Released: Wednesday - April 2, 2008 12:05 PM EST

Anyone Practicing??

I trust you all have been sheddin' hard. I know I have. I have gotten feedback from a number of you who have been really working on finding time to practice. Believe me I understand the struggle. I have a family myself, which includes a 1 year old, but I had to figure out a way to get that practice time in. I started to practice late at night after everyone had gone to sleep. This was ok for a while, but I noticed that on long days where I was very active, I became very tired and sluggish in the practice room. My only resort was to stick my practice time in the top of the day. That's right! For about 2 months now I have been practicing from 5:30AM-7:30AM everyday. It was tough for me at first, but if I can get up enough energy to make it to the shower, I'm set :o) Now there are all sorts of ways to work in your practice time. You just have to find what works best for you, but you HAVE to practice if you are expecting results.

***  "Practice is IMPORTANT!!"  ***

Yes even for you Maestros that think Sunday morning service is enough, it is important for you to understand that your growth could be hindered and opportunities missed if you don't put the time in.  You should never get too comfortable with your playing.  For those of you who are thinking about quitting or you've gotten off track and find it hard to get back on, you just have to make a decision to get back on. If you don't make the decision, it will NEVER happen. Don't let lack of time be an excuse either. A friend told me once that the best way to eat an elephant was one bite at a time. The concept is the same here. It's better to practice a little bit everyday (or often) than not at all over a long period of time. You will find that even if you practice a little everyday or every other day, you WILL see growth over a period of time, but your ultimate goal should be to try for at least an hour a day, preferably two.  If you do have a limited time to practice, don't practice a bunch of stuff you already know. That can be counter productive. Spend 10-15min reviewing old stuff and then the rest of the time working on something new.

Practice is key no matter what stage of playing you are at. And Remember! It doesn't matter how many DVDs, books, or lessons you buy, you HAVE to put the time in to reap the rewards.

For those of you who haven't read my blog titled "Practice Makes Perfect", I suggest you do so, it could give you some insight on how to structure your time.

Keep Sheddin,
Letron Brantley (CEO & Founder)
GospelSkillz.com

Lesson excerpt from Jamal Hartwell's TriTone Extravaganza
 

Thanks to those of you who offered your feedback on the topic "Are Good Musicians Hard to Find?".  There were many strong beliefs on both sides of this issue and some were more passionate than others.  Also thanks to those that provided Word reference for your position.  It is important for us to understand how each other interprets the Word because it helps us to acquire greater understanding of how people think.  The nature of the subject is almost cultural in a sense.  There are those that don't believe in paying musicians and those that do.  Then you also have those that don't mind paying but they can't afford the salaries that musicians today demand.  Of course this is an issue that is not going to be solved in a blog.  I just wanted to raise awareness to this apparent issue.  Think about it, how serious is this issue that it would make it to MSNBC news.  What I do believe regardless of whether musicians are paid or not is that their hearts have to be right for the position.  Minister of Music or Minstrel in the church is NOT a job to take lightly.  There is a responsibility to set the atmosphere for God's presence.  The Spirit through God's anointing is lifted from that of the musician as he/she plays and in turn touches the souls of the congregation.  Imagine if you have opposing spirits with the musician or minister of music and the Spirit of God.  It manifests itself in many ways, and when this spirit hits the congregation, you will know it, because they will make faces, talk behind the musician's back, or disturb someone else's worship.  All that to say that those that sincerely go after God in music ministry will be rewarded (in many ways).  This blog is not closed so if you have something else to add, please do so. 

"Are Good Musicians Hard to Find?"

Letron Brantley (CEO & Founder)
GospelSkillz.com