The Fastest Way to Learn a Musical Instrument Guaranteed

Handheld digital recorders are fast becoming a favorite item for musicians.  There are many musical uses for these handy devices, from recording your practicing to recording rehearsals and archiving your performances.

In the age of Facebook, YouTube, MySpace, personal blogs, and band websites, many musicians are realizing the need to have video as part of their everyday life.

The problem for many years has been that video cameras have had high picture quality but so-so sound quality.  That has all changed recently as companies are developing handheld video recorders with an emphasis on high audio quality.

Some of these products are being designed specifically for musicians!  They include high-quality condenser microphones that are capable of capturing a  full-spectrum audio recording.  Many other video cameras (as well as digital voice recorders) capture the human voice well, but any high or low frequencies generally sound terrible. 

The power of these devices to transform your daily musical routine cannot be underestimated.  Having an audio recording of yourself is great, but video completely changes the way you do everything.  After all, if a picture is worth a thousand words, then a video must be worth a million.

With video, you can hear yourself AND watch yourself on playback.  For practicing it will sometimes be the visual aspect that will give you the solution to a section of your music that doesn’t sound the way you want it to.  You may be able to see a small adjustment in your posture, embouchure, positioning,  curvature of your fingers, angle of your neck and head, or height of your shoulders that will immediately take care of the issue.

You can make similar decisions by watching video of rehearsals and performances.  Just like professional athletes who watch videos of games to make improvements, all musicians can benefit from seeing video of themselves in action.

Having some form of video is better than none, and in a pinch, you can make do with other electronics you already own:

–cell phone to record sound and shoot video

–digital camera: shoot a short video

–web cam and microphone: film yourself

Even poor sound quality is better than nothing.  However, you should consider moving up to a high quality handheld video recorder. 

Two of these devices that have recently come to market are the Zoom Q3, made by Samson (www.samsontech.com), and the Alesis VideoTrack (www.alesis.com).  They were both featured at the recent NAMM show, the industry trade show where music products are introduced.

You should try out several models to see what works for you.  But, it is definitely time to take the plunge into digital video!

Basic human nature fights against musicians who want to learn to play a musical instrument efficiently.  Keeping a music practice log helps you fight back.

Without a special notebook for music lessons and practice sessions, music students stand little chance in dealing with two factors in the framework of the human brain:

1.  Our tendency to forget almost everything we see and hear.

2.  Our attraction to what’s already familiar to us.

Let’s explore forgetfulness first.

Everybody is exposed to too much information every day.  Most of this information never makes its way into long-term memory.  This is completely normal!  Our brain is designed to filter out sensory input that doesn’t seem important or relevant.

What this means for music students is that they will most likely forget what they are supposed to practice.  Not only will they forget the items on their practice list, but they will also forget the specific strategies that will help them achieve their musical goals.  Music students absolutely must leave every music lesson with these strategies written down if they are to have any hope of remembering what to do between lessons.

Focusing on what’s familiar is the second part of human nature that works against musicians.

It’s no secret that many musicians just play music they know and like whenever they practice.  They avoid anything difficult, new, or unfamiliar.  This tendency slows down progress since new material is never tackled, and returning to next week’s music lesson without making forward progress makes the lesson boring for both teacher and student.

However, in between lessons it’s hard to work on new material.  It’s easy to avoid anything unfamiliar–especially if there is no clear list of exactly what new material should be covered and how it should be approached.  Playing what you already know is fun.  And, it feels good.  Having fun by keeping to what is familiar is the very aspect of human nature that a music practice log helps us fight.

In the Musician’s Practice Planner, categories for practice items are clearly laid out with plenty of room to write in detailed strategies and goals.  Seeing repertoire, exercises, and scales in distinct boxes is much better for students than just making a list of these items.  It becomes obvious to music students (and their parents–for young students) that each box represents a separate part of their practice session.

They will remember what to practice, how to practice, and why to practice when they see each box of information.  And, by writing down what gets worked on each day, they can keep their practicing balanced by making sure they work on every item–every day.  Music teachers can help create this balance by giving clear instructions on how each practice session should be organized.

Your basic human nature does not serve you when it comes to learning to play music.  Unless you keep a special music notebook to organize and track your progress, you are likely to forget what to do when you start practicing.  This leads to just playing what you already know.

Music recitals are rituals for young musicians learning to play a musical instrument.  These performances are usually seen by music lesson teachers as opportunities to perform music in public for the first time and to show off the skills that have been developed by the music students.

Sometimes, however, students don’t want to participate in a recital, and anyone who has attended one of these public displays has seen music students who look like they’re being led to a firing squad as they walk onto the stage, seem stiff and detached as they play, and run off stage the second they finish their last note.

There are two main reasons music students behave this way:

1.  Reluctance to be in front of an audience in public.  It can be scary to have so many people looking at you and listening to you.  For many students, this is the first time they’ve been the center of attention in a public setting.

2.  Embarrassment about their musical skills or (lack of) preparation of the music they’re supposed to play.  Young music students can seldom gauge their skills relative to their age or how long they’ve been playing, but many students feel they don’t sound good enough to play in public.

Leaving aside the actual sound made by these students–which may or may not be pleasant to listen to–the more important issue is the psychological one.  We want students to feel confident and to rise to the challenge of putting themselves in new situations.  It’s the job of music teachers to encourage their students to play in public.  This is especially important for young musicians who don’t want to participate in the recital.

Most of our young students aren’t planning to be professional musicians, so the non-music skills that we often think of as peripheral to the music experience actually become central for these kids.  Just getting up in front of an audience and playing becomes more important than what their playing sounds like.

The process of participating in a public music recital re-formulates how students think about themselves.  Music teachers aren’t just teaching their students how to play a musical instrument; they’re giving students an opportunity to:

–Overcome fear

–Boost self-esteem

–Rise to a challenge

–Feel confident in front of an audience

–Build stage presence

–Not give up

–Complete something once it’s started

These are all good reasons to insist that children have the opportunity to learn a musical instrument and play in concerts, and each of these attributes is useful in other areas of life.  Actually, they are more important than playing music for the vast majority of people taking music lessons.

Teachers need to point out this fact to their students (and to the students’ parents) by saying things like, “Wow, you did so great at the recital.  I know you were nervous about getting up in front of an audience and playing, but you did it.  Think of everything else you’ll be able to do now!!!”

Emphasizing the connection between playing in public and achieving success in all areas of life should be a central experience in music lessons.

We forget almost everything we’re exposed to.  Can you imagine if this were not the case?  Your memory would be overflowing with every single item you see, every sound you hear, and every action you take–day in and day out.

Your brain is constantly filtering out information that doesn’t seem important.

This filter has a profound effect on learning to play your instrument.  If you want something you’re working on to make its way into your long-term memory, you have to get through the filter.  You must make certain elements of your music seem very important to give them a place in your memory.

Aiding your memory is one of the key uses of a music practice log like the Musician’s Practice Planner.  First, you absolutely must keep a to-do list of your most important practice items.  Keeping this list in writing will ensure that you remember to go through everything on the list.  Second, keeping a daily practice log will help you remember where to start in today’s practice session.  Seeing your notes from yesterday will jog your memory.

Here’s the ugly truth: Most musicians won’t remember what they did in yesterday’s practice session.  They’ll forget what sections still need work.  They’ll forget their current metronome markings.  They’ll forget exactly what they hoped to return to the next time they pick up their instrument.

The bad news is that many musicians are frustrated by these feelings every day.  They don’t take any action to help their memories, and their musical progress is slow.

The good news?  You can help your memory with a written practice log.  It’s an incredibly easy step that will make your practicing more efficient.

It’s normal to forget.  Remembering actually takes a special effort.

So, make it easy on yourself and be sure to use a music practice log.  Taking a couple minutes to write down what you’re doing will save you hours of wasted practice time, help get rid of frustration, and give you a way to learn faster.

One important reason to use a practice notebook is to remember every item you’re supposed to be learning.  If you don’t write down your practice  to-do list, it will be extremely difficult to know how to start your practice sessions.

Here is what tends to happen to musicians who do not keep a list of practice items in writing:

–They will work on only one item, which will generally be their favorite thing to play.

–Over time, certain skills won’t develop as rapidly as others.  By neglecting technical exercises, musicians are unable to move on to more advanced music.

–Frustration will set in.  Practicing can be pretty boring when you play the same thing over and over.  Switching among items on your practice list gives you more variety when you practice.

A written list that gives a complete rundown of items to practice for the week will help you keep your practice sessions balanced.  You’ll push yourself to absorb new music and relax into playing what’s already comfortable.  Part of the time you will be highly concentrated and focused.  At other times you’ll be able to flow easily through music you already know.

I usually recommend saving your favorite item on your practice list to do last.  Before you get to your favorite music, go through a warmup phase and play exercises that will build skills, musical knowledge, and dexterity.  Then, work on new, uncomfortable material.  Finally, move on to the music you like playing the most.  You’ll feel like you’re getting dessert, and your practice session will be like a well-balanced meal that’s both nutritious and tasty.

It’s nearly impossible to put together a practice session like this if you don’t have your practice priorities written down.  In your Musician’s Practice Planner, there is a lot of space to clearly list everything you need to work on.

Make sure you’re playing items from every category whenever you practice.  Stay balanced, keep your practice sessions interesting, and improve all aspects of your playing!

Using repetition when learning to play a musical instrument is extremely important.  By playing something accurately over and over, you train your muscles to go through the actions needed to make music.  And, your brain learns patterns through repeated exposure to the same information.

Unfortunately, your muscles don’t really know right from wrong.  They just do what your brain tells them to do.  If, for whatever reason, you find yourself making the same mistake in the same place whenever you play a section of music, you know that your muscles have gotten the wrong message.

If you continue to allow yourself to make this mistake consistently, you’re building muscle memory for the mistake.  Since the muscles don’t know what your music sounds like, they’re just going to do the wrong action over and over again.

You can’t let this happen!

A consistent mistake will become part of your performance just like any other sequence you’re learning.  I have seen this creep into some of my students’ playing from time to time, and it’s difficult to watch. 

When mistakes happen, they usually fall into one of a few categories:

–shifting to a wrong note (or playing out of tune on a shift)

–going out of time to play something difficult

–stopping (even for just a fraction of a second) and trying again. 

If any of these happen to you twice in a row, you’ve got to take immediate action.  Stop what you’re doing.  Think about where the mistake is happening.  Play only the notes where the error is happening, but play them very, very slowly.  Make sure you can think about each note before you play it.

Catch yourself before anything goes wrong.  Make sure you only accept success! 

Mastering muscle memory is one of the most important skills you can develop if you want to learn to play your instrument quickly.  Just be sure your muscles are memorizing the correct set of actions.

Performing music has its own rewards.  It’s fun to play, especially when you’re performing with musicians you really like.  It feels good to communicate something of value to your audience.  It’s a thrill to be in front of a crowd of people who are there to see you play.  And, it’s wonderful to have the experience of creating music rather than just listening to it.

The process of preparing for public performances can be rewarding also.  Getting ready to perform means setting goals, acquiring new skills, and learning new material.  It takes self-discipline, self-motivation, patience, desire, and focus to succeed.

This list of traits, and the experience of being in front of audiences on a regular basis, gives musicians a big advantage over non-performers when it comes to something that most people fear: public speaking.

On the website webmd.com, Paul L. Witt, PhD, assistant professor of communication studies at Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, is quoted as saying, “The idea of making a presentation in public is the No. 1 fear reported by people in the U.S.”

“Making a presentation in public” doesn’t seem any different than performing music to me.  For musicians, it’s normal to walk on stage, stand under hot lights, have people stare at you, and talk to the audience between songs.  If you can do that, public speaking should be easy.

Performing gives musicians confidence when standing in front of an audience.  They build a certain poise, which is really the ability to be yourself and feel relaxed even when standing in front of a crowd.

Most musicians don’t make their living performing.  So, it’s important that skills learned being a musician can be helpful in other areas of life.  Being able to speak in public is one of these valuable skills.

It goes beyond speaking to an audience.  Public speaking also means being able to think clearly and speak openly during meetings and negotiations.  Though many performers don’t think about it, their time on stage actually prepares them for dealing with the stress many people feel when they’re called upon to speak.

Feeling comfortable with public speaking is one of the many hidden benefits of performing music.  When we play our instruments, we’re doing a lot more for ourselves than just creating music.  We turn ourselves into confident, poised professionals who can excel in every area of life.

Yesterday, I attended the American String Teachers Association national conference.  Many music students and beginner musicians don’t realize it, but there are national and international organizations for players and teachers of just about every instrument.  Their conferences allow music teachers to share ideas, learn new teaching techniques, and explore an exhibit hall with all the latest instruments, accessories, and sheet music available.

I went to sessions on practicing, since that’s what we focus on here at Molto Music, and I visited just about every booth in the exhibit hall.  There seemed to be something missing…

It took me a while to realize it, but what was missing was all the latest technology available for musicians.  SmartMusic (accompaniment software for musicians made by the same company that makes Finale) was the only technology company in the exhibit hall.  And, there were no lectures specifically on utilizing technology for better teaching and for better communication with students.

I was stunned. 

The speakers I saw were great, and they offered a lot of very useful information to improve teaching, learning, and practicing.  And, they mentioned the importance of some techniques that require technology:

–recording and listening back so players can accurately assess their sound

–having teachers post video on YouTube to show students how to play specific pieces

–making recordings available to students so they can hear what their music is supposed to sound like

But, there were no sessions specifically designed to guide teachers on all the available technology that could dramatically help their students.  And, the exhibit hall was missing some key products–such as portable digital recorders, digital video recorders, and audio/video processing software–that I hope teachers are using.

I even heard one teacher talk about making 50 CD’s to hand out to students.  Those students should be encouraged to go online to hear this music.  Another teacher mentioned copying and snail-mailing a document when that information could easily be emailed or posted to their school’s website.

And, back in the exhibit hall, all of the sheet music publishers had books with CD’s in them.  It’s time to eliminate these CD’s and make the same information available online or as a download.  Even the sheet music books themselves will eventually be replaced by digital files–downloaded to Kindles or iPads or smart phones or some technology that hasn’t yet made it’s way to the marketplace.

Everyone in the music world should be embracing these new technologies.  Are music teachers being left behind?

Beginner musicians can take specific steps to speed up their musical progress.  There are many online tools available to help you: online music lessons, YouTube videos, online metronomes, and recordings of just about any piece of music ever recorded.  Real-world strategies can help also: taking lessons with a really good music teacher, recording yourself so you can listen back to see how you actually sound, and playing with other musicians who can help your progress.

There is one step, though, that is absolutely crucial.  And, it’s something that many beginning musicians don’t even think about.  Here it is:

Set a musical goal for yourself!

When you first start playing a musical instrument, it’s important to set a very specific goal.  When you know what you’re trying to accomplish, you’ll be motivated and excited to play music.  Plus, you can tell everyone you know what this goal is.  There are often people who are willing to help you reach this goal–but they need to know what it is you want to do.

Tell your private lesson teacher what this goal is.  Even better, use this goal as a way to screen potential teachers as you search for one.  Tell each teacher what you want to accomplish and make sure they can help get you there quickly.

For many beginning musicians, there is a single song that got them to pick up an instrument in the first place.  Often, the goal will be to play this song.  That gives a good milestone, a way to say, “I’ve arrived.  I’m a real musician now!”

Other musicians, as well as your lesson teacher, can guide you toward this goal and let you know how long they think it will take you to get there.  Plus, they can give you shorter-term goals that will move you closer to your destination.

Set a goal for yourself today.  Put it in writing.  Tell your friends and family about it.  You may be surprised at how much more fun it is to play music when you have a target you’re trying to reach!

Most musicians have goals they want to achieve.  From being able to play well to landing a great gig, these goals keep many musicians practicing, rehearsing, and performing.

One interesting aspect of achieving goals is that the path to success is often full of failures.  If you expect the road to be bumpy, it’s easier to keep going when things don’t go your way.

In his book This Is Your Brain on Music, neuroscientist Daniel Levitin writes, “…on average, successful people have had many more failures than unsuccessful people… It’s what you do after the failure that is important.  Successful people have a stick-to-it-iveness.  They don’t quit…successful people have had many, many failures, but they learn from them and keep going.”

The best example of this idea of “keep going” for musicians is taking auditions.  Auditions happen in all genres of music.  They can be formal or informal.  But, no matter what the audition situation, they are nerve-wracking.

I’ve auditioned for rock bands, Broadway show pit bands, orchestras, and R&B groups.  Many of these auditions have been successful–but just as many have been unsuccessful.

When I have lost auditions, there have been many factors leading to my not landing the job, including:

• My Playing.  This is actually the easiest to deal with.  Most musicians know when they don’t play well enough to get the gig.  You just return to the practice room and keep working.
• My Look: In certain genres, how musicians look is as important as how they play.  If you want to succeed in these genres, you’ve got to decide if you are willing to change how you look or dress to match the other musicians.
• My Personality: If you’re auditioning for a small group like a rock band or a string quartet, everyone needs to get along.  There’s not a lot you can do if you don’t fit in with the other musicians.

Every time I’ve lost an audition, I’ve gone through an evaluation process: What can I do differently next time?  Should I worry about what I wear to an audition?  What am I really looking for in a playing situation?

The answers to these questions give you a framework to work in, so you can be better prepared for the next audition.  No matter what decisions you make, the only decision you MUST make is this: Do not give up!

The most brutal form of musical auditions are auditions for major symphony orchestras.   Every time there is a job opening in one of these groups, hundreds of people apply to audition.  Many of these applicants are extremely qualified, so who actually gets these jobs?

Basically, it’s the people who audition the most who win these coveted positions.  Successful musicians just take a lot of auditions.  But, remember: They do not win most of these auditions.  Though this situation could be viewed as failure, they simply continue to practice and take more auditions.

Unsuccessful musicians fall into two categories: (1) they never show up to audition at all (and, by definition, cannot be successful) or (2) they do take auditions but never win them.

What we all need to realize is that each failure puts us one step closer to success.

It’s like a friend of mine who is a writer.  She tells me that she doesn’t even feel she’s tried to get a piece published if she hasn’t received 20 rejection letters!  It’s the effort of putting the work out there that eventually leads to success.

For two musicians with relatively equal skills, only the player who goes out to as many auditions as possible has a hope of getting hired.

Are you ready to risk failure in order to succeed?