LESSONS INTRODUCTION
Lessons from the world’s greatest teachers and schools...
Jason Sidwell ponders on the different approaches to playing and when and where is the best time to apply them.
Many years go I heard a singer state, “Don’t make it your life’s work” in relation to the amount of concentration being put into a musical scenario. The implication was, ‘It’s good enough, job done’. I also recall the first interview I did with Steve Morse when he said: “How do you expect to be a good chef if you don’t care how the burger is flipped on the grill?” Two very different outlooks; one focused on just getting the job done, the other about the quality of the job. At times, we need to embrace the first outlook; time is tight and a result is required quickly. This could be a Top 40 dep gig where you’ve got 48 hours to do your best on prepping 30 or so songs. Quality will be out-shouted due to quantity, so focus more on difficult sections; do a decent job and you might save the day and get a call back in the future. Where this mentality isn’t applicable, however, is the practice room. It’s here you have time and space to be super diligent. It’s the ideal environment to care ‘how you flip your burger’; every string bend, each pick stroke and all string noise should be getting scrutinised and improved upon. Your practice room is also where your copies of GT should be, ready to consult and study all things of quality and macro detail. With our articles that cover stylistic trademarks through to detailed technique and theoretical pointers, we present detailed pearls of wisdom so you can take the time to adopt and adjust to suit your scenario(s).” Don’t make it your life’s work” still jars with me today. Be careful you don’t take this route too often with your music making. Quality counts for you, those you work with and your audience.