JUSTIN SANDERCOE

“When you don’t feel it, you don’t do it. Do not try. Do not try to write,”

I heard my hero Neil Young say on a TikTok clip. It echoes a brilliant poem by Charles Bukowski called So You Want To Be A Writer. Look it up. It holds a lot of truth, but not the whole truth. Is developing expression something that takes time and practice? There will be many questions here and a few stabs at answers, but this article is about uncertainty and an elusive definition…

When you first start doing anything it’s likely to be clumsyyou need time to learn the fundamental skills that make the art. Right? But is expression related to skill or technique?

When a child dances along with music, they are feeling the music and expressing themselves, and probably in a much purer way than an adult might. They’re not worried about how things ‘should be done’, or that others might judge them… they’ve not been burdened with rules yet. So why do we struggle so much to tap into that feeling of expression when we learn an instrument?

Awareness of these questions and thinking about them can help you free your expression. We all feel self conscious when we play for others - so expression is certainly best explored alone where there is nobody to judge us, so nothing to fear and nothing to lose. Even someone who knows just one chord can tap into expression in the way that they hold the instrument and strum the strings. Musical expression is not skill or technique. Is it?

As you develop your technique you are better able to control the sound that comes out of your instrument. You develop an affinity with music, an understanding of how things work, about how YOU connect with music and how YOU hear it, how YOU feel it and how YOU express it. Does that mean that someone with great technique is better at expressing themselves than someone with limited technique?

Now we get into some interesting territory. The answer is no. For sure. A punk rocker thrashing out some chords and giving it all they got is just as expressive for their requirements as the classical guitar master performing the most intricate and complex baroque masterpiece with finesse and ease. So there is more than one type of expression?

If we accept that music is a form of individual expression, then uniqueness is to be celebrated. And think of the multitude of ways there are to express ourselves… there are classical arts like painting and pottery, and dance - but even the way we choose to dress and speak is a form of expression. So people can express themselves any way they want to?

Yes. But. Most people will already have a preconceived idea of how they would express themselves if they could - this is a blessing and a curse. If someone has the desire to express themselves playing a soulful lead solo, then they are likely to think that they have to achieve a certain level of technique and understanding before they are able to express themselves. The mistake here is that learning to express oneself is something that can be developed right from the start. I regularly see beginners playing that have already opened that ‘expression channel’ and are doing it for real - and I know many working professionals that struggle to really express themselves. So how does one know that they are ‘actually’ expressing something?

They won’t be trying. I think this is the point that Neil is making. Trying is something we do in the practice roomdeveloping skills and techniques. Trying a new thing, exploring it. Trying is an effort or an attempt… the hours of practice… the evolution of ideas and knowledge… augmenting your palette… perfecting your technique. Expression is in the doing. Only sometimes it’s not.

For some artists the effort or attempt IS THE ART. And that’s okay too. Who are we to judge how anyone chooses to express themselves? For many others, learning the craft is part of the art. And understanding the craft allows for that much coveted effortless expression. Others believe we are just conduits for expressions and that we need to be open for the songs or notes or ideas to travel through us.

What matters is making a connection. If someone is able to connect with what you are expressing, it has been successful. And if a feeling is pure and you let it out, then it’s likely that there are others just like you that will connect with it. I love the fact that music is full of contradictions and there is rarely a right or wrong. You can express yourself right now if you just stop trying. Or can you? Safe travels!