(no subject)
As the year turns, I suddenly find myself getting involved in music again. It's about time; a whole 'semester' done without a music course of some kind. That's really weird, considering I had music courses every single semester at college, and have been taking music classes since at least second grade (which a few years later turned into band instead of general music).
Two weeks ago I paid for a month of lessons at a local music store. I just had my first lesson today--in drumming. As in, drum-kit kind of drumming, which is fairly different from the West African drumming I learned at Wes. For one thing, the drum kit requires that I be able to use each limb individually. For another, the exercises he has me doing can actually be written down--WestAf drumming is taught orally. So I've spent a bit of time (after the lesson) today practicing the rudimentary exercises I was assigned, and then going for a simple pattern for drum kit (which I did on my practice pad/the air, since I don't have an actual drumkit--and why would I?). It should be fun. One big similarity to WestAf drumming is that everything has to be repeated ad infinitum in order to learn it. Of course.
I've also been working on piano. Last week when I bought my practice pad for drumming, I also picked up a level 2 piano book and two books of 'pre-practice' exercises. The exercises are worth it. They're building up certain techniques, and getting me used to moving my hands together and separately with fairly uncomplicated exercises. Muscle memory is my goal there. If I can pass finger 1 under 2 or 3 in the exercise, I'm more likely to do it seamlessly on a piece of music. I'm about halfway through the first book--that's why I bought two. I could tell that the exercises wouldn't take me long to learn, but would be useful.
As for the piano book, I've now successfully learned two songs. Well, almost. Every time I practice, the songs are coming out more smoothly and with fewer mistakes. I can play without having to review the right hand separately from the left, and without pausing for more than a second on tricky parts. I've started working on a third and fourth piece. The third is a blues piece. I had to take that one a little more carefully, because blues intimidate me for some reason. I looked at it and my brain said 'Way Too Complicated' so I told myself to learn the first four bars to start. That was yesterday or the day before. Today I was able to play, slowly, with both hands. Yay! Progress! I guess I did manage to pick the correct level for my skills. Something easy enough to give me confidence and difficult enough that it's taking me a couple days to learn pieces passably well. I think this book will take a while to work through, but once that's done--level 3! Provided I can stay focused that long.
Some of this is because I miss music. Some is because the more versatile I am as a musician, the more likely it is that I'll be able to find work within my field. And, you know. I like learning instruments. Piano should not have been as intimidating as I thought it was. I'm finding it fairly easy to learn, now that I'm playing on my own level. Good way to ruin confidence? Take a third music theory class and have the TA tell you and classmates to play at least one line on a piece that has four separate piano lines (not chorded, per se, but something like a Bach chorale), then keep giving more complicated pieces and asking us to sight read AND sight sing. Yeah. No. My knowledge of music theory is waaay beyond my ability to play those concepts on a keyboard instrument.
Ah, well. I am rapidly improving, and quite pleased with my progress so far. Now to stay focused on this for a significant length of time.
Two weeks ago I paid for a month of lessons at a local music store. I just had my first lesson today--in drumming. As in, drum-kit kind of drumming, which is fairly different from the West African drumming I learned at Wes. For one thing, the drum kit requires that I be able to use each limb individually. For another, the exercises he has me doing can actually be written down--WestAf drumming is taught orally. So I've spent a bit of time (after the lesson) today practicing the rudimentary exercises I was assigned, and then going for a simple pattern for drum kit (which I did on my practice pad/the air, since I don't have an actual drumkit--and why would I?). It should be fun. One big similarity to WestAf drumming is that everything has to be repeated ad infinitum in order to learn it. Of course.
I've also been working on piano. Last week when I bought my practice pad for drumming, I also picked up a level 2 piano book and two books of 'pre-practice' exercises. The exercises are worth it. They're building up certain techniques, and getting me used to moving my hands together and separately with fairly uncomplicated exercises. Muscle memory is my goal there. If I can pass finger 1 under 2 or 3 in the exercise, I'm more likely to do it seamlessly on a piece of music. I'm about halfway through the first book--that's why I bought two. I could tell that the exercises wouldn't take me long to learn, but would be useful.
As for the piano book, I've now successfully learned two songs. Well, almost. Every time I practice, the songs are coming out more smoothly and with fewer mistakes. I can play without having to review the right hand separately from the left, and without pausing for more than a second on tricky parts. I've started working on a third and fourth piece. The third is a blues piece. I had to take that one a little more carefully, because blues intimidate me for some reason. I looked at it and my brain said 'Way Too Complicated' so I told myself to learn the first four bars to start. That was yesterday or the day before. Today I was able to play, slowly, with both hands. Yay! Progress! I guess I did manage to pick the correct level for my skills. Something easy enough to give me confidence and difficult enough that it's taking me a couple days to learn pieces passably well. I think this book will take a while to work through, but once that's done--level 3! Provided I can stay focused that long.
Some of this is because I miss music. Some is because the more versatile I am as a musician, the more likely it is that I'll be able to find work within my field. And, you know. I like learning instruments. Piano should not have been as intimidating as I thought it was. I'm finding it fairly easy to learn, now that I'm playing on my own level. Good way to ruin confidence? Take a third music theory class and have the TA tell you and classmates to play at least one line on a piece that has four separate piano lines (not chorded, per se, but something like a Bach chorale), then keep giving more complicated pieces and asking us to sight read AND sight sing. Yeah. No. My knowledge of music theory is waaay beyond my ability to play those concepts on a keyboard instrument.
Ah, well. I am rapidly improving, and quite pleased with my progress so far. Now to stay focused on this for a significant length of time.