Learning in music is not negotiable. If you want to perform, you need to prepare and practice. Extracting the right sound from an instrument is an art that wants time, even if you’re gifted. A French comedian joked that it takes fives minutes of training to make a bad actor, versus five years of hard work to make a bad musician.
As you start your journey with your instrument you are quickly faced with this harsh reality: How do you retain knowledge? Practicing regularly will put your instrument in your hand on a daily or weekly basis, and that’s great, but that doesn’t mean that you will be able to play something conveying your deepest and most important feelings for an audience. Many wanna be musicians have been stopped dead in their track by the sentiment they will never achieve the simple goal of executing (and not murdering) “Mary had a little lamb” for a family gathering. A very unfortunate situation.
I have been practicing the drums and the piano for almost all of my life. I have been through just about all the moods, resolutions and doubts one can experience in that adventure. I am not an expert but I picked up a few observations along the way that I’d like to share with you. This blog will be divided into different parts exploring the many ways one can absorb and retain information in the study of a musical instrument.
I’ll try to keep it light.
