I’ve sat at many recitals and watched many musicians performing on YouTube videos who have been labeled as “prodigy” or “genius.” This quote reminds me of the amount of uneasiness I feel towards these terms because I just don’t agree with or believe in them. Even in regards to well-known musicians, like Ell Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, or Miles Davis, I would have a hard time giving any of them that label. Instead, I would say that they are all extremely talented and have worked very hard to get to the level at which they were at.
Calling someone a genius or a prodigy completely side-steps all of the hard work that they’ve put in to their craft. I also believe in raw talent–some people are just naturally good at doing certain things. However, talent doesn’t amount to anything if you don’t work hard at what you’re good at or passionate about. When you don’t work at what you’re good at, you don’t progress and you stay stagnant. Music is dynamic, constantly changing and progressing, so if you’re not trying to progress, it’s hard to call it music.
On the contrary, I’ve also heard many musicians who are very talented say that they just work very hard. I can appreciate when someone says that, however, I think that (in terms of music) some people have naturally big ears and good instinct.To say that you’ve achieved what you’ve achieved is solely based off hard work isn’t correct either; the natural ability should be there from the start as well. The terms “prodigy” and “genius” are too problematic for me to use, but I can see why some would use them because it is hard to find the right term or description that would fit a person who has the right balance of natural talent and hard work. Whatever your terminology or ideology, the musician who progresses beyond the impressive level that they started out at is actively exemplifying what music is and should be considered extremely talented and creative by anyone.