Playing in the ensemble

King Xuan of Qi loved to hear the yu played, and he liked it played by three hundred people at once. Nanguo, a man who could not play, asked to join the ensemble. The king took him in and paid him a musician's salary like everyone else.

Then the king died and King Min took the throne. Min preferred solos. He had the musicians play one at a time.

Nanguo left the court that night. He didn't need to be told anything.

Every organisation I've seen has been through a period of three hundred people playing together, where nobody's individual contribution could be heard. Some people did honest work in that noise. Some people learned the shape of the room instead.

The uncomfortable part is what happens after. What Nanguo said to himself that night is the only thing in the story we don't know.

If you've been in a loud ensemble, ask yourself a question before the music changes. If I had to play alone tomorrow, what would come out? Not whether you'd survive the meeting. What sound, specifically, is yours.

You can keep the salary and skip the practice for years. The format changes eventually, and the format isn't a person who owes you fairness.

MOJOWAY's client file asks that question for real. Not what are you involved in, but what can you do alone in a room with one other person.