How to get out of a Slump

You know the feeling. You go to practice, put your horn together, start blowing and....you don't know what you want to practice. Everything bores you or frustrates you. You don't seem to be getting any further in your development.

What do you do?

GO CRAZY!!

No, really!! Get creative about what you can practice. Learn to play consecutive minor ninth intervals chromatically. Practice playing Half-diminished arpeggios. Learn to play any etude that you know a half-tone higher, a half-tone lower. Transcribe a solo off a record. Listen to a recording of yourself and transcribe your won solo. Do anything that will break your routine!

What are the benefits? First, the fact that you're breaking a routine is a good thing. It is through routine that we often why we get bored. Some of may need routines and that's OK. Through breaking the routines every now and then, keeps us creative in our thinking and obviously, can build our technique, our ears and much more.

So now, the next time you get stuck you won't have an excuse anymore as to "not knowing what to do".

Go for it!

Evan Tate is a freelance musician/instructor and the author of "Way to Mastery: Saxophone". He holds a BM of Music from the Manhattan School of Music under the tutelage of Dr. Joe Allard and has over 20 years of professional playing and teaching experience and has performed at various jazz festivals and radio broadcasts. Since 1993, He is an endorser for Julius Keilwerth saxophones.

http://www.evantate.de or mailto:evan@evantate.de