What’s the sound of one hand clapping? Probably not unlike the sound of one musician trying to improvise without accompaniment. But no one ever said there was room for friends out there in the old woodshed. Follow these steps to fight practice-room loneliness… Continue reading »
How many of us know a musician that practices for more than two hours daily? There’s no doubt that these obsessive types exist, but when you’re in the real world there’s always something there to curtail your ideal uninterrupted practice time (job, kids, American Idol…). Continue reading »
Many students ask me how they should go about preparing a piece of music for performance. The method I outline here is actually quite simple. By following each step to the word you should be able to prepare even the most complicated pieces without too much pain and suffering. Continue reading »
Want to improve your ears? It doesn’t matter whether or not you’re a singer, Solfege can improve your aural ability and make you an all around better musician. Continue reading »
Major what? Augmented who? Intervals can be confusing, but by breaking them down into their smallest forms one can quickly demystify them and the start putting them to use almost immediately. Continue reading »
Many people cringe at the mention of key signatures. In actuality, a key signature can be a huge help and a great short cut to memorizing intervalic relationships, scale shapes, and more. Continue reading »
As explained in the first article of this series “Playing The Right Notes” chord tones are the building blocks of all music. In this article we’ll learn how they are made in just three easy steps. Continue reading »
Music, while being an art, is also VERY much a science. In this lesson I’ll break down what it is that makes certian notes sound better than others, and in my follow-up lesson, “Building Chord Tones” we’ll see how to find as well as play these magic notes.
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