How to be a Better Musician (Part 3)
Tip 11. "Plug and Play" or "Plug and Pray"
Throught out the years, I have seen hundreds of bands' performances, one thing
I noticed is most bands have something in common: "plug and pray".
They go on stage, plug the cables in the amps, and start jamming. How can
you get a balance overall sound when
you do not try out the volume and tone of each instrument incorporate with
the whole band. The nightmare comes when the audience only can hear the guitar
or bass, or maybe can't hear the guitar solo at all because the keyboard is
way too loud. I would recommend all my students to do a simple sound check
(maybe 8 bars) before they start their performance,
i) Clean Check
Guitars play undistorted and keyboard play some soft voice like piano or strings,
bass playing half notes (2 counts) all instruments play on the same chord.
Ex: A major.
ii) Band Check
The drummer plays on beat, Ex: 8 beat rhythm, guitar on power chords (distorted),
bass playing quarter notes (1 count). Ensure everyone on stage is able to
listen to all instruments played.
P/S: Guitarist should ensure their clean volume level and distorted level are balanced to avoid sudden boost or lost of loudness.
Tip 12. There Is No End To Learning
It never hurts to broaden your scope, no matter how great a player you already
are or how much you think you have already learned, or how popular you are,
continue to learn does not hurt. I once came across a piano player who discussed
some music topics with me in a coffee shop, (he is a regular performer in
some cafes) he was telling me wished he knew more about jazz theory, so I
recommended him to a teacher in Penang, he refused to take lessons because
his mentality was "if i would start taking lessons, people will know
I am not good enough and is actually a student of some one". Well, I
didn't have anything else to say after that.
I can frankly tell everyone here I am still learning, there is no end to learning, I learn everyday from anyone who is better than me, even my students are my teachers, surprise?? Some of my students have suggested me on teaching methods which suit them better and that really improved my teaching styles too.
Opening your mind to other styles and techniques makes you better, more well-equiptmusician. A great teacher can inspire and enable you to develop as a creative, exciting player.
Tip 13. Learn It Today, Play It Today
It is very important to understand how repetition in the memory process works,
below statement is a result from Professor Herman Ebbinghaus's research:
Music or a message read or heard only once is 66% forgotten within 24 hours
and is practically out of mind in 30 days.
Music or a message read or heard several times a day for 8 days is virtually
memorized; at the end of 30 days the memory retains 90% of the message.
Hence, I always encourage my students to revise what they learnt on a particular day immediately after they have gone back.
You should learn more licks, but try to improvise their style to your own style. Make your songs and playing unique. You can copy the styles of others, but not note-by note in your own song, cause that won't take you too far off the mark.
Tip 15. Play, Play, Play, and Play More
As I always say, you practice at home very often will not bring you to the
same level as some one who practice and jam often. Join a band, group a band,
play with somebody. Playing at home only get you so far -- it's imperative
that you play out as soon as you are capable of doing so. Familiarize yourself
with as many real-life musical situations as possible. Attend jam sessions.
Take less-than-ideal gigs or low-profile performance, or FREE performance,
don't think of where you gonna perform or how much you are being paid on a
particular gig, JUST FOR THE EXPERIENCE SAKE. It's the experience that counts.
Some bands got carried off when they have achieved some status, ego will come in place then. I have come across some bands which think they are too good or think themselves as a commodity that they MUST NOT play at not-so-pleasant venues. Not to mention there was one band who demanded sponsorship from an event organiser for their expenses on accommodation and transport just because they think they are professionals..... and you know what happened at the end.
Uglymen played in many many unpaid gigs, but we enjoyed a lot, we learnt new things, made new friends and cherished every moment of it.
Tip 16. Love and Passion
Love what you do and do what you love.
"The one thing every musician should know is that above all else, their true love of music will always be their best reward." - - - Steve Vai.
Good luck and all the best!