Listening and Reacting Part 1

On this "first week of Spring and I'm STILL freezing my ass off"  installment of @yamahamusicusa #silentbass and @laklandbasses Friday, we have Part 1 of a 2 part series..."Listening and Reacting". Today, listening. Now I'm not talking about learning a tune or following a drummer or other band mate. While these are VERY IMPORTANT skills, I'm talking way deeper. Let's begin with listening to urself. What?!?! wtf? I always listen to myself..I'm the one playing! Well, maybe maybe not. This is a concept I learned over the years from teachers, colleagues and from Karl Berger's book, "The Music Mind Experience ". Listen, really LISTEN. Are you making music? Or just parroting licks. Does ur music have breath? Dynamics? Articulation? Tone (NOT EQ or gear realted tone)? Direction? Clarity? Do the notes (as Berger states) "come alive". How is ur current mood affecting u? Believe me, this exercise will do wonders for ur playing...in the shed and in performance. Next, listen to ur bandmates. Not just superficially, but with the same criteria as u listen to urself. Your reaction to them will be so much more purposeful, applicable, creative and musical. The concept of any ensemble is that it is a working, LIVING organism that follows and works off each other. Regardless of size, genre, style, purpose or level of involvement. Then, the crowd. Yes, listen to them. Their reaction or "vibe" adds to ur music. We have all felt it, either good or bad. Learn to use it to ur advantage. Finally, the room or environment. I'm not just talking about the acoustics...every space has a feel. I know it sounds kinda crystal-y (lol), but it exists. The more sensitive a listener u are in all areas, the more u can bring to the table creatively.  The "make the notes come alive" concept is very powerful and it will change ur way of thinking and playing. Next time, week will talk about ways to use the products of ur listening. As always, I invite your insights. #yamahamusicusa #makewaves #pirastro #glasserny #laklandbasses #sitstrings #tsunamicables #philjonesbass #uptonbassstringinstrumentcompany #basslessons  #remotelessons #www.charleysabatino.com