Taking Every Opportunity To Get Better

Today, this post is going to be all about why you should get private lessons. So, lets get into my personal reasons.

Young Trombone Shorty

Trombone Shorty Today

       Alright so If you know trombone shorty you know that he's been a good player for a while. He played with Wynton Marsalis, Wycliffe Gordon and a number of other jazz professionals in the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra at age 13. But the reason I'm using this comparison is to show your growth as a musician if you take private lessons. Now you getting better doesn't only consist of you taking lessons. When you are around people that are better than you at something you are bound to get better yourself. Before I continue I just want to make clear I don't expect whoever's reading this to be at the level Trombone Shorty was at age 13. I purely just want to show you what can happen when you get better. Now lets go over what you can do to get better.

First there is Marching Band. Your college and high school are filled with lots of upper-class men that are better than you just hanging out with them can make a difference. With marching band there's a schedule that you have to follow for me it was every week day at 7:30 am until we the directors thought we were done for the day. Either way you get in at least two hours of hanging out with people that can teach you a thing or two. By the end of the summer I was twice as good as I was when school let out.

Nebraska Cornhusker's Marching Band

Next are combo groups. So with a combo group there aren't five or more instruments just like you to cover your mistakes. Usually there is only one trombone, one or two trumpets, one french horn and so on so you are completely liable for any mistakes you make. This forces you to practice just because of peer pressure. Also it allows you to hear what a tuba part actually sounds like and you can actually delve into what makes each instrument in your group so special.

Brass Quintet

Lastly are private lessons. Getting a private instructor is probably the best way to improve the fastest. A private instructor nit-picks at the stuff that you don't address. They can find the problems with your playing that you didn't even know about and help you fix those problems.  Your private instructor can pick out music for auditions and help you with them so you can perform the best you can. Taking private lessons can make you so much better. For me personally my tone quality,  my breathing, articulation, even how I hold the instrument has improved and I didn't know I was doing it wrong. Overall taking private lessons, marching band and joining are getting together combo groups. They will all help you more than you think they will. If you want to be a better player all these things will guarantee you success.