Comments on: Just Play

By: Just Play – Good Advice! | Acoustic Drum Kits

Just Play – Good Advice! | Acoustic Drum Kits — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 12:13:17 +0000

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By: Mike Mandaville

Mike Mandaville — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 11:07:45 +0000

So you think that my fifty-dollar Burswood is hilarious, huh? Okay, then, In that case, let’s hear how you sound on your twenty-thousand-dollar Benedetto. Stop laughing, and play. I SAID SHUT UP AND PLAY! Man, you sound just like shit on that thing. Come back after you learn how t play!

By: Chris J

Chris J — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 22:29:51 +0000

Haha, I love the part where you say, “An online presence is a must, but if you only exist online, sorry, you don’t really exist”. I have a professor that always makes the point that if you don’t exist online, then you don’t exist. Of course, he would certainly agree with you too. It’s just funny that in order for someone to really exist, they have to exist in so many ways. I’d better go get practicing.

By: Jason Parker

Jason Parker — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 16:40:29 +0000

I thought this great post by Derek Sivers was on-point to your article, Craig. Derek hits a homerun with this one (well, he does with most of his posts!):

http://sivers.org/goals

By: Cameron Mizell

Cameron Mizell — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 22:02:09 +0000

Nate,

It’s never too late, and I recommend you try to learn as much as possible. While some may argue that there are many great musicians out there that couldn’t read music, and it’s just a fact of life that musicians that can read music have more opportunities for gigs. When working with other musicians, sometimes the easiest way to describe something is to talk in terms of scales or intervals. I simply believe that music is a language and it never hurts to have a big vocabulary.

Good luck!

By: nate

nate — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 15:35:13 +0000

Is it ever to late to study?

I am 25 years old and I’ve been playing guitar on and off since I was 14. I’ve been singing as long as I can remember. Music is truly the only thing I want to do and it’s the thing I’m naturally best at…here’s the catch: I can’t read a note, I know NOTHING about scales, keys, etc…
Would doing a full degree at this point be crazy?
Should I just teach myself what I need to know and carry on doing what I’m doing?
I love music and I love to play but I feel trapped by my lack of knowledge.
Thanks for a well written article!

By: Agustin Saravia

Agustin Saravia — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 18:34:52 +0000

Great article!

It goes hand in hand with:
No matter how bad you are doing financially, never sell your instrument. If you have many keep at least one to play live and make some bucks.

By: Cameron Mizell

Cameron Mizell — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 22:55:35 +0000

The internet is a great way for people to find you, but first you’ve got to be someone worth finding.

By: James Edwards

James Edwards — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 21:17:59 +0000

Good point.

By: Carolyn Ohlbaum

Carolyn Ohlbaum — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 19:17:51 +0000

“I’m a full-time musician, and I’ve played with a number of people who spend a ton of time with their online networking and then wonder why they don’t seem to progress in popularity/networks. ”

Absolutely true. People can’t really get to know you online. It is best to have “live” contact. In that way, they can really see you and get to know you and watch and listen to your performances and know how talented you are. Once you are with other musicians, you make friends and build a rapport. And in professional music, the real way to get work is by knowing people. It’s by word of mouth. If you have good musician friends who like you and the way that you play, they will want to work with you.

Carolyn Ohlbaum