Disclaimer: This is transcribed using AI. Expect (funny) errors.
I’m Mindy Peterson, and this is Enhance Life with Music, where we explore all the ways that music can make our lives better. Today’s episode is a little different — I’m sharing with you a recent conversation that I had with Ben Klinger on HIS podcast, Piano Whisperer. Here, the tables were turned on me and I was the one in the hot seat! Ben had such great, thoughtful questions and we discussed all the ways music can make life better – and the deeper “why” behind the work I do. We covered everything from the origins of my show, to what I’m excited about in the future, and everything in between.
And Ben records his interviews in audio AND video. So if you’re a video person, you can view our conversation on YouTube at the link the show notes. (By the way, if you ARE a video person, let me know! I have not yet taken the plunge to produce my show on video; Enhance Life with Music podcast is audio only at the moment. But if I hear from enough of you that you’d prefer video, I will consider it!)
Thanks so much to Ben for having me as a guest on his show; I thoroughly enjoyed our conversation and hope you do, as well! If you do, be sure to check out Ben’s podcast, Piano Whisperer; links are in the show notes.
Ben Klinger: [00:00:04] Hello, everybody, and thank you so much for tuning in to Piano Whisperer today. I’m so excited about this episode. Today we have a very special guest, someone who has covered so many areas within music, and I think you will find her super engaging and interesting. And so please stay with us for this interview. Before we get going, I want to thank Classic Pianos, who sponsors these episodes and makes them possible. So that said, I don’t even know where to begin. Today we will be speaking with Mindy Peterson. Mindy has had a life with the piano and with music and definitely with learning. She is a nationally certified teacher of music. She began teaching while in high school in 1991, and she continues to teach to this day. Throughout her teaching career, she has held various leadership roles, such as being the Arts Advocacy chair for the Minnesota Music Teachers Association and president and vice president of WSMTA. However, she has become very well known in the music industry during this time as the host and creator of the Enhance Life With Music Podcast. Her podcast is truly remarkable, having recorded hundreds of episodes since 2019. I’m actually blown away by the depth and breadth of content, the quality of the guests that she interviews, and her own knowledge of each subject and her interview prep. It’s really just sensational. So please welcome Mindy Peterson. Mindy. Thank you so much for taking the time to speak with me.
Mindy Peterson: [00:01:42] Oh, thanks so much for the honor. It’s always an honor to be a guest on somebody else’s podcast. And thanks for the very nice introduction, I appreciate it.
Ben Klinger: [00:01:50] Yeah. Well, it’s a privilege, of course, to have you here. I’m really excited because you’ve just done so much and I really want to talk in depth about your podcast, but I’d love to hear about your early journey in music, how you started your relationship with music, and who was important to you along the way?
Mindy Peterson: [00:02:08] Well, sure. Well, I started music in first grade with piano lessons. My parents were not very musical. I didn’t really grow up in a musical household. They didn’t play music a lot, but they had this brilliant rule that each of their children needed to take one year of piano lessons, and at the end of that one year, we could quit if we wanted to, or we could keep going if we wanted to. Even though they weren’t real musical, they really saw the value of music and felt like piano lessons specifically were a really great foundational instrument, which it is, and just transferred that music information, knowledge that you get through piano lessons, transfers well to any other instruments and just to a general appreciation of music. So I started piano lessons in first grade, along with my older brother, who was in fourth grade, and my mother, she actually started taking piano lessons with us at the same time, which was really cool. Yeah, I have really great memories of listening to her practice after she put us to bed. And so as I was falling asleep, I’d be listening to her play some of the same songs that I was learning.
Ben Klinger: [00:03:13] That’s so cool. I remember that when I listened to you talk about this in one of your broadcasts. I have this similar memory of my mom too, playing while I was trying to go to bed. It was so profound. Yeah, she used to play just a couple songs, box two, part invention in F, and she would play Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring. And I loved hearing that coming through my floor.
Mindy Peterson: [00:03:36] One thing I love about that story with my parents is it really shows that you don’t have to be a professional musician in order to introduce your kids to music and help cultivate an appreciation and a love of music and some musical talent with them. I mean, my parents were always very supportive of my musical education and demonstrated that value in different ways, whether it was my mom taking piano lessons also, or my dad just coming into the living room on a Sunday afternoon and saying, can you just play the piano for me? I just want to lay here on the couch and enjoy it, you know, like things like that. Kids really pick up on that. Like, wow, they really value what I’m learning here.
Ben Klinger: [00:04:15] So that’s so cool. Well, thank you for that. Okay, so let’s talk about your podcast. You have an unusually, I think, deep and engaging podcast. You cover so much ground. I think I can say that and maybe it sounds like I’m speaking in superlatives, but listeners, if you go to Mindy’s podcast, Enhance Life with Music, you’ll see just how many subjects and topics she covers. And Mindy, you always find a way to inspire your listeners and you put something out every single week. I’m stunned and I’m chomping at the bit to ask how you manage to put something out every week. But first I heard your story of how you started podcasting, and if I understand this correctly, it all began with a broken CD player right.
Mindy Peterson: [00:05:04] In my vehicle. Yes, you’re right, you did a little research there.
Ben Klinger: [00:05:07] Yeah. Sure did.
Mindy Peterson: [00:05:09] Yes. So besides being a music geek, I am a library geek or a library nerd. I love the library. I will be there regularly checking out books, music, movies, you name it. One of my pleasures at the time was as I was hurting my kids around or just driving, running errands, was listening to music that was new to me. So I would get CDs regularly from the library and just listen to them in my vehicles. I was shuttling kids around, running errands, whatever, and I loved being able to explore new music. If I found something that I really loved, it was a way to listen before I bought it. And this was before I had a Spotify streaming account. So I love doing that. And one day my CD player and my vehicle died. So I was really disappointed, like, what am I going to do in the car now? And around that time, I was hearing more and more about these things called podcasts. So I thought, well, I guess this is a great time to check these out. I checked it out and was just immediately hooked. Like, oh my goodness. I love to learn and love to connect with people. And this was a way to like hear from amazing people that I otherwise would never have a conversation with, right? Whether it was authors that I loved.
Mindy Peterson: [00:06:27] Yeah, maybe celebrities, whatever it was, just hearing these conversations and learning from these people and so many different topics, you can listen at double speed. You can slow it down if you want to. Yeah, you can fast forward, you can rewind, you can listen asynchronously, like listen to a little bit, pause it when you go in and run your errands, come back. You know, I mean, it was just like, wow, what’s not to love about this? So yeah, that was my introduction, I guess, to podcasts. My introduction to podcasting came after listening to several podcasts and thinking, you know, this is the perfect medium to spotlight what I’ve always been intrigued by. And that’s music’s impact on humanity and on our experienced life, whether we consider ourselves musicians or not. And those types of stories would always really grab my attention. When I heard, for example, in the news maybe 12 years ago, Gabby Giffords, a politician from Arizona, was tragically shot. She survived her injuries but had traumatic brain injury. She had aphasia, which means she couldn’t speak. She needed to relearn how to speak. So that situation was all over the news for good reason at the time. And at some point after that, I remember reading just Buried in a news article, that her medical team used music therapy to help her relearn how to speak because of the ability of music to sort of create these neurological detours around the damaged areas of our brain.
Mindy Peterson: [00:08:00] Wow. And I remember seeing that just buried and thinking, this should be a headline. Are people seeing this? I bet people who aren’t musicians or don’t have the highly tuned interest to this topic like me, are probably not picking up on this, but people should be shouting this from the rooftops. It’s transformational that music can do this. So those types of tidbits and scientific facts and medical facts, and like all of these ways that music can make our lives better, that most people don’t realize we’re so intriguing to me. Yeah. And so I thought a podcast would be a perfect medium to spotlight these. I’m sure there’s got to be a podcast that’s doing this. I’m going on the hunt for it. So I went on this hunt for a podcast that spotlighted these ways that music makes life better, that people probably aren’t aware of. It’s not just entertainment. It’s all these other things. And I couldn’t find it. And so that was what led to me starting the podcast. My kids at the time were getting into their teens. We’re a little more independent, didn’t need quite as much of of my hands on help anymore. So I was ready to sort of sink my teeth into something else.
Ben Klinger: [00:09:12] Right.
Mindy Peterson: [00:09:13] But not necessarily more students. I was teaching piano lessons at the time, didn’t necessarily want to take on more students. So I thought, well, I’m going to start this podcast myself. So that was the genesis of the podcast.
Ben Klinger: [00:09:26] That’s amazing. And you really are the perfect person to host that podcast. It’s amazing how you track with everybody. So you started listening to podcasts and loved them. And I heard your initial trailer. It sounds like your overall trajectory is what you intended, but you’ve covered so much ground. Are you doing what you originally thought you would be doing? Or have you gone places you didn’t expect?
Mindy Peterson: [00:09:51] That’s a good question. I would say for the most part, I’ve gone where I expected to go. I mean, there’s always the learning curve. You learn new things, you do new things. One thing that I always try to do is get input from listeners and sort of gravitate toward topics that I think listeners are resonating with and finding helpful and enjoying. So whenever I see a topic that has higher download numbers or people are really interacting with on social media, or I hear from someone who says, hey, I listened to your episode. Loved this one. You know, those all are clues to me. Like, oh, this is interesting to other people as well. So those are things that always are guiding me and that I’m paying attention to. But I would say for the most part, yeah, it stayed true to the trajectory of what I had intended.
Ben Klinger: [00:10:38] Yeah. It seemed I was amazed, actually. And was there a specific guest or episode that impacted your understanding of the show, or has there been a guest who challenged your thinking the most?
Mindy Peterson: [00:10:50] Maybe not challenged my understanding of the show, but definitely guests who really imprinted on me and have stuck with me. All of them have been fabulous, but the ones that really stay with me probably fall into a few categories. One, guests that have an incredibly powerful story of their own that just hits you between the eyes, I think of Tim Ringgold is one. He had a really powerful story about how music impacted him and his journey to sobriety, and also a journey with an infant daughter who was born with severe physical challenges and wasn’t expected to live very long and didn’t. So just the role that music played in that whole story. Richard Casper is another guest who had an incredible story. He’s a veteran, and just the story of how he came back from the Iraq war with some severe PTSD and traumatic brain injury, was going into a downward spiral. And just the role that music and the arts played in saving his life, really, and how he’s used that to turn around and help other veterans. So that’s one category, is people who have a very powerful story of their own. Yeah, I would say another one is guests and topics that really hit home for me personally because of my own experience. And I think about Laurie Berkner and Stephanie Lovell, who really talk about music’s role in helping kids express their emotions through music and in parenting issues. Having young kids was a stage that I did not thrive in. Very difficult. And so this topic, I was like, oh, this really hits close to home. Laurie Berkner music. I did use a lot when my kids were growing up and it helped save my sanity. The Stephanie Lovell is younger and when I interviewed her, I was like, oh man, I wish you were around. Like, she’s young enough. Her music was not around when I was raising my kids. So that’s another one how music can help with medical situations, like specifically insomnia. I struggled with severe insomnia for several years, and music was really helpful for me during that phase. So those are topics that really sort of hit close to home. A third category of memorable episodes are, I would say, guests who stay in touch with me afterward, and we just become acquaintances, friends, whether it’s in real life or just on LinkedIn, you know, we stay in touch and, you know, they become friends and, and people that become part of your life. So those are other episodes that really have stuck with me.
Ben Klinger: [00:13:27] That’s so cool. That might be the answer to my next question, which is, in what way has the podcast surprised you the most? Is it staying in touch with your guests or what would you say to that?
Mindy Peterson: [00:13:39] Yeah, that probably has maybe not been a surprise, but a pleasant result and perk of podcasting is all of these relationships and networks. There’s definitely been other perks in terms of personal growth that results in doing something like that. As you know, there’s so many different skills that are involved in running a podcast, whether it’s technical skills, marketing skills, it’s really become a creative outlet for me. I’m pretty much in flow state every time I’m preparing for an interview or having an interview. So that’s been one thing that’s been really just a joy and something that’s kept me doing it. Yeah, I think one thing that was a surprise about the podcast, I’m a planner and this podcast is probably the one big thing I have done in my life that I had no long term plan for it. I just felt compelled to create it and see where it went. And I’ve certainly never regretted it. I have learned that you kind of have to be the Taylor Swift of podcasting in order to make any money at it, but I get so much from the experience that’s non-monetary that that’s been sort of a surprise. I think starting out, I probably figured if I’m not able to make this justifiable financially at the end of a year, I’ll let it go. And at the end of the year. No, it was not. It was not making any money from it, but had all these other non-monetary perks that I’ve never really considered stopping it.
Ben Klinger: [00:15:13] Yeah. It makes you so much deeper as a person. Hearing people’s stories and their trajectories. And I think it’s really humbling. Don’t you think so? Like, you listen to what people have been through and.
Mindy Peterson: [00:15:24] 100%.
Ben Klinger: [00:15:25] Or just their journey. Everybody has a story.
Mindy Peterson: [00:15:28] Yes.
Ben Klinger: [00:15:29] And it’s always so profound to me. And so across all of your conversations, has there been a common thread or a common truth that keeps emerging about music?
Mindy Peterson: [00:15:41] Yeah, I would say one common thread is the power of music. Music is so powerful, whether it’s medically, whether it’s emotionally, whether it’s mentally and just the brain development that we can now see happening because of functional MRIs and just the explosion in noninvasive medical research elements that are available to us and at our disposal, wearables, things like that. Just tell us so much about how music is affecting us, whether it’s cortisol production and stress levels, whatever it is. So the power of music is one common theme. Another one is music as social glue, music as uniting people. Yes, there’s so much divisiveness and vitriol. It seems like in the world today, although I just watched Ken Burns Revolutionary War documentary and I thought, wow. Oh yeah, there’s a lot of division and vitriol back then, too.
Ben Klinger: [00:16:37] Incredible. Yes. Yes, that’s another conversation. It’s something that I don’t think we’re taught growing up that half the country was with the Crown, and half the country was wanting independence.
Mindy Peterson: [00:16:48] And not just disagreeing, but like physically harming their neighbors and stringing them up and, you know, tarring and feathering that, you know, it was it was pretty extreme. So I guess there’s nothing new under the sun. But yes, that’s another common theme that, wow, music does really have this power to enable us to rise above and unite, not be unanimous, but have unity in spite of our differences. Differences are strengthening. We need those. It’d be a very boring world if we all saw things exactly the same. But music gives us that ability to rise above our differences and respect our differences and experience unity in spite of them.
Ben Klinger: [00:17:28] Yeah, it puts us all in the human playing field. It’s always amazing to me when I’m at a live show, and I know people that are in the show and I realize how different they are and that they don’t necessarily agree about a variety of different things, but when they’re all moved at the same time by something incredible musically, they all stand up and they’re all sharing that moment.
Mindy Peterson: [00:17:48] Absolutely.
Ben Klinger: [00:17:49] It’s a really profound thing.
Mindy Peterson: [00:17:50] Bruce Springsteen concerts are a great example of that. Like Chris Christie, the former governor is a huge fan, and Bruce Springsteen has no problems talking about his political views. And they’re very different than Chris Christie’s political views. And and we have so much neurological research now that shows that this isn’t just a poetic saying, that music brings us together, but there’s actually physiological, neurological changes happening, things happening in our brain entrainment, neural resonance theory, interbrain synchrony. These are all terms that have real scientific background on what’s happening in our brains through music. So it’s really fascinating.
Ben Klinger: [00:18:30] So have you personally experienced your relationship with music changing through this podcast, or has a podcast made you change your mind about anything?
Mindy Peterson: [00:18:40] That’s a good question too. I would say it hasn’t necessarily changed my mind about things, but music is one of those things that the more you know, the more you appreciate. We don’t need any music education to enjoy music and appreciate music, but the more you do know, the more awareness you have, the more you do appreciate it. And I think because the mind is so powerful, the more it can impact us for good. So I think just knowing the science behind how music can lower stress helps me as I’m playing the piano, at the end of the day, just unwinding. It’s like, you know what’s happening in your brain and in your body and in your cortisol levels. And I think just knowing that because the mind is so powerful, it exponentially has that impact on me. Knowing how music can lighten a mood. Say you have extended family over Thanksgiving, and they have very different political views, and you just intentionally are playing some light hearted, fun music. You’re aware of the effect that that has on the mood and the vibe and the personalities who are present. I think just being aware of those things helps you utilize them more and make your life better in those ways, and it just exponentiates that impact.
Ben Klinger: [00:19:56] Yeah. Well said. So after all these conversations, what have you learned most about people and not just music?
Mindy Peterson: [00:20:03] I do find it really intriguing that everybody loves music and there’s basically no culture we’re aware of that doesn’t have music embedded in it from the start of time as we know it. So humanity has always used music. And so you referenced earlier the breadth and depth of the podcast episodes. That’s one thing I love about it. But it’s also a challenge because it’s not very niche. And so when you try to talk about your target audience, it’s kind of like, is everybody, anyone who wants to learn more about how music can make our lives better? That’s kind of everybody.
Ben Klinger: [00:20:42] It’s also just so interesting, though, you bring in such interesting guests that are really well-rounded. You guys don’t just cover that topic. You branch out into so many different areas within each episode, and they’re concise episodes too. So it’s, it’s really easy to listen to.
Mindy Peterson: [00:20:59] Well, thanks. I’m sort of an efficiency nerd also. So I love hearing that, that that is concise because, yeah, nothing bothers me more than to listen to something or sit through a meeting where it’s like that one hour of my life that I’ll never get back summed up in an email.
Ben Klinger: [00:21:17] Yeah, that’s exactly true. That’s so funny. Uh, yeah. But the thing about it too, though, Mindy, is that if someone doesn’t resonate with one episode, it’s not like that’s indicative of the whole show, right? They can find something there. You’ve got so much to draw on. It’s like a library and people can search through it.
Mindy Peterson: [00:21:35] That’s very true. Yes, I have some family members that are very supportive, but they don’t listen to every episode. But I’ll text them if there’s a certain episode, hey, you’re gonna like this one, you know? And I get they’re not going to resonate with every single one. But yeah.
Ben Klinger: [00:21:50] Totally. Yeah. So what kinds of conversations or topics are you most excited to explore next?
Mindy Peterson: [00:21:57] I would say arts and health is a topic that’s really fascinating to me personally, and there’s so much happening with it right now in terms of the research that we’re able to do. Like I mentioned earlier with the functional MRI is the wearables. There’s so much non-invasive research that we’re able to do now to see exactly what’s happening in the brain because of music. So there’s exploding research on that topic. And I feel like as a culture here in the US and Europe, Australia, I feel like a lot of cultures are becoming much more open to alternative ways of healing, like music, music therapy, other ways of applying music to things like Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, cystic fibrosis. There’s so many ways that music has been using to significantly impact these conditions. The experienced life of people who are dealing with these conditions cancer treatment. You know, there’s so many ways music’s being used. And health is also a topic that I’m really passionate about, like holistic health and preventative health. So this overlap of music and health or arts and health is really intriguing to me. And I feel like its time has come. There’s a lot of interest in it. There’s a lot of research providing the scientific evidence to back what musicians have intuitively sort of known for a long time. Now we have the scientific research to back it up.
Ben Klinger: [00:23:25] Super cool. That’s great. I look forward to that. And is there a dream guest you haven’t interviewed yet? Oh, that’s a funny question.
Mindy Peterson: [00:23:33] There’s there are two guests that I would love to interview and they both turned me down. One is ichael Franti. I feel like he’s somebody who really sort of practices music’s effect on the listener. Like he has very positive, empowering lyrics. Yeah, he has his own struggle with depression that he’s talked about and how music has been helpful to him in that. So he’s, he’s one person. Another one is Gretchen Rubin, who is not a musician and actually talks in her books and in her podcasting about how she doesn’t really have a huge interest in music, but she studies human behavior, human habits, happiness, and she’s touched on some musical topics down through the years as I’ve been listening to her podcast and reading her books, and I know she would have some really fascinating insights on music.
Ben Klinger: [00:24:28] So cool.
Mindy Peterson: [00:24:29] Those are two.
Ben Klinger: [00:24:30] That’s great. Yeah. Thanks for sharing those.
Mindy Peterson: [00:24:32] Yeah.
Ben Klinger: [00:24:33] And if you could go back and give advice to yourself before episode one, what would you say?
Mindy Peterson: [00:24:38] Another good question. I would say one piece of advice would be do it, because that was what like I said, that was one of those things like, I don’t have a long term plan or goal. Like I never do anything without those things.
Ben Klinger: [00:24:51] Yeah.
Mindy Peterson: [00:24:51] And so one, one piece of advice would be do it. You won’t regret it. Another piece of advice would be get rid of that mentality that build it and they will come. Yeah. Because it just doesn’t happen. Like you have to promote it or people don’t know it exists.
Ben Klinger: [00:25:05] Yeah.
Mindy Peterson: [00:25:05] And your friends and family probably aren’t going to listen. Like just know that, you know, like you have to go out and find your listeners and promote your podcast if you want people to listen to it. And I do not just because of it being an ego boost or pat on my back, but I really do believe it’s a PSA. It’s a public service announcement. Yeah, the podcast is because I really do believe that music makes our lives better in so many ways that people just aren’t aware of. And also, I feel like it’s music advocacy. It’s job security for musicians and music educators, for our communities to know the value that music brings to our shared human experience. It’s not just entertainment. Yeah. And people who are musicians, music educators, for the most part, they understand that. They know that. But we as a group are responsible for educating people who aren’t in that world. If we want to have job security and we want people to value music, it’s not a big money maker. Music isn’t in large part, and so it can tend to be devalued in a commercial setting and in a capitalistic world. And I have no problem with capitalism and free market world, but it’s on us as musicians to advocate for music and let our communities know how it makes our lives better. So yeah, those are all reasons why I want people to know and listen. But yeah, we need to advocate for ourselves, for music, for our podcasts.
Ben Klinger: [00:26:33] Yeah. But you’re also advocating for your guests. That’s the thing that I enjoy doing. You know, you have this passion to talk with this person because this information is meaningful to you, but you also want to share that with other people because we’re too busy to dig on our own. And so you can put it out there. And I think that’s another really wonderful perk about doing it 100%.
Mindy Peterson: [00:26:56] We get to be cheerleaders in this role.
Ben Klinger: [00:26:58] Yeah, yeah, yeah. And so this is a slightly different question, but if someone wanted to start a meaningful podcast today, what would you tell them? It’s not so much about what you’ve learned about your own journey, but if you were to give somebody with a blank slate advice, they want to start a brand new podcast. They know you’ve been doing this. They know you’ve been putting out all these good episodes. What would you tell them?
Mindy Peterson: [00:27:21] I would say, number one, only do this if you’re passionate about it and you want to do it, don’t do it because you think it’s going to bring in money. Don’t do it because you think you’re going to become famous. Do it because you’re really passionate about it and you want to do it regardless of what you get from it in terms of fame and money. Because like I said, unless you’re Taylor Swift in the podcasting world, you might not get much of that.
Ben Klinger: [00:27:44] Yeah.
Mindy Peterson: [00:27:44] Second of all, I would say have an open mind and be willing to learn. Be willing to ask for feedback and accept feedback and learn from feedback. Join groups online where you can learn about what works and what doesn’t, how you can hone your craft and make it better. Solicit input from listeners about what’s working for them, what isn’t working from them. And of course, you take that with a grain of salt, but be open to listening to input and learning and growing.
Ben Klinger: [00:28:14] Yeah. And again, it’s another joy if you can take that step back and be objective and again, do it because you love it. Then when you get good feedback, it really does. It just makes you better. Yeah. And it’s fun to get better at something, right? It really is. And so with all that you do, Mindy, how do you avoid burnout? How do you escape that or do you burn out? I guess that…
Mindy Peterson: [00:28:41] I would say I haven’t yet, but part of it is I do really love what I’m doing. I am very passionate about it. I do it because I love it and I believe in it. I really do believe music makes lives better, and I want to shout that from the rooftops and help other people take advantage of music’s power and harness that to make their own lives better. I want to advocate for music as a profession because I know so many musicians, music educators who are doing marvelous work and people need to know about it. I believe that when our communities are educated about that value that music’s bringing, they’re going to want to invest in musical experiences and music education. So yeah, passion. Um, secondly to that, I want to recognize my family for being very supportive. My husband and kids, we’re now empty nesters, but my kids were still at home when I started this, and I spent a lot of time on it. And they never complain. They’re always very supportive. Did they listen? No, but they’re very supportive in the sense that it takes up a lot of my time and they’re always like, good for you that you’re doing something that you believe in. You love doing it, it makes you happy. You know, they’re very supportive of that. And if they weren’t, that would definitely contribute hugely to burn out.
Ben Klinger: [00:29:59] Good point. That’s great. And so after all of this, what are some of the most meaningful ways you’ve enhanced your own life with music?
Mindy Peterson: [00:30:10] Mmmm. You know, one that’s top of mind right now, just because I have a wedding coming up that I’m playing the piano for.
Ben Klinger: [00:30:16] Oh, yeah.
Mindy Peterson: [00:30:17] Playing the piano for special milestone events. I’ve played for so many weddings of friends and family, and I’ve played for funerals of friends and family.
Ben Klinger: [00:30:29] Mhm.
Mindy Peterson: [00:30:30] I’ve played for birthday parties. Just recently, my sister celebrated a milestone birthday and just very impromptu, spontaneously. She’s like, can you play at my party? And it is, I don’t know, there’s not really a good way to put words to it, how meaningful it is to contribute in that way to this milestone event of somebody that you love and that you care for and care about. It’s really special. So that’s one way. Yeah. Uh, I play the piano almost every night as a way to just unwind from the day.
Mindy Peterson: [00:31:01] And I find that, especially with certain music that’s kind of in that sweet spot. Not too hard, not too easy. When I’m playing those songs, I’m able to process thoughts and situations in ways that I couldn’t if I was just sitting on a couch. Yeah. It’s kind of like when you go for a walk, you’re able to process things more clearly. And playing the piano does that for me. A third way would be I mentioned the insomnia. Fortunately, I don’t deal with that nearly as much.
Ben Klinger: [00:31:28] I’m so glad.
Mindy Peterson: [00:31:29] Insomnia is still a little bit of a weak link for me. And so I do listen to certain music at night as I’m winding down. That really does help me get my brain ready and prepped for that sleep state. So those are a few ways that I enhance my life with music and very concrete, tangible ways.
Ben Klinger: [00:31:49] Yeah. That’s great. You know, I think I was drawn to music because I didn’t have words to express some of the more complex or maybe difficult emotions I was feeling as a young man.
Mindy Peterson: [00:32:01] Yeah, absolutely.
Ben Klinger: [00:32:02] And so there was a period of time where I was really into the electric guitar, because I could bend notes and I could scream, and I could express anger or sadness in a way that maybe wouldn’t have been appropriate if I had put words on it.
Mindy Peterson: [00:32:15] Been there too. Yeah. Not with electric guitar, but some, uh, Chopin etudes, I would say. Yeah.
Ben Klinger: [00:32:21] And then I learned how to do that on the piano as well. In the early days, I didn’t know how to translate that emotion. And then I did. That’s when I primarily switched back to the piano. But it does capture the essence of what you’re feeling, and it enables you to feel as though you got it off your chest. It enables you to feel like you expressed it. And I was a runner for years, and I used to love that I could work stuff out. But it is a little different because somehow with music, I think I felt understood.
Ben Klinger: [00:32:49] You know, you put it out there and you almost feel like someone heard you?
Ben Klinger: [00:32:54] And when you’re running or exercising, it’s a great physiological release, no doubt about it. But it is a little bit different. Sure. For me, and everybody can find that in their own way, of course.
Mindy Peterson: [00:33:06] Yeah. Well put.
Ben Klinger: [00:33:07] Is there anything you’d like to share that I haven’t asked you?
Mindy Peterson: [00:33:11] You’ve had such great questions. I’ve really enjoyed this conversation. Oh, no. The only other thing I would add is listeners, if this sounds interesting, I’d love to have you join the listening family and listen to Enhanced Life with Music. It’s wherever you get your audio, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, wherever you get it. And you can also listen on my website and Peterson music.com.
Ben Klinger: [00:33:34] I was just going to ask you so people can find you at mpetersonmusic.com? Is that right?
Mindy Peterson: [00:33:39] Yes.
Ben Klinger: [00:33:40] Okay. Well, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Thank you for taking the time to do this with me. I really enjoy listening to your podcast and I learn and I just think you are so perfect for what you’re doing. And I’m so glad you did step out and take the initiative to begin enhanced life with music. It’s a wonderful podcast and, um, yeah, really deep. I appreciate it so much.
Mindy Peterson: [00:34:07] Thank you.
Ben Klinger: [00:34:08] You’re you’re welcome. And listeners, thank you so much for taking the time to listen to this episode today. Um, grateful to have you here. And I look forward to the next episode. Classic pianos. I thank you so much to for sponsoring these podcasts and making them possible. So until next time, take care.
Transcribed by Sonix.ai