The Gap Between Good Taste and Doing Good Work

I saw this on Kottke the other day and thought about how relevant it is for musicians. It’s from Ira Glass about closing the gap between having good taste and being able to do good work. We all feel this gap and need to know it is normal and part of the process. But I have a few things to add:

Expanding the gap I would add that the gap can increase as well. Beginners might have good taste of their own but it can be greatly expanded of course. When I started studying more music history, musicianship, and theory the gap increased because my taste became more refined. And that was a good thing, it made me even more enriched and appreciative of music but it did increase the gap between my taste and playing level.

Enjoying the work: I’d also mention that you have to enjoy the work itself. You might do it forever so enjoy closing the gap and practicing. It’s a lifelong journey and will never fully end so if you don’t learn to enjoy the process it can become negative. Rejoice every time you close that gap even by the smallest amount, it’s a super win and you need to appreciate it.

Repertoire choice: In classical music, where the gap includes you and the composer in the same boat it gets more complicated. As a student you need to be playing music within your level and reach (or below your level), or the gap will never get smaller. But, if you choose slightly easier repertoire and then close the gap between your high taste and refinement and your performance, the goal is more attainable or at least more satisfying.

Here’s a partial transcript of the video (via James Clear):

Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, and I really wish somebody had told this to me.

All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But it’s like there is this gap. For the first couple years that you’re making stuff, what you’re making isn’t so good. It’s not that great. It’s trying to be good, it has ambition to be good, but it’s not that good.

But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is good enough that you can tell that what you’re making is kind of a disappointment to you. A lot of people never get past that phase. They quit.

Everybody I know who does interesting, creative work they went through years where they had really good taste and they could tell that what they were making wasn’t as good as they wanted it to be. They knew it fell short. Everybody goes through that.

And if you are just starting out or if you are still in this phase, you gotta know its normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Do a huge volume of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week or every month you know you’re going to finish one story. It is only by going through a volume of work that you’re going to catch up and close that gap. And the work you’re making will be as good as your ambitions.

The full interview from which the video above is excerpted can be found here.