All or nothing at all
why music should never just be about reaching milestones
Hello music-loving friend,
There’s a 1939 song written by Altman and Lawrence called All or Nothing at All. A very young Frank Sinatra made the first recording in 1939 and it became a huge hit in 1943.
The gist of the song is that if someone doesn’t love you back completely (or maybe as much as you love them), then it’s far better to have nothing at all. In other words, don’t settle for anything less!
🎵 ‘All or nothing at all
Half a love, never appealed to me
If your heart, never could yield to me
Then I'd rather have nothing at all’ 🎵
We don’t limit this sentiment to love, though, do we? Somehow we’ve become a bit hardwired to think that if we’re going to do something we should go all out or not even bother. You only have to think of some of the idioms we like to use:
‘Go hard or go home’
‘No half measures’
‘Sink or swim’
‘In for a penny, in for a pound’
But what if you realise you’re actually really loving the getting there part of whatever it is you’re doing much more than the idea of reaching a predetermined goal? It’s this that sums up my issue with this sentiment when it comes to music, because music should never be about all or nothing at all.
I’m not saying there won’t ever be times when it’s a great idea to strive for a goal. It’s just that the ‘getting there’ part is where we learn new things, make mistakes, discover what we like (or dislike), go off on tangents just to satisfy our own curiosity, and dabble in creating something new or changing something we already have.
The ‘getting there’ is an opportunity to experiment with all the different aspects of playing and singing, like speed and volume and rhythm and feel, and even which notes to play or sing.
And if it is goals you’re after, then there’s aiming for the satisfaction that comes from working out a snippet of melody yourself by ear, finally understanding a concept you previously thought too complex, or getting to grips with a tricky passage in a piece of music you’ve been learning.
Or the best goal of all might be the surprise you feel upon realising that for a little while you lost all track of time, so immersed were you in whatever you were playing or singing.
Now that’s a goal worth aiming for.
And here’s the song!
Thank you for taking the time to read my post. If there's anything else you're curious about or would like me to explore further, please let me know.
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Thanks, Kate ❤️