Leonardo da Vinci kept a notebook and wrote his ideas down, no matter how trivial or inconsequential. He observed everything. His famous notebook pages reveal hundreds of pictograms, sketches, phrases, musical notes, drawings, and other reflections. Not only did he observe, he intentionally observed. He made time in his life to ponder. We know this because he wrote it down. Leonardo’s most often used word was “perche?” – “why?” You find this word used over and over again in his writings. It was not enough to observe, but he also questioned “Why?”
Leonardo posed difficult challenges to himself. He gave himself tough tasks such as the description of the tongue of a bird or the description of the experience of thirst. He was not afraid of problems, and might even be described as a problem creator, but those problems were for him to ponder, and for his own disciplined mentorship of life. The evidence demonstrates that once he had identified the problem, through observations, sketches, and experimentation, he sought a solution for the problem.
I reference the habits of Leonardo because these are the same skills I want to refine in my life, and are the ones I want for any student or protégé. The mentor is consumed by the "perche", or "why" questions, and the protégé is asking the same question. When we deal in terms of "why?", we want to know the original motivation, and all of the mechanical questions that follow, such as what (?), where (?), when (?), and how (?). Mentors are engaged in every one of these important pursuits, but the question of "why" remains the prime motivator in most purposeful individuals, and unites the mentor with the protégé.
Most of us in the choral arts are life-long protégés, to the same degree as Leonardo. While Leonardo is thought of as a visual artist and musician, he pursued military contracts for his income. We are tempted to think of Leonardo not only as the iconic "Renaissance Person", but also as something of an ideal human being. However, Leonardo was very real, and came from humble and ordinary circumstances. He was raised between two homes. His famous practice of writing backward has been explained as a possible example of dyslexia, or possibly evidence of being self-taught to read and write. Leonardo did not complete some of his visionary projects. In fact, he started a lot of things he never finished. He never achieved his life’s dream to fly, but he pursued it.
Leonardo’s vocational title on any given day could have been military contractor, inventor, painter, or musical entertainer. Leonardo was certainly practical, but he was also a dreamer. His lists ran from useful to fantasy. Leonardo was very human. He loved people, work, play, food, and life. He was at the same time protégé and mentor.
How could Leonardo have ever learned the essence of all of those vocations, or the skill set for any one of those vocations, from a single person or a single source? It would have been impossible.
Leonardo traded in doubts and questions. He signed himself “Leonardo Vinci discepilo della sperentia”– “Leonardo Vinci, Disciple of Experience.” Leonardo asked "why?", and then sought answers, and then wrote down his observations.
Henry Ford said, "If you think you can do a thing, or think you can't do a thing; you're right" 2011 can be a year of progress and innovation if we follow the way of Leonardo.
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