In music, as in rugby, there is a tremendous need for collaboration as well as an acute sense of timing amongst players, says John Ross Jesensky, a musician and composer familiar with the intricacies associated with both live musical performances as well as film scoring. After observing a recent rugby match, Jesensky was struck by the manner in which players communicated and responded to one another while engaged in such a physically demanding and fast-paced endeavor.
Though the frequency and force of the physicality that occurs on the rugby pitch is markedly different from the musical environment to which Jesensky is accustomed, the collaboration among rugby players was remarkably similar and could easily serve as a fine example for musicians still learning about the importance of teamwork, frequent practice and the need to put the group above the individual. It could likewise serve as a unique way to demonstrate how live musical improvisation, similar to rugby, often requires the ability to follow someone else’s lead one moment as well as the ability to take the lead the next.