Rapidly-racing heartbeat and sweaty palms are symptoms most musicians experience at one point or another. Stage fright is certainly no fun.
But a recent study aims to shift the perception of these all-too-familiar feelings of stress. The idea: overcoming stage fright is as simple as thinking of it as your ally!
Many new musicians dream about recording in a studio, signing with a record label, and creating a loyal fanbase. For Los Angeles music teacher Louie D., that dream became reality with his band, holychild. In fact, their music video for “Best Friends” was recently featured on MTV’s Buzzworthy Blog. How did they get to where they are now? Here’s our exclusive interview with Louie…
1) How did your band get started?
Liz (the singer of holychild) and I met in college at the George Washington University in Washington DC, and started writing songs/jamming together informally at first. holychild initially started as my senior thesis project for my jazz studies degree, of which at some point while we were recording our songs in the studio in DC, we realized that it was something worth pursuing after college.
Most artists lean toward perfection. Every note, technique, and performance need to be just right. But it’s important to realize there is value in making mistakes, too! Read on as New York guitar teacher Chris K. explains…
Face it, we’re human – tainted, prone to error. Yet we thrive in spite of – sometimes because of – our flaws, proving that the pursuit of unattainable, platonic “perfection” is perhaps a fruitless endeavor. As musicians, we grapple with this every day we practice or evaluate a performance. Too often we dwell on “getting it right” as opposed to “making music.” This is a hindering mindset, for good musicianship involves more than merely stringing the correct notes together; it requires a complete acknowledgment of imperfection and the courage to play on anyway. That’s tough.
Kids, it’s time to unplug your Xbox and break out your guitar! These days, YouTube is loaded with amazingly talented kids – and we have several right here in the TakeLessons community, as well! Check out some of our rising stars in this video:
Music has a special power to bring people together and to change the world. At TakeLessons, we are all very passionate about music and about making a difference in the world. When we heard that a local 11-year-old girl named Moriah had organized a concert to benefit homeless children here in San Diego, we knew that we had to get involved and sponsor her efforts! Moriah and her Girl Scout Troop organized a wonderful benefit concert called “Song of the Butterfly” on Saturday, April 13 to fund a music program for kids at the Monarch School. The students at the Monarch School are kids whose families have been impacted by homelessness. The school does not currently have a music program, but Moriah is going to change that! (more…)
