I was told to not play oboe for a week — here’s what I learned

I was surprised when my oboe teacher said to take the week of Christmas off of oboe. Surprised is an understatement. But I decided to do it, and I am so glad I did.

Today let’s talk about some lessons I learned from my break.

1. I had no idea how much I needed it

As soon as I started the break, I felt so tired when I thought about the oboe — just huge exhaustion. A few days in the break, it hit me just how much I needed the break. Oboe felt so draining — and it isn’t supposed to feel that way.

During my break I focused on other things — walks, knitting, baking. I stopped thinking about oboe, and it felt so freeing. This was a break I needed. And when the break was over, I was ready and excited to start again.

2. I got more musical

This was a surprise. I wasn’t expecting this. Since this was the week of Christmas, I was listening to a lot of Christmas music. There were many familiar melodies, and my brain started playing around with them and creating musical ideas.

When I got back to the oboe, I had so many things I wanted to try out that I had come up with the week before.

3. I thought I had gotten worse, but my ear had gotten better

When I first came back to oboe, it took a while to settle in. Then it was quite scary because I thought I had gone backwards in that break. After a few days of playing, I realised that my ear had actually gotten better and was able to hear new ways of improvement.

I hadn’t gotten worse, but my ear had gotten better. I am so grateful for that.

If you are thinking about taking a break, I recommend it. Music can feel like all we are sometimes, but I challenge you to invite rest into your routine. It can be so helpful.

All my best,

Eleanor