Blink and you’ll miss it. Yes, the New Year has arrived, so now is the time to make promises you might never keep! Only joking. Resolutions are fantastic tools because they encourage you to be better, which is always a healthy thing.
For musicians, 2021 is the perfect opportunity to take your musical prowess to the next level. After all, setting goals and targets will propel you from a casual player into a semi-professional and professional player. Yes, creating goals can be challenging, yet it doesn’t have to be with the following advice.
Here are four targets you should attempt to hit this year.
Create A Practice Routine
To practice playing an instrument should be the easiest thing in the world. You pick it up, play, and don’t stop until you feel like stopping. Sadly, practicing is not as straightforward as it appears, not when life gets in the way and prevents you from investing the necessary time into your hobby. As well as establishing a routine, you should set out how long you plan on playing each day or week, too. Then, you’ll have a framework you can refer to that highlights your progress.
Start Taking Lessons
If you don’t think you have the time to practice, or you lack the motivation, there are other ways to fine-tune your musical skills. The best option is to take lessons again as you can benefit from a formal class with a professional instructor. Many musicians need a push in the right direction since doing everything from home gets samey. With a teacher, you can pick their brains, ask for advice, and fix problems before they escalate out of control. Plus, it’s a smart and more exciting way of boosting your motor skills and knowledge of music as you have another person to bounce off.
Compose & Record Music
Copying music is a good place to start as it gets you in the groove. However, it’s only a beginning point. If you want to go to the next phase, it’s essential to compose and record original songs because the composition is what sets the weak from the strong. As a songwriter and musician, you can curate music for yourself or others and use songs to make money. All you have to do is run Garageband on Windows and you can kick start the process. Songwriting is a type of therapy. You’ll love the sensation when you play a melody you have created.
Perform
Lastly, it’s time to leave the house and perform. Only by performing on stage, in front of people, do you hone your skills. And, this doesn’t only mean your ability to play an instrument and sing. It also includes how you deal with a crowd and create a fluid set that flows from the first song to the last. Covid makes performing in public tough, although you can busk on the street, while Zoom and Microsoft Teams are excellent programs for aspiring musicians to spread the word.
Are you a musician? What are your New Year resolutions?
