The Fastest Way to Learn a Musical Instrument Guaranteed

Today’s post is specifically aimed at people new to the world of buying musical instruments and accessories.  If you’re purchasing your first instrument, or you’re a parent of a child about to start music lessons, there’s something you need to know about the purchase process:

The price is highly negotiable.

Many people walk into a music store, see a price tag on an instrument, accessory, or amplifier and assume that this is the price they have to pay to make the purchase.

The price tag is seldom the actual price you have to pay to buy that instrument.  If you’re willing to negotiate with the salesperson, you’ll find that you can spend a lot less money.

In the music world, there are three prices that matter to the consumer:

1)  The Retail Price.  This is a suggested price from the manufacturer.  This is often the dollar amount on the price tag.  You should never pay this price.

2)  The Minimum Advertised Price (MAP): This is the lowest price the manufacturer lets music retailers list in an advertisement or on their website.  This price is often an acceptable price to pay.

3)  The Street Price (also known as “out the door” price): This is the price at which many stores are actually selling the product.  Sometimes this price is the same as MAP, sometimes it’s lower.  If you can find out what this price is, you’ll want to ask for it when you’re shopping.

Just knowing that retail pricing has little or nothing to do with actual purchase prices puts you in a strong position when you walk into a store to buy a musical instrument.

In my next post, I’ll list some specific bargaining and negotiating tactics you can use to get a great price when you buy an instrument.

In recent posts, I’ve discussed the usefulness of hand-held digital recorders and digital video recorders for musicians, music students, and music teachers.

In another sign of the rising popularity of these devices, Music Inc., a trade magazine for music retailers, included an article in its May 2010 issue on the importance of these products for music stores.  This article is good news for musicians.  It means that digital recorders will be available from your local music store, not just from big-box electronics retailers.

The most amazing part of the article was the listing of all of the companies that are manufacturing these recorders.  There is now a huge selection available–more good news for musicians since competition should drive down prices and you should be able to find the device that is just right for your needs. 

Here are the product listings from the article: 

HHB Flashmic

Yamaha Pocketrak W24 and C24

Olympus LS-10, LS-11, and WS-500

Sony PCM-D1, PCM-D50, and PCM-M10

Roland Edirol R-09HR and R-05

Marantz PMD620, PMD660, and PMD661

Korg Sound on Sound (SOS)  

Samson Zoom H2, H4n, and Q3

Alesis ProTrack, PalmTrack, and VideoTrack

Tascam DR-07, DR-2d, and DR-08

With so many devices to choose from, it will be important to check pricing and product reviews.  As more information becomes available, I’ll include details in this blog.

If you’ve had good or bad experiences with any of these hand-held digital recorders, or have advice to offer your fellow musicians, please leave a comment on this post.

The world doesn’t work the way musicians think it does.  Here’s a typical thought process of musicians about their chances of success:

If I work hard and get really good on my instrument, there will be plenty of gigs for me.  With this music degree from a prestigious university or conservatory, I’ll get hired to perform in concerts regularly.  Being the best on my instrument will assure that I’ll always have work.

Unfortunately, these thoughts are a fantasy.  Success in the music world actually takes a completely separate skill set, one that few musicians cultivate. 

Contractors and producers who hire musicians assume that the people they hire all have professional playing skills.  Being a great player is the bottom rung of a large list of skills you’ll need to climb the professional music ladder.

Here are a few of the dozens of other skills, possessions, and personal habits you’ll need to succeed:

1.  Nerves of steel:  You’ve got to win auditions, walk into unfamiliar surroundings for performances, and perform with strangers.  Only musicians who can deal with these situations survive.

2.  Equipment: Make sure you have a professional level instrument (or instruments), music stand(s), tuner, metronome, and all accessories you need to be self-sufficient on any gig or at any recording session.  Not having an extra 9-volt battery has lost some guitarists work.  And, for all you string players out there: have an extra set of strings with you at all times!

3.  Clothing: You’ve got to be able to dress the part.  Depending on your genre, this can mean anything from ripped jeans to white tie and tails.  If someone calls you with work tonight, are you ready to walk onstage dressed appropriately?

4.  Be friendly:  Musicians who get hired over and over are the ones who can get along with other musicians, contractors, producers, band leaders, conductors, stage hands, and anyone else they come in contact with.  Don’t be fooled by the myth of the aloof diva or the surly rock star.  The vast majority of pro musicians need to behave themselves on the job.

5.  Be on time: If you’re willing to show up early and leave late, you stand a better chance of getting re-hired for future gigs. 

6.  Be helpful:  When you’re aware of the needs of those around you and are willing to aid them, you stand out from the crowd.

None of these skills is discussed in music lessons or in music school.  You’ll need to cultivate this stuff on your own.

Work hard to become a great player.  Then, work harder to become a professional people will want to work with.

Music students often set themselves up for feelings of failure when they tackle a new task.  They think the task will be easy, and, when they find out that it’s actually quite challenging, they question their own abilities rather than rationally looking at the difficulty of the task itself.

Here’s a perfect example: transcribing.  For anyone unfamiliar with this term, transcribing means listening to music and writing out what you hear in music notation.

Transcribing music is hard.  There’s no better way to say it.  It combines many musical and intellectual skills in a confusing combination.  Transcribing involves critical listening, an advanced understanding of music notation, short-term memory, concentration, and a willingness to be extremely accurate.

One transcription I ask many of my students to do is the first chorus (12 bars) of Miles Davis’ solo from Freddie Freeloader from the album Kind of Blue. 

Here’s the thought process I see my students go through:

It’s only twelve bars long, and there aren’t that many notes.  The performance itself only takes about a minute, so how long could it possibly take to write it out?  Then, once it’s written out, I can read through or play it by ear.  Either way, it will be fun to play the creation of one of the master musicians of the 20th century, and I’ll be expanding my musical vocabulary.

But then, reality sets in…

I’ve actually had students contact me mid-week, between lessons, to say they’ve only gotten the first two bars done and something must be wrong.  Other students show up at their next lesson and say, ”Oh, this went really badly.  I thought I could get it done in 30 minutes or an hour.  Instead, it took me an hour a day every day this week.”

I have to reassure them that the process they went through during the week is perfectly normal.  Just about every musician needs that amount of time the first few times they try to transcribe.  New skills take time to master.

So, why do these musicians immediately question their abilities and skills?  They feel bad just because they had to spend so much time working out the details of the transcription, and they don’t think it should be this way.

I’m no psychologist, but it seems like they have feelings of inferiority–as if somehow everyone else knows a secret that they alone do not know.  They seem worried that something is actually wrong with them because they have to work hard for many, many hours to complete their work.

The trouble is, musicians often base their assumptions on a hunch.  They have no idea how the rest of the music world is dealing with a specific problem.  If any of these students asked other musicians what transcribing was like the first time they had to do it, the students would quickly see that the task itself is difficult.

To stay motivated and to be successful, musicians need to be task-oriented and stop questioning their own abilities.  Abilities will improve over time simply by completing the tasks given by music teachers.  That’s the whole point of the tasks!

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 you’re learning.  You’re also cultivating habits and learning to communicate.

Show up!

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 is a wonderful way to absorb the style and pick it up more quickly.

It’s never been easier to have instant access to virtually any type of music that’s ever been recorded–for free.  Radio stations from around the globe are now available online, and websites are set up daily to focus on specific styles of music.

There are two services that every musician absolutely must check out.  Each of these is free and easy to use.  And, they will provide you endless hours of music in a style you want to hear.

1.  iTunes: Though everyone knows iTunes for purchasing music, one of its best features is online radio.  The list of radio stations available through iTunes keeps growing, and the styles available are mind-boggling.  Many people seem unaware of the radio station function of iTunes, but it is well worth checking out.

2.  www.pandora.com:  This amazing website allows you to create customized radio stations based on songs that you like in a particular genre.  Once you try out this site, you’ll be hooked.  In addition to music, there are written descriptions of artists, songs, and albums.  Plus, suggestions for other artists who sound like the one you’re listening to are included.

Take advantage of every technology that gives you access to music.  These technologies will enrich your life and help you be a better musician.

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 that can be part of your practicing experience.

Here are some suggestions:

Free Online Sources of Music:

www.youtube.com: From professionals to beginners, videos of people playing music.  I recommend finding master musicians playing the music you’re learning.  Watch them, listen to them, and mimic them.

www.rhapsody.com:  Rhapsody is mostly thought of as a paid music service, but you can listen to a small amount of music absolutely free every month at their website.

www.grooveshark.com:  GrooveShark lets you create playlists and keep these playlists intact the next time you log onto their service.

Paid Music Services:

iTunes:  Apple’s service has become synonymous with digital music purchases in general.  For 99 cents, you can buy most music you’ll be learning to play.

Software To Practice With:

SmartMusic: This paid service gives you accompaniments to the music you’re practicing.  You can play along as well as see a report of how well you did.

Band in a Box: A brilliant accompaniment software designed mostly for popular music, this software gives you music to play along with in almost any style.  Plus, you can program in your own chord changes to practice with.  For the price, this is the best software out there for practicing musicians.

If you have favorite sources of music to listen to or practice with, please leave a comment on this blog.

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 research into the science of learning and memory shows that listening enhances the learning process.

There are many sources of music to listen to and to practice along with.  Some sources are free, and others are paid services.  Paid or free, this music should be accessed by every musician who is practicing.

In the Musician’s Practice Planner, listening can be included in the “Other” category on the teacher page.  Under Specific Goals for listening, teachers can include things like:

–listening to the piece a certain number of times per day

–listening for a specific amount of time per day

–singing along with the recording

–hearing the recording, then singing a specific section from memory

–playing along with the recording

–hearing the recording, then playing a specific section from memory

Each of these strategies will improve the learning process, make practicing more fun, and propel the student forward toward their long-term goals.

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” one.

For this reason alone, it’s important to take into consideration what you look like as you perform.  One important aspect of how you look is movement you make as you play.

There is always a balance between looking robotic or uncomfortable onstage and being too carried away by what you’re playing.  Some performers move so much that their motion is actually distracting for the audience, making it hard for ticket holders to really listen to the music.  In extreme cases, audiences have difficulty taking the performer seriously if their onstage movement seems too over the top.

The other side of the argument is that some motion that isn’t actually needed to play your instrument naturally occurs as you react to the emotions of the music you’re creating.  It’s completely normal to move around a bit as you play.

Of course, much of what’s acceptable depends on what genre you’re in.  For large-scale rock concerts, a lot of movement is expected–so much so that it’s actually rehearsed.  It’s not a coincidence that the lights change at certain points in the music, highlighting the locations of the musicians on stage.  All that movement had to be worked out–and programmed into the lighting board–ahead of time.

This makes me think about a rock band I was once in.  The record label hired a coach to help the band with our movements on stage–basically an attempt to make our stage presence stand out.  This coaching helped.  Audiences reacted more favorably to our performances, and, when we watched videos of our performances, the band really did look better and generate more excitement.

It really gets back to the question I asked at the top of today’s blog post:  Do you know what you look like when you perform?

You must have awareness of your stage presence.  The best way to do this is to videotape yourself in performance.  A day or two after the concert, watch the video.  If you were in the audience, would you like what you saw?  If not, what can you do to improve your performances visually?

I’m not suggesting that you need to worry about costumes and lighting as many rock bands do.  That may not be appropriate for you.  Instead, I’m saying that you must be comfortable with how you look.

The next time you perform, make sure someone is shooting video.  Take a look at yourself and be an objective critic of your own performance–from a visual angle.

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 down by teachers or by students during lessons.  For students to keep hold of this knowledge, they need to have access to the lesson conversations in between lessons.  In effect, the conversation needs to stay alive beyond the lesson itself.

This level of communication–in which the teacher’s words are always available to the student–is one of the many uses of the Musician’s Practice Planner.  By writing down what is said during the lesson, teachers give their students the ability to remember everything from the lesson.

The layout of the Musician’s Practice Planner is set up for exactly this purpose.  Both the Specific Goals boxes and the Special Notes for the Week section on the teacher page allow the lesson conversation to remain alive into the future as students practice at home.  When students read the words from their teachers, it’s as if they are receiving additional lessons.

Communicating with music students every day of the week is a difficult task for teachers.  Even in the era of email, Twitter, and Facebook being available anywhere at any time, there is simply not enough time in the day for teachers to effectively reach out to their students on a daily basis. 

A written record of the music lesson is still the most successful way to communicate with students in between lessons.  The Musician’s Practice Planner is the perfect tool for the task.