Thursday, January 10, 2013

Sounds like taiko

If you were to close your eyes and listen to your own solo, would it sound musical?

Does your solo have phrasing?  Does it groove?  Or is it a series of unconnected notes?  In the heat of the moment what you play may sound great in your head, but sometimes you need to really listen to what you play.

A person's ki may sell a solo, sure.  But ultimately, taiko is a musical form and that's what you're doing - music.

Think of a live concert (even if you've never been to one).  The feel of the audience all grooving to the same beat is infectious, but the key term there is beat.  If there's no clear rhythm to lock into and follow along, there's no grooving to be done.

I'm pretty sure all of you listen to music, right?  Even if you have weird songs that don't have repetitive patterns and rhythms, I'll bet 95% of what you listen to does.  So why should your solo be any different from the music you like?

Think musically, play musically.  It may not happen right away, but when it does, it makes a HUGE difference!

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