‘Whiplash’: Getting calluses – the callous route to development
This week I watched the movie ‘Whiplash’ – the actor J.K. Simmons plays hard-nosed jazz music teacher/taskmaster, Terence Fletcher. He deservedly received the Best Supporting Actor award at the Oscars.
Fletcher is driven by the desire to discover and develop the next Charlie Parker, and pushes his students literally to breaking point in doing so.
His philosophy is built on a story relating to Parker, when the jazz saxophonist was a 16-year-old. After a delivering a ‘poor’ performance, Parker had a cymbal thrown at him by the drummer sharing the stage. Humiliated, he vowed to return and, when he did some years later, he produced what has been described as one of the greatest saxophone solo performances in jazz history.
Accordingly, Fletcher believes the ‘shame’ approach will result in the next ‘Bird’ eventually emerging from his own flock of mediocrity.
The story centres on a jazz drummer, Andrew Neimann, who sacrifices everything to try and meet his mentor’s exacting standards. Yet he is doomed to failure…or is he? (No spoilers, here!)
The movie’s ending is ambiguous; do the brutal tactics of the teacher go unpunished? Will the bullied drummer, when facing his adversary again, chose to rise to the challenge?
In a candid exchange with Andrew, Fletcher explains his methods:
Terence Fletcher: “I was there to push people beyond what’s expected of them. I believe that’s an absolute necessity.
“There are no two words more harmful in the English language than ‘good job’.”
In this blog, I will return to a recurring theme of ‘truisms’, (or ‘maxims’, ‘proverbs’, ‘adages’ or ‘aphorisms’, – whichever suits you). In this case, it’s: “triumph in the face of adversity” and, thus, how Hollywood sends out all the wrong messages about ‘development’.
I’ve no doubt the Fletcher approach works for some, but it’s just one way of reaching goals. It’s blunt, but how many people have gone backwards after receiving this approach instead of fulfilling the romantic notion of proving anybody and everybody wrong? How many people do we fail with this route to success? Development is so much more nuanced and indivdualised.
In my experience, music – and sport – is about relaxed concentration.
You can turn up to play with bloody, skin-shredded hands, and callouses on your fingers; it proves dedication but how will you then be able to perform?
Charlie Parker died at the age of 34 as a result of heroin addiction. Might we have seen years’ more jazz brilliance if he’d been coached instead of bullied?
To my opinion, it might work sometimes in some circumstances, but – as a teacher, instructor (in art) myself; I prefer sensing not only the talent but the joy and encourage self confidence and joy in work!
It might not make new genius, but it might, at least I hope – make some people enjoying in their creative work..