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The
Principles of Practice
Based on "The Principles of Correct
Practice for Guitar"
by Jamie Andreas
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| IN
THIS ISSUE |
December 31, 2000 Volume
26
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The Most Difficult Thing in Life
Checking Your Foundation
Is Classical Position Essential?
Principles For Bass?
You Must Learn Other People's Songs!
In celebration of the New Year, I have decided to re-publish one
of my past Weekly Wisdoms, ( I will be finishing this collection
of essays, and publishing them as a book later this year) I chose
this one because it is appropriate as "food for thought"
for people like us, interested in being guitarists and musicians.
Actually, there is quite a bit of "food" here, so don't
choke! Chew it slowly...
The Most Difficult Thing in Life
The most difficult thing in life is finding something worth
living for.
The second most difficult thing is knowing when you've found it.
Okay, let's be light hearted for once. Let's not talk about some
heavy subject. Let's pick something more down to earth and fun.
How about the meaning of life?
Yes, the meaning of life, and the purpose of our lives. Teen-agers
( that group of people who are most likely to begin to play the
guitar) love to think about this. Since they are about to embark
on that part of life called "being an adult", they like
to question whether there is anything about it that makes it worth
the bother.
A 17 year old student once put it to me very poignantly. He said, " When I look at the world,
and I see what most of the adults I know are doing with their lives,
and how they feel about their jobs, it is not very inspiring. I
listen to people tell me I should play the game, and work hard to
get good grades, so I can get a good job and all that. It all seems
to have about as much meaning as going in to the library and memorizing
the entire card catalog! What for? What's the point?"
And I said to him "You are exactly right. There is no
point. There is no meaning to life."
And I firmly believe that.
I am going to make two points now. One, there is no meaning to life,
you must create the meaning of life, and most especially, your life.
And two, there most definitely is a purpose to life, and especially
to your life, but you must discover it. These two ideas work together.
Once you find your purpose, you will be able to see the "meaning"
of your life.
What does the word "meaning" mean? People are always asking
what is the meaning of life, what is the meaning of death, what
is the meaning of me losing my job, losing my hair, etc, etc. Well,
you see the point is, there is no answer to the question because
it is the wrong question. Only a person who doesn't know what the
word meaning means will ask that question.
Meaning means "to recognize a significance beyond the thing
itself, or in other words, "to point to something beyond itself"
And the recognition of that significance, seeing how anything you
look at points to something beyond itself, is a creative act on
the part of every individual, and it is also the responsibility
of every individual.
When a little boy, Adam Walsh, was abducted and brutally murdered
in Florida years ago, his father of course was devastated, and must
have agonized over the "meaning" of such a horrible thing
happening. He must have asked "why did this happen", which
is what we say when we want to know the meaning of something. To
his great credit, he answered the question himself. He created the
meaning, he gave this horrible event meaning by recognizing a significance
to it that went beyond the thing itself. He did this by devoting
his life and energy to combating crime, and eventually ended up
hosting "America's Most Wanted". He took his pain and
expanded it outward, helping untold numbers of people by doing so.
In his creative and courageous act of giving this tragedy meaning,
he also saved himself from being destroyed by the pain.
This is an extreme example to make a point. If we do not perform
our responsibility of creating the meaning of our lives, and all
the events that make up our lives, we will pay a price, in fact
the ultimate price, a meaningless life! The meaning of our lives
will always involve the discovery of how our lives connect with
all that is around us, especially other people. It will always involve
making our lives be of benefit to other people.
When I am teaching someone, I see the lesson as much more than a
guitar lesson. I see that I am helping to determine what kind of
life this person will have. I am in a position to help determine
whether this person will have a happy life. If they include playing
music into their lives, they will have something very valuable and
powerful in their lives. It may save them from bad health or depression
later on, because they can go to the healing power of music whenever
they want. It will reach out from their lives to all the lives of
the people they touch. Because I see it this way, it gives meaning
to what I am doing.
Meaning must be created, but Purpose must be discovered. The discovery
of our purpose is a great thing in our lives. It is also essential,
because only through the discovery of our purpose can we be happy,
which is what everyone is ultimately seeking.
Think of it this way. Everything that exists, taken together, is
like a giant jigsaw puzzle. Every thing that exists, including every
person, is like a piece of that puzzle. Each piece is absolutely
unique, there is no other piece exactly like it. Each person, each
piece, will fit in to the puzzle in a special, unique way. In order
for the entire picture to exist, each piece must, of course, fit
in exactly where and how it is designed to fit in. However, human
beings are the only "pieces' of the puzzle that can actually
decide not to "fit in", and make their contribution to
the whole picture. Human beings can actually decide to remain separate
and apart from the "big picture". Discovering, and most
importantly, accepting, how you "fit in" is the discovery
of your purpose, your reason for being here.
The entire picture, which depends on us, for it's appearance, is
usually called God, or Reality. This picture is always calling all
it's pieces to come together, to fit in to the unique place it was
created for. When we look at the pieces of the Reality Puzzle we
call Nature, we see that each of the piece plays their part "naturally".
But when it comes to us human being types, we have this nasty little
thing called "free will", which usually comes out as "free
won't!"
However, when a person responds to the call, and fit's in to their
special position, that is called finding your purpose. That is also
call fulfillment or happiness. It is also called finding the meaning
of life, your life, because you have found a significance beyond
yourself, a significance to your life that goes beyond your individual
life. You have discovered "why" you are "you".
You have discovered how the "piece" that you are helps
the whole picture to emerge.
But how come so few people seem to be able to discover their purpose?
How come so many people hate their jobs, and just grin and bear
it every day? I have thought about this a lot, since people who
know me have always told me I am so lucky because I have always
had a strong purpose to my life.
The reason is fear. Fear is the unwillingness to "be with"
the rest of the puzzle. We are afraid to see how special we are,
because since there is no other piece of the puzzle exactly like
us, we will then, in a very real sense, be all alone. That is why
most children, and adults, spend most of their time making sure
they are like everybody else, thinking the same thoughts, believing
the same things, and essentially doing the same things. It provides
great safety. The price of this safety is your true personhood.
You will be a fake person. You will never listen to your own inner
voices that want to tell you who you are and what your purpose is.
And you know, for many people that may be okay. They don't mind
if they are like everybody else, if they think the same things as
everyone else, believe the same things as everyone else, and speak
and act like everyone else. They don't mind buying their lives "off
the rack". I hear about people all the time going out and "trying
on" different religions, seeing which one seems to fit best,
or which one makes them look good, rather than developing their
own ideas and thoughts about life, God, and Reality.
That may be okay if your goal in life is to be a "normal"
person. But it is not okay if your goal is to be a musician, or
any type of creative artist. An artist must have something unique
to say, something all their own, or they are just "reproductions",
which in artistic terms, means they are nothing.
How do we find our purpose? The correct path to finding your purpose
is having the courage to "follow your Bliss" as the great
Joseph Campbell has said. It is to be sensitive, extremely sensitive,
to what turns you on the most, and then to move in that direction.
This is accomplished by using two things: intuition, and emotion.
Intuition makes us move in a particular direction, toward our place
in the puzzle. Emotion tells us it feels good to be there. When
you find your place, it feels good. If you are open to your feelings,
nobody has to tell you this is the right place for you. It is an
inner knowing.
But we are not raised to be in touch with what we are feeling, in
fact, we are usually taught to be ashamed of what we are feeling,
to feel guilty about it. The first thing I taught my son, at about
age two or three was this: always know what you are feeling. Never
run from what you are feeling, no matter what it is. I told him
he was allowed to be mad at me, he was allowed to hate me if he
wanted to. If he felt that way, it's okay, we'll talk about it.
I believe that being given this permission, learning to live in
intimate communion with your feelings, your emotional life, is the
single most powerful defense against creating an unhappy life.
As my son got older, I told him "I don't care what you do,
just find something you love, and do it with your whole self."
People are always asking him "Do you play the guitar"?
They are surprised to find out that he doesn't. He is here to fulfill
his purpose, not mine.
For many people, because they cannot feel their feelings completely
and powerfully, they cannot find their purpose, the place where
they were made to fit in. In fact, there are usually people around
to discourage them from doing so. When I began to play the guitar
at age fourteen, I started to practice all the time, without thinking
about it. It felt good, real good. In fact, it felt absolutely necessary.
I never felt I had a choice. But there certainly were people around
telling me I shouldn't be planning to do that with my life. You
see, they wanted me to serve their purposes, not mine.
Not everyone is called to be a musician, writer, or any of the things
we usually think of as being creative and artistic. And yet, everyone
IS called to be an artist, and to be creative. Whoever you are,
you required to make a contribution to this world, and to your fellow
beings. Your own happiness and fulfillment depends upon it. And
whoever you are, and whatever you do, there is a unique way that
contribution can be made. You must find it, and you must accept
it.
To discover your purpose, is to be all alone. Paradoxically, it
is also to be one with everything else, in a way only you can be.
This is how everyone SHOULD be, it is how the artist MUST be.
Guitar players often reach a point where they are very confused
about what they should do, what style they should learn, which book
of a thousand chords and a million scales will bring them to that
great state of ultimate guitar mastery and fulfillment. The answer
is to feel your way to your purpose. Move toward what feels good.
B.B. King, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, all have used nothing but
the five notes of a minor pentatonic scale their whole lives! It
is all they need for what they want to say.
Maybe you need to learn to read music, maybe you don't. Maybe you
need to know many chord inversions and scales, maybe you don't.
It depends on what you want to say with your music. And what you
want to say depends on how you feel. How do you feel?
Maybe you are frustrated and confused when you think about this.
That is good. Frustration is a push on the back, to get you moving,
so you will look around and make discoveries. Make sure you use
it that way. Don't stay in one place, or the push on the back will
knock you over!
The rule for the artist, for the musician, must be "if it feels
good, do it". Following your feeling is how that feeling becomes
"solidified" into a piece of music, so that it can be
communicated and felt by someone else. Bad music is made by people
who don't actually feel their feelings. They may not know it, but
their music has no meaning, and no purpose.
Have you found something worth living for? Is it waiting to be recognized?
Check and Double Check!
John Parsons, a book user who contributes much insightful commentary
in my forum, asked me to report on those points of playing technique
that I found most in need of correction, after I met with the people
from the New York workshop. He wanted to know (and was wise to ask)
"what things do your book users most overlook?"
Well, that is a tough question. Not because it is hard to find the
answer, but because there are too many answers! Let me list some
of the main trouble spots, and what you must check and double check,
always, to avoid trouble yourself.
Sitting: everyone there needed correction in their sitting
and holding of the guitar. Many were not even following the basic
instructions of sitting to the edge of the chair, but were slumped
back, inviting many playing problems, and back problems!
Hand positions: many people were not scrupulously following
the detailed descriptions and pictures of right hand positions,
or finger action.
Bar Chords: trouble with bar chords of all types was a major
concern, and usually is for players. Again, all I have said about
the Heavy Arm and other sensations must be applied to this area
of technique if you are going to get to the point of doing Bar chords
with very littel effort. Make sure you study the essay on my site
"easy bar chords" and give it consistent practice. For
book users, the Foundation Exercises will continually condition
your fingers to attain the necessary "sensitivity" to
achieve this.
I found in general, not enough application from people concerning
the Foundation Exercises in "The Principles", especially
things like the String Push Downs and Gradual Pressure Technique,
as well as a great lack of using the all important practice tools,
Posing, No Tempo Practice, and the Basic Practice Approach. These
things seem so simple I guess people tend to underestimate them,
and what they will do for technique. Well, here's my advice: DON'T!
If I meet you in a worshop, I will yell at you!
Is Classical Position Essential?
Hello there Jamie,
I have been playing guitar for about a year and am taking lessons
here in London.I notice that you hold your guitar in the 'classical
' position ie between the legs and not resting on one leg as most
people seem to. Some of the players in my class use one method and
some the other, but our teacher does not seem to mind which. Is
it essential to play in the classical position to achieve your 'relaxed'
playing as I find this position much more difficult.
Best regards,
Michael Spencer-Smith
Hi Michael,
Well, the fact that this issue is not even addressed in your class
is the kind of thing I am always complaining about. It SHOULD be,
but its importance is not recognized by most teachers. I am not
going to say that if you do not use the classical position for practicing
you will never reach your state of optimal relaxation. Even though
that may be true in many cases, I will not say it as a categorical
truth. However, I will say this: any student's chances of actually
achieveing their highest state of relaxation and control, throughout
the body and especially the muscles needed to play (which means
MORE than just your arms and hands) are GREATLY enhanced by using
the classical position. That is why, as a general rule, and to insure
consistent results in my teaching, I strongly urge it upon all students.
The problem Michael, is this: there are "nuances" of postioning
peculiar to each person, and sometimes you really need personal
guidance in this delicate matter, as was the case with people from
my New York Worshop. So, I would venture to say that if you are
having trouble it is something that could be corrected, meaning
you are probably doing something wrong. I have often told people
in your situation to send me a picture, and I will see if I can
correct you "long distance". So far, no one has taken
me up on it!
Principles For Bass?
Hello,
Can your book be used for playing bass as well as guitar?
Cam
Hi Cam,
Over the years, I have had many bass students. The fact is, bass technique
is very similar to classical guitar technique. The hand positions
and finger action for both hands is practically identical. In fact,
given the fact that the strength requirements of bass are so much
greater due to much heavier strings, it is most essential that the
hands be developed for mamixmum strength and stretch, which is one
of the results of using my book. So I guess my answer is a resounding
YES!
You Must Learn Other People's Songs!
Dear Jamie,
Me and my friends all play guitar, we all started playing about 2
months ago or so and me and my friends have got into the idea about
making a band, we have a bass,guitar,drums,vocals, ect. but the only
problem is that we are all very new to playing drums,bass,guitar ect.
And all my friends are so excited about making this band that everyone
keeps encouraging each other to create original material, but I am
the only one who seems to realize we are still begginers at everything
and not to rush it. So my question is, should we start making original
material before we learn more advanced things? And if we do need more
practice (which I know we do) what should we learn? What are considered "the basics" in guitar?
Thank You!
Ryan
Excellent question Ryan, and tell your friends I think they should
make you the leader of the band! Here is the short answer: Yes, you
MUST learn other people's songs right now. You can START to write
your own material, but do not neglect a significant amount of time
to learning other peoples material, material you like, of course.
ALL great artists develop this way, from Bach to the Beatles. The
exact reasons why this is so are too complex to go into right here,
I will write something on it in the future.
As far as the basics, that is to vague a question, and depends on
where you want to go as a guitarist and musician. So, pick the songs
you want to learn, get the guidance of a teacher, and start learning
what you need to know to play those songs. Master the "masterpieces" of other artists, and you will be on your way to creating your own
masterpieces!
All
material copyright © 2003 by Jamie Andreas, GuitarPrinciples.com |
