One of the problems we have as musicians is a plateau in development and drive. It’s happened to almost everybody I know in one way or another and it’s the most frustrating thing to deal with. Over the years I’ve found that the most common reason for a plateau is a lack of clearly defined and achievable goals. Let me make a very clear distinction, practice...
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Be Prepared Being prepared is something that I have been taught since I was young. This was reiterated all my life by family, teachers, coaches, and scout leaders. Not only has this help me immensely in my musical career, but often in many other day to day life situations. In music as many other careers being prepared can mean the difference between being successful or...
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Rehearsal is an important aspect (at least it should be!) to all musicians, performers and teachers. It’s something we have spent countless hours doing throughout our careers. Whether it’s with a band, orchestra, or solo in a quiet place, it takes practice to develop good rehearsal skills. Something I ask of my students often is to walk me through their home practice and rehearsal routines. How...
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Now that Fall is here, no doubt you are planning for your recital. The recital is probably the best marketing event you do all year. Everyone gets to see all your kids progress, they go home, and they tell their friends. Then they call you wanting to take lessons. Great! You can up your game by doing a few things to make it easier for possible...
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by Wayne Estes Just recently, I spent an entire weekend video recording and editing the videos for a few of my advanced students to submit for college auditions. We discovered a few things that I feel are worth sharing… It is never too early to start to record yourself performing and practicing with audio and video at home prior to your professional video recording date. Both audio...
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