Written on
Monday, July 28. 2008
in
Philosophy by Dan Christopher
"Let each note ring from every fiber of your being."
I think this is the best advice I can give any aspiring musician. It is a concept that you can continually use to check yourself with, and something that will bear fruit for the rest of your life. I think this is ultimately what makes a musician great, and you can go much farther focusing on this than focusing on learning yet another scale. Don't get me wrong, technique is very important to focus on, with a teacher working closely with you, but the important thing to remember is that you can learn every lick in the book and still not be a truly great musician.
I am really not impressed by speed tests and pickle waving musicians. I can respect the dedication that the person puts into training their muscles like that, but it never results in something that I would ever want to listen to. I personally don't plan on being the fastest bass player in the west. Its just not the way I'm built. I don't see music as a race. You can learn every scale, mode, arpeggio in the world, but real lasting beauty comes from a musician lovingly placing every note exactly where it needs to be.
I do believe that a good musician can play a single note, and make it the most beautiful thing in the world. Its a "less is more" mentality, and I really believe that you really have to make every note count. Sure, you can take a blistering solo when the song calls for it, and you can play complex harmonies that support the song, but those things will come with experience. For every aspiring musician out there, I promise you will get better results and more positive feedback if you take it slow and play every note as if it was your last.
