Category: Play

  • Music Degree vs. In-the-Field Experience: Tips for Singers

    Music Degree vs. In-the-Field Experience: Tips for Singers

    The voice is a very versatile instrument — and while most young artists aspire for fame on a global level, as a singer you can do many things. You can become a prima donna in the opera, you can sing at the opening of the World Series, or you can go on a world tour…

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  • 7 Strange (but Effective) Ways to Keep Your Voice Healthy

    7 Strange (but Effective) Ways to Keep Your Voice Healthy

    This article originally appeared on TakeLessons’ blog. As a singer, you probably know how important it is to take care of your voice — it is your instrument, after all! If you’re already staying hydrated and doing your daily warm-ups,  take it a step further by trying these strange (but effective) strategies in this guest…

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  • How to Get the Most out of Your Practice Session

    How to Get the Most out of Your Practice Session

    Often times when we practice and rehearse, we just do so instinctively — we show up, play through our songs, maybe talk about them a bit, and then do it again. While any sort of practice and rehearsal is probably a good thing, no matter how you go about it, there is some interesting research…

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  • How to Create Dreamier Guitar Chords

    How to Create Dreamier Guitar Chords

    Are you planning to write a romantic love song for a special person in your life, or in love with genres like dream pop, psychedelic rock, or shoegazer music? Or, are you simply getting bored of writing songs with those typical, standard-tuning bar chords on the guitar? Then here are some useful tools for you. If you’re…

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  • What Is Jazz Worth, Anymore?

    What Is Jazz Worth, Anymore?

    I love jazz. I love playing jazz, listening to jazz, shedding jazz, and talking with other people who love jazz, about jazz. I recently released, with my group the PLS.trio, a new modern jazz record in the style of greats such as Pat Metheny and Esbjorn Svensson. According to a review by All About Jazz, our music takes…

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  • Keyboard Buyer’s Guide

    Keyboard Buyer’s Guide

    So you’ve been checking out some piano lessons online (shameless plug: our beginner piano courses are totally free!) and you’ve decided to dive into the deep end. Congratulations! You’re taking the first major step toward complete keyboard wizardry! Here are some quick tips to help you on your way to buying the best instrument for your lifestyle…

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  • Musicality and Improv at Tiger Speak’s Hip-Hop Jam

    Musicality and Improv at Tiger Speak’s Hip-Hop Jam

    Carter Lee and Michael Summer are the minds behind Brooklyn’s Playground Sessions Hip-Hop Jam and its host band, Tiger Speak. The concept behind the jam is an intriguing one — a live band, complete with vocals, horns, and a rhythm section, plays a set of music tributing a hip-hop legend and then the stage is opened up…

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  • 6 1/2 Tips for Creating the Perfect Practice Space

    6 1/2 Tips for Creating the Perfect Practice Space

    Setting up a proper workspace can make practice time infinitely more productive — at least, it definitely did for me. Here’s a list of things to keep at hand when you’re honing your craft. 1. A notebook Okay, so it doesn’t necessarily have to be a literal notebook (though I personally feel pretty tied to…

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  • Improvisation and the Brain

    Improvisation and the Brain

    We recently found this fantastic piece on how musical improvisation affects the brain on Vicky Williamson’s blog Music Psychology and she graciously allowed us to post it here. Vicky teaches and researches on the relationship between music and the brain at The University of Sheffield. Check out more of her writing here. Hello Dear Reader, It is…

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  • 5 Practice Tips for Busy Lives

    5 Practice Tips for Busy Lives

    For a brief few years in college, I got to treat music as a full-time job, devoting 40+ hours a week to musical improvement. I lived ten minutes from the practice rooms and had very few responsibilities, so I could practice as much as sleep and school would allow. Now that I’m a full-fledged grown-up…

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