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Dirty-South Blues Harp forum: wail on! >
How much do you practice?
How much do you practice?
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FreeWilly
212 posts
May 11, 2012
2:04 AM
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I struggle with my practice time. I'd like to play 2 hours a day, but I can't find the time to do that every day. I weigh in at 6 hours a week probably. Perhaps a little less as there are holidays where you can't play etc. Just not enough to become really really good I fear.
But then I read something here about being patient. Perhaps I just want too much too fast. Ricci says somewhere not to become frustrated with the instrument. Perhaps that goes for this problem too. Just practice as much as you can and enjoy it, and perhaps it will come to you nevertheless.
Curious what you guys do/think about this!
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Steamrollin Stan
386 posts
May 11, 2012
2:59 AM
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I have a harp in my mouth almost every day, i sometimes focus on certain things but drift into things i should not do, i am better than 4 years ago but need to be disiplined in a firm and constant routine, in other words i mess about too much.
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BronzeWailer
541 posts
May 11, 2012
3:09 AM
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You have to live your life. 6 hours a week sounds fairly reasonable. I am not in the workforce at the moment, so am able to spend a large amount of time playing/practicing.
For e.g., I had an hour-and-a-half lesson today and then busked for two hours.
Busked for three hours yesterday.
Practiced 3-4 hours, maybe more, on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Busked for two hours on Monday. Didn't do much on Sunday. Played 2.5 hour gig on Saturday. That's my harp week.
Also spend too much time on this forum and watching vids on YouTube. I already have more material than I can probably work through.
I've been going hard for two years since I picked up the harp again.
I wasted decades -- basically not playing, and am maybe making up for lost time now...
I am impatient to get better, but happy with my progress so far. The more I learn, the more I realize how much I don't know...
My advice is enjoy the journey. Record yourself so you can review what you do and also track your progress...
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waltertore
2243 posts
May 11, 2012
3:14 AM
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I never practice. Practice is boring to me. To repeat the same note, lick, over and over, for simply the purpose of owning it makes an hour seem like a day. Instead I have just played my instruments and sang songs or if not singing, let the instruments sing for me.
Over the years I have learned very little compared to most but what I have learned is making music is fun. I do lots of things throughout my day that aren't fun. Music is one thing I can have total control over with no consequence to my food, shelter, safety, needs. Music is a thing that I can do anyway I want with nothing to lose. I do play a lot, probably more in a year than many do in a lifetime. I play around 20-60(closer to 60 most times) hours a week and for years I played much more than that. My life has been lived around being able to play music and as long as I am inspired to keep playing it will continue this way. I am driven to make music, not master it in a sitting, map out certain riff song, or put a goal on when I will be to such and such a place. I don't force myself to play. I wait until it calls me. Fortunately music calls me all the time. I am rarely without inspiration to play. I have watched the forced practice model in others for decades. Most end up with a generic sound that is based on doing what most people play because the root of the goal is to unpeel and repeat what others are doing. I am not a whiz boy on my instruments but I have been able to let my voice come out through them and my singing just as it wants to. Basically if you let your soul guide you, you will not be asking these questions very often. Enjoy the Journey! Walter
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walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year.
" life is a daring adventure or nothing at all" - helen keller
4,000+ of my songs
continuous streaming - 200 most current songs
my videos
Last Edited by on May 11, 2012 3:22 AM
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CarlA
19 posts
May 11, 2012
4:50 AM
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I have found that practice on the harp is the same as any other instrument, QUALITY practice time is far superior to quantity of time played. Good luck!
-Carl
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Frank
706 posts
May 11, 2012
4:54 AM
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I'll get at the least 5 hours in a week, at the most 10 hours...I love that time spent with music and it seems like 5 min.
But when the hour is up I shut the lights off and move on to other things that are more or just as important for me to give my time to.
And I am satisfied with my yearly progress with that amount of time I devote to music. I am purely a hobbiest and am confident I could hold my own with most players out there in harmonicaville...
And I contribute that to LOVING to "practice and play" music, it's never a chore, always a delight!
And yearly I experience a higher degree of competence in myself as a player...
And yes, I believe that if one is patient and understands that getting really, really good is mostly a product of never giving up, then "in time" one will accomplish their goals, if those goals are realistic of course to the actions ones taking to reach them.
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Sarge
172 posts
May 11, 2012
5:38 AM
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I don't practice at all unless I hear a song that I want to learn.
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Wisdom does not always come with old age. Sometimes old age arrives alone.
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atty1chgo
339 posts
May 11, 2012
5:53 AM
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Not enough.
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Michael Rubin
516 posts
May 11, 2012
6:00 AM
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Freewilly,
The question is what is really really good? 6 hours a week is a lot and now that I have a wife, mortgage and kid I WISH I could find 6 hours a week. With my students I practice the rudiments a lot. 6 hours a week will easily turn you into a very good harp player who can play in popular bands and entertain people.
But by really really good you mean as good as the best of the best? (Knowing I think music is subjective and not a competition) Then in my opinion you need to quit your day job and eat three meals a day and sleep 8 hours a night. The rest of the time should be spent practicing or playing.
I probably should not be posting what could be an unpopular opinion, but that is how I think it works.
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billy_shines
389 posts
May 11, 2012
7:25 AM
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i practice tricks only now. everyday whatever my mind is into. just now i was practicing "uptight" stevie doesnt play harp on it but i can sing it ok mimicking his voice. i can fake a horn section in first thats the easy part, what i need is to fake some or at least one stevie trick without overdoing it. again im alternating between the koch and the super chromonica. the chromonica sounds better. but on stage i may get scared and go back to what i know the diatonic. as long as im in C# 1st and find a sweet spot to do at least one stevie vibratto and a few choke choke toot toot bends the audience will think i know what im doing. its like an i suck mask.
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colman
160 posts
May 11, 2012
7:41 AM
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I started to play in 1968,and for the next 10 yrs. i played 2 to 3 hrs. a day i woodsheded an learned the language and i haven`t practiced in many yrs. just playing the thing,also i been playing guitar since 1970 and that i practice regualary.so when i blow some harp i just sing a song...
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Steamrollin Stan
387 posts
May 11, 2012
8:02 AM
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@ the iceman yup, thats what i should do, commit to your schedule, i know it pays to be like this, good coment 4 sure.
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Frank
707 posts
May 11, 2012
8:48 AM
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Ice - Will a 4 min do the trick or even 3 min, why 5 min?
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orphan
134 posts
May 11, 2012
9:26 AM
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I believe I am only as good as my last practice/woodshed session. My practice schedule is fairly simple. I only practice on the days I eat.
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orphan
135 posts
May 11, 2012
9:56 AM
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That's a good one Frank. In my earlier years I didn't practice much. I played alot but didn't practice. I really like the harp, but I didn't like what I was playing anymore. It sounded boring to me, so I can imagine what it sounded like to others. I wanted to get to the next level. I found the most common advice for someone wanting to increase their ability was, "Keep it in your mouth." To me that means practicing harp has to be something I don't think about doing. Its like eating, I just do it every day. Its just a normal part of my day. I could stand to lose a few pounds though! BTW, I really think you got some great chops and always look forward to your videos.
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isaacullah
1945 posts
May 11, 2012
10:06 AM
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It's really interesting to read everybody's approaches to this, but for me, Iceman's approach really stands out because it seems that that is exactly the way I practice. I play in the morning, every morning, while I'm waiting for my coffee to brew and my toast to toast. These things are on a timer, so I always play for the same set time. I work on one or two things at a time. I play several instruments, so I rotate through them, a week or so at a time. This time is my consistent time to practice things like technique, tone, agility, musicality, etc., and I do it everyday. I also frequently play (just free play whatever I feel like) while I wait for the bus. This is typically every day during the week, but I tend not to play if others are also waiting with me. Then, I sometimes do longer sessions, about an hour or two, when I can. These longer sessions are typically spent writing and arranging songs. Then, when I busk, I do it for several hours at a time, and that's really like paid practice!
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== I S A A C ==
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waltertore
2245 posts
May 11, 2012
10:13 AM
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There really is no right or wrong. Each person has their own way of learning, what makes it exciting, etc. Back in my days of starting out there was no youtube, skype lessons, and such. I had to walk, hitchike, move, whatever, to find the guys whose sound called me as a student. I am glad I learned this way because it forced me to make music my life. This led to me learning from who I consider the greats. They first appeared in my hometown and vicinity (wilbert harrison/louisiana red/sonny terry)and then I was blindly led around the world finding others. Was I born/destined to be near them??? That is a question that could give the "is there such a thing as talent?" a run for its money. I really couldn't do art any other way than to get on when it calls, not when I call. But that is me. Who are you is who you should follow. That will always lead to the right place. The surefire test is this- are you excited about your playing? I say "you" not what you think others think of it and not how you think your playing stacks up against others, but do you enjoy the feeeling you have when you play. What you feel about your playing is the magic key to it all. If you are fullfilled (makes you feel good) with your playing you are on the right road. This will lead you to the right places for further enlightnment. If you aren't then you need to have the faith to blindly follow your heart to the right place- in other words turn your head off. You have to let your heart, not your head speak. The head can fantasize you into anything but the heart tells the truth. I can talk with experience here. I did 200-300 dates a year for 20+ years around the world. I never played at home. I thought playing at home was about the most uninspiring thing out there. Now I sit most all my playing time in a studio box playing to no one and feeling as good as when I played to a full house of positive folks. You never will know how it all plays out. I feel a resurgance in my live gigs coming minus all the BS I had to deal with the first time around. It has taken me about 15 years of isolation to shed the BS. I am not there yet, but getting closer and gigs are coming in more frequently via messages on my phone. No more hounding, tracking down, trying to convince. When I am all the way there I see my life ending playing live gigs all over the world again. Walter
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walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year.
" life is a daring adventure or nothing at all" - helen keller
4,000+ of my songs
continuous streaming - 200 most current songs
my videos
Last Edited by on May 11, 2012 12:43 PM
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The Iceman
307 posts
May 11, 2012
10:14 AM
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@frank
5 min/day is a concept I developed that has proven totally effective when followed as outlined.
There is no scientific reason for the 5 minutes - more a psychological one.
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The Iceman
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Frank
709 posts
May 11, 2012
10:15 AM
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Shoot, thank you for the kind words Orphan...BTW, I think your advice is the best so far! "Keep it in your mouth."
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Frank
710 posts
May 11, 2012
10:17 AM
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I hear you Larry, if you loose the mind game, "you've lost"...
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Lovett's Magnatones
9 posts
May 11, 2012
10:35 AM
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I'm an anomaly, I love to practice. But I work full-time, teach, gig and have a girlfriend so I definitely miss a day once in a while. I think the thing that distinguishes my practice is my focus on fundamentals. I run through all of the techniques from chord rhythm to trills as a warm-up. Then I do every bend and make sure they're all in tune and uniform. Then I work on lesson content if I have any, play a few instrumentals and transcribe. After that I put on a t-birds/little charlie and the nitecats/anson funderburgh and the rockets record and just jam. It helps to learn a more casual instrument like voice or keys or guitar so you can play along with records, not just on solos/fills/head arrangements.
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Ant138
1181 posts
May 11, 2012
11:47 AM
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I work full time but try to get maybe 15mins a day if I can. My wife works a second job on a Sunday so i try to practice after my chores for most of the afternoon. Having said that, thats only after 6 years of playing for which I tried to spend almost all of my free time playing. I eased off practicing so much probably after 4 years.
To get any good I think you need to put in the wood shed hours for a while at least:o)
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http://www.youtube.com/user/fiendant?feature=mhum
Last Edited by on May 11, 2012 11:49 AM
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walterharp
883 posts
May 11, 2012
12:21 PM
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15 minutes a work day walking to work, bonus on evening or weekends (last night an hour with the looper)
just picking it up and playing most days is the most important thing I think..so i guess i am close to iceman
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mandowhacker
132 posts
May 11, 2012
3:20 PM
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I quit driving and am on my first vacation in 11 years until I start looking for another job
I'm gonna start Iceman's plan in the morning. Timer is set. Leave ma alone. Gonna try if for a month and see what happens. It sounds like the best thing to come down the pike for me.
Iceman, thanks.
O.T.....Will entertain any jobs in West Georgia.......well most any.
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Just when I got a paddle, they added more water to the creek.
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robbert
77 posts
May 11, 2012
3:33 PM
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I took up the harp(again) at a time in my life when I happened to be driving quite a lot. This time was invaluable to me. So, I never was taking an inconvenient drive, I was learning how to play!
I also had some concentrated daily time.
I wanted to learn to play harp and also perform, so I helped found at, one time, 4 different groups to play in. This really helped urge me to better myself on the instrument, as most of the musicians I found myself with were good players. Not professional,(they had day jobs and family, like me)but good, nonetheless.
I also decided to try and put myself forward as at least a beginning instructor, and this forced me to work on getting proficient at basic technique, a little theory, and explanations, etc.
All these situations have given me more impetus to 'practice' I guess. Creating necessity for oneself. It's been a lot of fun and has led to good friendships with all my musical buddies.
Currently, I have embarked on a new project: to play torch songs(standards of a certain ilk)with a jazz-inclined singer. She knows the songs, but she doesn't have any other musicians...yet. Just to be clear, although I am developing a strategy, I don't really know these songs, I'm not a proficient music reader, and I'm not really technical enough to play jazz standards, and have no idea how this will all turn out, yet here I am...more fun!
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John95683
30 posts
May 11, 2012
3:37 PM
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Jeez, Iceman, at 5 minutes per day, it would take 333 years to reach 10,000 hours :-)
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BronzeWailer
542 posts
May 11, 2012
3:52 PM
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I was at first taken aback by Iceman's advice but now I think it is a good idea. I can afford more than 5 minutes, but am guilty of too much faffing around and lack of discipline.
From now on, I will focus in more on learning one thing at a time. Just spent 20 minutes playing along to jam tracks in 1st position only using the low end of the harp.
Michael Rubin's latest vid is very useful in this respect. Thanks!
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robbert
78 posts
May 11, 2012
5:05 PM
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Although I explained my approach to learning the instrument by creating situations in which I need to learn and upgrade my skills, I didn't actually answer the specific time I spend playing.
I spend 1/2 hr per day on various scales, techniques,licks, ideas, etc.(this varies from day to day).
I spend 6 hours per week in various rehearsals(I'm not always playing, however)and 6 hours per week on average at gigs.
So, I am playing every day, one way or another. I don't consider myself a great player, but in working with others, I am constantly learning how to use what I can do to contribute to the music we are making, and I am constantly working to better my skills. It's a daily thing.
Oh, and although I get to play a lot of lead, I am definitely a sideman. I can't carry a show by myself, although, in the last couple of years, I've learned how to be in a duo. This is much more exposed than being in a larger ensemble. I can't see myself as a solo act, although I love seeing what others do with this format.
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garry
211 posts
May 11, 2012
7:15 PM
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i practiced once, but it didn't work; i still couldn't play. so i gave it up.
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laurent2015
181 posts
May 11, 2012
7:23 PM
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Is it allowed to ask sub-questions?
-Do you believe that listening to other harp player's music is part of practice (I wonder if this question is not a clue of laziness).
-I like every amplified sound I hear from the vid's you put in your topics, but I can't reach this amplified sound myself, I'm not satisfied by mine: maybe it explains that 3 or 4 days without playing is not an exception (I own a Roland Cube 20 and 3 mics, but it doesn't help...)
-I can read tabs or sheet music, but fast it piss me off,(even far from a bowl!)and I loose patience.
My only "skill" is having good ears and pitch and thus
fancy play by ear; I don't find I'm really progressing though.
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Conflictz
22 posts
May 11, 2012
7:50 PM
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practice walking down the block an waiting for the bus, works well and gets chicks attention....if youre good lmao. theres always a little 2 minute time frame where youre doing nothing, thats a shuffle right there!
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"When you thinkin' evil, you thinkin' about the blues" - The Wolf
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nacoran
5653 posts
May 11, 2012
8:12 PM
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I'm discovering I don't do enough improvisation practice with other musicians or music. I can play melodies I'm familiar with, and I work up versions of our songs in practices, but it takes me a while to figure out something I like. I have a rough time improvising something on the fly with other music going on. I need to work on that more. (I think I don't work on in much part because I most of my practice time, even being in a band, is solo. When I play along with a song it's usually something in my music library and I already know some of it's structure. I really hate keying songs, even although I'm much better at it than I used to be. I'm really terrible at improvising in minor keys with major keyed harps, which means I need to either spend a lot more time practicing that or buy more minor keyed harps. Oddly, when I'm trying to learn a melody, I do better on the upper end of the harp. I try to leave harps all over the place. I play them a lot when I'm watching TV, sitting at the computer, in parking lots (don't practice while I'm driving). Playing watching TV can be fine for mechanical stuff, but not so much for the more academic stuff. (Sometimes I try to key the tunes in the commercials). I like theoretical academic stuff more than the memorizing parts. I can figure out using the order of flats and sharps and the circle of fifths what key has what, but a lot of that stuff is more useful if you just have it cold memorized. The other day we got an extra song. We were just jamming and I grabbed my F#, and I had a moment where I just couldn't figure out what key to tell the guitar player to play in. Part of it was that's usually the opposite direction I calculate cross harp vs. key, and part of it was I was trying to figure it out with everyone looking at me, but if I'd spend more time on some of the rote memorization stuff I'd be better off.
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Nate
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Moon Cat
74 posts
May 11, 2012
9:26 PM
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Everyone said good stuff it obviously depends on WHAT you want your playing to do and sound like as far as how much and what kind of practice.
I think like Narcono said its wicked helpful to put harps all over the place car/coffee table/kitchen/desk etc...Then some times just seeing that harp gets it going. What Narc said is big stuff for me and I kept reading ev ereyones answers waiting for someone to say excactly that. Theres different kinds of practicing as we have all established.
I hate practicing but if I force myself to do it it gets easier and helps me act less crazy during and for a little while after.
I'm also crazy about wind up metronomes wend the winder runs out I've finished that exercise at that tempo.
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nacoran
5654 posts
May 11, 2012
10:50 PM
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This just in, I'm now offering practice lessons endorsed by Moon Cat himself! For $50 (plus travel expenses, plus harmonica expenses), I'll come to your house and scatter your harmonicas everywhere!
You may think you disorganize your harps well, but you haven't seen how well I leave things all over the place. I found a check the other day that was 7 years old. I once found raisins behind my friends couch- we'd had a grape tossing/mouth catching contest 5 years before. I can leave harps everywhere for you to find to inspire you to practice! And remember, when your significant other tells you that you shouldn't leave stuff lying around, just tell them you need them lying around to help you practice... and to be glad you don't play tuba!
:)
It's funny how little things can keep us on track. When I was in high school I had a dumbbell. I used to like to leave it in the living room. I'd see it, pick it up, and do some curls. My mom always complained that I should put it away. The problem was, when I put it away it wouldn't see it, so I wouldn't pick it up. Out of sight out of mind.
I like Iceman's advice too. Who practices for 5 minutes? Once I pick up my harp I don't put it down until I something else shiny comes along (or I need my hands for something else- I keep thinking that if I could invent good video game controllers I could use with my feet I'd practice even more). But who is going to complain about having to practice for 5 minutes? It's a great way to get around the blahs. When I'm exercising (I just started doing fairly long walks again yesterday) I tell myself I'm just going to walk to the corner and back, or maybe down to the old school. It's a manageable goal. Once I get to the corner though I usually keep going. (I might have to find a better walking path though. Mine seems to be all uphill both ways!)
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Nate
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Steamrollin Stan
388 posts
May 12, 2012
12:34 AM
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Tonight i'm alone, i'm gonna have a few drinks, i'm gonna grab all my tin sandwiches, and i'm gonna get my Ronnie Shellist cd going and learn a riff, i've focused on these b4 and have only perfected 2 out of about 20, tonight/ this week i'll get one more up and running in my permanent memory bank. And have fun at the same time.
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FreeWilly
213 posts
May 12, 2012
2:24 AM
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This makes for an interesting (and funny - thanks Nate) read.
@MichaelRubin (thanks for the new M&P lesson btw): really really good? Jason Ricci comes to mind. Carlos del Junco. People that can play the instrument as a real instrument and always sound good and exciting. That's what I strive for. Problem is, if you quit your dayjob, you must already be that good, otherwise you can't make a living playing harp..
I'd like to comment/question the 2 main ideas in this thread:
The problem with scattering harps and always-play kind of approach (I have a better method than Nate btw: For travel costs+harmonica costs+ only 20$, I'll come to your house and put a harmonica in your pocket ;) ) is the incompatibility with the most important principle I leaned by playing semi-professional volleyball: you play as you practice. I always learned that every ball you play should be as though it was the last point in the seasons finals. If you're sloppy at practice, you will be come game-time too. Now of course you need to breathe/sleep/eat music, but I always believed you needed to do that concentrated. So playing in front of a tv.. I do it sometimes, but I don't believe it improves my playing too much. Chuckle/unconscious repetition of repetoir.. that's how far that goes.
What I like about Iceman's idea for this reason is that he says: play at the same time/place every day. That means: focus. What seems problematic about that approach though is another sports-thing: always warm up first. You want you body/mind to be relaxed and warm. So starting to practice one or two things without breathing properly first and playing some scales/bends/fast stuff? I'd be afraid to breathe wrong by starting to practice stuff I can't do. I always start out simple with breathing. Than chuckles, than scales, than bends, than triplets, than 16th notes, and than I play whole songs/transcribe songs/practice improvising. I never practice shorter than 15 minutes therefore.
I really like the 5 minute idea though. Guess I could do with 1 minute breathing etc. before doing something new. It's better than nothing for sure.
Still, I guess I'd need to practice more to achieve my goals. But hell, I'm 26. Who knows I will get there someday..
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Ray
386 posts
May 12, 2012
3:53 AM
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I like Iceman's advice too.
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Michael Rubin
518 posts
May 12, 2012
6:09 AM
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Freewilly,
If you truly want to be as good as Jason or Carlos, you need to start making serious sacrifices. Start finding ways to spend less money. Find an efficiency apartment. If you are spending a monthly car bill, sell your car and buy a junker that is fully paid. Get rid of your significant other.
Then, find out the least amount of hours needed to keep your job. If health insurance is the issue, consider going part time and buying private insurance. Or taking a risk and no insurance. Believe me, I went many a year with no insurance trying to keep the expenses down.
Consider finding a job that is okay if you take a week off here and there. Substitute teaching is wonderful because if you do not want to work tomorrow, you do not have to discuss it with your boss, you just tell the computer you are not available. So, if you are scheduled to work tomorrow but a music gig appears, no worries, just cancel the sub job and someone else gets it instead.
Begin making money goals with music. This month I will make $100 at music. Once achieved, raise the goal. I still do this.
Believe me, every very skilled musician had to go through discovering how to make a living while playing. You can do anything you want. Make it happen. I for one would love to hear another great harp player.
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laurent2015
183 posts
May 12, 2012
6:18 AM
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About scattered harps: sometimes I hear a music on the radio or from a vid and try to find the proper harp to play(whatever)on the music with; when I get it, the music often's ending...
I thus bought a case to gather and sort the harps by keys,it could be easier.
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Tuckster
1031 posts
May 12, 2012
6:20 AM
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I like Iceman's 5 minute a day/every day. But what do you practice? Most of the time,I just play,which keeps up my chops. But I'm just treading water- no forward progress. Sometimes I'll hear something in my head and try to channel it through the harp. Sometimes, it will come right out,other times,I'll have to work quite a bit to match head/harp. And there are other times when I can't find those 1 or 2 notes and give up in frustration.
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FreeWilly
214 posts
May 12, 2012
6:46 AM
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Michael, I very much respect people with that sort of drive. I haven't found that kind of passion yet, but it's good to know that path lies out there. I'll be looking for shortcuts :)
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waltertore
2246 posts
May 12, 2012
6:59 AM
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What Michael says about sacrafice is true. I will add that if you are really driven you don't see sacrifices just the need to play.
Kids- I chose not to have them so to play music without compromise. When I met my wife (32 years ago) I said up front music is my #1 and no kids. Lucky for me she was ok with that.
Health insurance - went 25 years without any. Never went to doctors, just doctored myself
Career- barely finished high school and hit the music road. College? That came in my late 30's because I found another passion calling that required I get a degree. For 25 years I did day manual labor jobs and played at night often on no sleep.
Home- Never owned a home till I quit playing full time and got my college degree. Until then lived in ghetto housing full of all the dangers that go with that. I lived in 6 states, over 30 different addresses, and a forgien country (illegally) in order to keep playing my music.
security- never had a bank acount. All I owned was in the back pocket
agent- never had one
If I look at that kind of life as I am typing this I would say no way, no can do. The main reason being I have found a different but equally satifying way to do music today. Today, like back then I did all this without a thought except to be able to play my music in ways that satified me. I always ran into musicians in the audience that would say they wish they could do what I was doing but they would say their town is not suportive for music. I said neither was mine and I have lived in over 30 of them! People often don't realize that the little gig, that little stage, playing to a couple dozen- 200 people took a lifetime of living strictly for the music. Like I said earlier, one has to look in their heart and ask are they satified. If they are that is great. If not, they have to be willing to walk blindly to find it. Very few do but many want it without doing that walk. these quick fix get you there approaches will never turn you into more than that. There is no short cut for devoting your life to it. Time is what develops depth and style. Our society continues to preach a -you can be a master of anything in 5 easy lessons. I have nothing against that approach, just leave out the master part :-)
Live your life for peace and happiness. That will make most of what you do satifying. You may never be what most consider a monster player but if you are satified, that is all that matters. Walter
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walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year.
" life is a daring adventure or nothing at all" - helen keller
4,000+ of my songs
continuous streaming - 200 most current songs
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Last Edited by on May 12, 2012 7:15 AM
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Lovett's Magnatones
10 posts
May 12, 2012
9:44 AM
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To jump on with what Michael said about day jobs, for musicians call-centers can be a great fit. I work 9-5 M-F, and if I have to call out, or change my schedule because I have a gig two hours away the night before, it's no big deal. You aren't dealing with regular work, there's just a list of calls coming into a queue. Stay away from collections! Something like telemarketing(biz dev)or customer service is perfect. You can also find this kind of work often in temp agencies which affords you even more flexibility. DO NOT WORK IN RESTAURANTS. I couldn't play more than five gigs a year or teach at nights until 2 years ago because of this industry.
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billy_shines
390 posts
May 12, 2012
12:12 PM
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i give up i cant play temptation or sing it it in key. its too complex and im not white enough to compete with bing crosby. screaming jay hawkins could do it but he had opera singing and classical piano training. im at a loss what to practice now. maybe back to "uptight" more my speed.
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nacoran
5655 posts
May 12, 2012
1:05 PM
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I suspect keying songs may be a skill that will become less and less important. There is software that will tell you what key a song is in, and there is software that will tell you what song you are listening to. There may be something out there already that will tell you the key of a song that someone else is playing already. If not someone will come up with it and it's already possible to do if you are willing to take a couple steps. Is it a crutch? Well, yeah, but we don't need to know how to milk a cow today either. Actually, making a free branded app to find the key might not be a bad move for one of the harp companies. There used to be a plug-in for Windows Media Player that would key a song, and it seemed to have been developed by one person in their spare time. (Sadly, it's not supported by newer versions of WMA.)
Attached to an piece of an open source media player and a microphone and the programming would mostly be just adding a user interface. You might even be able to combine it with a graphic representation of the notes on a harmonica (like the one in Bendometer) you could make an app that would show you what cords you should be playing while your playing along with something.
It may sound like cheating to players steeped in improvisation, but it's really just like someone handing you sheet music to what they are playing. :) Of course, we've discussed in other threads if learning to play from sheet music hurts creativity. Maybe you could set it up to give you just cord suggestions or actual note suggestions based on what exactly you are practicing. I think Bendometer already has a feature to show you what notes to play, just not the feature to figure out what notes you should play (I think you have to manually input tab into it to get something to play along to).
In my earlier example where I blanked calculating the circle of fifths backwards it was an awkward moment. I hadn't had that problem with my other harps that night. They were all Lee Oskars, which label 1st and 2nd position. It was when I grabbed a GM in an oddball key (F#) that I got into trouble. You could argue either way- that I should have that cold in my memory, or that all harps should have it stamped on the cover. :)
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Nate
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The Iceman
308 posts
May 12, 2012
4:27 PM
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Tuckster asks "but what do you practice?" in regards to the 5 min/day concept.
Here are a few suggestions:
1. Exhale hole 4 - extend your duration (see how long you can sustain this note). Try to start out with a confident tone, expand it a bit after it is established and keep it at a constant fullness right up till you run out of air (no variation in volume or "shakiness" to the tone) and start to really listen to your creation. You are the Creator, so can conjure almost anything into reality tone wise. Then reverse the air flow and do the same on the inhale note. Learn what lives inside a single tone and how you control it. It becomes almost a meditation in sound after 5 minutes of focus.
2. Get inside and understand 4 hole inhale bend. Find out where you place your tongue, what your throat is doing, find the "floor" and make it a physical sensation so you can start to float this note about one foot above the floor, pulling it into proper pitch.
3. Practice the "Hut-tah Hut-tah" groove as described in my "Church of the Sacred Hut-tah Hut-tah" concept from one of my wild teaching ideas about 8 years ago, developed during Blues Week at Augusta Heritage Center.
4. Play the diatonic scale to the 9th degree and back, from hole 4 inhale to 8 inhale, up and down, slow and then increase the speed.
5. Play a 4-5 trill and start to slow down and speed it up, playing it measured and then unmeasured to find all the different ways it can be done. You can also start to alter the size of your throat chamber to hear how this changes the tone.
As you can see, there are many aspects to work on. Just choose one (or maybe 2) to focus on at each session.
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The Iceman
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rbeetsme
748 posts
May 12, 2012
6:51 PM
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I think it all depends on how well you want to play. If you are just fooling around, jamming occasionally, you'll likely be satisfied with a short list of techniques and a fairly consistant sound. If you are a working player, you best get yo butt in the woodshed! I know Jason has stated that he practices daily, and not just playing over tunes, but seems to have a fairly rigid routine, and it shows. I know a bluegrass player that claims he practices 8 -10 hours a day, and again, it shows, he can play stuff that is nearly impossible. As the Bible says, "you reap what you sow..." I am currently distracted by other instruments I want to learn to play, so the harp has not been a priority. Curiously, after messing with other instruments and picking up the harp, I am surprised at what comes out.
Last Edited by on May 12, 2012 6:54 PM
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mandowhacker
135 posts
May 12, 2012
8:16 PM
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"Once I get to the corner though I usually keep going."
I know that to be true. It's that first step out the door that's difficult.
The corner, and beyond, is just one foot after the other.
Greg
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Just when I got a paddle, they added more water to the creek.
Last Edited by on May 12, 2012 8:18 PM
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12gagedan
220 posts
May 12, 2012
10:35 PM
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I practice in the car, for the most part, 30-min to then another 30 home from work. With very few exceptions, that's it for the past two years. A certain thing may work well for you, but that doesn't make it a principle of learning. In my opinion, "as much as you can" is a good target. It's your journey. If it's in you, you'll figure out how to make it work.
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12gagedan's YouTube Channel
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jodanchudan
630 posts
May 13, 2012
2:13 AM
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I don't really have a practice routine, though I know I should. I do play quite a lot - about an hour or two a day (often in the car on the way to work). Whatever structured practice I get is usually accidental - I'll notice I'm struggling to play a particular lick or bend and then find myself repeating it over and over, tapping out the time on the dashboard (actually that can't be right - that would leave no hands for steering ). One thing I do do is try not to noodle, so I'll aim to have control over the structure of what I'm playing.
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