Genius

“Genius” gets overused.

The label should be reserved for the individual who excels in their field to such a degree the world is changed as a result. 

Instead, the word is used in a cavalier fashion to describe anyone who is “good” at anything.

Even so, at our core, we all know real genius when we see it.

With figures like Issac Newton or Thomas Paine, genius is impossible to miss as we come face-to-face with true, overwhelming mastery.

Real genius stands out. 

But, who stands worthy of the term today?

“Genius” is subjective, and my geniuses are artists.

Chris Thile

Chris Thile is a larger-than-life (to me and many others) mandolinist for three phenomenal, Grammy Awarding winning groups Nickel Creek, The Punch Brothers, and The Goat Rodeo Sessions (featuring fellow masters Yo-Yo Ma, Stuart Duncan, and Edgar Meyer). In addition to (and in appreciation of) his prolific performance and recording success, he recently received the McArthur Fellowship award, commonly known as “The Genius Grant.” 

Thile first appeared on the folk scene as a young savant who won the Walnut Valley Mandolin Championship (a prestigious, national competition) at age twelve. Even as a child, Thile’s virtuosity and musical depth were impossible to ignore.

What’s more, his impact has not been limited to the commercial success of the aforementioned groups. For over a decade, Thile has been a first-call session player and in 2016, he took the helm of the highly successful radio program “A Prairie Home Companion” from Garrison Keillor, a position the latter held for over 40 years. Note: sadly, “A Prairie Home Companion” ended its run permanently in June 2020. 

Thile’s career to this point has been nothing short of astonishing, and it doesn’t show signs of slowing down anytime soon.

His mastery of the mandolin is unprecedented.

Chris Thile is a genius.

Robin Williams

The term “Renaissance Man” was personified in the life of Robin Williams.

He was a genie, a professor, Peter Pan, Mrs. Doubtfire, Mork, Patch Adams, and in his most important role, a genuinely great man off-camera. For those who only know Williams as an actor, there is a world of talent left to explore.

I have never been more in awe of a performer than the first time I saw Robin on “Inside the Actor’s Studio with James Lipton”. He was electric. Moving in and out of character after character with live, staggering improvisational artistry. 

Williams was a spontaneous, artistic, comedic powerhouse who stunned crowds with his speed, inventiveness, and versatility. His almost inhuman improvisation and near-limitless well of thought made him the perfect fit for animated films and allowed his acting career to span from the absurd to the heart-wrenching.

Despite his immense gifts, Williams struggled with depression, just like so many geniuses before him. Robin and I shared a common adversary and, as a result, his suicide felt personal to me.

He was and will forever remain on my Mt. Rushmore of talent and humanity.

Though we never met, his passing felt like the losing of a friend.

Robin was a beautiful human being and an artist whose acting career is only the visible portion of a massive iceberg. You can see his unmatched wit on display in this exchange with fellow genius Johnny Carson. It will give you a laugh, but it hints at something more.

He was a beautiful man, with immense gifts, overwhelming pain, and an unbounded capacity for creative thought.

Robin Williams was a genius.

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Geniuses help give life definition, and, if we’re lucky, our craft becomes infused with traces of their brilliance.

May we always celebrate the world-changers, the artists, and the geniuses who steer our creative ships into new ports. – AB