. The speaker highlights that true relevance is built on the ability to impart fundamental knowledge, communicate effectively, ensure student safety, and elevate performance standards.
"As percussionists, you need to understand that likes don't train hands. Views don't clean transitions. And your subscriber count does not fix the ticks."
The speaker directly addresses percussionists, asserting that digital engagement metrics are irrelevant to skill development and technical improvement. The speaker contrasts the superficiality of online validation with the concrete requirements of mastering instrumental technique and performance execution.
"We, as a community, have to learn how to listen again. Not with our eyes, not with our biases, not with our fandom, but with our ears. With our training, with our standards, with the things that we studied hard."
The speaker calls for a collective return to critical listening and objective evaluation within the percussion community. The speaker urges a shift away from visual cues and personal preferences towards an assessment based on rigorous training, established standards, and dedicated study.
"Being seen is not the same as being ready. And what do I mean by ready? I mean ready to teach. Ready to lead. Ready to be responsible for students. Ready to carry this activity forward with integrity."
The speaker defines readiness not by public visibility but by the capacity for effective teaching, leadership, and responsibility towards students. The speaker emphasizes that true readiness involves the integrity and capability required to advance the percussion discipline.
Resources
External Resources
Podcasts & Audio
- SoundstageEDU: Building Better Theater Tech - Mentioned as the source of the episode "Being Seen Is Not the Same as Being Ready."
Other Resources
- Green room episode - Referenced as a format for honest, unhyped conversations.
- Visibility vs. Excellence - Discussed as a central theme where public attention is mistaken for true quality in percussion education.
- Fundamentals - Highlighted as a core, lasting element of mastery in percussion education.