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Playing
tips
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Guitar
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Trumpet |
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| Bass
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Piano |
| Saxophone |
Violin |
| General |
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| Guitars
come in many shapes and sizes. Choose a guitar that suits your physical
size and shape but also consider the style of music you want to play. |
| Watch
your posture right from the beginning. If you avoid forming any bad
habits you will hopefully not develop back pain, tendonitus etc. Call
into the store for a list of local teachers and consider having a
couple of lessons to get you off to a good start. |
| Try
and develop a clean, accurate technique as soon as you can. This will
allow you to progress more quickly into various styles. |
| Become
familiar with traditional notation as well as tabs. It's not as hard
as it seems especially if you use the US method of naming notes as
quarter, eighth, sixteenths etc. Approach it mathematically and it
makes sense. |
| When
gigging make sure you have spare strings, picks, leads, batteries
etc. They could save you a lot of embarrassment. |
| Be
open to as many different styles as possible. You can always learn
something from any music you listen to. |
| Learn
your scales and theory. It really helps to understand what you're
playing. |
| Bass
tips |
| Bass
is a big instrument and it will hurt your fingers!! Pace your practice
to include rest in between sessions. |
| Use
exercises from lots of sources. Don't get locked into one way of thinking.
If you only practice major scales your fingers fall into certain patterns
so try to train your fingers equally by using different fingering.
E.g. C major scale = C D E F etc. C altered scale = C Dflat Eflat
E Gflat etc. |
| Don't
be afraid to ask other bass players about their technique and approach.
Most professional musicians are happy to offer advice and pass on
their experiences. |
| Adjust
your bass so it is comfortable to play in a relaxed position. Don't
just copy your hero because it looks cool! |
| Make
sure your practice is focused. Slow all exercises down so you can
execute them without mistakes. You are training muscle memory. By
rushing exercises and not focussing you will train yourself to make
mistakes and play badly. If you this happens you will have to compensate
for bad technique. |
| Trumpet
tips |
| Always
twist your mouthpiece into the leadpipe, don't tap it in with the
palm of your hand because it will get stuck. Our repairs department
can remove it with a special tool. repairs@suttonandbansteadmusic.co.uk
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| Put
a dab of vaseline on the screw threads of the valves and bottom caps
to prevent them getting stuck. |
| Grease
your slides with vaseline regularly to prevent them sticking. |
| Consider
using the Yamaha Silent Brass system to allow practice at anytime
of day! Link
to Yamaha |
| Saxophone
tips |
| Wet
the reed before putting it on the mouthpiece. This helps to reed to
vibrate producing a better tone. |
| Clean
your saxophone after playing. Wash your mouthpiece in COLD water (hot
water will discolour an ebonite mouthpiece) and use a neck pull through
to clean the inside of the crook. |
| Use
a soft cloth to polish the outside of the saxophone, just elbow grease
NOT BRASSO! |
| Apply
cork grease regularly to the crook cork and also to the joint that
goes into the saxophone body if it becomes stiff. |
| Try
a mouthpiece patch to make your teeth more comfortable and prevent
them from slipping. |
| Make
sure your strap is the correct length for you, try your saxophone
a little higher to see if it is more comfortable. |
| Piano
tips |
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Keep your wrists up!
It makes it easier to playing evenly up and down the scales.
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| Always
practice exercises slowly at first so your can concentrate on hand
position and train muscle memory to create good technique. |
| Try
and make a smooth melodic line. The piano uses hammers but you don't
want it to sound like that! Think of the notes linking together to
create a smooth line. |
| Be
careful not to over use the sustain pedal as this can create a muddy
sound. Concentrate on playing longer note duration's without the sustain
pedal, especially in the left hand. |
| Work
on each fingers technique evenly, don't forget your little pinkie! |
| Violin
tips |
| Think
of the violin as an extension of your arm which should be relaxed
and comfortable. Avoid hunching your left shoulder. |
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Keep the position of
the violin horizontal with the floor. If the scroll points towards
the floor you have poor posture and this will create tension over
time. Hold the neck with your fingers and thumb not your wrist.
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| Make
sure you use the whole bow as this will produce a smoother sound. |
| Remember
to slacken the tension on your bow after playing and try to avoid
using too much rosin. |
| General
Tips |
Listening to music is as important as playing it. Listen to as many
concerts, the radio or cd's as much and as often as you can. |
| Keep
your instrument clean and in good working order. |
When choosing an instrument or mouthpiece, make sure you consult your
teacher to see what they think you will sound best on. |
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It is best to practice a little and often. Practice is an ongoing
thing! |
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