Musician Spotlight – Joanna Schulz

Is there anything you miss about the beginning of your relationship with music or your instrument?

Yes, most definitely! There was so much to learn. Every lesson I took, every concert I went to, it was all new and exciting. As you develop as a musician you start spending more and more time on skill refinement and unexpected discovery happens less often. That being said, the possibilities in music are endless. It only takes a Google search and some free time to find music that inspires new learning.

Do you have any regrets or is there anything you would have done differently in your relationship with music?

Hindsight is always 20/20. I feel like a lot of people have things they might change or do differently. But if we made those changes the person we would have become would probably change things too. My real answer though…I would have committed to the horn sooner. I always knew I wanted to be a musician but I though my medium was going to be piano or voice. The upside of switching later than most is that it helped me realize how much I needed music to be a part of my life.

How long do you plan to stay in your relationship with music and your instrument?

I have taken some extended time away from music and the horn in the past. It was difficult to engage with music that included horn when I couldn’t perform. I am pretty sure that my horn playing is going to have an end date before me so I will look for other ways to make music as long as I can.

Is there anything you think will get more difficult along the way?

Reading music. As a kid when I played in community ensembles I just didn’t get all the complaining. Musicians not being able read parts because of bad lighting or that their music stand was in the wrong place. To all those people, “I am sorry, I get it now!” When you are on a cramped riser there is usually only one spot for your music stand. Inevitably, that one place is right between being a little too close and a little too far to see clearly. That space just keeps on growing…