Is it hard to Learn Cello?
3/3/2020
 Is it hard to Learn Cello?
When learning how to play the cello, very little is spoon-fed to you by the instrument. Keyboard and instruments with frets, such as the piano and guitar, are a little easier to learn the basics. Putting your finger on the right key/fret will allow you to produce the note you want to hear. With cello, you need to have a teacher guiding you to ensure you’re learning the right way. This will lead to a lifetime of enjoying the instrument. If you have the right teacher, anyone can learn the fundamentals of playing the cello. As with most instruments, the cello will come more easily to someone with experience reading notes and rhythms. Most of cello music is written down, rather than transferred aurally from teacher to student. Does My Age Matter? Young students make great beginner cellists. Often with youth comes unbridled enthusiasm for learning a cool new instrument that helps them absorb new information like a sponge. These advantages can carry a student a long way. The excitement encourages them to practice more on their own and their ability to retain information helps them progress quickly in their studies. One difficulty that young students face though, is the challenge of analyzing their playing. As a result, they need an outside observer to help them identify things that cause them trouble, whether it is posture, intonation, tone quality, etc. Young beginners are generally less coordinated than their adult counterparts and will remain that way until well after puberty. Adult beginners have their own set of advantages. Firstly, they’re better in control of their bodies which helps them make changes to technique and posture more quickly. They also have a strong ability to critically analyze their own actions, and better sense of how they want to sound. As a result of their ability to critically analyze their own playing, adult learners can sometimes go straight to the criticizing part. This can lead to discouragement when they don’t immediately sound the way they want. However, the student is probably playing at a level appropriate to how long they have been studying. Practice Helps perfect the sound Practicing in between lessons is another necessity that makes learning the cello much easier. Without daily practice times, you will find your teacher going over the same concepts week after week during your lessons. Make a commitment to find a small amount of time each day to practice playing the cello and you’ll set yourself up for success. (30 Min Rule) If you only have five minutes, play some open strings for tone quality. Have a little more time? Add in some scale practice. If you have even more time, pick apart the challenging sections of your newest solo piece. There is always something you can practice, but focus on the most important concepts with the time that you have. Start Learning Cello Today You no longer have to wonder if the cello is hard to learn. With a teacher guiding your technique, regular practice times, and a willingness to learn, you can become an excellent cellist. Overall, the cello is an incredible instrument with a wonderful depth of sound. To get started now, sign up for your first cello lesson right here at Los Angeles Music Teachers/ Burbank’s 5 star Music School with one of our best cello instructors Gvantsa.
0 Comments
A Refresh On How To Tune Your Violin
2/28/2020
 A Refresh On How To Tune Your Violin
Tuning your violin with precision is not necessarily an easy task, especially for beginners. This is however essential to play, alone, in rehearsal, or within an orchestra to be in harmony with the other instruments, or simply to take advantage of the unique sound aesthetic offered by these instruments. Although it seems difficult to tune a violin, it is a task that is acquired over the course of learning with practice. Here are some tips and suggestions for tuning your violin or viola. Chromatic tuners The chromatic tuner is usually equipped with a clip that allows it to be firmly attached to the violin neck so that they can correctly pick up the vibrations of the instrument. It works thanks to a battery which allows feeding the screen where appears the frequency of the rope to be regulated. It is, therefore, possible with this type of tool, to tune its instrument very precisely in relation to the frequency of the desired note (we will detail the frequencies of each note a little further). The tuning fork The tuning fork is a small metal tool with two U-shaped branches. By striking it, it emits a vibration that can be amplified if it is placed on a sound box (on the violin table for example). It gives a virtually pure note, usually a La whose frequency is 440 Hz, used as a reference to tune its instrument. Unlike the chromatic tuner that does not require much effort, the tuning fork requires a minimum of training and a good ear. This is the method most used by violinists. Smartphone applications Many smartphones applications to tune guitar, violin or viola are available for download, some paid and some free. They work on the same principle as a conventional electronic tuner thanks to the microphone of the phone. They are very practical because we usually always have a smartphone in the pocket or in our bag. However, an electronic tuner like those mentioned above will still be more accurate and efficient than an application for smartphones. The tuning notes of a violin On the violin, there are four strings. Starting with the thickest string, they are called G, D, A, and E. An easy way to remember this is to use the mnemonic device below: • G = Good; D = Dogs; A = Always; E = Eat. Good dogs always eat! Finally, a tip that will be especially useful for you not to break your strings: turn the ankles gently and never stretch the strings more than a tone above the desired note. Otherwise, your set of strings may not hold you for a long time and you may also damage your instrument by putting too much strain on it. In this regard, it is best to change the strings one after the other to avoid too large differences on the handle. Top 6 Reasons Why You Should Play The Flute
12/19/2019
 Top 6 Reasons Why You Should Play The Flute
Are you looking for the best flute teachers? Do you want to learn how to play the flute? There is no doubt that musical activity is great for both the human body and mind. It is an excellent type of cognitive exercise. There are several instruments that can help you develop lifelong skills. The flute is one of the most beneficial and easy to learn instruments. If you want to have a fun and new hobby that promotes wellness, you should give flute a try. Here are the few of the reasons for playing the flute. Promotes Sense Of Achievement For a beginner flute player, the capability to have a clear tone or for holding a note for a few seconds call for celebration. This is because every improvement for the flute players is a huge achievement that both the teacher and student must be proud of. Moreover, as the time passes, players learn new things and become better. This means the achievements also becomes more challenging and bigger. Improves Your Math Skills One of the reasons for playing the flute is that it helps in giving your math skills a boost. This is because when you learn the rhythm of various songs, you will be using your math skills and pattern. According to a study, children who learn to play an instrument are good at math. Gives Body Coordination A Boost When you learn to play the flute you will be improving coordination. It is because learning flute requires hand-eye coordination. This is because the player will have to see the notes and convert it into finger patterns. The player must keep focusing on other tasks as well including dynamics and rhythm. Good Memory Capacity There is no doubt that music can help you learn complex and new concepts. According to experts, listening to music and learning to play an instrument helps in enhancing your memory. Playing an instrument will help you increase the capacity of your memory. It will help you easily remember and retain it for longer periods. You Can Learn New Skills For beginner flute players, it will be beneficial as it will help learn about time management and organization. In music, quality of practice is crucial rather than quantity. This is the reason why expert musicians plan, organize and prioritize the time. It is to ensure they get the best out of every session. Learn About Responsibility Playing an instrument is a huge responsibility. This is because you will have to take proper care of the instrument. You will have to clean it, polish it after practice. The same goes with a flute; after every practice, you must clean it. Additionally, the flute players will be able to become more responsible as they will have to take out time for practice. In the end, there are many music school teaching various instruments; however, not all of them are trustworthy. The best music school is (mention the name of your music school). We are always happy to teach students to play flute knowing we are helping them develop good qualities and skills. Hence, the flute is an extremely useful instrument that everyone should play.  Choosing A Private Music Teacher For Yourself Or Your Children
Of course, music has been food for the soul since day one. No one can contest that. Music inspires people. You must have observed that successful musicians are often objects of hero worship. Musical artistes are nothing but idols. It is because of the power in music. Although many artists have natural talents in music, they still have to develop it through music lessons. Right now, there are musical institutes and music is studied in several colleges and universities. One good benefit of musical schools is learning how to play musical instruments. While you can acquire musical knowledge from YouTube or other similar platforms, you can’t compare any of them to hiring a highly experienced music teacher. One reason for this is that a teacher will tailor your lessons towards your unique deficiencies but what you’ll learn on the internet is general knowledge. Apart from going to a music school, you could also enroll for private lessons. If hiring a private music teacher seems like the best option for you or your children, remember that music teachers have different levels of experience and expertise. Besides, having a particular skill is different from being able to transfer the skill to another person. So, don’t just hire any music teacher that you come across first. Here are some important factors to consider. Interview several prospects before hiring one Scrutinize several prospective teachers before choosing one. Find out about their qualifications, experience, and areas of expertise. Teaching children requires different skills from teaching adults. So, if you’re hiring a teacher for your children, you should hire the one that has experience in teaching children. Let your child select the teacher that he or she is comfortable with. Also, you may also try to find out about the music teacher’s teaching techniques too. The learner should take trial lessons A good way to assess a musical teacher is to take his trial lesson. This will help you determine if the teaching technique is suitable for you. A technique that worked for your friend may not work for you. This is why you need to take trial lessons. If the lesson is for your kid, let him/her take the lesson, but you need to be there too. Evaluate each trial lesson Since you may have to take trial lessons from several teachers before you select one. You need to evaluate the lessons from both the learner’s perspective and the teacher’s angle. If your kid is the learner, ask him if he enjoyed the lesson. If not, find out why he didn’t enjoy it. Also ask him for the teacher whose trial lesson is the best. You also need to seek the teacher’s assessment of the learner. Was (s)he attentive? Was (s)he eager to learn? This will help you to make a balanced judgment. Conclusively, you can start your search on Google. A simple Google search will bring up the contacts of several music teachers within your location. The benefit is worth the search.  How To Create Suitable Melodies For Your Chord Progression
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 to use 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 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. 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. A Piano, The King Of All Instruments
12/12/2019
 A Piano, The King Of All Instruments
For true music lovers, the piano is the mother of all instruments. It is suggested that the piano should be the first instrument taught. The piano gives such rich sounds with each key that is pressed, to not just the person playing, but also all who listen to it. The piano is the best instrument all around due to many reasons. For one, it is the only instrument that can play all 88 notes on the musical scale. The notes played can be higher and lower than all other instruments. The piano is basically the base foundation for all other musical instruments. The piano is considered a string instrument, percussion instrument as well as the keyboard itself. As a person learns to play the piano, they are learning all four harmonic portions of music. The piano also is able to play both clef and treble, while the majority of other instruments only play one. After being taught to play the piano, all other instruments tend to be easier to learn. People who learn to play the piano, tend to have more coordination from head to hands and toes. When a key is pressed on a piano, there is instant sound. Many other instruments, you need to spend days or longer learning to make a musical note come out of the instrument. Pianos allow the person to play multiple notes at a time, which helps to make the piano the best instrument by far to learn and play. When teaching musical theory, teachers tend to use the piano keyboard to play chords and also explain many other theories in music. The keyboard allows the player to be able to ‘see’ the music he or she intends to play and analyze. Ultimately, keyboards are not only the easiest to learn, they are the most versatile instrument. They can play any type or class of music you desire. Learning to play a piano first, will enable you to master the concept of music on other instruments too. The piano also will impress a far larger crowd with the various types of music that can be played on it. Reggae to hip hop and rock and roll to jazz. The piano can create simple tunes and still play complex music. A piano will look phenomenal in a huge concert hall or sitting in the middle of a classroom; and it fits very nice into your home. The piano in a home makes for fun musical nights to be enjoyed with family and friends. Did you also know that many of the famous musical artists have also learned to play the piano, many before the current instruments they play? We believe that this makes the piano not only the best instrument, but also the one instrument anyone who wants to play another instrument, should learn first.  Practicing Your Musical Instrument Makes Perfect Sense – when done this way.
The dedicated and talented instructors at Music Teachers Collaborative believe it is better for a younger student to spend 10 to 15 minutes practicing their musical instrument several times a day than to sit and practice for an hour or longer. Fatigue will set in and lack of interest. If you miss a day, not to worry. Continue with your practice the following day and in the same manner. As difficult as it seems to the teachers (we just love to play our instruments) kids have other things to do besides practicing. They don’t prioritize (not yet, anyway) this activity and until they make the connection between practicing and making music fun, it will be a struggle. Not a lost battle, however. Just a longer one for some kids. The end result will be incredible rewards of self-esteem and an “I can play anything I want” attitude on the student’s chosen instrument because they spent the time to master the skills to do so. The First 10 Things Beginner Guitar Players Should Learn
Are you thinking of learning how to play the guitar? When learning something new, you must start from the beginning. The guitar is a wonderful instrument to play as it can help you improve your memory and concentration. When it comes to learning how to play guitar, you might need an expert help. Many beginners give up learning to play guitar after some time because it is frustrating. Learning a new skill is never easy, you will have to work hard to master it. However, with our help, you can learn how to play the guitar without any hassle. In this article, we have listed the things that every guitar player must learn. Have a look! Know Everything About the Guitar The first thing you must learn is the guitar anatomy. It is crucial for you to know what the components are and what they do. There is no need to hurry, you should take your time to get familiar with everything, from head to bridge. There are different types of guitar; you must understand how every part works. This is to make learning how to play guitar easy. If you don’t know which string is the A string, it will be challenging to learn how to play guitar. So, to successfully learn how to play guitar, you must get to know every part of the guitar. Holding the Guitar Correctly In order to play the guitar easily, you must hold it properly. Though many people think there is no rocket science, it can be difficult for someone who has never held a guitar before. To be able to produce the best quality sound, you must hold it correctly. Your left hand must be on the neck of the guitar while the other hand must be over the sound hole. In case you are left-handed, there are two solutions. You can flip the guitar without restringing or you can reverse the strings. This means you will have to position your right hand on the neck. You can try playing guitar in both ways and choose the one that you are comfortable with. Tuning the Guitar Tuning the guitar is a crucial step in ensuring the best sound quality. If you don’t know how to tune the guitar, you will have a challenging time learning how to play it. Your guitar can fall out of tune because of regular playing, environment, and temperature. Playing a tuned-out guitar will produce an off-key sound. Since the strings do not fall out of tune at the same rate, you must know which string to tune. So, it is crucial to know how to tune your guitar. It is suggested to get a tuner; you can even use online guitar tuners. If you don’t have a tuner or a phone, you can use the 5th fret technique. Restring the Guitar The strings of your guitar will lose their shine when you play it regularly. It means that you need to change the strings. Knowing how to replace the strings is a great skill for a guitarist. So, how do you when to restring your guitar. You will know when the strings will be discolored, or the sound will be off or flat. By restringing your guitar, you can make sure the sound produced is of excellent quality. Not all the strings are made equal, you can ask the professional at the local shop to help you choose the right string for you. Holding a Pick If you are wondering what a pick is, then you are the right place. A pick is a small plastic that is used for strumming the strings. Though you will not be using it every time you play the guitar, learning how to hold a pick is a vital skill. You must hold the pick in between the tip of your thumb and first finger. Once you get to know how to play, you can figure out your own style. There are several types of picks available on the market, from thick to thin. In the beginning, it is advised to start with a thinner pick. Since it is made of plastic and is small, it is recommended to get many picks. It will not cost you a lot as they are inexpensive. Reading Chords and Tabs Many people think reading tabs and chords is difficult. This is a misconception; it is very simple. When learning how to play the guitar, it is recommended to start with simple songs. To make it easy to play chords, you can start with songs such as Bad Moon Rising. Moreover, it is better to start learning with a cover. This will help you get familiar with reading the chords and help in practicing transitioning between chords. Playing Open Chords In open chords, not all the strings are pressed down. One of the first skills the guitarist will learn is playing open chords. You must start with a basic open chord such as G and strum the string to ensure you hear a clear chord. After you have successfully learned a single open chord, you can move on to the second open chord. This will help you practice transitioning between the chords. It is suggested to keep on creating the library of chords until you can transition between key chords without any trouble. Playing in Rhythm After learning a chord, many beginners, call over their friends to impress them with their newly learned guitar skills. It is then, they understand they don’t know how to play in rhythm. This is something every guitarist goes through. It is crucial to practice strumming the chords in rhythm. For this, you must use a metronome to strum in rhythm. Once you master strumming one chord in rhythm, you can try with two chords. Playing Power Chords Power chords are used in rock music; it is two note chords. Power chords are dyads consisting of fifth notes and root. They are not minor or major because they don’t have the third. When playing power chords, you will only need two or three fingers on the frets. They are easy and fun to play. Since many songs are composed on power chords, there are many songs for you to cover. Playing Guitar Songs You can choose a song that is your favorite and learn to play it on guitar. This is an exciting and thrilling for new guitarists as it will be the first song they learn. Therefore, you need to be patient when learning new skills. You can’t learn to play guitar overnight, you have to practice regularly to master the guitar skill. Los Angeles Music Teachers - Call us at 818-902-1233 or email: rick@losangelesmusicteachers.com  How Warmups Can Keep Your Hands From Hurting On Guitar
A lot of guitar learners are curious about how to prevent their hands from hurting while playing on the guitar. Truth be told, the simplest and easiest way to achieve this feat is by warming up. As with most exercises, it is always important for people to warm up first before engaging in any strenuous activity which can go a long way in helping to prevent them from hurting themselves. Warm-ups are essential for both novice and professional guitarists. Before doing anything on the guitar it is highly recommendable for players to perform a series of warmup exercises such as rehearsing, playing a gig or doing some recordings. Just so you know, many muscles, tendons, and bones are responsible for finger movements. This is why it is essential for guitarists to perform some warmup exercises before they even start flailing them around recklessly. This post is designed to enable you understand how warmups can keep your hands from hurting on guitar. Here are some important things you need to know about these preparatory exercises. They help to prevent injuries Ultimately, warming up can be every efficient in helping to improve your playing skills and technique. However, it is also important to note that these little exercises can go a long way in helping to prevent injuries from occurring. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and tendonitis are some common problems that can occur as a result of not warming up before play. Just so you know, that are many guitarists that have been forced to retire from playing the guitar due to problems of this sort. This is why warming up before playing is important as it goes a very long way to help to prevent body injuries. Parting shot Warming up should be regarded more like a precautionary exercise than an optional thing. There is no better way to avoid those nightmare experiences associated with hurting hands than this. Now that you know how warmups can keep your hands from hurting on guitar, it is imperative to ensure that you make these activities a norm. Don’t just grab your guitar and let rip without taking the time to do some warming up exercises. Medically speaking, it is advisable to observe some finger stretching routines before setting out to play the guitar. There is no need to cut your guitar playing dreams short due to your inability to perform proper warm up routines before playing which has finally messed up your hands. In fact, doing so doesn’t even make any sense. The main aim of engaging in warmup routines is to awaken all the necessary ligaments, tendons, and muscles needed for playing the guitar. This can go a long way in preparing the hand and even the mind for the vigorous playing demands you are about to engage in. How Do You Tune A Violin?
12/3/2019
 How Do You Tune A Violin?
Tuning your violin with precision is not necessarily an easy task, especially for beginners. This is however essential to play, alone, in rehearsal, or within an orchestra to be in harmony with the other instruments, or simply to take advantage of the unique sound aesthetic offered by these instruments. Although it seems difficult to tune a violin, it is a task that is acquired over the course of learning with practice. Here are some tips and suggestions for tuning your violin or viola. Chromatic tuners The chromatic tuner is usually equipped with a clip that allows it to be firmly attached to the violin neck so that they can correctly pick up the vibrations of the instrument. It works thanks to a battery which allows feeding the screen where appears the frequency of the rope to be regulated. It is, therefore, possible with this type of tool, to tune its instrument very precisely in relation to the frequency of the desired note (we will detail the frequencies of each note a little further). The tuning fork The tuning fork is a small metal tool with two U-shaped branches. By striking it, it emits a vibration that can be amplified if it is placed on a sound box (on the violin table for example). It gives a virtually pure note, usually a La whose frequency is 440 Hz, used as a reference to tune its instrument. Unlike the chromatic tuner that does not require much effort, the tuning fork requires a minimum of training and a good ear. This is the method most used by violinists. Smartphone applications Many smartphones applications to tune guitar, violin or viola are available for download, some paid and some free. They work on the same principle as a conventional electronic tuner thanks to the microphone of the phone. They are very practical because we usually always have a smartphone in the pocket or in our bag. However, an electronic tuner like those mentioned above will still be more accurate and efficient than an application for smartphones. The tuning notes of a violin The Names of, the Violin Strings On the violin, there are four strings. Starting with the thickest string, they are called G, D, A, and E. An easy way to remember this is to use the mnemonic device below: • G = Good; D = Dogs; A = Always; E = Eat. Good dogs always eat! Finally, a tip that will be especially useful for you not to break your strings: turn the ankles gently and never stretch the strings more than a tone above the desired note. Otherwise, your set of strings may not hold you for a long time and you may also damage your instrument by putting too much strain on it. In this regard, it is best to change the strings one after the other to avoid too large differences on the handle. |
Archives
March 2020
Categories
All
|
RSS Feed
