To all Musicians who play by ear:
Even though you play primarily by listening, it’s still a good idea to know where all the notes are on your instrument. This knowledge will make you more confident whenever you perform. And, you’ll more easily be able to communicate with other musicians.
Decide on 3 main goals for your music today. This could be 3 sections of one song. Or, a scale, an exercise, and 1 section of your song. Do NOT start playing until you know what you’re trying to accomplish.
Unlike many activities that should not be attempted when you are upset (like driving a car or cleaning steak knives), playing a musical instrument can actually be enhanced by difficult emotions.
If you are upset, angry, or frustrated, try taking it out on your instrument. No, don’t throw your instrument to the floor or send it sailing through the nearest window! Just play it.
When you try this, two things tend to happen – and they’re both good!
First, you may be able to release the negative emotions and start to feel better. You’ll feel the anger or frustration subside as you play with reckless abandon. You might just find yourself feeling calm after a few minutes.
This is a powerful, psychological tool that musicians have in their lives. Many people don’t have a strategy for undoing difficult emotions. These emotions stay inside them and can ruin an entire day. As a musician, you have a built-in mechanism in your life to help you decrease or even eliminate the power that challenging emotions hold over so many people.
Here’s a second advantage to playing music when you’re upset: You may gain unique insight into the music you’re practicing.
If you are angry, for instance, you will probably practice with more intensity, louder dynamics, and rougher tone than you usually use. The added intensity can be just what the music needs.
If you’re feeling lonely or withdrawn, you’ll give your music just the opposite treatment. You’ll play more delicately than usual. Maybe slower than you’re used to playing. You’ll create fragile tones that you don’t usually use.
For many musicians, it actually takes these challenging emotions to get them to realize how they want their music to sound all the time. And, every now and then, you’ll actually develop a new technique that you accidentally discovered through playing while upset.
Expressing difficult emotions can lead to a supercharged practice session. Then, when you practice on a day when you’re feeling positive, you’ll still have the memory of communicating emotionally through your music. You’ll have a new approach you can use for any song you’re working on.
So, the next time you’re upset, channel it through your music!
To Your Musical Success!
David Motto
Know how you’re getting on and off stage. Make sure there’s a path so you can actually get where you need to be – even in the dark.
Short, focused bursts of effort always beat out long attempts of trying over and over and over to accomplish the task. Spending too much time on one thing leads to boredom and frustration (and you stop learning).
Agree to a plan ahead of time. Even if the plan is “let’s jam and see what happens,” everyone will want to know that this is how you’re going to spend your time together.
It’s May 1st. The beginning of a new month.
If you haven’t already put your music goals together for the month, spend a couple minutes today writing out these goals. Keep the written goals somewhere you’ll see them often.
What do you want to accomplish musically by May 31st?
What strategies will you use to achieve the goals?
Some ideas for May:
Make sure the audience knows your name. Get introduced before you play. Say your name (or your group’s name) often from stage. Have your logo on a banner, screen, or kick drum. There are too many situations where audience members can hear you, really like you, have no idea who you are, and then forget about you. You could have created a lifelong fan!
At every rehearsal, and for each runthrough, decide ahead of time if the group is in learning mode (ok to stop) or in performance mode (not ok to stop). This is crucial to your success when you finally arrive on stage for a live performance!
Acknowledge your audience. Thank them for attending your show. Introduce band members so the audience feels like they know you better. Make your audience feel welcome. Without them, it’s just a rehearsal.
