We all have so many critical voices in our heads.
Telling us what's good, what's not, and what should be. We must stop the criticism if we are to play the music that is inside of us - but how? How do we turn off the inner critic and start to trust our inner voice? By listening to it. Most of us are taught not to trust our initial impulses, but it is these innocent prodding's that bring authenticity in our improvisations and musings at the piano.
To deny these impulses is to deny yourself of what is truly rich and necessary for creating a music that is full of both joy and longing. Combine these two and you have the secret duality that is in the best of music. It's something you can recognize immediately yet it's hard to put your finger on exactly what causes it. It's a combination of sadness and joy. Cast everything aside. What you want is not important and will hinder your ability to hear the inner voice.
Whenever you want to create something you set yourself up because you block that small inner voice that says. "Let me go where I will." Your ego may think it won't be happy with the results. Your ego wants people to say "Ah what a great job you're doing. You really can play well." These comments can set you up to think that you are really great. This is false gratification and, contrary to opinion, not healthy self-esteem.
Puff yourself up all you want, but if you want to really feel the connection between you and the music, you will have to abandon what you want and, instead, let your inner voice decide. It may not be the kind of music that will get you on American Idol, but it will be the kind of music that will get you to a special place few can know - that place where you disappear and the music appears out of thin air. The feeling you will get from this will far surpass any kind of ego gratification that may come from fame or fortune.
Edward Weiss is a pianist/composer and webmaster of Quiescence Music's online piano lessons. He has been helping students learn how to play piano in the New Age style for over 14 years and works with students in private, in groups, and now over the internet. Stop by now at http://www.quiescencemusic.com/piano_lesson s.html for a FREE piano lesson!
We don't simply wear a theatrical costume; we wear the... Read More
Change is good. Just ask the millions of unsigned artists... Read More
I was thinking today about THE most dangerous enemy of... Read More
OK, so I lied about the fun part.Maybe piano playing... Read More
Disregard the popular image of rappers with their ghetto blasters,... Read More
The DJ industry is very competitive. There are many DJ's... Read More
While Richard Nixon's diplomatic visit to China may have created... Read More
Are you frustrated because finding your favorite songs on the... Read More
The lyric writing side of songwriting is known to create... Read More
Imagine asking a beginning writer to write a short story... Read More
I'll never forget the first time I played the piano... Read More
In 1994 Daniel Johns and his group Silverchair were catapulted... Read More
When I first began playing the piano and improvising, there... Read More
In a recent post to my Yahoo group, I mentioned... Read More
Many students ask me a question that goes something like... Read More
For years, you have been searching for a song lodged... Read More
Small independent record labels are facing a different fight today... Read More
Motorhead-"Inferno"-Review by Les Lewellyn When David Grohl... Read More
Remember when radio stations played great music?OK, before you accuse... Read More
Before the internet, unsigned music artists couldnt make a living,... Read More
Is it really possible to become an expert in some... Read More
Have you ever dreamed of penning your own compositions? Writing... Read More
Do you ramble on endlessly with your improvisations? If so,... Read More
One of the reasons I picked up the violin was... Read More
This article gives the essential basics for how to play... Read More
Do you remember the movie, Groundhog Day? In this wonderful... Read More
Welcome back to Part II of Rhapsody Music Downloads! I... Read More
Are you a perfectionist? Does every note have to sound... Read More
Mid 1959 Stratocaster vintage guitars have a slab rosewood fingerboard... Read More
Bang! Bam! Bang! Have you always wanted to play the... Read More
Out of the 250 million people in the United States,... Read More
So it has come to this... what we see overrides... Read More
New bands looking to book gigs and establish contacts often... Read More
Here's a method I use that works. First, sit down... Read More
The Suzuki violin method has come to dominate the way... Read More
It is said that the forerunner of the guitar, the... Read More
How would you like to spend 4 years in a... Read More
More so than any other music since the blues, hip-hop... Read More
Learning to fiddle the Orange Blossom Special is not easy,... Read More
Gibson guitars have been around forever. It's funny, but although... Read More
If you are just starting out learning guitar one of... Read More
Small independent record labels are facing a different fight today... Read More
Recently, I had a student ask me to offer some... Read More
A student wrote me an email about the lesson "Ocean... Read More
1. Learn how to ImproviseLearning how to improvise is the... Read More
Chords. They're amazing. There's no doubt about it. Especially when... Read More
A student once asked me; "How come sometimes the music... Read More
Cultures around the world since the beginning of time have... Read More
Here's the method I use every time I want to... Read More
Every once in awhile a guitar student will express a... Read More
Music & MP3 Music & MP3 |