Tag: Drum lessons

  • How long does it take to learn piano?

    I think that learning piano is not necessarily a difficult instrument, because difficulty is a changing concept. How? In an amusement park, is going down a scary slide difficult or fun? And why it is that they create more and more white knuckle rides? Because we love them. Piano, I would argue is the same.…

  • Variations

    You take an exercise. So simple you can barely call it that. It’s almost just a reflex. Let’s say you have a pair of stick and you strike a surface. Once on the right, once on the left. You got a piano, you put your hands over the keys, you move one finger. Bing! You…

  • Rehearsing

    With my gigging students we sometimes talk about performing. Of course, it is always a difficult subject. I am very aware of the shortcomings of our discussions. After all, we are in my studio, there is no audience, no prepared songs, no promotion for the concert. It is almost impossible to recreate the conditions of…

  • A solution to teaching young ones

    When I talk to a parent who’s about to sign up her daughter for class, I ask how old her child is. If she’s less than 10 years old, I explain that I will require a few things from the parent in order to accept the student. Don’t worry, I don’t ask a lot. They…

  • Resonating

    We all know the feeling. We’re going towards a place where there is loud music and, as we approach it, our body start to feel the vibrations of the bass. The deep “Thumps” intensify as we get closer. Our whole being resonate with the music before we have entered the room where it originates. It…

  • And more and more

    I think human beings are not the weakest ones of the animal kingdom. It is not an obvious statement when you look at the formidable tigers, panthers and other cats that are loaded with weapons. Or the way a butterfly can camouflage and protect itself from predators, not mentioning, of course, creatures like turtles or…

  • As you grow

    When you start taking lessons on drums or piano, first you are excited about discovering new territories. If you are truly motivated, you might keep that flame going strong for quite a while. But, eventually, as with everything, it gets old, as the saying goes. So, what to do? Should you avoid going to your…

  • Support

    We do not live in a vacuum. In general, we need others. As a self employed musician, that part of ourselves can be the difference between making it or not. Being on your own imposes a lot of stress from the decisions you make and the consequences that ensues.  Although it is possible to white-knuckle…

  • Not one specific book

    When parents bring their child to my studio, I don’t ask them to go buy a book and have them follow it through the weeks. What I do, instead, is look at the pupil, talk to her and gauge what would be the best way to communicate music with her. What I mean is that…

  • Speed

    Acquiring speed requires a lot of patience. The patience of watching an iceberg move, or a tree grow. Yes, it takes that much. And it is a very frustrating process: the one working hard to gain speed doesn’t see his own progress. I explain. Let’s suppose you are doing scales on the piano. When you…