Do you have some Rhythmic accountability? Rhythm is at the core of all good music, and the notes that we choose to play are not as important as the groove.
Groove is everything. If we break it we may have failed as a musician. This is why we must make best friends with our metronome. We must always try to use it when practicing, and must understand that it does not teach us to play in time but teaches us how to listen while playing!
Listening to oneself and others when making music is one of the highest priorities when on stage or playing music with other people. If the student has a hard time staying in the pocket with a metronome, they are not listening and have divided their attention between too many things. A sure sign that what they are working on is too advanced, really demonstrating they are unable to truly listen.
Moving with the metronome is highly recommended. A small twisting motion or slight āswayā is what is required. That way we can embody the groove and concentrate on laying our music down over it. Feel the grove. Ride it and dance!
Now Iāve discovered my tuner has a metronome Iāve started using it a lot it makes my already not bad rhythm tighter. I did however start out playing drums for a bit when I was really young so I can keep a rhythm pretty well
This is so cool Corky. The way Sam reacted when he got the double shuffle was just amazing. I love it. I sing rhythms and lics to my students as well and find it really helps. I believe that āif you canāt say it you canāt play it!ā When I get a new song or tab for harp I listen to a recording of it a LOT to āear wormā it into my head I make sure to sing it to myself as soon as I can,
Indian people speak all their Rhythms most Indian musical instruments play counter points to each other which fit exactly thatās because their music is never written down, it is passed down via oral tradition. I did a few Indian Martial arts in my time and during sparring sessions with and without weapons we had musical accomplishments. All fights and violent confrontation looks like chaos but it all actually has two things a ritual and a beat. I know Iām getting off the beaten track here but itās just an example of how Indian people teach and learn, when a sitar player of great standing like Ravi Shankar taught people he would use a language of the music he was teaching he would speak it to his students and then they would have to speak it back. I think George Harrison once spoke about this as he had some lessons on the sitar from Ravi Shankar. Someone Iāve admired as a musician for years. I listen to a lot of world music that incorporated all sorts of beats and Rhythms everything from African, to Cuban to Mongolian. Even some of the more ancient Norse stuff comprises of some really sophisticated beats and Rhythms
@davidkachalon great post! Thank you! Also, I do the same thing. When Iām learning something, Iāll listen to it like 1,000 times. When Iād show up to a rehearsal, sometimes people would think Iām a good musician or I have a great ear, but the truth is just the opposite, (because Iām NOT confident in my ear:) I just listened to the song 990 times more than they did before the rehearsal!!!
@Corky_Music love this quote from your article, and I DID NOT KNOW this about you, (but itās true of me as well:) I donāt accept what comes up, there is always more there beyond the notes. When Iām told; āItās a feel thing,ā I want to understand the mechanics behind the feel. And I donāt give up till I find it.
Thank you for including the video of him playing the double shuffle at the end of the article. Beautiful. What a pity those 3 drummers missed the chance to hear what he had to say.
āThe power of intentā I love that. When I play I make sure Iām having a good time. The audience will latch on to this it becomes infectious. But I also make sure I know where I am in a song it can be easy to get lost in the moment or get carried away.
