Meet Daniel Silver | Professional Clarinetist and Professor of Music

We had the good fortune of connecting with Daniel Silver and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Daniel, what’s one piece of conventional advice that you disagree with?
“Practice makes perfect.” This is an unfortunate old-time saying that fails to point out what we now know:
Practice does not make perfect–practice makes permanent. Therefore, all the research on gaining skill that has been done in the last 50 years and more needs to be understood, so that practice may be effective!

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I’ve made my way professionally by performing and teaching in the world of music, mainly in the classical sphere, though I love ALMOST ALL kinds of music (and the arts in general)! Although I have played in major orchestras around the world, my career has been marked by significant amounts of activity doing work as a chamber music performer (smaller groups), making recordings, being a soloist, commissioning new music, and a great deal of teaching in many settings.

I am deeply grateful that I have been able to do something I love for most of my life, and I’m still going strong after 45 years as a professional. Here are only a few lessons I find meaningful:

1) Mistakes are not honored properly in much of education. Mistakes are valued cousins of failure, and while it is an age old idea, I see more and more how mistakes and/or failure ought to be viewed as good friends, from whom we can always learn and grow. I work hard to continue to improve, to learn from the good, the bad, and the ugly and become a better teacher, and also a better “giving-back” mentor to my students and colleagues.

2) People like to say luck is involved in various events, and I agree. But I never hear someone say that without thinking myself: Luck is when preparation meets circumstance. Ponder that!

3) We are lucky when we have a support system. At the same time, I work at being my own best friend and toughest critic. Most important things in life involve love, helping others, and creating community. Thus, I have often thought how important it is to examine one’s own values, and work on one’s own “stuff” so that one is in a position to reach out and give back from a place of personal stability.

4) One part of my story is this: I had my basic needs met from an early age, and also a bedrock of love and support from my family of origin. If you fortunate to be in this category, I hope you practice gratitude in some fashion, and then I hope you are able to find something that challenges you and that will keep you curious, keep you as a life-long learner, and keep you challenged. And another part is: Find other interests that involve your mind, body, and spirit to keep you learning. Learning is about connections in your being, and one thing feeds another, whether it is your “main” activity, or a pursuit/hobby/side activity. To cite just one example, I took up golf late in life and worked with a master teacher, Ed Oldham, known to some of your readers. I’ve had the chance to combine the skill acquisition research of music and sport through my study of golf and my work with Ed. This is endlessly fascinating and there will never be enough time to learn all I wish to!
5) Having a sense of humor REALLY helps. My father liked to say he took his work seriously, but not himself, and I loved that model and hope to display at least some of it!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Too many options! I loved to take friends to the mountains, often Rocky Mountain National Park if it’s just a day trip. But I enjoy anything outdoors, from hiking to golf to tennis to skiing to biking and more. And depending on the interests of the visitor, I love to go to concerts, theater, and museums. For restaurants, Sushi Den in Denver has been a mainstay, but I’m loathe to cite even them, as there are endless options, as readers will know. One of the most interesting things I’ve done in getting out is to drive into the mountains without a definite destination or without consulting a road map too much. Just turn down any side road that looks interesting, or turn into a small incorporated area without knowing what is there. Strike up a conversation with a stranger. There’s really something interesting down every road.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I like the “we stand on the shoulders of giants” metaphor, so I always wish to give lots of credit to my parents, my teachers, my good friends, my family and the list goes on. If there was a single dedication, let that be to my late parents, who are with me in spirit and active memory.

Website: https://www.colorado.edu/music/daniel-silver

Image Credits
David Speckman, photographer