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What Is The Right Age To Start Music Lessons For Your Child?

Categories Music in General Music Practice

Music history is littered with precocious child prodigies taking the world by storm with their dazzling musical talents. A famous historical example is Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791). Stories abound of his conquests of European heads of state while touring with his sister Maria Anna (Nannerl; 1751–1829), also a talented young musician. At one such stop when Mozart was only 6 years old, he entertained the Empress of Austria and afterwards he climbed up into her lap where she gave him a kiss. Young Mozart went on to compose a range of works including a symphony, concerto, and opera all by … Read more

Tasty Listening: Ten New York Music Venues with Amazing Food

Categories Arts and Entertainment

Few things are more disappointing than going out to hear live music but paying too much for a dry tourist burger, bad wine, and a dessert that tastes like it came from the convenience store around the corner. This doesn’t have to happen to you! You can have your (freshly baked) cake and eat it too; that is, you can hear great music and enjoy delicious, reasonably priced food. Read on for 10 of the best places in New York City to make your time and money go as far as possible. 1. Ginny’s Supper Club at the Red Rooster … Read more

Guitar Maintenance for Beginners

Categories Guitar

At a glance… 1. Professional setup 2. Temperature and humidity 3. String maintenance 4. Cleaning and maintenance while changing strings 5. Long term storage Guitar maintenance is often overlooked because most guitarists would rather spend time practicing than doing maintenance on their guitars. However, there are benefits of keeping your instrument in tip-top shape. For example, it keeps the setup of your guitar consistent so you won’t have to keep adjusting the string action and intonation. It also retains the resale value of your instrument. Neglecting your guitar’s condition can result in overly rusty strings, a bloated body, a warped … Read more

Must Know Music Terms For Parents

Categories Music in General Theory

Many parents want to keep track of their child’s learning progress. However, for parents who are non-musicians, listening to teachers or their children talk about music can be confusing and even frustrating at times. In order to better understand your child’s music endeavours, it is inevitable that you, as a parent, have to learn a bit about music as well. To help you with this, we’ve come up with a glossary of common music terms with simplified definitions. Whether you’re a parent, or just someone who’s keen on learning music, this article will guide you through some basic music terminology. … Read more

How To Choose Your First Guitar

Categories Guitar

At a glance… 1. Price 2. Style 3. Availability for trying out 4. Inspecting the instrument 5. Warranty Buying your first guitar can be a confusing process as there are several different kinds of guitars, many different brands, and a large number of designs. The array of choices can make you hold off on your purchase and lose interest in the hobby before you’ve begun. To help you make a confident and informed decision, this article discusses five things to consider: price, style of music, availability for testing, condition of the instrument, and warranty. Price You will first have to … Read more

How To Choose The Right Piano

Categories Buyer Guide Piano

Getting yourself a new piano is an exciting decision and, as a fellow musician, I’m happy for you! But before you can embark on your musical journey, you have to choose the right piano, which can be a real headache. There is a wide array of pianos, but which one should you buy? This article discusses the factors to consider and the things to look out for when you are buying a new piano. The first step is to decide between a digital and an acoustic piano. If you want to learn more about the differences between the two pianos, … Read more

Electric, Classical, and Acoustic Guitars: What Are The Differences?

Categories Buyer Guide Guitar

At a glance… 1. Strings 2. Sound production 3. Genres 4. Shape and size 5. Feel and suitability 6. Price One of the first questions I get from people who are looking to pick up the guitar is, “what is the difference between a classical, acoustic, and electric guitar? And which one should I choose for my first guitar?” It really all comes down to what you would like to accomplish with the instrument and your personal preference for genre of music, sound, feel of the instrument, and of course, price. No arbitrary rule states that, for example, all beginners … Read more

Guitar Guide For Beginners: Guitar Terminology

Categories Guitar

Throughout the course of your guitar journey, there will be essential guitar and musical terms that help facilitate effective communication, especially if you’re planning on playing with a band. This article introduces some of the most important terms. Guitar Acoustic Guitar – A steel-string instrument that has either six or twelve strings. An acoustic guitar produces sound acoustically without the help of electronics or amplifiers. Acoustic-Electric Guitar – Sometimes called a semi-acoustic, an acoustic-electric guitar is fitted with electronic pickups in its body so that it can be electronically amplified with an amp. The acoustic-electric guitar is useful for playing … Read more

How To Tune Your Drums

Categories Drums

At a glance… 1. Drum anatomy 2. The physics of drum tuning 3. The drum tuning process 4. Fine tuning 5. Dampening 6. Tunings for different styles Guitarists have to tune their strings to certain notes in order to play chords, saxophonists have to tune their instruments so the correct note sounds when their sax is blown, but drums are completely different. Drums don’t have a “correct” tuning because drummers don’t usually play melodies or harmonies. In fact, it could be argued that the term “in tune” or “out of tune” can’t really be applied to the drum set. This … Read more

12 Tips to Help You Sight-Read Better

Categories Music Practice Piano

Have you witnessed your music teacher or friend take out a sheet music, read it for the first time, but play it flawlessly? Sight-reading is a difficult but valuable skill to master. Good sight-reading skills make learning a new song less challenging and allow you to venture into new areas of music and vastly expand your repertoire. But how do you improve on your sight-reading? This article will introduce 12 tips to help you take your sight-reading to the next level! General Preparation – Techniques to practice outside of your sight-reading sessions   1. Practice scales, arpeggios, and chords As … Read more