I can do eeet.

[judsywinkle]

I am kind of unhappy with the progress of my playing and it doesn't help that I haven't had a lesson in more than 3 weeks (of course that is no excuse. I just haven't had any feedback in a while is what I mean). When I first started it sucked as well, and there was a stage where I thought I couldn't learn this instrument period. I should go back to woodwinds or something. But then there was a stage where I was making a lot of progress and I was happy with the improvement etc. and now I'm back to that plateau where it seems like anything I do isn't helping. I know these periods come and go but I just hate being in this particular stage right now.

I copied this from the TalkBass forums (so that's where the credit is going) in hopes that it'll help me focus. This is someone's watered down version of "The Jazz Theory Book" by Mark Levine.

Here we go:

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So we have all sorts of threads about practicing. My favorite right now is the "How Often Do You Practice?" thread. I see a lot of people responding that they practice about an hour a day, but most of the people that I know, don't really practice an hour a day. They may play bass for an hour a day, but is there a gameplan? Organizational thought? A purpose?

PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE

• Make Music When Practicing. Instead of simply moving your hands across the fretboard, "play with feeling and intensity. Practice heads and melodies as beautifully and personally as possible." Instead of just mindlessly running through scales, make music with the scale.
  
  
• Practice Everything in Every Key. Such sage advice. "Practice everything in every key. Everything: voicings, licks, patterns, and tunes. Especially tunes. After you've learned a tune, practice it in a key other than the original one. This will highlight all your weaknesses, telling you immediately what you have to practice.
  
  
• Practice Your Weaknesses. "When practicing, concnetrate on things that you don't play well. Suppose you're practicing a lick through all 12 keys. Which keys give you the most trouble? After a rehearsal or a gig, think back on what part of your playing felt the shakiest, and start your next practice session working on that. As you pinpoint your weaknesses, you'll know exactly what to practice. If you have limited practice time, it becomes productive to pick up your instrument and practice for 15 minutes because you'll know exactly what to practice."
  
  
• Speed Comes From Accuracy. "If you're practicing something fast, and it's not getting any better, slow down. Speed comes from accuracy and relaxation. If you play something accuaretly, you can then play it a little faster."
  
  
• The Tactile and Visual Aspect. "As important as the aural (C7alt sounds like this), and the theoretical, (C7alt is the seventh mode of Db melodic minor), are the tactile (C7alt feels like this), and the visual (C7 alt looks like this), ways of internalizing music. Know how everything feels and looks like on your instrument. As you practice, a visual impint of the notes you play is made on your eyes, and a tactile imprint is made on your fingers, hands, and arms."
  
  
• Transcribing. "Learn to transcribe early and well. The best way to learn a tune is to transcribe it off the record." Years ago, before there were tabs and the internet, musicians bought the record, (instead of downloading it), and just listened to it over and over and over until they could play it, or part of it. While this will seem like a foreign concept to many of the younger members, this is how your ear is developed, and how you become a musician.
  
  
• Play Along with Real Records. "Try to get the same groove at the same energy level as the players on the record."
  
  
• Keep a Notebook. Raise your hand if you do this. How many people here, maybe one, two? Probably not many of us. "Write down the names of tunes that you want to learn, or things that you want to remember to practice. This can help you focus in on your needs, and bring some sense of order to the ever-lengthening list of stuff you want to woodshed."
  
  
• Relax. "Be aware of any unnecessary muscle tension as you play. Breathe normally and deeply. Drummer Billy Higgins always smiles when he plays. Does he know something we all should know?"
  
  
• Tap that Foot. "Whatever feels natural is ok."
  
  
• Cultivate Your Environment. "Listen to as much live music as possible. Find the best musician on your instrument in your area and ask if you can study with him or her. If he or she doesn't want to take you on, keep asking for at least a single lesson. As you watch a live performance, be aware of the interaction between musicians. How do they communicate? By signs? Verbally? Non verbally?"

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I should also add: ALWAYS PRACTICE WITH A METRONOME.

Something I don't do simply because I can't stand the ticking/beeping/noise.
Which is bad and I should probably get over it and buy one.

I don't have a clue what some of the things mentioned are but I will in time. I think I will try keeping a notebook as well because I find that lately writing things down is helping me a lot in terms of focussing and actually making progress.

I also hope this helps any musicians that are on my FList.