iReal Pro is such a great app! It’s been a while since I’ve touted it, so here I go again. Quick transpositions (I often switch between guitar and trumpet until a tune is memorized), easily print and send right from your phone or iPad. Backing tracks that aren’t too cheesy to practice with, and you can…

This study’s findings were so similar to another recently published study, I had to look back to make sure this wasn’t a repeat. It’s not. The evidence keeps rolling in. But let’s remember, the real benefit to making music is that it’s its own reward. It’s easy to forget that when we’re scrambling to find “useful” reasons…

If you’re like me, you’re always looking for another way to tackle practice. I got some good stuff from this video from Matt Gastka. Check it out. It’s long, but worth it. I put the code in to start the video at 6:16, because that’s where the lesson with Matt Gastka starts. If you want…

the apps he mentions are iOS only (boo): Trope and Bloom. And the new one, Reflections.    

How hard is it to pass by a drum and not hit it? Hard. Really hard. Maybe impossible for kids. A percussionist’s instruments are everywhere. Here’s some evidence: I highly recommend taking up a percussion instrument to hone your rhythm chops. Maybe just a pair of shakers, maybe bongos, congas, or a djembe (Pro Tip: don’t…

All the Freebies Below One goal in my own practice, with my students, and in the 6-Bullet Saturday newsletter is to keep things practical and useful and inexpensive. Below you’ll find links to all the free and/or cheap stuff I’ve found to help boost the quality of my practice. Here’s something you can put to…

About a year ago, I helped develop some teaching material that will be part of a Music Learning Playlist for Arizona State University’s CITME, directed by Dr. Evan Tobias. You can take the mini-class on jamming for free here. The module covers absolute basics of jamming. It’s directed at middle school kids and above who…

Imitation has always been the best way to go deep in the arts (or anything else, really). Always is, always will be. In any genre, any good musician learns from past  masters through imitation. After you learn, the art of the cover lies in bringing something new to an interpretation, no matter the genre. Here’s a fantastic…

James Rhodes stopped playing piano for 10 years. That’s not a detail you hear about from any other concert pianists I’ve ever heard about. It’s usually the opposite: long long hours of practice every day for years. Decades. The talk below is about trust, but it goes much deeper than that. And broader. How is…