Hi Friend!
This week is all about embracing risks when you play. Fortune favours the bold and your music will benefit from this too!
Something To Think About
Take risks when you play
Whether alone, in rehearsal, or in public, a great way to improve your playing is to take risks. In practice this might mean taking on material that is on the edge of what you can do. In public it might mean playing a line in a solo that might go wrong. Either way the purpose of taking risks is to develop self confidence in your playing ability. By becoming the the of player who is willing to take risks you build a body of evidence that demonstrates that you’re a musician who can take on things that are at the edge of you’re ability. This opens the door to taking on more challenges in the future because you know you’ll be able to handle them.
Something To Practice
The one take challenge
Record an improvised solo. One take. No edits. If you feel up really putting the pressure on commit to putting it out in public when you’re done. This exercise will help you get used to taking risks musically. In reality every solo you play live is a one take challenge. There are no do overs. There it pays to practice under this kind of pressure so that you can handle it on the day.
Something To Enjoy
When risks pay off
Here’s Augie Bello improvising a killer solo on I will Survive. You can hear him take risks and he pulls it off. This is the video that made me want to learn sax.
That’s it for this one. If you want to help me improve Fretboard Philosophy simply reply to this email and let me know your thoughts.
See you in two weeks!
Alasdair 🤘
