The Inner Take
The Inner Take is a podcast for musicians. A space to explore what happens inside us when we make music — the thoughts, emotions, doubts, and discoveries that shape how we play and who we become. Hosted by Ramón Gardella, each episode dives into the inner world of musicianship. Through personal reflections and conversations with other artists, this podcast goes beyond technique and performance. It focuses on the psychological, emotional, and human side of making music. This is not a podcast about scales, gear, or practice routines. It’s about identity, growth, creativity, and the inner journey behind every note. If yo...
Frank Pesci: The 17 Laws of Self-Mentoring
In this special episode of The Inner Take, I welcome my first guest: composer Frank Pesci. Frank is an American composer based in Cologne, and someone who thinks deeply about music, the creative process, and artistic life. His clarity, honesty, and experience make this conversation particularly meaningful. We talk about what often goes unspoken — the things we “didn’t learn in school” but turn out to be essential. We explore the gaps in musical education, the emotional and practical realities of building a career, and what happens after the mountaintop. At the center of this episode is Frank’s concept of self-me...
Why Musicians Feel Guilty All the Time — The Theory Nobody Ever Explained
A deep and personal theory about identity, expression, and the hidden emotional structure behind being a musician
Why guilt is one of the most common emotions among musicians
The difference between being a person, an artist, and a musician
What musicians actually express through sound
The concept of the “inner source”
Why music education often creates confusion instead of clarity
The problem with career-driven identity
What happens when musicians disconnect from themselves
📚 Book mentioned: https://www.amazon.com/-/es/Mauricio-Weintraub-ebook/dp/B0BQRP5FDB
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The Musician and the Person: A First Approach
In this episode we explore one of the central ideas of this podcast: The Inner Take. As musicians, we spend a huge amount of time preparing music for what I call “exhibition venues” — concerts, auditions, classes, competitions, rehearsals. Places where our playing is presented to someone else and where we try to deliver the best possible version of what we do. Our preparation often follows a process similar to a recording studio: play, listen, fix, play again — until we get the final take. But while we are taking care of the music and the musician… what happens to the person? In this ep...
What Are You Telling Yourself When You Play?
Moving to Germany, starting over, and the gap between my inner voice and reality.
In this episode I talk about a period of big change in my life: moving to Germany and starting again from zero as a musician. From the outside everything seemed to work — concerts, studies, opportunities. But inside my head, a voice kept telling me that something wasn’t right.
In this episode we explore:
• Moving to Germany and starting over • Rebuilding technique from zero at a German university • Stage anxiety and inner dialogue • The gap between reality and what we tell ourselves •...
When Performance Anxiety Took the Stage
I didn’t create this podcast because everything was working. I created it because something broke. After moving to Germany, I was forced to confront a fear I could no longer ignore: performance anxiety. Not just nerves — but a deep inner instability that began to affect how I played, how I thought, and how I saw myself as a musician. What followed was a therapeutic process that reshaped my relationship with music, performance, and identity. In this first episode, I share that journey openly — not as a success story, but as a turning point. Because there is something we rarely talk a...
