Music Lessons in Burbank CA | Los Angeles Music Teachers

If you're interested in taking Drum lessons on Zoom or In Person in Burbank, Glendale or North Hollywood, we have some of the  best drum lessons in Los Angeles. Our drum instructors are picked by interviewing hundreds of drum teachers and we have really high standards on both their teaching ability as well as their personality. If you'd like to talk to one of our instructors or set up a first lesson we have a guarantee that if you don't absolutely love your first lesson you don't have to pay for it. Please contact us at (818)902-1233 or on our website at https://www.losangelesmusicteachers.com/online-drum-lessons-in-burbank-ca.html​

One of our drum instructors wrote this article on Drum Set Cymbals for Rock Music

We have reviewed the best cymbals for rock music. They come from the world’s greatest cymbal manufacturers; Paiste, Sabian, Meinl and Zildjian. 

• Paiste legendary 2002 series
• Zildjian A custom series
• Sabian AAX series
• Meinl Dark Custom

​Why I picked these series?
I decided to pick the rock cymbals from the biggest cymbals manufacturers in the world

• Paiste

• Zildjian

• Sabian

• Meinl

Some of these series are used more than 20 years in the rock music both in studio and live. A lot of rock drummers use these series so they are well established. 

 Let me tell you some main characters that these companies offer so you can narrow your choices.

• If you are looking for old school rock sound with low pitch and strong attack go with Paiste
• If you are looking for modern cymbals with a high pitch that opens up and sing beautifully go with Sabian
• If you are looking for versatile cymbals, well made with a great number of choices in terms of sound go with Zildjian
• If you are looking for heavy cymbals with intermediate pitch, dry sound and very strong attack go with Meinl

This is just a short synopsis when it comes to rock cymbals that these companies offer, but of course there’s more to it.

The fact that every rock drummer in the world plays one of these series says enough about the purpose behind them and their character.

​What they have in common?

They are all loud and mostly with higher pitch of course some series pitch stay in the middle and for some goes into deep.

Mostly they all have brilliant finish in order to get a better attack. Regarding sustain is long except with Paiste rude where idea is “hit and run” strong punch and after that it disappears, the same goes for Meinl Dark Custom.

What are the differences?

The most important component of premium cymbals is B20 bronze. All these companies use it. Sometimes in clear for sometimes they add some other components so they can make a magic sauce like Paiste and Zildjian.

Find out more about cymbal materials here.

I already mention that pitch can differentiate as well as the versatility. Some series like Zildjian A custom are very versatile while series like Paiste Rude has only one purpose.

The main difference is in character and the sound. From Paiste 2002 which has that old school sound, over Rude which has a deep sound with a strong attack up to AAX totally modern cymbal with a bright sound and not too much “in your face”.

You see every cymbal from the list has its own sound character.
Regarding the series level, Paiste 2002 is the top-level with Paiste same goes for Meinl Dark Custom while Zildjian and Sabian have higher series than these.

Paiste and Meinl cymbals are more expensive due to that fact but in comparison to two other companies they do offer a slightly better sound but totally different. 

Lesson on How to Get the Most out of Your Music lessons 

When learning how to play any musical instrument (such as piano, guitar, saxophone, etc.), you can progress fast or you could move at a snail’s speed. It all depends on your learning approach. Most music teachers focus more on making sure that you don’t miss your learning sessions. Of course, missing daily practice sessions will slow your progress down, but your learning approach is more important than the time spent on it.
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Students make several mistakes in their approach and these mistakes impact the result they get from their practice sessions. Here are some of the mistakes and their solutions.

1. Playing without concentration
Some students practice with their musical instrument while doing something else. Most commonly, people play an instrument while watching the TV. Learning requires full concentration as it requires the whole of your mind. When you play an instrument without full concentration, it is just a repetition of what you have already learned. 
It is a waste of time because you won’t learn anything more. Whenever you want to practice, you have remove anything that may cause a distraction, so you can listen to what you’re playing and look out for flaws.

2. Playing without looking for flaws
Another common mistake is playing an instrument through a piece of music without taking note of your flaws. If you do that, you won’t improve. You’ll only turn your training session to a formality. You will continue to move on with your flaws. You’ll slow down your progress that way.
Instead, watch for flaws while you’re playing the music. And if you come across any bad spot, stop and try to improve on the spot before you move on.

3. Playing through a musical piece repeatedly
It is true that practice makes perfect. You’ll improve when you keep playing through a piece again and again, but the rate of improvement will be very slow. You’ll keep playing through your flaws over and over again.
It is better to stop each time you encounter a problem. Find the cause and solution to the problem before you move on. You’ll learn faster that way.

4. Playing a passage over until it sounds better
Some students prefer to play over a problematic area until they observe an improvement before they move forward. The problem with this learning technique is that it is not certain that you’ll breeze through the spot when next you play the piece.

It is better to get to the root of the problem. Find out the real problem and the cause of the problem. That way, you’ll be able to proffer a technical solution to the problem. When the problem is solved, you’ll be able to play it better subsequently.

You need full concentration and engagement for identifying problems and solving them. When your brain is fully engaged in this, you’ll be able to take note of the problems and their solutions. Most importantly, everything you learn will stick with you for a long time. This is the most effective approach to learning how to play any musical instrument.

Lesson on How To Create Melodies For Your Song Writing based on Your Chords

Melodies are easy to create once you have created a good chord progression. First you need to learn all of your chords in Major and Minor Keys. Here is a list below in the key of C Major. Then a list of all of the secondary dominant chords that are possible. Just those two things will give you lots of possibilities, but outside of that you can then "borrow" chords from the parallel minor. That will give you almost anything that has ever been done in pop and rock music.

​Here's lesson below with a list below of all of the Major Chords, Parallel Minor Chords, and secondary dominants (every chord can be approached by it's dominant chord). 

I     ii     iii    IV    V    vi     vii dim
C    Dm    Em    F       G    am     B dim
       A7      B7    C7    D7  E7      (Secondary dominants) for interest
Cm   Ddim Eb  Fm     Gm    Ab     Bb   (Parallel Minor Chords) 

Here's some common chord progressions that use some of the "borrowed" chords.
I     IV      bVII     I
     Vm     IV       I 
I      IIImaj       IV      IVm     I   Creep by Radio Head
Using Parallel Minor Chords 
Eb C Eb C Eb C Bb Ab F Ab F 
Bb - C (bVII - I)
Ab - C (bVI - I)
C - Db - Eb - Fm
C - Gm - F - C
C - Ab  - F  - C
Cm - Ab - Eb - Bb- Cm

Here's a complete list of all the chords available from all of the scales above.
C, Cm, Dm, Ddim, Eb, Em, E, F, Fm, G, Gm, Ab, Am, Bb, Bdim (all of them)

You can also take chords from any of parallel MODES.

No matter your level of proficiency, you can create great melodies along with your chord progression using any of the two approaches outlined below.

First Approach
It is a good idea experiment with different chord inversions while playing your chord progression. You can try each of the inversions one at a time as you move on with your progression. You may seek the guidance and supervision of an experienced keyboardist or guitarist on this.

The melodies will be obvious as you make connections with the chords. Bear in mind that you may not actually hear the whole of the melody at once, but you should be able to filter out the skeleton of the melody from what you hear. As you continue to practice, you’ll be improving on the melodies and more parts of it will be coming out. With time, you’ll be able to produce an interesting melody. 

At this point, you should not bother about whether you are getting the notes right. Rather, follow your ears. Listen to the melody and continue to make corrections as you deem necessary. Let the process flow naturally and organically. Getting the notes correct will come naturally. The more you practice with the chord progression, the more the notes will fall in the right place. If you don’t like this approach or it is difficult for you to follow, you can adopt the next one, discussed right below.

Second Approach
The approach involves attaching a particular rhythm to your chord progression. Lay it down on a recorder. You can then play it repeatedly. Listen as you play it. If you play the melodies so many times, you’ll be able to listen to them without recording. 

After playing the chord progression, close your eyes and try to hear the melody. Try to arrange the musical set pieces mentally. At this point, you should be able to come up with several melodies. You may also record the melodies as you align them with your chord progression. The more you memorize the progression, the easier it will be for you to hear organic melodies naturally. You’ll no longer need to fiddle with your musical instrument to come up with a nice melody. 

Instead of focusing on your musical instrument, unleash your creativity. Listen to your head and dig out the melodies in them. Letting your voice run at the same pace with your ears is one of the best ways to come up with nice music.
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Of course, there are several other ways to create melodies and music, but the two approaches above are easy to adopt and they are effective as well. Most importantly, regardless of what approach you choose, always let your imagination work. Don’t focus on only instruments. The musical instruments are distractions. They’ll sever the synchronization between your ears and voice. So, it is better to use your voice, record it, and transcribe it. When you get the hang of it, you’ll be able to create nice melodies more effortlessly.

​If you're interested in taking music lessons on Zoom or In Person in Burbank, Glendale or North Hollywood, we have some of the  best music lessons in Los Angeles. Our music instructors are picked by interviewing hundreds of music instructors and we have really high standards on both their teaching ability as well as their personality. If you'd like to talk to one of our instructors or set up a first lesson we have a guarantee that if you don't absolutely love your first lesson you don't have to pay for it. Please contact us at (818)902-1233 or on our website at https://www.losangelesmusicteachers.com/online-drum-lessons-in-burbank-ca.html​