Learn how to take the reigns of your next musical project with these articles on all the elements of running a successful band — from organization to booking, promotions to rehearsing. For more tools, check out Soundfly’s free course Building a Better Band.
+ Welcome to Soundfly! We help curious musicians meet their goals with creative online courses. Whatever you want to learn, whenever you need to learn it. Subscribe now to start learning on the ’Fly. Collaboration, whether by choice or necessity, can be emotional and even downright messy. The more passionate and personally invested each collaborator is, the higher the likelihood that…
In November 2016, Peter Pillitteri, an aspiring composer and one of the students in Ian Davis’ popular Orchestration for Strings course, emailed us out of the blue to tell us this incredible story: “‘Round Midnight is a 1986 film by Bertrand Tavernier about a fictitious jazzman, Dale Turner, who was played by the great jazz saxophonist, Dexter Gordon.…
Over my years in the music industry, I’ve seen many, many live shows, both from the stage and from the audience. This means I’ve seen bands make the same mistakes time and time again. And because I’m guilty of making these mistakes too, I created lists of some of the ways bands can avoid these pitfalls without too much effort. These…
+ Welcome to Soundfly! We help curious musicians meet their goals with creative online courses. Whatever you want to learn, whenever you need to learn it. Subscribe now to start learning on the ’Fly. One of the most rewarding things about my time in the music industry has been the friendships I’ve made and the relationships I’ve built. It’s not just…
If you’ve been doing this music thing for more than a minute, you’ve probably met a few music journalists along the way or have a shortlist of writers with whom you’d love to work. You also probably have a general idea about what they do and what they expect. But there are a few things…
You just got hired to play a cover gig with a band. You’ve got about a week to prepare, and it pays pretty well. But you’re expected to play about 20 new tunes (give or take), and most likely, you won’t be rehearsing with the band, save for running a few things at soundcheck. What…
+ Welcome to Soundfly! We help curious musicians meet their goals with creative online courses. Whatever you want to learn, whenever you need to learn it. Subscribe now to start learning on the ’Fly. In the world of live bands, bass players and drummers have a lot of negotiating power. They’re in demand, and they know it. Nearly every genre of…
By Jhoni Jackson Putting together a multi-day event in your city requires a little knowledge of booking and who’s who in your local music scene, but it’s not the impossible feat some might imagine. Organizing a festival is within the reach of nearly anyone who’s willing to commit time to planning, researching, and learning. It’s…
If an artist has just given the best, most effortless and inspired performance of their life, they’re not going to want to change much when the next gig rolls around. Few things will keep musicians working more consistently than the ability to support and flatter a vocalist or soloist — particularly if they’re a joy for the rest…
Many techniques and resources help you deepen your rhythmic skill set, and there’s no better classroom in which to learn the art of groove than on stages in front of audiences (and beside experienced rhythm section masters). But the second-best classroom might be inside your own headphones! Take a listen to some of these classic…
