1. The 15-Second Principle

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A master is basically a passionate student who keeps showing up to learn just a little more and improve
one more nuance or skill. Master-students also know that they will never graduate, nor do they want to.
What keeps the master-student perpetually enrolled is the fascination with the subject matter. The
Japanese have a word, kaisen, that comes very close to describing student-mastery: "a span of continuous
and never-ending improvement." Mastery, then, is more a state of impassioned inquisitiveness than a
definable point or a fixed level of proficiency.
I was blessed to have been introduced to the master-student concept at the ripe old age of 13. The
revelation occurred one day at the Long Island Institute of Music, where I was studying. As I was waiting
for my clarinet lesson to begin, the director of the institute asked me if I was aware that I had something in
common with Benny Goodman. I couldn't imagine what this brilliant musician and I had in common, so I
answered, "No." The director responded that our commonality was that we were both taking lessons from
my teacher, Mr. Duques. I couldn't believe my ears. Why would the most famous clarinetist in the world still
be studying? I knew that Augustin Duques was a great clarinetist (he had been the principal clarinetist in
Toscanini's NBC Symphony Orchestra), but I was still quite taken aback by this fascinating piece of
information. What I soon discovered was that Mr. Goodman was aware of the limitless nature of his craft,
which he responded to by becoming a master-student.
A master-student polishes his strong points and fortifies his weaker points. If Benny Goodman did have a
weaker area, it was his classical side. To strengthen this, he sought out Mr. Duques, a master classical
teacher. Perhaps Mr. Goodman just needed a set of trained classical ears to critique his playing. Or maybe
he was looking for an alternative fingering, a better way of practicing scales, or a new way of improving his
tone. Apparently, by placing his ego in the freezer and nurturing his inquisitive side, Benny Goodman was
able to reap musical benefits from many people. This, in turn, enabled him constantly to refine his craft.
A master-student does not grab for that elusive brass ring that will always be just a little out of reach.
Instead, he approaches life as though he already has the brass ring. All he is constantly doing is molding,
sanding, and polishing it. Mastery is an approach, an attitude, a state of being.