The Fastest Way to Learn a Musical Instrument Guaranteed

Today’s post is short and to the point: Never miss a music lesson without contacting your music teacher! To be successful in this world, you’ve got to show up.  When you can’t show up, you’ve got to let people know. Music lessons, and all one-on-one coaching situations, are about much more than the specific skills [...]

In addition to listening to the specific pieces and songs you’re learning to play, it’s both important and fun for musicians to listen to music in their chosen genre.  This is especially true when you decide to learn a new style of music.  Immersing yourself in the sounds of famous artists who play this style [...]

In my last blog post, I wrote about the importance of listening to the music you’re learning to play.  Not only is listening enjoyable, but hearing your music also helps you learn more quickly. It’s never been easier to access music to listen to.  There are many free sources online, inexpensive online sources, and software [...]

The importance of listening to the music you’re learning cannot be stressed enough.  Knowing how the music is supposed to sound makes the entire learning process easier–and more fun. While many music teachers insist that their students learn only from sheet music (so students improve their sightreading skills and are not influenced by interpretations by other musicians), current [...]

Do you know what you look like when you perform?  Most musicians are so concerned about their sound that they neglect the visual side of their performances. The truth is that audiences take your appearance very seriously.  This fact is even built into our language.  We say we “saw” a concert, not that we “heard” [...]

The conversations between music teachers and their students during lessons are valuable for the student.  Teachers give guidance, encouragement, specific strategies, and goals.  Students learn what to do to shape their playing and get clarification on how best to reach their goals. Unfortunately, much of this information is lost forever because it is not written [...]

 I’ve seen how one small change in musicians’ thinking can have profound effects on their motivation, ability to achieve goals, and their overall mood.  That change is eliminating the word “should” from thoughts and words.  Sounds simplistic, right?  How can getting rid of one word have such a big effect on musicians’ lives? The word [...]