Bela Bartok on Comparison and Competition

Tuesday Quotes are short explorations of music, life, and the daily endeavor of practicing classical guitar. Find more here. Enjoy!

“Competitions are for horses, not artists.”

Bela Bartok

Kids love to mark their height on a wall or door-frame. They love to see how much taller they are than on the last birthday or New Year. It’s fun to witness growth.

But imagine the kid who doesn’t look at her past heights. Instead, she only compares her height to her older sister’s line on the wall.

Every year, she still falls short. Sometimes the gap gets even larger. Always so far to go, and any progress feels paltry and insignificant.

Most of us would recognize the error of this stance, and try to help. We would bring this girl’s attention back to how far she’s come. We would urge her to look back at her own lines for evidence. We would try to explain how her sister’s height has nothing to do with her own.

And as musicians, how should we gauge success? How can we know we’re on the right track? Are we improving? Are we growing?

We may be tempted to gauge success by comparison.

Which is the faster runner? the one who wins the race. It’s cut and dry. It takes little thought or perspective.

But for a lifetime pursuit like music, comparison doesn’t work.

Why? Because the goal is not to have the fastest scales in the neighborhood. It doesn’t matter if we play bigger pieces than….. who exactly?

Improvement is a valid goal. But for its own sake. For the thrill of the chase. For the satisfaction of a job well done.

“Competitions are for horses, not artists.”

Bela Bartok