Learning Guitar

Posts Tagged ‘drums’

There are so many instruments out there it can be very difficult to know which one you should really chase when it comes to learning how to play. It really does depend on just how old you are on which instrument I would recommend you learn.

The Recorder

So many people think that this instrument is a bit of a joke but it is a really good first instrument to learn how to play and play smaller songs to. Many children still learn to play these instruments at school simply because not only are they easy to play but cheap to buy too.

The Guitar

Guitars have to be next on the list as they are relatively easy to teach, at least the simple chords are anyway. It takes an expert to be able to play really good music that is for sure but many simple songs can be learnt with relative ease.

Drums

Drum Kits also have to be top on the list of instruments to learn. Although many people think the drums are easy to master, they arent but if you fancy a smash on them you can. This has to be one of my favourites simply because we have a set at home and when I am in the mood I will smash the hell out of them.

These are of course not the only instruments you can learn but just some of the easier ones to pick up. Other trickier ones include the violin, piano and yes DJ Equipment. This is something that is going to be very hard to pick up and although I do not like the music I have to say, it’s a skill to be able to use it.

All I can really say that if you are thinking of playing an instrument you must learn to look after the thing and clean it and they are not easy to learn.

Have you been auditioning for different bands and not scoring the gig?  Musicians are very critical of the other musicians they play with, although they will probably not be brutally honest about what they see and hear.  We don’t want to hurt your feelings so we say something nice and then never call you again. I have auditioned lots of musicians who never got a call back.  Here are some the most important aspects of an audition – mistakes musicians have made when auditioning for one of my bands:

1)  Skill – can you keep up – learn to play the drums

I have auditioned many guys thought they could play but couldn’t keep proper time or didn’t know what chord changes were going on, got lost in every song – just couldn’t keep up musically.

2)  Listening – are you paying attention?

I have played with a few really skilled musicians who paid absolutely no attention to what was going on around them. It was like they had spent years practicing by themselves in their bedroom. They could play amazing things but what they played made no sense in the context of the band.  The notes you play should complement what everybody else is doing and the song should work as a whole.

3)  Personality – are you a nice person?

This is a big deal – I have played some shows with great players who live their life a sentence or two from a punch in the face.  Remember when you were a kid and folks told you “if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.”  I have met many great musicians who desperately need to revisit that concept. They were so negative that it was really hard to be in the same room with them for very long.

learn to play the drums