As a musician with some experience (it could be five years, 10 years, 15 years or more), you’ve probably got a good handle on how much practice you need to put in before your various commitments (live performances, recording sessions, session gigs, etc.). Of course, at times it’s easy to get lazy. And, depending on…
Doing warmup exercises and technique work on piano is not the most exciting part of your piano practice. That’s okay, it doesn’t have to be. Warmup is not the fun part of playing a sport, but it’s still important. Like in sport, the right exercises can help prevent injury and improve overall technique. These exercises…
“Fire” is a great word to use in a song. It rhymes with “higher” and “desire”, which are often go-to lyrics in pop songs. And, it can serve as a metaphor for many things, like love, hate, passion, desire, challenge, life and more. In this guide, we’re going to look at the best songs about…
I remember what it felt like to be a musician in a band and constantly ask myself, “how do I get better gigs?” It seemed like no matter what I did, I couldn’t get an opening slot for a big national tour. Or, every weekend at the best venues in town were booked for the…
In the world of high-end pianos, only one brand is a household name the world over. Steinway is to pianos what the Kleenex brand is to tissues. They are almost interchangeable. There is good reason for this – according to figures collected by Steinway, over 98 percent of concert pianists choose to perform on their…
Learning to play piano opens up a whole world of keyboard instruments. Piano skills are transferrable to synthesisers, electric pianos, harpsichord, clavs, and organ. Most of these instruments are pretty similar to the piano – they all involved some sort of percussion on a string to make sound, except the synth and the organ. Synthesizers…
When you’re new to guitar, there’s a lot of things for you to figure out, such as how to put on a strap, which is what we’re looking at here. Fortunately, once you’ve got this figured out, you’ll never have to think about it again. So, don’t be embarrassed if you’re struggling. It’s perfectly normal…
Everything you do should be centered around your fan base. Without a fan base, it’s virtually impossible to build a profitable and sustainable music career. Conversely, if you can create loyal, superfans within your tribe, you’ll be able to get your music out faster and keep growing as more and more people identify with your…
Stairway to Heaven is an iconic rock song by one of the greatest rock bands of all time – Led Zeppelin. It was a huge hit and it earned itself a place in pop culture as one of the most epic rock songs of all time. And yet, Stairway to Heaven comes with some baggage…
Trying to list the ‘hardest songs ever written’ on any instrument is a difficult task. Everybody has a different perspective on what makes a song ‘difficult’. On the piano, the technique, endurance, and rhythmic/harmonic complexity of these pieces are what earn them their top spots. However, some would argue that a somewhat ‘simpler’ piece can…
Due to the coronavirus crisis, millions around the world are suddenly out of work, and artists feel the pain of this unexpected loss of income as hard as anyone else. In fact, if you’re a working musician or artist, you’re probably feeling a little stressed. Shows, tours, and festivals have all been postponed or cancelled…
When you go to see a show, all you see is musicians doing what they love to do: play their music for you. What you don’t see is all the work required to get there. Most musicians must work hard at cultivating a set of skills and qualities that allow them to succeed and thrive…
Many of those entering their 30s, 40s, 50s and even 60s will look ahead and wonder whether it’s still worth pursuing their passion, even if it’s something they’ve never attempted in their life. Young people are generally preoccupied with getting their educational credentials and finding a career they can sink their teeth into. As many…
Pianists have been populating concert halls, churches, bars, hotel lobbies and other performance venues for decades. If you’ve seen a pianist performing, and thought to yourself, “I could do that, I wonder how much it pays…” you are in luck. In this guide, we’ll discuss what pianists are making on a variety of gigs you…
The reason so many artists have extreme reactions to the idea of collaboration is because they’ve either experienced incredible highs or ridiculous lows in working with others. There are plenty of shades of grey in between, of course, and we can’t just fixate on either extreme and conclude that collaboration is either absolute good or…