playing with a band

[mcraeh]

well, its been about 7 years since i have played with anyone. i practice a few hours a week with various stuff we all talk about here alone.so played with a guitar player and singer to go over some pretty standard rock tunes all while recording. and wow i really felt nervous and my playing went back a few steps,i was not enjoying it either.anyone ever have these issues? used to be something i liked alot, im wondering if playing with other people takes some getting used to again. i felt i played terrible but they did ask if i wanted to it again. anyways any feedback would be great!!

[Vdrummer]

Do it again. You may not have like doing it because it forced you to realize some gaps in your skills. It may not be completely enjoyable, but you'll learn many things that you can't while playing/practicing alone. The best kind of practice is actually to put your skills into "practice".

It forces you to play simply on whatever tune they call. It will help you use your fills to outline song form and be a supportive musician. Nothing is easier than sitting in your basement and practicing whatever you like and "playing tennis with the net down." You can use the experience as a way to develop specific skills. If you read music, you could write simple charts of the tunes they called last time, so you know how many bars the bridge is, etc. Write out the basic beats or any important (signature) fills the drummer played.

I played a jazz mass a couple of days ago. I'd never played one before and had to read from the piano/vocal chart. There were no drum parts or styles suggested. I was given a piano/vocal tape a day before but it didn't offer much useful info. The music ranged from jazzy show tune sounding parts to some pieces that reminded me of Barbershop quartets. What kind of drum part was I supposed to play to back up the Barbershop bits?

I had a bit of apprehension about it but did it regardless. The 30 minute rehearsal beforehand with flute, two trumpets, bass, piano, 3 solo vocalists and a full choir made me immediately aware that many of the parts I thought would work wouldn't. It's not a 6/8, it's a jazz waltz, etc. The bass player and I immediately became buddies in order to mutually survive and play complementary parts. I'd tell him I'm doing a light Rock thing on this, and a Jobim/Latin thing here. He told me one of the tunes was a disco feel and on another "think showtune". I played most of it with brushes and am glad I brought my Wind Chimes. The actual performance went very well. The bass player and I helped each other out, traded business cards, and whether we ever play again together or not, I had a moderately stressful but enjoyable learning experience. The paycheck was initial reason I accepted the gig, but by the end, was just a bonus. The point of the whole thing was the experience, not the money.

So no matter how long you've been playing, it's a necessary part of getting better to actually embrace whatever musical opportunities present themselves. Good luck,

Brad

[ashio nz]

Cool story Brad and a good lesson!

I too had a long layoff period where I didn't play and didn't even have a kit for 10 years (!)
I still had a snare drum and practice pad and tried to keep my hands in shape. Took lessons also to keep up with new techniques, reading, etc. I actively listened to all types of music also and visualised in my head what I would play.

I would definetely stress the enjoyment factor because that's where your motivation and focus rest. Try to be as open minded as possible and you need patience too. After all, the music and 'passion' are inside of you - you just need to teach your muscles how to do it. Again.

Cheers, and enjoy yourself.

Phil

[XNavyDrummer]

Good points Brad and Phil. I'd add that recording yourself while playing with others is really instructive. It will show you the things that "work" and things that you want to avoid.

Also, pay close attention to how others are reacting to your playing. Make mental notes of the whole process.

Keep on going!

[mcraeh]

thanks alot for the advice!!!

[Vdrummer]

Andy great point about recording yourself! That's one of the quickest ways to learn.

I did a session in January where I played a fast Samba groove with ghost notes, and accents on snare and toms. On playback I realized it sounded way too busy. I removed half the notes and tried it again. On playback, it was still too busy for the tempo, though it didn't sound that way in my head - if you know what I mean. I got rid of all the ghost notes, left all the accents and it worked. If I hadn't heard the playback, I'd have thought it was fine.

Brad

[Tom Hipskind]

Great points Brad and everyone else. I teach a fair amount of lessons to other people who have "problems" similar to yours, McRaeh (sp? sorry). And Brad, you nailed it when you said that it's easy to "practice tennis with the net down", so to speak. But you need the practice of having to play with other musicians and fitting into the "mold". The number one thing to remember is: use your ears. It's good to write out charts if you have the time and preparation skills, but nothing beats being able to hear something (be it a guitar riff, bass line, vocal melody, etc.) and play something that complements it, just by using your ears and instincts.

Also, I second the notion of taping yourself. Do it every time if you can, and maybe even videotape it if possible! It can be an invaluable tool for your growth. You can really hear what you're doing and how you're interacting with the other musicians. Best of luck!

-Tom

[CDelle]

To add to Tom's post, I hear that practicing in front of a mirror will also help improve your skills. Haven't tried it yet but I can see where it would help you.

[Vdrummer]

Mirrors are useful when you want to see if you're playing evenly with your hands. You can check that your grip and stroke are the same - especially true if you're playing matched grip.

Rudimental drummers/drum corps, and some pipe bands use them to check the visual uniformity of the snare line. If your heights match, your dynamics should as well. Plus, sometimes it's easier to use visual cues rather than your ears when 8 drummers are whacking Kevlar.

A mirror can be useful to fix bizaare expressions you may make (i.e. drummer's face) too.

But I don't think this is what Tom was getting at. Tom and I spoke about this the other day (we teach at the same drum shop), and I think he was referring to using videotape to check whether your playing is musically meshing with the other musicians, or if you're overplaying, or just making the wrong choices. Are you playing dynamically, supporting the music, or in your own drummer world, thinking too much about yourself. A mirror obviously wouldn't help that but videotape can be very useful.

Brad