I am not a big sheet player myself, I love to improvise and play by memory, so when I said "don't look at the fingers", I didn't mean "instead look at the sheet".

Look at the audience, out of the window, into nothingness — or even close your eyes. As long as you're there.

> The goal should always be to not need it anymore, and while using the sheet, it's like using a crutch.

Uh, why? Lots of pros use sheet music, especially for complex pieces. I’ve never heard of an orchestra conductor insisting everyone be off-book.

It’s one thing to memorize pop songs or whatever, but nobody is out there shaming people for not memorizing Rachmaninov

People who are good at playing a technically hard piece essentially know it by heart. They couldn't play it on sight, they have invested significant time to be able to play it. It's just the few remaining percent of reminders and the comfort of having the sheet "just in" case as well as the being-used-to-it factor that makes them stare at the sheet. But if they can play it really well then they don't _actually_ need it. Any pro musician will tell you this.

The orchestra setting has the extra requitement that the sheet is a tool for communication. "The figure in bar 83" is not a term you have gained an intuitive understanding for, but is needed to communicate in an orchestra setting. The soloist though often times plays by heart, at least during performances, so as not to get distracted / get tunnel vision.

The soloist had their concerto memorized (and they’ve probably performed it dozens of times before). But the members of the orchestra are responsible for playing hundreds of pages of music a week. They’ve practiced any particularly exposed or technical sections, but otherwise they’re basically sight reading for the performance.