S. 3 Ep. 16 - Listen and Yield

Real MD

This week, I had the pleasure of interviewing two founding members of the Utah Medical Orchestra, MS4 AnnaLeah Larson and MS3 Heather Smith. The MSO, as they call it, is a rapidly growing volunteer orchestra composed of students, professionals, and staff in the healthcare community in Salt Lake City who hold large scale performances each semester and also perform as ensembles for patients. In this episode I talk about Heather and Annaleah’s journeys into music and medicine, what is transferable, and their passion to stay connected to the musical community. One transferable skill that I was particularly struck by is the concept of listening and yielding. Classical musicians are in a constant state of adjustment to the people around them, listening and being humble enough to yield as needed. In medicine we must recognize that to do our individual parts well, we also need to listen, recognizing the contributions that are occurring around us, and yield as to the expertise and strengths of others. From an identity formation perspective, I also connected with their individual process of claiming and reclaiming their musical identities. I can appreciate on a personal level the literal dusting off of an instrument and reawakening an important part of who you are. So often, when we are handling the rigors of life, we can forget to claim the parts that bring us joy and replenish us for the long road ahead. I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did.