Playing sports or playing music

Playing sports and playing music are the most common hobbies that young people and adults do in their free
time. I remember that, since elementary school, there was the choice to pick one of these two. People grow up
with these activities and learn how to behave with the others, how dedication and devotion give results and
how it is important for life. These hobbies aim to free up your mind after a heavy and stressful day at work or
at school. It is important to spread the energy that has been kept inside through all the day, especially negative
energy. So, what is better than playing some sports with friends or playing with your band? The feeling of
interacting with people or expressing yourself makes you feel more relaxed and comfortable.

Sports and music can give a lot of emotions and feelings even if, in my opinion, these are very different.
Playing sport is very competitive, everybody plays to have the satisfaction of winning and prove that he/she is
the best. It is very similar to a war, where there are some rules to follow and you give all yourself to win.
Nobody wants to be the weaker or the loser, it is a psychological issue. As matter of fact, in Italy there is an
expression which says: “Nobody remembers who was in the second place”, which means that only the winner
will have the fame. One of the main factors which makes playing sport very emotional it is a very common
hormone, called Adrenaline. The effect of this hormone is to amplify the intensity of the emotions turning the
person, which is doing the activity, stronger, more focus, painless and striving for winning.

On the other hand, playing music has a unique effect on our emotions. If you are happy, sad, angry or
depressed there will always be a song that will “support you” and help you to express what you are feeling. For
example when I am upset about something, I find liberating to play some punk or hard-rock music using a high
gain, distortion and high volume. While if I am relaxed, I prefer a more melodic pattern, which gives you the
feeling of floating in the air, be free from stressful thoughts and fully concentrate on the sound of the single
note. Good music has always been created when the musician is in a certain high emotional phase of his life. All
those love songs and ballads, which talk about experiences, crucial events, lovesickness and other emotional
situations make the people who is playing this songs to enter to this space/mental dimension in which the
author was.

One of the main aims of sport is working hard to reach the main goal. To achieve this, especially in team-sports,
it is crucial to know how to behave with the other teammates and try to be on the same wavelength. This is not
always easy to do. Sometimes, because of envy or different personality some members of the team are against
each other, that makes the team a tense and vulnerable environment which will not last for long. The mentality
that is taught in the early years, it is to treat everybody equally. There are no better or worse players, there is
only one team which will work and train together to be better and more competitive. It is important to meet
the others also after the activity time, spend time together it is the key factor to make a relationship stronger.
Become like brothers.

Sport also teach you how to behave with the opponents. Respect them is the key word that should be learnt by
all. People should control themselves no matter the situation is, if they are winning or losing. If the
environment is tense nobody would have a good time and sport should be basically having a great time.

Meanwhile, music has always been a tool to interact and communicate among people. It is a way to express
ourselves to the outer world through lyrics and melodies. Like sport-teams, music players can form bands
which are made of musicians with similar music taste. The main goal is to have fun and create or play some
songs together. To make that working, the members should rehearsal frequently, to get more in use to play
together and know each other better.
It is very common among musicians to meet in “jam sessions”, which are events where friends or random
people play together some “jigs”, exchanging playing-tricks and showing off their own style. These meetings
are very positive for both beginners and advance players because they can always meet new people, make new
friends and learn something from the others.

After weeks of practicing and rehearsals there is the final test, to prove the hard work that had been made. In
sports we have the competition/match where two individuals or teams have to challenge the opponents, using
all the technics and tactics that were learnt during the training. Everybody has to prepare itself to the match to
turn down the anxiety and fear before the game. It is almost the same also for musicians before starting their
performance. The first times everybody is worried about the audience reaction, which sometimes can make
things more difficult than what appears or can boost the performer. Many bands have routines to do before
exhibitions, which could be yoga or respiration exercises, brief rehearsals or just relax and imagine how the
situation on the stage could be.

Even if this two types of activities seem very different, they have a lot of factors in common. The passion and
the dedication that both things need are almost at the same level. Practicing, training, workout are the ABC to
do a great game or concert. But the most important part is enjoying what is being done, have fun with the
people that you meet and make good friends.

PS. I have changed the third main point 3 in match and concert