Musicianship and Playing in a Band

by Mark Fitchett

Becoming a competent musician does not mean you have to play fast or flashy, nor does it mean you have to know how to play everything. (Although that would be cool.) It means being good at what you do whether it's complicated jazz-fusion or simple folk music.

You could play simple chords in a folk style and still be considered competent within in your style! If suddenly you decided you wanted to play speed-metal then perhaps you would not be considered competent in this style especially if your background is only in folk music.

Too often I hear musicians trying to compare other musicians, like who's better? B.B. King, or Van Halen? This like comparing apples to oranges, each one is totally competent in their own style but may have a problem if they had to trade.

Practice

It is extremely important to be consistent in your practice schedule so do it everyday because even if it is not for as long as you would like, you will see more gains from this repetition than if you were just to be random about it.

I think if you are serious, and have the time, there should be no problem with practicing 1-2 hours a day. More is even better!

PRACTICE SHOULD BE:

Consistent—Disciplined—Enjoyable—Focused with specific goals in mind

THEORY vs. EAR:

Ah, the on going debate, I don't know how many times I've heard this same old story, Joe FAMOUS Rock Star flashy guitar player proudly proclaims "I've never had a lesson in my life, and I've figured everything out by ear." or "I never practice,"

Of course then I get these young impressionable students who actually use this as an excuse to slack off. Or the other one is "If I learn to much theory, then I won't play with any feeling." You should work on both! It's great just to get out there and play and what happens is what happens.

But what if you did something really cool? Would you be able to expound on it? This is where the theoretical knowledge comes in handy, it may suggest certain things to you that might not have otherwise been thought of.

In an ideal situation one would balance between the two, perhaps jamming around on your instrument until something sounds cool and then thinking of it in theoretical terms to see what the other options are that mix well with your original inspired idea.

Or maybe the reverse might happen; you are doing some technical exercises and suddenly you'll hear something really cool, so you start trying to expand on that. Any combination is possible, and the point is, is that the more experience you have using both your ear and theory, the better musician you will become.

THINGS YOU SHOULD LEARN:

BROADENING YOUR MUSICAL HORIZONS

As musicians (and this goes for non-musician listeners too!), you should not limit yourself to one type of music; but rather, explore other styles that you are not familiar with. You should listen to, and even learn how to play some of these other styles.

Even just listening to something different once in a while for pure enjoyment will probably cause you to pick up a cool idea or two.

One of the ways a musical style progresses is through incorporating other influences outside of that particular style. Otherwise, if you rely on and only accept what's been done before as being valid, that style will become very old, very fast. Think of these two highly influential bands and some of their influences.

Led Zepplin

Jazz (The Rain Song), Hard Rock (Communication Breakdown), Folk (Hangman), Blues (Since I've Been Loving You), Country (Hotdog), Classical/Jazz/Rock (Stairway), Reggae (D'yer Maker), Middle Eastern (Kashmir)

The Beatles

Classical (Eleanor Rigby), Hard Rock (Helter Skelter), Jazz (Yesterday)
Folk (Rocky Raccoon), Rhythm&Blues (Oh Darling), Pop (Too many to mention.)

This does not mean that when you are in a band doing original music, that you necessarily throw in everything but the kitchen sink.

What it does mean, however, is that you can draw upon ideas outside the style you are in, to add some originality to your music. Don't force it; but if it feels natural or just sounds cool, then do it.

A band that is mainly rock oriented will probably do mainly just that but, perhaps, they'll incorporate some jazzier chords (Jimmy Page) or a maybe a country feel in some of their tunes (The Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, G&R).

The main influence on the majority of rock of course has been the blues, and that's a major subject of study in itself.

Some of the heavy metal bands like to incorporate classical influences, while it's very normal to hear a lot of rock and blues nuances in country music or vice-versa. Needless to say, the list goes on.

It is important to note that even such stylistically diverse bands as Led Zepplin or The Beatles always sounded like themselves no matter what they did; and if you were a fan, you knew right away it was them no matter how left field they went.

A lot of people are not even aware how many different influences are involved in a given band's sound or even that styles that seem miles apart are actually very close, using the exact same chords and melodies, and even rhythms.

If you really like a particular band's style, it will do you good to find out who their influences were and then, go even further and find out who the influence's influences were and so on.

Playing Together

I don't know how many times have I played with other musicians and/or bands and noticed everyone was in their own little world, and that nobody seemed to be listening to anyone but themselves.

This is very frustrating to anybody else in the band that is listening. Of course you want to concentrate on your part, but at the same time you must be aware of what is going on around you so you can adjust your playing to blend with everyone else's.

Here are some of the things to watch for:

1. Dynamics:

This is the one area most bands need work in, the ability to control their volume and intensity levels within a song. (If you are in a loud-as-possible, thrash-speed-metal band you may be excused.)

Most music does not stay at one level, but instead goes through peaks and valleys, building up here, coming down a bit there, getting extremely intense for a guitar solo perhaps, and then laying back for the sensitive vocal break and then building up to the screaming climax etc.

The point is, is that if there is a soft part in the song don't come blazing in with your wall of Marshall stacks on 11. Pay attention to different songs and see how they use these dynamics to create interest and excitement. (This also applies to you and your friend just jamming on a couple of guitars in the living room.)

2. Playing too busily:

This is another pet peeve; someone feels a need to fill up every space in the music, whether it's the drummer putting in too many fills, a bass player who thinks he is Van Halen, never the guitarist (yeah, right.)

OK especially the guitarist who has to play every lick he knows, as fast as possible in each song. Don't get me wrong; busy is not bad in itself, it's just when nobody is listening to each other and everyone is playing all over the place (and loudly) well, I think you get the picture.

Again, listen and try to give the rest of the band some space. Also, if you write in busy parts and rehearse them, it will sound better than everyone just going off at random. As you get more experience you will learn how to do this naturally without pre-arranging it.

3. Inappropriate parts:

Everyone does this one, you learn a new lick and you stick it in everywhere in every song until everyone wants to shoot you.

This is OK to some degree because when you are learning something new repetition is the key, however, try to use a little discretion, and try to find the right place for it. Or better yet, use some band rehearsal time to loosen up and jam a little to test out new ideas.

4. Groove:

This is the feel of the song. You'll notice that in each style there are certain typical drum beats, rhythm patterns, bass lines etc..

Every style has certain grooves commonly associated with it. You might hear general references such as an R&B groove or feel, a reggae groove or feel etc.

Here is a list of some common styles:

These are general terms, because within each style there can be so many variations and tempos. You also could combine certain aspects of different feels for example a rock feel with a reggae bass line.

It is very important to recognize the groove factor and how it applies to the style of music you are playing. You should always be listening to different types of music and be analyzing the groove.

Rehearsal Tips

1. If possible rehearse on the same days at the same time every week.
   
2. Decide ahead of time what song(s) you want to work on.
   
3. Pick songs within your ability.
   
4. Pick songs everyone can agree on.
   
5. It's OK to attempt challenging songs beyond your ability but spend more time on the ones you can play until you get a few of the easier ones down.
   
6. Make sure everybody has a copy of the songs on tape.
   It is the responsibility of each member to be listening, and to be learning material that has been decided upon.
   
7. If someone is showing someone their parts during rehearsal everyone should be listening, and no one except the person that is being shown their part should be playing.
   
8. If you are the one who shows the others what to play, consider getting together with each member individually to teach them their parts so when you get together you can rehearse the music as a band. (especially if it's original music you have written.)
   
9. Don't try to learn too many songs in one rehearsal, 1-3 is normal. Spend a portion of practice time reviewing previously learned material to warm up. After you really know the tunes well, rehearse them once in a while to keep the cobwebs off. There will come a time when you have too many songs to rehearse in a given practice time so work on the ones that need it the most.
   
10. Listen to other members suggestions and even if you don't agree, give them the benefit of the doubt and try their ideas.
    
11. Don't waste time by goofing off too much. Designate the 1st 20 minutes or so to "jamming" or messing around with different ideas, (this is good for warming up.) then get to work. You can take "goof off" breaks once in a while where you try jamming on different grooves and styles. If you have the time you could have one of your rehearsal nights a "jam" night where all you do is goof around and have fun.
    
12. If everyone is always arguing or not getting along be realistic and decide if you can function together as a band.  If everyone in the band is friends it's not worth losing friendship just because you can't relate musically.
    

Being Prepared for a Gig

Know how long you are expected to perform. Is it one show of a predetermined length, or is it several "sets."  A typical show might be anywhere from 45 minutes to 1 1/2 hours (A typical showcase set is 45 minutes) whereas if you are playing the whole evening at a nightclub or bar you are usually expected to play 4 or 5 sets that are 45 minutes each. (Play 45 min. take a 15 min. break)

• Time your songs
  
• Work out a set list
  
• Determine how many songs should be in each set or in your show.
  
• Determine an order of songs that will keep the set/show moving.