Written by William Territo, Class of 2022
At this point in time, we are all well aware of the challenges online learning has brought us. Practicing feels like a chore, we’ve been isolated from our peers, and our eyes burn and heads ache from Zoom fatigue. It’s been stated before that music school is hard, whether it is in-person or online. However, there is always something that can further complicate the situation: what happens if you get coronavirus? How do you practice if you’re constantly winded? What do you do when an already tough situation gets even harder?
This is a battle I fought at the beginning of April (or am still fighting depending on when you’re reading this). About a week after spring break, right at the moment when midterms were coming up and final project due dates were fast approaching, I got diagnosed with coronavirus. Great. “Well, maybe I’ll be one of the lucky ones and I won’t have any symptoms,” I thought to myself. Nope. I had pneumonia, fever and chills, loss of taste and smell, and fatigue (just to name a few). I’m young and relatively healthy, so surviving this illness wasn’t actually my first concern. The first thing that popped into my head was, “How am I going to practice?” Juries were approaching, and there was no way I was going to risk having a poor performance. Plus, taking an extended amount of time away from the horn could undo all the progress I had made this semester.
I had to do some thinking and make some tough decisions. Ultimately, I decided that pushing through practice sessions and dealing with the physical health consequences would be better for me than dealing with the stress of not practicing. While probably not the healthiest route I could have taken, I did what I felt was right for me. On the bright side, should you be placed in the same situation I was in, you will have some guidance from my own experience. Here are the three most important tips I can offer you should you contract the coronavirus and decide to practice.
Clean your equipment!
While you should be cleaning your equipment regularly anyway, this is an absolute necessity if you practice with coronavirus. There is still a lot we don’t know about this virus, so doing your best to rid the virus from your instrument should be a priority. I’m a tuba player, so the remainder of this tip will be geared towards brass instruments. Clean your mouthpiece after each use with rubbing alcohol or sanitizer, AND soap and water. If you play a brass instrument, spray a 50/50 mix of the rubbing alcohol and water down the lead-pipe to cleanse the inside of the horn. Be sure to oil your valves regularly, for the alcohol will cause the valve oil to break down and your valves to freeze up. Once you are healthy and recover from the virus, bathe your horn!
Know your limits!
Do what you can, and know what you can’t do. Playing your horn can actually help open up your lungs when you are sick. However, this phenomenon is context-specific. If you’re having a good day, go through your daily routine to get a feel for your lung capacity and take it from there. If you think you can handle it, tackle an etude. Of course, if you are having breathing problems, be smart! Your life is more valuable than your etude or your solo. This is where I struggled to draw the line. I kept practicing through my pneumonia and coughing fits until I became light-headed. It took a scare with my blood-oxygen level for me to come to my senses and realize that my breathing troubles were no joke. I may think I’m invincible, but I certainly am not. Don’t be afraid to tell yourself “not today”. You will catch up on your practicing, and you will nail that solo. Just have patience and be smart. Know your body.
Get some rest!
The virus won’t go away if you overwork yourself. Take some time to relax. Don’t think about school. Don’t think about work. Don’t think about the horn. Don’t stress; everything will be fine. Just keep resting, slamming water, and taking vitamin C tablets to help your immune health.
While I do hope you found this information useful, I also hope that none of you are in a situation where this is relevant to you. Be smart, my friends. Wear a mask, get vaccinated, and stay healthy.
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