Aging: Stuff Happens. Part 1, Appearance  and Memory

A round table exchange and sharing of information about surprises that affect our playing and careers as we age. Panelists: Brenda Schuman-Post with Ruth Diamond, Michael DiPietro, Terry Ewell, Leonard Hindell, Edwin Lacy, Paul Nordby, Oscar Petty, and Amy Collins. International Double Reed Society Conference at Butler University, Indianapolis, USA. June 14, 2025. BDP #368.

[Music, “Tico-Tico no Fubá” Zequinha de Abreu, Performed by Terry B. Ewell]

Okay, sorry to interrupt, but we only have 15 minutes left, so on the subject of appearance, I would like to say makeup classes on YouTube, keep in shape, hair dye helps, think of yourself as an entertainer. What do you look like from the audience perspective? Keep in shape, good posture, I see people playing the oboe with their heads down, you're looking at the floor, look at the audience, think in terms of how you appear to the audience.

And if you need to, change the way you dress. Okay, one more.

You feel different, and it's not grandstanding or anything like that. My mom used to say, but anyway, you feel better with different colors on, little energy, you give off energy, whether it be your shoes, socks, etc., but you want to feel the part, dress, whatever, however you feel, but brightness, light, okay, not darkness, light. So you can start small and you know, grow, and if you have my email.

So I'm going to leave soon and just please make sure you copy the QR code, this list links to all kinds of different information and books and articles and if you have any questions or would like to add to the list which is being compiled on an ongoing basis, please send one of us the name and the link or whatever you have.

So we want to talk about memory and I will just say that it helps to memorize things not only to learn the piece of music, which doesn't require that you have to perform it from memory, but memorize whatever it is because it's going to help with the process of learning as you are forgetting stuff, if you are forgetting stuff.

And anybody else have anything about memory? I did write for that, yeah. Because I can't find what I wrote in my book. In the fall 2013 issue of the Double Read, I wrote on various memorization techniques. And so you might find that helpful, you know, whether it's kinetic memory, finger memory, whether it's analytical memory, whether, you know, all different types of memories that can come into play to help you memorize and help you process music in different ways.

Yeah. Yeah. And then we'll just say. From my point of view, you're also playing right here. Yeah. You're right. I mean, tell me, you've never seen, and can't go in the middle of a player's organization all that stuff. Kind of fizzled in memory, also. Yeah, that's great. Great point.

One thing about seniors, we tend to need less time, or get less time, sleeping. And getting a decent night's sleep and rest in general, I think can improve memory, keep you a little sharper. When you get a good night's sleep, somehow doing a crossword puzzle, or just the whole mental process is quicker, sharper. And memory can be improved if you're able to get a little bit more than you might be getting.,,seven, eight hours of sleep.

I agree sleep is great. I mean, you have that eight hours, like how? It's very rare, I think, for the senior people to be able to get eight hours.

You just can't drink anything for three hours before and then go to bed.

I might not throw something out for you to talk about, but I think it's kind of everything, it's anxiety. And it's something that affects all these different things, the memory, that's changed with me, I've noticed that. Oh, did I remember this or did I remember that? And then that kind of becomes a bit of confusion, starts influencing all the different parts of your life.

Did anybody hear that if you've got anxiety before it performs, eating a banana will help? My daughter taught me that one. Potassium, yeah, potassium is there. The other thing is that sleep piece is essential in this 24-hour 24/7 news cycle and all that stuff with our technology. Even the light, lighting in your room when you're sleeping, is a key factor. Your charger, if it has a light, that's a problem. So, it should really be dark and cool, because everything now is buzzing.

OK, OK, OK. Hey, that's like the hook. Hey, that's like the hook on stage, you know. But true, OK. Not keeping the phone with you when you're sleeping. And not being on the phone right before you go.

Right. That's true. Yeah, that whole electronic thing. Very important.

If you live in a city, blackout shades are a game-changer. Yes, I agree. You're going to be tested for sleep apnea. Yes. mental health, you know, be proud of yourself no matter where you're at.

I’ve heard every thing in my head, and I'm going to play. And if somebody else doesn't like it, tough ***. Absolutely. Oh, personal attitude of life. I love it. You've got to help your mental aspect.

Absolutely. I love that. I'll propose a quick thing. If you can look at life as the glass being half full, you're in good shape. Not half empty. Half full is part of getting that mental attitude positivity.

Going back to a link to topics, we were talking about breathing, and we were talking about anxiety. You can use biofeedback techniques to lower your blood pressure. Everybody wants to know how to do that? I can teach it to you in 30 seconds. Take a deep breath. Hold it three seconds, and let it out slowly. Do that three times, and your blood pressure will drop about 10 points. Wow.

So, expertise. Seasoning, thanks to Oscar, we have this choice of words, seasoning.

We will use that in the next part two, hopefully. Spice it up.

 

[Music, “Tico-Tico no Fubá” Zequinha de Abreu, Performed by Terry B. Ewell]