Words of Advice about Learning Music

Someone asked me, “What’s the best advice you can give someone learning music?” I have a two part response to that question.

My first bit of advice (brace yourselves because this is going to blow your minds) is to practice! Yes, that’s right, practice. We’ve all heard the saying “practice makes perfect,” and there’s certainly a lot of truth to that.

In an age where it seems like almost everything is instantaneous, I think it’s easy for people to become discouraged when their musical skills don’t just happen the first time they lay their hands on a keyboard or pick up a guitar. It takes dedicated practice, and I don’t mean you have to lock yourself in your room and practice for hours on end. If you can spend 20 or 30 minutes a few days a week practicing, I promise you will see significant changes. Like my mom tells me, “Eat the whale one bite at a time.”

The second part of my advice to those learning music is to listen to music. This holds true for anything. Want to be a writer? Read. Want to be an artist? Go to art galleries. My point is to learn as much as you can about what you’re interested in. Doing so will only help to arm you with endless creative possibilities to keep in your back pocket, and inspiration to keep you moving forward.

Practice, listen, and love what you do.