The importance of practicing music and taking lessons from some of the most inspirational musicians of our time
As autumn leaves start to fall and the days get shorter we begin spending more time indoors, making October the perfect time to start learning a musical instrument. Last month, we talked about how music can help students in the classroom, but it doesn’t end there. Learning to play an instrument takes time, be it 5 minutes a day or 30, but it can be a rewarding addition to your routine this fall. This month, we wanted to celebrate universal music day (October 12th) by looking at some of the most inspirational musicians of our time that were born in the month of October and how they got their start.
Sting – October 2nd
Bass Guitar
Rock
Sting began music lessons at the age of 7, learning classical and spanish guitar. He eventually transitioned to the upright bass and played in jazz ensembles until The Police were formed in 1977. In his own words, he described learning to sing and play an instrument in this 2012 interview as:
“You can do anything if you slow it down… I played it very slowly, and I had to sing, I’d sign in the ‘holes’…You can play and sing anything, it’s just a question of application.”
~ Sting
Yo-Yo Ma – October 7th
Cello
Classical
Yo-Yo Ma is a cellist who started taking music lessons at the age of 4. His dedication to his craft landed him on the stage of Carnegie Hall by the time he was 9 years old. He studied at Julliard and went on to record on over 100 albums. In an article for Strings Magazine, he stresses the importance of practicing:
“…if we don’t play for a while, we actually start from ground zero… As a child, I practiced because I had to practice and you didn’t want to mess up. But that’s not a good thing… Now I practice because I’ve experienced so much love that you practice out of loving a phrase, loving a motivic change, loving a structure or harmony change or the way a sound can get to something.”
~ Yo-Yo Ma
John Lennon – October 9th
Guitar
Rock
John Lennon got his first guitar at the age of 17, but before that, his mother Julia, taught her son to play the banjo. John has a love for Elvis Presley’s music and the first song that John learned to play was Fat’s Domino’s Ain’t That A Shame. He spent a lot of time with his guitar and his aunt, whom he was raised by told him that “playing the guitar is all very well, but you’ll never make a living out of it.” That same year that he got his first guitar, he met Paul McCartney and the rest is history. Learning to play an instrument takes time, but in the words of John Lennon:
“Time you enjoy wasting, was not wasted.”
~ John Lennon
John Mayer – October 16th
Guitar
Rock
Connecticut’s own John Mayer has had a unique journey to master his instrument. He started playing the guitar at the age of 13 and even attended Berklee College of Music for a brief stint. Although most of his success came in the way of top 40 radio, John Mayer has always had a strong appreciation for the blues. In 2017, he began learning The Grateful Dead’s catalog of songs to join Bob Weir (who’s birthday is also October 16th) and other surviving members members of the Grateful Dead to form Dead and Company. In his own words, here is John’s approach to learning this vast catalog of music:
“I have my own system of layers to familiarize myself with each song – just listening to it… putting it on in the car, just having it [and] then picking it up and finding out where it lives on the guitar. Then learning how the arrangement goes… how the solo works – basically, the theory on the guitar for each song.”
~ John Mayer
Dizzy Gillespie – October 21
Trumpet
Jazz
Dizzy Gillespie was inspired to learn the trumpet after his father passed away at the age of 10. Ten years later, he had taken over for his idol, Roy Eldridge, in the Teddy Hill Orchestra. He is one of the greatest jazz trumpet players of all time and is known as one of the founders of the bebop style of jazz. In his book “To Be, or Not… to Bop,” Dizzy lays out the 6 skills to be a (jazz) musician as:
- Mastery of Instrument
- Style
- Taste
- Communication
- Chord Progressions
- Rhythm
This list is fundamentally dependent upon each other in order to be a successful musician. For example, you cannot play over a chord progression until you have worked on the technique of your instrument. You have to understand chord progressions before you can think about your style or musicality. You cannot understand rhythm until you have transcribed and learned the style of the musicians that inspire you. Without all of these skills, you won’t be able to effectively communicate with your audience. Whether you play the guitar, piano, or violin, incorporate these skills into your daily practice routine.
Other notable musicians born in October include:
- Blues guitar player Stevie Ray Vaughan was born on October 3rd
- Jazz piano player Thelonious Monk was born on October 10th
- Jazz upright bassist Esperanza Spalding was born on October 18th
- Rhythm & Blues vocalist Mahalia Jackson was born on October 26th
- Country guitar singer Brad Paisley was born on October 28th