notes
0:00/???
  1. 1
    0:00/7:14
  2. 2
    RP 7:15
    0:00/7:15
  3. 3
    0:00/5:59
  4. 4
    0:00/6:56
  5. 5
    Shade 7:41
    0:00/7:41
  6. 6
    0:00/9:18
  7. 7
    0:00/6:47
  8. 8
    0:00/3:35
  9. 9
    0:00/10:30
  10. 10
    0:00/4:13
  11. 11
    0:00/9:11
  12. 12
    0:00/5:56
  13. 13
    0:00/5:47
  14. 14
    0:00/5:47
  15. 15
    0:00/7:58
  16. 16
    0:00/6:27
  17. 17
    0:00/7:37
  18. 18
    0:00/7:29
  19. 19
    0:00/5:51
  20. 20
    0:00/4:17
0:00/???

Find out what's new!

Sign up here!

Catch Dave Live!

Should You be Paying for Private Lessons? 

You decide That depends on what your child is getting out of it, and most importantly, what they are putting into it! Ideally, your child should be practicing (not just playing!) daily. To get the most out of lessons, you should be able to recognize a clear practice routine. If you don't know what a good practice looks like, ask your child. If they can't tell you, sit down with them and read through the article with that title. If after a few weeks you still don't recognize a routine in your…

Read more

How Well Did You Practice This Week? 

Which sounds like you?

BARELY FLOATING: This is when you basically don't play, except at your lessons. The lesson is spent reviewing basics and attacking the assignment. If this progresses for a long stretch, it can become frustrating to you and teacher. You will have little or no sense of accomplishment. I may have 1 week per year like this, tops.

TREADING WATER: You played a few times, but mainly at school. Barely looked at the assignment. Worked on little or no technique. This usually results in the…

Read more

What Should a Good Practice Session Look Like? 

Here's my humble opinion: (See following articles for detailed explanations and tips for each sub-section)

BUILD TECHNIQUE: This is the training camp of music. Just like an athlete will get stronger just from participation, your technique will get better over time from the experience of learning songs. However, if you can devote a few minutes each day to focus on technique, your skills will grow much quicker. Just those few minutes will help improve your skills, so you can more readily enjoy playing music…

Read more

Some Reasonable Routines 

Here's what a good routine might include:

BEGINNING PLAYERS

  • Technique Building:
    • Long tones- G major scale, up and down, 8 seconds per note (2-3 minutes)
    • 3 note finger drill G major done 3 times (1-2 minutes)
  • Attack Assignment:
    • Worked on one line each night until it could be played perfectly.
    • Next night, played the line(s) from the night before, and then added the next line. (5-10 minutes)
  • Played for Fun:
Read more

HOW TO BUILD TECHNIQUE 

Here's some advice:

As with most skills, the more time you devote, the more rapidly you'll progress. A daily routine with a significant focus on technique will result in dramatic growth within a period of months.

LONG TONES: This exercise is extremely important for two reasons. 1. It allows you to focus on your tone/sound. By holding one note out, for a 10-12 second stretch, you can focus on nothing but refining your sound. 2. It allows you to play faster! How? While you are concentrating on your sound, you…

Read more

HERE'S HOW TO ATTACK AN ASSIGNMENT 

HOW DO I LEARN NEW SONGS?

  1. Play through it slowly (once or twice) noting trouble spots.
  2. Start at the end. Why? So you know where the song is going!
  3. Play the last 4 measures. If you succeed, now try the last 8. If not, try it again. Still can't get it? Try just the last 2 measures.
  4. Once you get a chunk you can play well, do it 3 times in a row. Once you can do it 3 times in a row, you've got it
  5. If you note a spot where you mess up repeatedly, isolate that spot and attack it! Keep making the…
Read more

How to Play for Fun 

C'mon. Do I really need to write this? Play WHATEVER YOU WANT! Try to learn songs you like, play hi notes, low notes, make funny sounds, play as loud as you can, as soft as you can, songs to annoy others, find out what songs make the neighbors dogs howl (I grew up next door to 6 St. Bernards! No Lie!) Improvise, play the blues. Just play! Anything you do that you can repeat, means you've learned something new about the instrument!