Guitar &c.

It’s that time of year when I’m tempted to set fresh goals, vow to improve myself, and avoid the pitfalls I encountered last year. Unfortunately, my long-range execution doesn’t always live up to my initial enthusiasm. As I’ve thought about it more and more though, I realized that accomplishing New Year’s Resolutions has a lot in common with good practice habits. They both benefit the consistent application of a a few simple rules:

1. Set clear goals
2. Break big challenges down manageable chunks
3. Be patient with yourself and keep at it
4. Step back and re-evaluate periodically
5. Have fun and be sure to enjoy the process along the way

STEP 1: For over a decade, one of my goals was to become comfortable playing in front of other people. I’d made little headway and I actively avoided situations where I might be asked to play in front of anyone. When I finally shared my goal with my teacher, she gently suggested that to get better at something you need to practice it repeatedly and consistently. Translation: I wasn’t playing in front of people, so I was unlikely to get any better or more comfortable at it.

STEP 2: This was daunting: I needed to be playing in front of people. Breaking it down, I needed to start by learning to play something really well, and I needed to find somewhere to play it. I settled on playing some pieces I’d been playing since I’d started taking lessons, nothing fancy. Going to an open mic had always seemed intimidating, but OpenStage had just formed, and playing for a bunch of other guitarists seemed a little less frightening. I just needed to show up and play once, I could figure out the rest after that.

STEP 3: The first round didn’t go as smoothly as I’d wished: I struggled to find the strings with sweaty, shaking hands. But, I survived the experience and met a number of really nice people. So I resolved to give it another go and show up the next month. Next time, things still didn’t go as well as alone at home, but they went better than the first time. So I kept coming back. Month-to-month, I didn’t feel much change. Over time, though, playing was getting easier and the gap between practice at home and playing in front of people was growing smaller.

STEP 4: Each month, I’d notice something new about what happened when I was playing at OpenStage. Here’s some of what I learned: try to run through pieces beforehand, warming up helps, the sound of a room can be surprising, movement in my peripheral vision distracts me, people notice mistakes less when I don’t draw attention to them, breathing always helps, smiling helps. Each time I’d ask myself the same questions: what went well – do that again; what went poorly – try something different next time.

STEP 5: Over time, my comfort level increased and I built a repertoire of pieces that had now been road-tested. This gave me the confidence to begin volunteering to play in two local hospitals. Later on, I even started playing occasionally at a local restaurant. It turns out that I still get nervous and excited when I’m going to play, but I’ve started to look at it as as positive energy I can channel into playing. I’m always surprised by how encouraging folks are when you’re willing to make music for them.

It turns out that it took well over a year to fulfill my resolution of getting more comfortable playing in front of people. Like all practice, though, as long as I’ve invested quality time, I’ve gotten better: not always a fast as I want, not always in the ways I’d expected. Because I’ve learned to have a sense of humor and not take myself too seriously, though, I’ve had a lot of fun along the way. It’s been a great adventure so far that I’d encourage you to consider too. If any of your goals this year involve a guitar, I’d like to invite you to OpenStage. As a listener, you’re guaranteed to hear some great music. As a performer, I guarantee an experience you can learn from!

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Please check out the OpenStage tab on the MGS website at www.mnguitar.org. We’ve updated the page with photos, links to online resources, and tips on what to expect at a typical OpenStage. As always you’ll also find our most current schedule and directions to OpenStage.

2009-2010 OpenStage Schedule:

Sunday, January 17th 2-4 pm
Sunday, February 21st 2-4 pm
Sunday, March 21st 2-4 pm
Sunday, April 18th 2-4 pm
Sunday, May 16th 2-4 pm

Location:

The Coffee Grounds
1579 Hamline Ave N
St Paul, MN 55108
(651) 644-9959
www.thecoffeegrounds.net

[NOTE: I originally wrote this as an article for the Jan/Feb 2010 issue of the Minnesota Guitar Society newsletter. But I thought the ideas merited posting here as well.]