theholtsite

I’m seriously considering joining another band. At our Grace & Caperings show last week, a friend of our drummer came up to me and complemented me on my sound, then asked me if I wanted to play with his band. Pretty flattering…

I’ve also recently joined another cover band with some pretty serious musicians. What do I mean by serious? Several of them have made a living playing music before, and they intend to do it again with this band. They have the means and motivation to do so, and I’m along for the ride. They tried out eight guitarists before me, so I felt pretty good about being chosen for the job.

It’s pretty funny that I’m a professional musician – at least if you define “professional” by making a living doing something. Why is it funny?

– I don’t read music that well. Never really have, even in college where I had to a lot. This is the plight of many a guitarist. There’s your rock guys and your classical guys. The rock guys generally have good ears and can figure just about anything out, but can’t read very well as a rule.

The rest of the “serious” musical world thinks us rock guys are sort of immature musicians because we can’t play with the orchestra. And they have a reason to think that. They’ve spent years learning to read well and practice it every day. A few parents of students I’ve had have taken their students to another teacher when they discovered that I didn’t teach “real” note reading from the start.

Of course, then there’s guys like Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles, Errol Garner, and Louis Armstrong who couldn’t/can’t read music either. Are they not professional musicians? As this guy puts it:

I wish I’d learned to read before I did. I’m still not a good sight-reader. Do I want to improve? Sure. Is it essential? No. Am I losing any work because of it? No. Would I get called to play on a film scoring session or a pit orchestra gig on Broadway? No. Would Eric Clapton get called for those gigs? No. Does he care? No.

– I’ve never done it before. I’ve made money for playing music here and there – the odd band gig and a few weddings here and there, but nothing steady or serious. I’ll probably get sick of gigging at some point, but for now people dancing while we’re rocking out is still pretty fun 🙂

– I don’t practice that much. When you consider the immense amount of practicing a “real professional” musician does, it’s mind-boggling. They might spend at least 1-2 solid hours per day practicing, and probably more. And when they practice, it’s with a focus on reading and the fundamentals of their instrument.

I usually don’t have this sort of focused practice time. Sure, I could be much better at reading and even technique if I did, but it’s just not as fun. I pick up my guitar when I feel like it and play as long as I want to. I usually “practice” soloing or have fun with effects/pedals and looping (and then solo).

Am I just lazy? Perhaps. Maybe I have a different approach to music than many people. Occasionally I’ll pull out the Bach or other classical/Renaissance music that I love to play, but not on a regular basis. I also have to practice new songs for my bands and keep old ones memorized.

So this raises another question: What is practice? My friend Tony once told me that I do practice; just not doing what other people consider practice. The skills I gain by “messing around” on guitar are actually skills I use. I solo a lot as a lead guitarist, for instance (many musicians can’t do this). When I figure songs out for fun, I’m using critical listening skills that serve me very well in a band context. But the lines between practice, work, and having fun are frequently blurred!

So despite those things, I’m growing in confidence as a professional musician. In my case, being professional means using my talents to entertain people and get paid for it. That’s pretty much it 🙂 The amount of practice I do has little importance as long as I can perform well! And I’m in good company with a host of people who play music for a living and yet can’t read well at all. Like this guy (who didn’t read at all):