Getting over the frustration

[Drumbler]

Originally Posted by chancho

Please tell me what it was like for you...............is there still hope? I hope so. I really love the art of being a musician. Love how jazz takes me on a journey and brings me back, and when it doesn"t it's just as exciting. Love how there are soo many options to play a melody and want soo much to be a part of it

Hope for what? To be the next Wes Montgomery? To that end there is no hope.

To have an enjoyable hobby there is hope.

If you are always trying to get somewhere that you are not, then you will be frustrated because you cannot enjoy where you are. Enjoy whatever you can do. If all you can do is play an E major chord then enjoy doing that.

(You are getting calls for jazz gigs but you can't play Autumn Leaves?)

[chancho]

Originally Posted by Drumbler

Hope for what? To be the next Wes Montgomery? To that end there is no hope.

To have an enjoyable hobby there is hope.

If you are always trying to get somewhere that you are not, then you will be frustrated because you cannot enjoy where you are. Enjoy whatever you can do. If all you can do is play an E major chord then enjoy doing that.

(You are getting calls for jazz gigs but you can't play Autumn Leaves?)

Who said Im getting calls for jazz gigs ?? LOL

[Drumbler]

Originally Posted by chancho

But if you study jazz an hour a day think of the benefits in other styles. I've wanted to be a jazzer since my teens. My studies have been for multiple hours a day. I've had maybe one or two jazz gigs a year, keep getting called for other things, because the jazz training has given me the ability to learn a lot of songs and a couple other instruments quickly and read at least 'well enough'.

My teacher says if I learn Jazz all other genre will be a cakewalk...I believe him

[P_Jay]

KISS. Jazz can turn into a mare's nest otherwise.

Do you ever think about how you're holding yourself physically when you play?

I couldn't get any smooth speed into my playing for years until I finally discovered I wasn't clasping the neck correctly. When I did the tingling in my shoulder disappeared as well my negative self-esteem and my maximum tempo increased overnight.

The devil lies in the details.

If you want to play like Wes listen to Bird, he did. When you try to play any line from Charlie Parker you become Wes Montgomery trying to learn a Parker line and that's pretty cool.

Try and practice at the same times every day. Body likes routines.

Listen to Autumn Leaves before you fall asleep, sing the melody to yourself away from your instrument.

Repetition is essential. You gotta play stuff over and over and over. So make it the stuff you want to play over and over. Passion is everything.

[Ceejay]

I want to add my 2p (or cents) worth. I think I'm one of those people that gets to a certain point and then loses focus but what I find key to clinging onto it is having constant inspiration.

I'm literally 3 weeks into "learning jazz guitar". I've taken something I read on here to heart and started listening purely to jazz, to the exclusion of all other styles of music. Just going out and buying a bunch or records and listening to them for 8 or 9 hours a day whilst I work has been fantastic in the last 3 weeks since starting my jazz journey. I find my brain is starting to make sense of the music much more. Don't get me wrong - I still don't "understand" it at all from a musical sense, but I'm really starting to hear things, whereas before I almost felt detached from it, like I wasn't really taking it in, if that makes any sense whatsoever! I'm sure, just the fact that I can now hum jazz tunes I've heard means that somewhere in my head things are starting to click, and that's really going to help in the long run.

I've realised learning jazz is a very steep, very long learning curve - probably more so than I thought initially. It's so easy to think "I'll never play like that" and think about giving up. But think of the satisfaction when you can finally play "that tune"...

[brwnhornet59]

Welcome to the lifelong journey of Jazz!!!

[lukaas]

Have you tried the Mickey baker course, it's a very musical approach IMO.

It gets you going quickly too.

[Reg]

There are basically two methods of learning to play (jazz)guitar
1) You learn tunes and in the process... learn,(memorize), chords, scales, how to read and all the other skills of playing music. This is the standard method, you'll have technical studies that go along with the memorization process. You learn by memorizing applications of concepts.
2) the other method... obviously is learning the concepts, the how and why of music... and apply them as you learn... memorizing the tunes is not the goal... understanding the concepts and how to apply is.
People come in all levels of talent... they also come in all levels of motivation. Talent will get you to a point, (usually not enough to become a good jazz player), but with out the motivation... you'll probable never get there... Sorry, if it was easy... there would be tons of great players... Motivation... remember that.
Part of becoming a jazz player is having a certain skill level... we all know what that is, there's a little gray area, but for the most part if any of us took the time and broke down what's required to be a good jazz player... all the lists would all be close.
So how to get there....
You need to know what type of person you are.... What or how are you going to stay motivated.... nowadays most people need instant gratification... so the memorization method of learning would probable work best. But the order of memorization needs to be very organized and reflect the student... good teacher or good school. Both can have motivational effects.
So if the goal is the same, become a good jazz player, this method will take longer... right. That list of what makes a good jazz player, not our personal view of what might work for us personally... what we would like to become... that jazz guitar player.
The reason I say this is because after you have the skills... it's pretty easy to play jazz well, you still need something to say... but the part about memorizing tunes, reacting and interacting while your playing, being aware of what your playing and what other musicians are playing... understanding and playing jazz...that part of playing is covered...the mechanics of playing what ever you hear or want to play. As I said before... you still need something to say.... but very few people who reach this level of playing... don't have plenty to say. Usually the difficulty is finding methods of have your audience understand what you have to say..
So the short version.... be aware of the differences between methods of learning and be aware of which method works best for you... Most people change during periods of their life... so you'll probable use both. Reg

[brwnhornet59]

Originally Posted by Reg

People come in all levels of talent... they also come in all levels of motivation. Talent will get you to a point, (usually not enough to become a good jazz player), but with out the motivation... you'll probable never get there... Sorry, if it was easy... there would be tons of great players... Motivation... remember that.
Part of becoming a jazz player is having a certain skill level... we all know what that is, there's a little gray area, but for the most part if any of us took the time and broke down what's required to be a good jazz player... all the lists would all be close.

Man that is the truth!

[Greg Brouelette]

May I add my humble advice?

Find somebody to play with and try to play together at least a few times each month. You'll find that playing with people will really push you in ways you never expected. You'll take all those concepts you've been trying to learn and put them into practice. It's amazing ow often in practice we stop and start or rush the easy parts and slow down on the hard parts. Playing with people will really push you forward.

It doesn't have to be a gig (in fact, I suggest that it's not). But just a regular practice jam session will do you a ton of good.

And it's incredibly fun as well.

[whatswisdom]

Originally Posted by Greg Brouelette

Find somebody to play with and try to play together at least a few times each month. ...just a regular practice jam session will do you a ton of good. And it's incredibly fun as well.

Great advice! I just got someone who's up for a regular jam. I'm looking forward to movin' on up...

[mrsteamer]

If it was easy everyone would be doing it. I went through the same thing a few months after I started playing.