Concentration We have all been there when at a moment of weakness, our mind wanders to something other than what we are doing and disaster strikes. This could be while driving a car, installing a new light switch or it could be in the middle of a perfectly good solo. The lack of concentration can be caused from many reasons but the most common is shear laziness. Concentrating on anything takes practice and concentration. To become more proficient, we need to spend some time practicing it as much as any other ability. What do the Yoga’s say? Yoga is a…

Learn Your Material Too often we think that we know our solo or orchestral passage and wonder why we made an error on the concert. A wonderful measurement of how well you are prepared for a solo or exposed part in a concert is to use this test. Are you able to play your material ten times in a row without making a mistake? Most of us are content to play the passage one time without error. This is not an example of being prepared. Being able to play it correct one time means that you are now ready to…

Performing in a musical setting can be a joy and in many cases a frustration. When we are good, we are very, very good and when we are bad, it sucks! Even after months of practice we find ourselves making errors in a performance. This frustrating occurrence can come at any time and at any place in our music and no matter how much time is spent in preparation, a mistake or as described in the terms of a jazz setting, we clammed, scratched, dropped, piffed, bobbled or goofed notes unexpectedly. We all do it and no matter how much…