Our Latest Blog on Music & Instruments

Tips for Dealing with Performance Anxiety

Many talented performers in the world today deal with anxiety when performing. If you are one of those people, have no fear. We are all human and it’s natural to get those nervous jitters on stage! But, you should not let performance anxiety prohibit you from performing, auditioning, or composing, etc. Here are some tips that have helped me as a performer deal with anxiety.
 
1) Be in the Moment

Intervals Theory & Application, Part 2: Listening to Intervals

It is very important to every musician to see what they hear and hear what they see. A great way to develop that is to start with simple intervals exercises and relate them to sounds that you have already stuck in your head, for example:

What is the Minor Second of the Note G?

Minor Second = One note ahead + Half Step Apart = Ab

Now when we play those simple notes, one after the other repeatedly, we can easily recall the familiar theme of “Jaws."
 

Basic Slap Bass Tutorial

Basic Slap Bass Exercise

Learn the basics of slap bass in this video. The backing track is below.

The exercise backing track:

Lessonface 2016: Figures and Forecasts

Brooklyn sunset

Lessonface turns three years old in February 2016. With our birthday on the horizon and the brand new year dawning, I hope you will join us in celebrating the amazing community of music learning that has come together at Lessonface.com. I went through our stats yesterday, and wanted to share some of the more interesting ones. 

Time and Feel Exercise for Bass Guitar

time-feel exercise for bass guitar

1. Set your metronome to 50, cancel the accented beat and count the beats as 2 and 4. Play Ex A+B and make sure you stay on time and the beats are well defined and clean. Subdivide the bars on Ex A for 1+2+3+4+ (1/8 notes) and Ex B 1e+a 2e+a 3e+a 4e+a (1/16 notes)

2. Set your metronome to 50, cancel the accented beat and count the beats as 2. Play Ex A+B and make sure you stay on time and the beats are well defined and clean. Subdivide the bars on Ex A for 1+2+3+4+ (1/8 notes) and Ex B 1e+a 2e+a 3e+a 4e+a (1/16 notes)

Happy 2016! Get it started right with this vocal exercise

Artist development coach Nikiya Exantus demonstrates exercises for learning to sing with power and strength without tiring out or straining your voice in this eight minute video.
 


Filmed at Moon Lab Studios in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.

Intervals: Theory and Application

Let's start with some general statements about intervals:

  • An interval is the distance between two notes. The closest possible interval is the unison (two notes on the same pitch – C / C).
  • Intervals can be described as Major (M), Minor (m), Perfect (P), Augmented (A),
  • and Diminished (d).
  • Intervals come in various sizes: 2nds, 3rds, 4ths, 5ths, 6ths, 7ths and octaves.

Here is a chart with the intervals:

How to Learn a Song on the Guitar in Five Steps

Are there any tricks to learn a song super-fast? What should I do to master complicated and fast solos? What steps can I follow to be able to play anything I want? Those are very common question that I get from students. Today we are going to talk about some tactics to better pick and learn songs on the guitar.
 

Give Your Child a Great Start on Guitar in the New Year

smiling boys with guitars

'Tis the season of new guitars!  Thousands of children are about to wake up Christmas morning to a guitar-shaped box under the tree.  Whether your child has been begging for the guitar for months or is about to be surprised, you are probably hoping that this first guitar will help fuel a life-long love of music and that he or she will reap the mental, physical, and emotional benefits of playing an instrument.

Here are some tips on how to keep that Christmas guitar in your child's hands for years to come.

Give Your Child a Great Start on Guitar in the New Year

'Tis the season of new guitars!  Thousands of children are about to wake up Christmas morning to a guitar-shaped box under the tree.  Whether your child has been begging for the guitar for months or is about to be surprised, you are probably hoping that this first guitar will help fuel a life-long love of music and that he or she will reap the mental, physical, and emotional benefits of playing an instrument.

Here are some tips on how to keep that Christmas guitar in your child's hands for years to come.

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