Musicianship Mastery with David Lane

As a classically-trained pianist who attempts to accurately follow other composers' written scores as well as being a composer who has distributed detailed written scores to other performers and hoped for meticulous accuracy, I am fascinated by this dance that exists only in classical music of the composer versus the performer.  There's a belief that the composer is king and the written score is l...

Where do musicians fit into the near future of this world?  It's a world where AI-generated art of all kinds, including music, appear to spell doom for human artists.  I have a much more optimistic take, and share how I think both composers and performers should approach this world in a way that acknowledges the situation while also seeing where there are advantages. Book a free trial lesson with...

The word I've been using in both these podcast episodes and with my own students is...urgency!  I've also been using it more with myself.  I'm on either the 4th or 5th attempt to learn a specific challenging piece to completion.  What I've lacked before is urgency.  I've given myself the stakes that I need to not just learn this piece "someday", but to learn it by a specific deadline and perform i...

The average person has a fixed mindset.  It's safe, it's comfortable, and it's easy to justify.  If you want to get better at music, you can't afford to maintain a fixed mindset.  You need to commit to a growth mindset.  If you don't get this right, all of your other musical goals will fall apart.  In this episode, I elaborate on the differences, and talk about what you have to do to fully commit...

Do you really know the music, or can you only play it well under certain conditions?  For example, can you only play it at home when nobody's listening?  Can you only play it while looking at the score?  Do you have to start in a certain place each time?  This episode will help you approach your practice in such a way that you can completely and fully actually KNOW your music. Book a free trial le...

If you've followed my previous episodes where I claimed that you should be able to make real progress every 5 minutes of practice, but it seems like you're just not able to get any momentum, it could be a problem with the first two or three minutes that affects a lot more in your life besides music.  It is a deficiency you probably have with processing new and challenging music.  The good news is....

Some people find goals helpful, and others don't.  If you haven't found goals to be helpful or consistently effective, it's possible that you could change that completely with this one very simple shift in how you frame your vision, whether those be music goals or general goals. Book a free trial lesson with me online for piano, music composition, or music theory. If you enjoyed this, please give...

There are things you might assume about practicing, using a metronome, what progress is supposed to look like, and more that you'll only learn the truth about once you start practicing well. In this video, I'll remind you about what good practice looks like, and what you can actually expect to discover when you do. Book a free trial lesson with me online for piano, music composition, or music theo...

About 5 years ago, I was fired from a music gig.  It's the only time in nearly 30 years of being a professional musician, and I think about it a lot.  There are definitely things I could have and should have done to reduce the chances of that happening, and there are lessons that I could have learned sooner after it happened to move on in a healthier way.  This episode is my reflection on what hap...

To become a well-rounded musician, it's worthwhile to engage in a variety of medium sized musical projects to give you new perspective and to help your growth.  This episode offers 5 projects you can engage in over the next half year or so to help improve many aspects of your musicianship. Book a free trial lesson with me online for piano, music composition, or music theory. If you enjoyed this, p...

The label "professional" is misunderstood across many levels, including music.  While the average professional will be more accomplished than the average amateur, the label isn't about skill itself.  The term "amateur" can apply to musicians who are just getting started as well as those who have been at it for a while but for whom music is more of something to dabble in as time permits.  Then ther...

I've discussed Dr. William Schirmer no less than 4 times on this podcast before.  He was my music composition professor for 4 years as well as an extremely prolific composer in his own right.  He sadly passed away very recently, and this episode is a chance to tell the world more about this bonafide musical genius as well as the lessons he taught me and my friends that still influence how we see t...

When you get your first gigs for things like weddings, musical theatre, recording sessions, or even film scores and other opportunities, how do you make such a good impression that you rise to the top of the call list and stay there? As someone who has worked to be top of mind in this area for many such gigs, and as a music director who has hired more than 100 musicians, it's understood that your...

What do I wish I had done differently as a piano student? As I look back on my time studying music before I officially began my professional journey, there are several things I wish I had either done better or not avoided the way I did. I hope this video will help inspire you to maximize as well as enjoy the time you have as you study music. Book a free trial lesson with me online for piano, music...

What's one thing you can do to get better at playing music sooner? Most students wish they could progress faster, but don't feel the sense of urgency that they should to learn all of their technique, in every key, played as accurately and as fast as possible. Technique is treated as some bit of trivia that might come in handy sometime, when actually...it's EVERYTHING. Give me 20 minutes, and I'll...

At some point in your music goals, you may want a private teacher. With so many teachers to choose from, how do you find the RIGHT one for you and your needs? In this video, I offer the idea of a menu that you can customize for yourself and use in the interview process of choosing the right teacher. Hopefully I make it clear that I myself am not the right teacher for everyone, but I am for some. B...

Practicing an instrument does NOT require you to spend days or weeks practicing the same music with little to show for it. You can and should change how you structure your practice to always see progress. Practice should be fun, and always seeing progress is how you make sure it's fun. This episode will share how I make sure that I never go any longer than 5 minutes without a LOT of progress. Book...

Why is practicing music hard? Why aren't you making more progress than you think you should? There's a mindset skill that is essential to understand and embrace before any other tips or approaches will have any effect on you getting better and better at music. If you enjoyed this, please give it a rating and review on the podcast app of your choice.  You can find all episodes of this podcast at  h...

No talk on musicianship skills this week.  Instead, I wanted to chat with listeners about some recent changes to the podcast that you may have noticed, changes going forward, and why these changes.  Looking forward to returning next week with another music lesson. If you enjoyed this, please give it a rating and review on the podcast app of your choice.  You can find all episodes of this podcast a...

No matter what instrument you play, singing will make you a better musician! Basic vocal skills will enhance your musicianship in a profound way that never quite gets developed without them. This episode will talk about the unique qualities of musicianship that only singing can offer, some basics of good singing, as well as a plan for how you can guide yourself to improve your vocal skills.  This...

Regardless of your principal instrument, if you want to be a well-rounded musician, it's essential to have some basic intermediate piano skills.  In this episode, I talk about why it's considered essential by most conservatories, what types of skills you should know, and how you can guide your self-education. This episode may best be appreciated as a video on YouTube where every technique that is...

If you want to build a successful career in music, this is not the 1990s, nor is it even the 2010s, when the path was much different. A few things never go out of style, such as practicing well and networking, but nearly everything else is different from when I began my journey nearly 30 years ago. My definition of a successful career is modest: I've been able to pay all of my bills and have enoug...

Why is it that you stop practicing on a piece or a technique, and most of it is gone within a year if not a few months? That's been true for me too. However, there are plenty of exceptions - pieces I could ignore for over a year and sit down to play from memory like I'd practiced it yesterday. In this episode, I talk about what the pieces that stick all have in common versus the ones that just dis...

The art of being an accompanist is applicable to all sorts of situations, including playing in an ensemble with other musicians without a conductor. I've accompanied hundreds of musicians for at least 35 years, and these are my thoughts on how to do it well. Musicianship Mastery is formerly known as The Musician Toolkit. If you enjoyed this, please give it a rating and review on the podcast app of...

Even if conducting isn't a major goal, every good musician should know what to do if presented with an opportunity to lead an ensemble in rehearsal or a performance.  This episode will introduce you to the basics of preparing for a rehearsal, how to lead the rehearsal, how to lead a performance, and the basics of baton technique and other hand instructions. Musicianship Mastery is formerly known a...