Deeper Dive
My project began after a concussion and seizure prevented me from playing violin for over half a year and required a year of medical leave from school. Having spent a decade and a half practicing, I asked myself if I could still call myself a musician if I could no longer play. Over sixteen months, I examined classical music’s tendency to equate musicianship with continuous physical performance and practice. Through score study, historical research, scientific inquiry, listening, community engagement and a gradual return-to-physical practice and performance, I developed a broader framework of musicianship based on sustained artistic, intellectual and social engagement. The project also contributed to my development of an original return-to-instrument recovery protocol for musicians recovering from traumatic brain injury.
Beginning work while still in recovery was this project’s greatest challenge. My progress was rarely straightforward, as concussion symptoms limited cognitive and physical exertion. Returning to a full academic schedule after a year away also forced me to manage my energy carefully and more readily accept gradual progress. My parents, violin teachers, accompanists and medical professionals provided valuable company and guidance, while skills developed through mentors both in and out of school aided me in researching, writing and synthesizing cross-disciplinary ideas.
I envision my work broadening both access to and participation in classical music. Injured, disabled, aging or otherwise constrained musicians should not feel that their identity as a “musician” disappears when performance becomes difficult or impossible. On the scientific side, my return-to-instrument protocol provides practical, music-specific guidance, something currently lacking in the scientific concussion literature, while the project’s broader structure aims to encourage people to engage with music through research, education, advocacy, listening and community work. I’ve applied this philosophy through Project CliKK, the music nonprofit I founded to broadly expand access to high-level music education.