Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Pianist Corner Open Discussion - arrogance

I am simply presenting this topic to read what you people have to say.

Have you ever had a fellow peer that just can not seem to get enough of himself/herself? They can play all those 'cliche' pieces on the piano and not make any note errors but you know that they are about as musical as a robot. This is not a case of jealousy.

Has anybody had this experience? Please discuss...

Hi PassionatePianist,

"Have you ever had a fellow peer that just can not seem to get enough of himself/herself?"

That part of the quote (arrogance) has no essential relationship with the following sentence (not musical):

"They can play all those 'cliche' pieces on the piano and not make any note errors but you know that they are about as musical as a robot. This is not a case of jealousy. "

I don't really have problem with people that are arrogant but as musical as a robot. What's worse is the type that's really good AND arrogant to boot.

Just an observation,

--c5

someone who is arrogant but can back it up with ability is ok to me. People who are arrogant for no good reason make me laugh.

I don't think I'm arrogant, but I never hang around with music kids, so they all think that I think I'm better than them for this reason. I just happen to be more of a party kid/frat boy type when I'm looking for a good time. There's also a lot of time when I need to be alone and with my music for extended periods of time. My fraternity brothers are always surprised to see me because I'll pretty much lock myself in a practice room for a week or two.

Whatever arrogance I do have, I back it up with my ability. I don't go around talking about how good I am, I just like to think my playing speaks for itself.

Seriously...I'm not cocky, I'm just better than you.


(for those sensitive readers, my last statement was in jest)

PassionatePianist :

Welcome to the Forum.

If we confront arrogance in others, it has not necessarily anything to do with music, but with the character of the individual and - perhaps - a particular skill or talent. How we handle such a situation can be as varied as the circumstances and the individuals involved, so I'm not quite sure I understand the discussion that you expect from your question.

As for the specific: "Have you ever had a fellow peer that just can not seem to get enough of himself/herself?", my simple answer is: No, I haven't.

Again, welcome to the forum.

Regards,

I HATE arrogant people. Not just piano players but the lot of them. There is no reason for some one to flaunt there ability in your face and gloat about it. I just wont to pop their heads off and bounce them around for a while . . . did I come off too jealous?

I'm pretty much a show-off on the piano. I can't sing worth a crap (I take Chorus), so I make up for it by playing for the choir after class.

I don't always act like that, though, so I wouldn't call myself cocky or arrogant. Maybe on some days, but mostly I'm just not afraid to play the songs I know on the piano.

But have I met anyone that really was just full of him or herself? No, not on the piano, at least.

Something that I think can be discussed here...

I think that very often if a pianist is very good, people (often out of jealousy) will look for some way to tear that person down. Saying that they are arrogant is the perfect way to do this. I heard just this past year that some music acquaintances of mine were talking about me being arrogant behind my back. It really hurt my feelings because some of the things they said were pretty malicious. And it was just weird because I almost never talked to those kids.

I didn't feel a need to say anything back to them. I just kind of let it slide. I was actually standing with them outside the office when the program for the concert program was posted after the concerto competition. My name was on it, their's weren't. I don't consider it revenge. I just played my piece with emotion and fire. At no point was I thinking about beating them. All I cared about was the music, and that's what I care about in life. Some people take this is arrogance, and that's their prerogative.

Take it as a compliment I guess. Bad press is better than none at all right? It's probably better to be arrogant than it is to be a doormat.
Also it's possible that if you don't socialize with some people or you are the quiet type it can be threatening to some people. People like to make assumptions or make up their own stories...but I also wouldn't suggest intervening too much. It could just be jealousy too as someone else mentioned.
That's awesome. Let them have their stories. You take your success. I doubt Tom Cruise cares about what the tabloids have to say about him.

Hi phonehome,

Sorry to hear about your experience. I do think there's a difference between being competitive and being arrogant. Some people, like those who spoke behind your back, don't understand the difference.

PootieTooGood,

The point I was trying to make in my initial post was this: in any endeavor that's worth doing, there is always a higher summit to reach for. The quest is endless.

To "act arrogant" is to demean people who may be struggling somewhere behind you, just because you happen to be ahead of them at that point in time.
It indicates lack of gratitude for the gifts one was given, a lack of grace of character.

That's why it bothers me to see people who are gifted, but also arrogant. Why waste time putting others down when there's so much more to be done in one's own quest?

My honest opinion,

--c5

arrogance was not really defined so I did not interpret it as an act of putting others down. I was thinking more like self-absorbed or self-confident(overly).
By your interpretation, I think we can all agree this type of person sounds like a scumbag.

But in my opinion, arrogance itself is a little vague and could be seen as harmless or harmful depending on the circumstances.

Wow, having looked it up on dictionary.com the language is much stronger than I expected. I guess maybe people use the word rather loosely these days. For example, the experience of phonehome.

"You can easily judge a man's character by how he treats those who can do nothing for him."
-Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Defining arrogance is a little tricky. Just mentioning that you are better at something than another person might make you seem arrogant. And if you really are that good at something, shouldnt you be able to mention it without people thinking of you as being arrogant? Heres an example, I knew a guy in high school who liked to impress girls and new people he met by saying he the best wrestler/boxer in the school and I honestly think he was (he was only about average size too). So would you classify his as being arrogant?

As for people playing cliche pieces like robots... Ill admit that I do it a lot. I only play pieces with a melody I like. You would probably consider those pieces cliche. I have a lot of problems playing emotionally and can rarely do it even if I like the piece Im playing. The best I can do is 'fake it' by playing faster/slower, louder/quieter.... based on how I think the piece should sound. Although I dont see the reason for bashing people who have hard time expressing their emotions on a piano, hehe.

Jerry Lee Lewis can be an arrogant *****.

And yes, he can play a piano pretty well....

Vlad,

In the case you are talking about, it doesn't matter whether you are truly arrogant or not. It's other people's perception of your behavior. Saying "I'm the best at something" will most likely rub people the wrong way, whether it's true or not.

I think a classy (and crafty) person would let the reputation or track record speak for itself.

But then, to each his/her own.

--c5

Something my father once told me: "Walk with your head up, but keep you head down."

I interpret it as telling you to "be confident but stay humble."

Of course, words like humble and arrogance can have different interpretations. This is basically what I meant when I said "discuss". I just wanted to hear what others think of "arrogant" pianists.

I think arrogance can come from many things. Maybe the person is too immature to really understand that arrogance is (generally) looked down upon in our society. "Showing off" has negative affects on that person.

PassionatePianist,

Your father is a wise man. The degree to which we perceive pride in others reflects the degree of pride in ourselves.

Playing the piano well is very hard and tedious work. The tendency toward ego and big heads is a sad fact of human nature.

The greatest people are not those who achieve some great technical plateau. They are not those who ignore "peons" who are beneath them. They are those who inspire and lead. I believe it was Lee Iacocca who said that good leaders make followers, while great leaders (or teachers, to make it context relevant) make other leaders. Those who look down on others, or who by their actions seek to belittle others as in the subject of this thread, are in truth veiling deep-seated insecurities in themselves. They are to be viewed as objects of pity, not scorn.

All of us - not just "them" but us - must strive against such pernicious conceit, and seek the best interests of our fellow man.

FWIW.

And, a warm welcome BTW to PianoWorld!

Genius. This guy is a genius.

wow, great post gerg! You couldn't have said it any better. "...objects of pity, not scorn."---so true.

I don't meet very many other players but no, the few I do know are a bit too much the other way if anything and are actually much more capable than they think they are.

I can't say arrogance would really bother me though because the sound they make is what matters in the end as far as music is concerned. I think I'd be inclined to ignore personal character and just learn what I could from their playing.

One who is really a big dud and arrogant ? A sort of William McGonagall of the piano ? I've never met one but I think it would be absolutely hilarious to do so.