lately i've been in a rut, musically. it happens. it's not fun being in it when it does happen. it makes practice difficult or impossible, which leads to a decline in ability, which further deepens the rut. it's a terrible cycle and unfortunately, there's no sure-fire way to snap out of it. i've certainly just weathered it and eventually found some inspiration and continued on. but it seems too up-to-chance and that doesn't feel right to me.
as a self-taught musician i'm constantly looking for ways overcome a challenge, being it a theory concept i haven't learned yet or some particular technique that needs honing. when i encounter these things i have to recognize it, analyze what about it is difficult, and then break it down and work on the small parts. it's a very formulaic way of dealing with something you don't understand or can't yet perform and i use it
all the time. i've done it so many times that at this point it's a pretty natural course of action.
being in a rut seems like it's every bit as much of a challenge as a difficult song. it seems reasonable to be able to approach it with the same techniques and navigate though it but uh... that doesn't appear to be the case. i've tried the same techniques enough times to know it's not that simple.
i've tried looking at why i'm in a rut and working out some actions to get out of it, as i would with a difficult technique. maybe i'm just bored of whatever i've been recently working on or maybe i don't understand the underlying concept. maybe i'm just bored of playing right now. no, that's not it.
over the past few years when i'd fall into a rut i'd have a small panic that maybe this would be the one that kicks me out of playing for the next few years like every other time since i was 15. over the past almost 5 years now, they were only temporary ruts, and i'd always come back with new motivation to learn and progress.
i can accept the ups and downs as long as i get to continue having fun learning music.
