Music Lesson

General Feedback

Yeah, I mean, yeah. I mean, you guys clearly rose to the occasion. Paul clearly played different stuff. So, I mean, I guess, what points could we look at? Any suggestions?

Starting Points

• Rhythm: The rhythmic thing would be a good place to start.

  • In terms of what everyone's playing and locking in together.

• Solos: On the subject of solos as well, I think we both played well.

  • You could afford to lead the solo a little bit more. This is your thing.
  • As the band, we kept it quite steady behind you, which is cool.
  • But with certain phrases, as we talked about, with eye contact and looking around, you can afford to have a bit more confidence to lead the band during your solo. That's what makes for a great solo.

"We're all eyes on you. Where are you taking us? We're with you here."

Key Areas to Improve

1. Confidence in Leading:

   • That's the confidence to lead the solo a bit more.
   • That's what we're here for: as the rhythm, as the backup for you guys. We want to be taken on the journey.

2. Dynamics:

   • Maybe it stayed on the same kind of dynamic throughout the solo.
   • Think about gradually increasing the dynamic throughout the whole solo, or using certain points in the 12-bar blues to aim for, like perhaps the fifth bar when we go up to the chord four, the B flat.

Suggestions for Dynamics

• Aim for a phrase that gets louder or more intense, perhaps resolving onto the four chord.

• Implement:

  • A bit of attitude: Yes!
  • You could be a bit quieter right on the drums.
    • It's probably because I'm deaf. Do you think that might be half the reason?

Playing in an Acoustic Venue

• When you're playing in an acoustic venue like this, you have to do your own mix on stage.
• A lot of the time, drummers get a lot of stick for being the loudest, but not always.

"You can't play like John Bonham when you're doing a slow tune. Everyone will just get destroyed."

Tips for Drumming

• Stick Height: Try to have a shorter stick height but twist your wrist a bit more for a bit more snap but less volume.

• Ending the Tune:

  • When it comes to endings, it's important to leave the piano player or guitarist to their own.
  • You might have a conflict of ideas if you both end it differently.

"There's nothing worse than getting the ending wrong."

Clean Endings

• It's great to have a clear end to the tune.

• A nice little snare or kick thing just to finish it off, but watch whoever's ending the tune.

• Final Thoughts:

  • Clean endings are important for the audience to know when to clap.
  • "Good endings are vital."

Understanding the Sound from Different Positions

• Sound Perception:

  • How does the sound of the band feel when you're standing on stage compared to sitting in the audience?
  • "To be frank, it is a bit different. I can hear so much less."

• Complementing Each Other:

  • The task is to complement each other while playing.

"It's all about trusting each other on stage."

Listening and Adapting

• When playing with two guitar players, it's a discipline.
• You have to be adaptable and listen to each other.
• If one isn't listening, the sound could become messy.

Final Encouragement

• Once you establish something cool, keep that groove going.
• If you've found a cool part that's working with the rest of the band, please keep playing it, because that's what the groove is all about.

"Well done, boys! Give me a round of applause!"

Conclusion

• Any piano players fancy playing next?