It is incredibly important for any serious musician to be taking music lessons from an experienced teacher. I am taking lessons from a fantastic musician now, and I plan to continue lessons as long as I can find someone who knows more than I do.... which will be for many years to come. I personally wish we could even go one step beyond this, that artists and musicians could enter into a sort of master/apprentice relationship with their teachers. Unfortunately, that style of focused learning just doesn’t seem available in today's culture.

I don’t know why some people are so hesitant about taking lessons. I know there is some sense of accomplishment to be able to say that you were self taught. Everyone wants to look like they are just naturally good what they do it and it all comes easy to them. And I’m sure there are some virtuosos out there that figured everything out on their own, but that is such a rarity, and who knows how much better they would be or how much faster they would have progressed if they did have someone guiding them from the beginning. Anyways, my feelings aside, there are numerous benefits of taking lessons from an experienced teacher:
Continue reading "Find a good instructor"

I believe you must be as serious and picky about the band mates you are about choosing a spouse. Sure, you can just spread yourself thin playing with as million people, but the real beauty and joy (for me) comes from the commitment you make to stay and grow together with a few select people. You can learn a lot more about music, life, and relationships by making the commitment to a few people. "Iron sharpens iron, So one man sharpens another." -Proverbs 27:17

Much like a marriage, you need to make sure that the lines of communication stay open and everyone is clear on the nature of the band. Are you weekend warriors? You just want to play rock covers college parties? Or do you want to stick together and go the long haul together? Those are all well and good, just make sure that everyone is on the same page. A band can be a serious, and difficult business, and you are going to need everyone to be equally as serious and proactive with it.
Continue reading "How to choose your band"

I just read an article by Jeff Low about performance anxiety. He has some good thoughts in there, and I take solace in the knowledge that I'm not the only one to have some fear and doubts before a performance. The main battle for me usually comes before a show, when all my old self doubts and insecurity seem to loom large on the horizon. Luckily enough, the fear usually dissipates once I get onstage and begin playing.

Anyways, I recently read an article in Men's Journal entitled "How Not to Choke" which has some great points in in which I would like to share here.
Continue reading "Performance Anxiety?"