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Author Topic: Musician Block  (Read 2700 times)

Offline jjjoe

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Musician Block
« on: June 07, 2008, 09:23:58 AM »
I got a Musician Block Similar to Writers Block. What I means is I am second guessing myself on chords. Also, I forgot about 70 to 80 percent of my chords. My timing is off real bad, and it seems that I have hit a ceiling. Can anyone help me please.

thank you

Offline musallio

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Re: Musician Block
« Reply #1 on: June 07, 2008, 03:57:41 PM »
I got a Musician Block Similar to Writers Block. What I means is I am second guessing myself on chords. Also, I forgot about 70 to 80 percent of my chords. My timing is off real bad, and it seems that I have hit a ceiling. Can anyone help me please.

thank you

Forgot your chords..& most of them?!! I don't know what remedy would work for that..
Perhaps the best thing to do is start writing down all the chords you like & arrange them in a circle so that you can always go back to them.

Timing:
I'm working on that right now..
1st thing is to listen to others play the genre of music you want to play & then hear where they place those chords.
You've been playing long enough to know when everything should be played, so I think it's just a lapse in concentration..

The other way you can get your timing right is experiment with different rhythms for the same song. Start slow & build up the tempo.

Maybe buying Willie Myette's dvd on rhythm might inspire you..But I believe it's just a lapse in concentration on your part :-\

Glass ceiling:

Try learning song of a different genre you're used to (eg, country or latin music)..That should challenge you enough to find that energy you once had..

Hopefully it will help you learn more about what you play already.
It also pays to revisit the bunch of instructionals you already have: you might catch a thing or 2 you had overlooked previously ;)
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Offline T-Block

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Re: Musician Block
« Reply #2 on: June 07, 2008, 04:02:45 PM »
Whenever I hit a music block, I go back to the basics.  If you second guessing yourself on chords, then I would practice and relearn my chords.  I would also go back and practice some progressions.  You also said ur off on timing.  Playing with a metronome or drum pattern will help correct that.  Start a slower tempo then gradually increase speed until it's at the speed u want it to be.

I have to do this with the classicaly pieces I'm learning for school.  I find myself having to go back and get refreshed with scales, arpeggios, and stuff like at in order to have the skills necessary to pull off the piece.  I don't have a metronome, but I do have drum patterns that I use all the time now so that my timing is on point.

Hopefully, something I've said here will help you out man.
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Offline jjjoe

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Re: Musician Block
« Reply #3 on: June 07, 2008, 04:04:48 PM »
I thought about going through a refresher course of theory and everything but I not sure will that be drastic enough.

Offline tammyid

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Re: Musician Block
« Reply #4 on: June 07, 2008, 04:10:37 PM »
Great advise musallio!  Also, if you're having problems w/ timing, try playing w/ a metronome or a drum beat.  A lot of newer keyboards have a metronome built into it (ie on my Casio, it's some of the last "rhythms").

Also, it's good to practice your scales and chords daily.  When practicing your chords, practice playing chord progressions and the 7 basic triad chords in every key (ie I major, ii minor, iii minor, IV major, V major, vi minor, vii diminished).  Learn to think of them in numbers as you practice.  Also, learn new chords by numbers (ie instead of learning C major is C-E-G, learn that it's 1-3-5 of the C major scale).  Also, when you learn new chords, learn their inversions too (ie Cmajor C-E-G, 1st inversion E-G-C, and G-C-E).

When practicing chord progressions, it's best to start practicing progressions using the primary chords, I-IV-V Chords, in every key.  You'll play these chords probably 70-80 percent of the time in most songs (esp. basic praise/worship songs and hymns).  With my experience playing on a worship team at church, I've noticed that we play these chords most of the time, and there's a lot of songs that will throw in one or two minor chords, most commonly the vii, and sometimes the iii, and sometimes the ii.  The vii dim is rarely used in praise/worship (more likely to be used in gospel or preacher chords).

Offline musallio

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Re: Musician Block
« Reply #5 on: June 07, 2008, 04:25:07 PM »
Thanks sis Tam :)
Looks like the all the advice is similar..So go for it Jjjoe..I know it will require some push..but once U'r on it, you'll gain momentum & you'll be where you want not long afterwards. :)
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Offline jjjoe

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Re: Musician Block
« Reply #6 on: June 07, 2008, 04:28:15 PM »
where can i find a Willie Myette's dvd on rhythm at

Offline musallio

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Re: Musician Block
« Reply #7 on: June 07, 2008, 04:40:58 PM »
where can i find a Willie Myette's dvd on rhythm at


I think you can trust you years of experience to help you if you start slow with a metronome, but it's always good to build up with theoretical knowledge, so here is the link:

http://www.jazzpianolessons.com/learn-jazz-piano/home.php?cat=105
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Offline jjjoe

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Re: Musician Block
« Reply #8 on: June 07, 2008, 04:54:40 PM »
Have anyone else experience this?

Offline musallio

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Re: Musician Block
« Reply #9 on: June 07, 2008, 05:33:44 PM »
Have anyone else experience this?

It happens to me sometime for some songs..
But it's never been a case of me forgetting most of my chords..I just forget the progressions moat of the time :'(
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Offline jjjoe

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Re: Musician Block
« Reply #10 on: June 07, 2008, 05:39:21 PM »
thanks for your help

Offline Fenix

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Re: Musician Block
« Reply #11 on: June 07, 2008, 05:40:30 PM »
It happens to me sometime for some songs..
But it's never been a case of me forgetting most of my chords..I just forget the progressions moat of the time :'(

Yeah that happens to me a lot. I don't forget the chords, just the progressions.
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Offline musallio

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Re: Musician Block
« Reply #12 on: June 07, 2008, 06:08:27 PM »
Yeah that happens to me a lot. I don't forget the chords, just the progressions.

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Offline chevonee

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Re: Musician Block
« Reply #13 on: June 07, 2008, 06:08:48 PM »
Have anyone else experience this?
Yep this has happend to me before. I used to stay up all night going over the songs that I had to play at church the next day...and as soon as it was time to play, my mind would go BLANK! >:( >:( That was about 2 years ago, boy am I glad thats over. :-[ :-[ :-[ The things that helped me was what Tblock said...I had to start over again. Don't worry this is only a temporary thing, if you hang in there you'll be just fine. ;)
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