Practice, Practice, Practice

I’ve mentioned before in other posts about practice the importance of focus. Some students over the years have told me that they like to practice while watching TV. This  is not something that I would recommend. I feel it would be better to focus entirely on the practice for a shorter amount of time instead of spending a longer period only half tuned into the task at hand. There are more and more distractions in our daily lives and our smartphones have become needy tamagotchi (anyone remember them? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamagotchi) that demand our constant attention. So if you intend to improve your playing of an instrument, give yourself and your brain the time that it needs to absorb all the information that is happening while you are practicing.

Remember to practice the elements of your playing that need work. Spending hours playing on autopilot everything that you can already play will not help you to achieve the next level in your playing. An interesting part of the following TED video is that practicing in your mind can also be beneficial. So if you had no instrument to hand but were able to visualise your hands playing a piece that you are currently working on it will help. This isn’t an excuse though to just think about practicing and hope that it will improve your playing. Check out my other posts about practice for guidelines on how long to practice for.

https://ed.ted.com/lessons/how-to-practice-effectively-for-just-about-anything-annie-bosler-and-don-greene#review

 

https://wordpress.com/post/francislong.wordpress.com/464

https://wordpress.com/post/francislong.wordpress.com/460

Music and the Brain

I got a very interesting book as a Christmas present – Musicophilia by Oliver Sacks. It’s an examination of how music can affect our brains through the stories and experiences of different people. The book doesn’t just concern itself with musicians, as music can have an affect on anyone even people who might consider themselves as non-musical. I am only about a quarter of the way through the book but was just reading about how music can physically alter our brains. The process of playing a musical instrument – all that practice, repetition, moving fingers, hand-eye coordination, reading notation – can enlarge certain areas of the brain. This part caught my attention “Anatomists today would be hard put to identify the brain of a visual artist, a writer, or a mathematician – but they could recognize the brain of a professional musician without a moment’s hesitation.”

I can remember a point when the catchphrase of the day was that ‘music makes you smarter’ and he references in the book the Mozart effect, whereby it was popularly believed that listening to classical music would increase intelligence. (Apparently the original research was that listening to Mozart would temporarily affect abstract spatial reasoning). So, while listening might not make me smarter, exposure to music and in particular learning a musical instrument stimulates so many areas of the brain that “music can be every bit as important educationally as reading or writing.”

I know from teaching a lot of children and especially teenagers when approaching exams, it is very difficult for them to take the time to practice as it is seen as time not spent studying their other subjects. Everyone needs a break when doing intense study and I have always encouraged such students to try to use their instrument practice as a break in their studies. Hopefully parents will see that playing/practicing a musical instrument while not conforming to the usual idea of studying can in fact help to stimulate the very areas of the brain that are needed for more conventional study and there is no reason why the two could not work hand in hand.

Keep practicing!!

 

 

For anyone wishing to further investigate the matter try:

Gaser and Schlaug 2003

Hutchinson, Lee, Gaab and Schlaur 2003

Nina Kraus, Mussacchia et al.

The Irish rover

Over the years I’ve met a few famous people, mostly while working in music shops. It was  in the late 80’s while I was working in one of these shops, Waltons in Dun Laoghaire, that I first met the guys who would go on to form Rollerskate Skinny. Back then they were the Hippyshakes and they would come into the shop quite a bit. But then Dun Laoghaire seemed to have a disproportionate amount of musicians for such a small town and most of them tended to gravitate towards the music shop as a hangout. A couple of years later I was working in London. I’d seen that Rollerskate Skinny were playing in the Camden Falcon so being a bit homesick and eager to see some people I knew from back home (and also to catch a great gig) I went along. The pub part of the venue was absolutely heaving but somehow I managed to find the lads from the band. We were at the bar and they introduced me to Shane MacGowan’s sister. As far as I can remember Shane appeared not too long after. I was awestruck, the Pogues and Shane were legendary back then.  In the early 90’s Shane’s behaviour was well documented and commented on and by this stage he’d left the Pogues as a result. But I couldn’t believe I was standing beside this great songwriter at a fairly dingy bar in London. Even now as we head into the Christmas season Fairytale of NewYork must be one of the most requested songs at this time of the year (and one of the best too). Although he was standing beside me at the bar I wasn’t talking to him but I did meet him properly years later back in Dublin, when he used to come into Waltons on Georges Street. He was definitely a lot calmer than years previous! For the record that Rollerskate Skinny gig in the Falcon was definitely one of the loudest gigs I was ever at.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rollerskate_Skinny

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pogues

Rock ‘n’ Roll

Where I grew up in a suburb of Dublin there used to be a little music shop, ‘Pat Dolans’, buried in the heart of the housing estate. It was less than a ten minute walk from my house. I used to love going in to look at all the guitars that I couldn’t possibly afford. The guys in there were always helpful and friendly and let me try some of the expensive guitars. I walked in one day as one of the staff was showing a guitar to a customer. It must have been a new model but I can’t remember what it was. His sales talk was what has stuck with me to this day; ‘Man, you hit this switch and it’s instant fucking Led Zeppelin.’ Wow, that’s how you sell a guitar I thought. Well he had me sold, the only drawback being that at 16 I had no money. When years later I was working in music shops selling guitars I always wondered about the wisdom of maybe trying to use his line, but I think if it was premeditated it wouldn’t ring true. I like to think that the pure enthusiasm he had for that guitar just happened to find it’s expression that way. There have been a few guitars I’ve tried over the years that felt amazing, inspiring, as soon as you’d sit down to play, but not that many. Considering I worked in 3 different stores over a period of about 14 years, I’ve tried a lot of guitars, some very expensive. So if you’re a guitarist and you find a guitar that you instantly bond with…buy it. Just be careful that you don’t end up thinking every guitar you touch is inspirational – this could become a costly exercise and possibly lead to GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome).

Is my child too young to learn guitar?

Too young to learn guitar?

If you have a child who is really interested in learning the guitar then age 8 is a good age to start. I have taught children as young as 6 but in my experience it is better to wait until they are a little older, although there are always exceptions. They will need a smaller instrument so a six year old would usually need a ½ size guitar, an eight year old possibly a 3/4 size, but obviously this all depends on how big/small the individual child is. Although the general belief is that children learn things quicker this is not always the case as playing the guitar can’t be learnt by absorbing facts it is a physical thing that needs work therefore interest, motivation and willingness to practice are very big factors in learning an instrument.

Interest is very important and forcing children to learn an instrument because we think it will be good for them is not necessarily the best course of action. Countless times I’ve been told by adults that they hated the lessons on piano/violin or whatever instrument they were forced to learn as children. So it is important for us to make sure the child has an interest first of all. Also if as a parent you have never played an instrument before it is important to realise the amount of work necessary to learn how to play the guitar – it is not easy and requires a great deal of effort. So there needs to time available to practice. Practice has to be done at least 4-5 times a week, if the child doesn’t practice then there is a self-fulfilling downward spiral; no practice leads to no progress which in turn feeds the idea that “I’m not good at this” which can harden into an attitude of “I won’t bother practicing”… and so on.

So this leads to motivation where as a parent you need to encourage your child to practice. Try to incorporate practice into the daily routine eg. always first thing when they arrive home from school or straight after dinner or before they watch tv/play xbox.  When we start to see progress, that moment when you can recognise the tune you’re playing, then the willingness to practice will kick in, the realisation that “I can do this” will encourage them to want to practice of their own accord. It is up to parents and teachers to make sure that they reach that stage.

It’s just not cricket

I was sitting outside a café in Dublin enjoying a coffee and the evening sunshine when two friends passed by, making their way to Tower Records where Neil Hannon was launching his album ‘The Duckworth Lewis Method’.  After explaining where they were off to they proceeded along their way. About ten minutes later they reappeared with Neil Hannon in tow. For whatever reason his piano/keyboard hadn’t arrived at the gig, so he was a bit stuck. He’d already tried a certain music shop on Exchequer St. to see if he could borrow one for the duration of the gig. Allegedly he was pretty much told he would have to buy the instrument before he could leave the shop with it. Fair enough you might say, but what about supporting your fellow musicians in need? He’s obviously not some chancer, he’s released about 10 albums and while he’s not Bono he is reasonably well known – he did after all write the theme music for ‘Father Ted’. All in all it seems their attitude just wasn’t cricket. My two friends thought of me and dragged Neil around to tell me his tale of woe. I had years previously worked in Waltons music shop so I said I’d see what I could do. With that, myself and Neil went in search of a keyboard. The guys in Waltons very kindly gave us a loan of a really nice digital piano and myself and Mr. Hannon humped it back down the street to Tower Records. What I couldn’t get my head around was why the roadies were standing outside the venue having a fag while the artist was sweating it out lifting a fairly hefty bit of gear down the road. The gig was a success from what I saw of it but unfortunately I couldn’t stay for the full duration because I had to get back to work. I’m kind of glad in a way because I wasn’t being paid as a roadie to carry the thing back!! Anyway here’s a video from the gig featuring said piano.

Do I need a metronome?

Do I need a metronome? A metronome can be a great tool to help with your practice, it can help you to make sure you are playing ‘in time’ which is a very important part of playing music. But…be aware that if you are just starting to learn an instrument like guitar there is a lot of things to think about, (are my fingers in the right place, are all the strings sounding clearly, have I started strumming the chord from the right string etc. etc.) Adding the extra pressure of a metronome at this stage might actually be more confusing than anything else. So if you are a total novice I would suggest steering clear of metronomes for now. If on the other hand you are able to play all your basic chords and are able to move between them without too much difficulty and need to test yourself on the chord changes then a metronome will be of great benefit.

If you are at a stage in your playing where you are studying scales then a metronome is a must and will help you gauge your progress. Start off playing your scales in 1/4 notes (crochets) at 60bpm then try the same scale in 1/8th notes (quavers) at the same bpm then try 1/16th  (semiquavers) again at 60bpm. If you can manage this without any errors (not just wrong notes, also fingering, tone, right-hand coordination) then increase the tempo to 70bpm and try the same process increasing the tempo until you find your limit – the point where errors start to happen. Now you should have an idea what you need to work on. Go back to a slower tempo and work on the element that needs attention (wrong notes, tone etc.) and next session try again until you can play at a higher tempo without errors.

Do I need lessons?

Do I need lessons? I want to learn guitar, there are lots of videos online do I really need to get lessons? I’d follow that with another question – Do you want to learn correctly? Yes there are lots of tutorials on the internet but a video can’t remind you to put your fingers in the right place or make sure if you’re holding the instrument properly and you can’t ask it any questions. Now you might say I’m biased (which I am) but this is coming from years of seeing students arrive for their first lesson not holding the instrument properly and generally falling into what we will call ‘bad habits’. Some of these students might have been playing for years and considered themselves beyond beginner level yet didn’t have the basics right. Bad habits as the name suggests are the opposite of good and usually require a lot of effort to correct. So better to learn correctly at the beginning, a good teacher is not going to let you away with ‘bad habits’.  Another factor to consider here is motivation and having a weekly target (ie. your lesson) will help get you practicing so that you’re not wasting your precious time and hard-earned cash.

Don’t get me wrong the internet is a great resource for learning but you have to consider the credentials of whoever you’re taking advice from. Also, and I know this from having produced my own video tutorials, it’s very difficult to make a video that will answer all questions from every variety of student at every level. I suppose my main point is that the crucial stage of learning an instrument is the very beginning and a good start is half the battle.

Do You Remember the First Time?

My first Rock concert was way back in 1988 when I went to see Ozzy Osbourne playing in the Top Hat in Dublin (sadly this venue is long gone). The ticket was the princely sum of £8.50 (which is in the region of €45.00). I think it might have been Zakk Wyldes first tour with Ozzy and as far as I can remember Geezer Butler was playing bass. I think that was what really sold it for me, half of the classic Black Sabbath line-up on stage. As it was to be my first gig I decided to go out and get a leather jacket, you have to look the part! I had only finished my Leaving Cert in school so I wasn’t working, a strict budget was required. I trawled through the second hand rag shops in Dublin and eventually found a retro 70′s style straight leather jacket, big collars et al, for 50pence! The guy in the shop was distraught, there was no way that was the price, but I stood my ground. The tag said 50p and that’s all I was paying. I was over the moon –  my mother was horrified. She has a mortal fear of second hand clothes (“God only knows who was wearing that before”). She scrubbed it and fitted a new lining into it before she’d let me wear it. The gig was amazing. As a first concert it was a serious induction into the world of Rock. Loud, lots of headbanging, the band played some classic Sabbath numbers too. Some guy dived from the balcony into the crowd below, which unfortunately for him parted and he hit the floor. It’s one thing diving from a stage but off the balcony? Well I guess the people in the crowd weren’t up for being flattened and he was stretchered off. I can still remember being up the front of the crowd watching Zakk playing guitar- absolutely amazing. Thankfully I didn’t emulate their hairstyles. (If only I still had long hair now though.)

How long should I practice?

How long should I practice? You should read the previous blog about practice too. The amount of time you have available will depend on your circumstance (working hours, homework etc.) so you need to decide on a goal for your practice each week and work towards that. (This week I’ll learn how to play an F chord properly or I’ll learn a new scale)

If you have just started learning and have never played an instrument before then about 20mins a day should be fine (if you’re an adult). If you have a  young child starting to learn then 5-10mins daily should be ok to start with, the important thing being to encourage them to practice and develop a routine.

If you are at an intermediate stage and want to make some real progress well then at least an hour a day should do it.

If you’re studying classical guitar for example and your preparing for a grade 8 exam I’d say 2 hours a day minimum.

After some time practicing you will get a feel for how long you need to get all your work done and as you start progressing you will feel the need to practice more.