It can make two people, with similar musical technical ability, play the exact same notes on a guitar and receive a completely different reaction from the audience. You can also have musicians who train day after day and become extremely good at technically manipulating their instrument, but when you listen to them play, they hardly evoke any emotional reaction from the audience. On the other hand, there is the other type of musicians, who may or may not be technically good, but their delivery always triggers a palpable emotional reaction in their audience. So what is the one element that makes the difference?
Maybe we can begin to answer that by following these questions. Does the great musician really need an instrument to become one? Or, to put it another way, does the instrument have anything to do with creating a great musician? The answer is, as you may have guessed, not really. The instrument is purely accessory, in fact, a great musician can simply whistle and get a favorable auditory reaction. Why? because they are born with the internal knowledge of the universal language of music, also known as the gift of music. Possession of that knowledge or talent is the fundamental difference between the great musician and the instrumental player. The great musician usually has a clear connection with the musical language within himself, which facilitates its expression. The more you can tap into that energy, the more you can reach your audience. The not-so-great musician, on the other hand, has a fuzzy connection, if at all. You can play your instrument until you drop dead, if the notes are not connected to your internal language of music, you are simply playing notes, not music.
The unfortunate difference between the language of music and any other language is that it cannot be learned. If you were born with it, you can learn how to take better advantage of it; however, if you weren’t born with it, you’d better learn Spanish. For those who were born with it, practicing his music should involve a great deal of attention to connecting yourself to the language of music as much as to the time you spend with your instrument developing your technique. By that I mean, in order to harness the energy of music easily, you will have to spend a lot of time taking care of your physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health rather than just concentrating on your instrument. Ultimately, it is your usefulness, in terms of inspiring and moving your audience, that makes you a great musician.