31 Dec
Music, Practise and Motion
Practise refers to any action, ritual or activity that we perform regularly. It is also something that we engage in for the purpose of acquiring or maintaining a particular skill. To gain any level of proficiency in something we need to execute specific exercises aimed at reinforcing our command of the actions associated with the skill. In the context of playing music practise refers to the actions that we perform to re-inforce routines, patterns, phrases, or any other elements required to produce some kind of musical outcome.
A skill and an artform
The activity of playing a musical instrument can be thought of as a skill. It can also be considered an artform and it’s essential to understand the relationship between the two.
Before we can indulge in the activity of performing music as an expressive artform, we need to acquire a certain level of control of the mechanical hurdles presented by our instrument. It’s essential that we acquire the ability to execute the various techniques required to make the instrument work with some proficiency before we can express the art. This ability we might call a skill or more precisely a combination of skills.
Development of the necessary skills is the means to a well defined end. Much of the practise that we do as musicians is done with the goal in mind of developing an adequate command of our instrument. The acquired skills put us in a better position to perform and express ourselves artisitically.
We engage in many activities as we go through life. Not all of them are going to be considered artforms but whether they are or not they all require developing some kind of skill. We acquire the ability to engage in these activities by practising. We practise the actions associated with walking, talking, driving, teeth brushing, cooking, cleaning and countless other activities. Most of the time we don’t even think of it as practice but that is in reality what we are doing.
There are plenty of activities that may not generally be thought of as artforms, but it can be argued that some skills display elements of artistry in their practise. The ability to speak a particular language is something that could exhibit an artisitc flare as could the practise of sportsvarious. We may comment on the graceful fluidity of a tennis player or the spectacular agility of a gymnast. There’s the facility required to perform the actions and there’s the artistry which seems to transcend the mechanics of the activity and reveal a deeper, personal expression of it..
Physical actions, techniques and routines can be utilised to build a level of competency that we might call a skill. Once we have acquired the skill we can focus on our artistic expression as an extension of that skill.
Components
After we’ve understood this connection between the technical foundation and the related skills we can make a decision to develop whatever it is that we wish to build into our playing. We start by assembling the necessary components and actions required to construct our craft.
We need to understand how they function, what purpose they serve and how to utilise them. Then we integrate these actions in order to exercise our musical intentions. We can make sense of the mechanisms associated with the end game which in our case is making music.
Repetition
Repeating things is how we retain and improve our ability to perform certain tasks and take any activity, turning it into something that requires little thought. The term muscle memory is often used but remains somewhat of a misnomer. The basic premise of the term is that repetition of an action will activate a memory function within a muscle or group of muscles. It doesn’t because muscles don’t actually remember anything.
Types Of Memory
There has been alot of debate among experts over the years relating to human memory and how to classify the different types. Many researchers agree that there are four major categories, long term, short term, sensory and working memory.
Sensory.
Sensory memory allows the retention of sensory information after a sensory event has occurred. It doesn’t retain memories for more than a very short period, usually less than a second. Examples of sensory memory can include remembering events such as the touching of an object or hearing a passing sound. Sensory experiences can be repeated and also combined with other memories in which case they can relocate from the sensory memory to the short term memory or even the long term memory. Sensory memory allows us to make sense of the world around us by briefly recalling sights, sounds and other sensory experiences. It is automatic and not controlled by cognitive processes.
Sensory memory can be divided into three sub categories, Iconic, Haptic and Echoic.
Iconic memory relates to the visual realm. It’s a fast decaying form of memory based on visual persistence and informational persisitence. The first is basically a “snapshot” of what an individual is perceiving in front of them. The second is a stored version of the original image.
Haptic memory is related to touch. We employ haptic memory when interacting with objects. It is most useful when stimuli is apllied to regions of our skin that are highly sensitive and helps us to process and make sense of the physical nature of objects and surfaces.
Echoic memory is related to the storeage of audio information as the sound is processed by the brain. We are able to attach meaning to the sound that we hear due to the fact that we can hold on to the information. The information is actually stored in the primary audio cortex (in the brain) opposite to the ear that received the sound. We have a left and right PAC, one in each hemisphere. If a sound is heard in both ears the information is retined by both PAC’s. Echoic memory is passed on to the short term memory after a few seconds. This is where the information is processed by the brain and we are able to absorb the meaning associated with the sound.
Short-term memory.
Short term memory is utilised when recalling limited amounts of information for a short period, approximately 30 seconds. An example of short term memory is the recalling of a series of numbers and reciting them shortly afterwards. The short term memory is engaged to retain the information just long enough to repeat the sequence aloud.
Working memory.
Working memory allows us to manipulate information for the purpose of performing a task or solving a particular problem. For example if you are making a cup of coffee you need to recall the various stages of the process in order to complete the task.
Practising and performing music largely utilises the long term memory. Explicit memory is the memory associated with learning and recalling facts and information such as words and events. Implicit memory is associated with the recall of actions and skills. It’s the ability to remember a set of movements.
Long term memory.
Long term memory allows us to retain information and skills for long periods and also permanently. Memories can last from anywhere from a few minutes to a life time and theoretically can be accessed whenever the need arises most of the time. There are two types of long term memory, explicit and implicit.
Explicit memory
Explicit memory contains information that we consciously and intentionally try to recall. There are three processes that take place within this type of memory; acquisition, consolidation and retrieval. Explicit memory is also called declarative memory due to the fact that information can be recalled and defined.
Explicit memory is divided into two sub categories episodic and semantic. Episodic memory relates to the storeage of personal experiences. It’s the memory that is most often thought of as memory and includes information relating to events in the past including more recent ones. memories such as what song we played on a guitar this morning or where you performed last Thursday. Episodic memory requires the recollection of a past experience.
Episodic memory is the memory associated with recall of past events. It is the type of memory most commonly thought of when referring to memory. Episodic memory is the recollection of information relating to the what, where and when of particular occirences.
Semantic memory relates to the storing of factual information necessary for the use of language but does not require the recollection of a prior experience.
Implicit memory
is the memory that allows us to recollect information that has been observed previously. This category of memory allows us to access to previous;y stored information. It is associated with the development of skills, procedural and to the relationship between one stimulus and a subsequent stimulus, priming.
We use both explicit and implicit memory in the course of practising a musical instrument. Multiple parts of the brain are engaged including the motor cortex and the basal ganglia. Our brain actually changes when we practise and study music. The white matter that connects the different parts of the brain increases and the grey matter, which is basically the neurons or the brain cells, increases. The connection between the brain and the various muscles associated with a particular action (through the spinal chord) also becomes stronger when we practise.
So when we refer to muscle memory we are actually referring to these processes that promote development of a skill set through repetition. To develop our skills effectively we need to first learn a pattern, phrase or action so we can then start the process of repetition. That’s when the process of what we refer to as muscle memory kicks into gear and we start to feel the real effects of having repeated certain actions.
Working with music also requires a strengthening of the brain to ear muscle connection. That’s one of the main differences between music and so many other mechanical skills. Our ability to hear, recall and respond to auditory signals or sound is a complex set of processes.
Sound is received by the brain via the auditory nerve in the form of electrical signals. This sound is raw and has no context. The echoic memory holds this audio information in the primary auditory cortex then shortly after the information is passed on to the short term memory. This is where the sound is processed by the brain and it takes on meaning.
We can make sense of how musical information is received, stored, processed and retained. This will hopefully demystify some of the processes that are in play when we are constructing our musical language.
Coordination
All instruments involve varying degrees of coordination but drumming presents one of the most obvious and challenging examples of coordination at work. Even some of the simple patterns that drummers play demand a fairly sophisticated degree of coordinatin. Drumming coordination is associated with some complex brain processes but put simply is about the hands and feet working together in various combinations. It also refers to the relationship between the eyes and the hands.
Motor Coordination Types
Motor coordination is the combination of movements of multiple limbs or body parts to perform given actions. There are three basic motor coordination types:
Interlimb – cross limb coordination – several parts of the brain including the cerebellum, the pre-motor cortex and the primary motor cortex contribute to this category of coordination. There are two types of interlimb coordination: bimanual and hands/feet.
Intralimb : coordination of limb segments – The coordination and synchronised movement of thigh and shank.
Eye – hand : coordination of eye and hand movements – The processing of visual inputs to assist movements performed by the hands..
The coordination aspect of drumming is an intrinsic part of the instruments‘ functionality. The drumkit came together in its infancy as a combination of single drums. The snare, bass drum, toms and cymbals were separate musical instruments and played as such. The combining of the individual drums into the drumkit in the late 19th century presented drummers with a whole new set of coordinational hurdles required to make this revolutionary new instrument work.
Later evolutions such as high hat addition in the 1920s. double bass drums in the 1950s thanks to Louis Belson and remote second hihats even later added to the instruments’ coordinational complexity even further. Today drummers have taken the concept of drumkit coordination to some dizzying heights and musicians such as Dave Weckl and Virgil Donati have achieved almost complete independence and the ability to coordinate some frighteningly complex patterns between hands and feet.
Other Considerations
There are other important considerations that come in to play when developing your expertise as a drummer such as understanding song structure, rhythmic construction, melody, dynamics, economy of motion, posture, groove, orchestration and stylistic accuracy. Then there’s making sense of general music theory, chord progressions, harmonic structures and the role that the instrument plays within the various musical scenarios. Developing a great sense of time and sophisticated aural skills are also necessary elements in attaining proficiency in any style or musical setting.
Creativity
Having achieved the degree of skill that you feel is required you can then embark on a path to individuality and creative expression. This doesn’t mean that you cannot be creative in the planning of your development. Creativity can be exercised in your construction of a good practise routine. You can make choices about what you practise, how you do it and how long you do it for and to which particular goal you are working towards. From the early stages of your learning you can start to make creative decisions in relation to your growth as a musician.
Technical doesn’t mean mechanical
When we assemble the building blocks of our skillset this is a technical or mechanical process. That doesn’t mean that we have to sound mechanical when we are practising them. When you practise the technical elements it’s important to always feel like you are doing something musical. Anything that you practise should ideally never feel mechanical even though it is. If you stay relaxed and treat any repetitive task as something that needs to have a human feeling to it , this will help you to avoid practising robotically and consequently sounding that way when you play.
A balance
Practise doesn’t need to be like boot camp.
It;s important to find a balance and not overdo any of the elements to the point of mental or physical exhaustion. Practice should feel purposeful and enjoyable. If you are working on something but don’t have a sense of why you are working on it then it probably isn’t going to serve you. There’s no need to overthink it either. A simple set of activities that you feel are going to enhance your talents is all you need. That is enough to construct what you might call a game plan for your practise.
Rhythm Cave Routines
The practise routines available with Rhythm Cave give you a solid sense of how to start doing this but even without them you can easily draw up your own routine and start the process of planning your musical development.
Re-evaluate
You can always change it if it doesn’t feel right and ideally you should reassess your routine regularly to make sure that you are getting the kind of results that you are aiming for and that it reflects your sense of what’s important to your musical development.
Keep it simple
All you really need to do is start with your own simple routine and develop a feel for it. The alternative is to do as you please on any particular day which is fine too but my recommendation is to apply at least a bit of structure to your practice while being mindful of keeping your practise enjoyable.
You can start with something very simple like this
Daily routine ( Monday to friday )
1. Rudiments – 5 mins
2. Coordination- 5 mins
3. 8 bar phrasing – 5 mins
4. Groove playing – 5 mins
5. Reading Rhythm – 5 mins
6. Playing to songs – 10 mins
Practise regularly.
Once you have a list you should run through it regularly. Short but regular sessions are much more affective than one marathon session once a week. Try daily or even twice daily. Again, the key is regularity. You can keep the same routine for as long as you feel it is serving your purposes.
A diary
When I was studying I kept a practise diary and found that helpful. Id basically keep a routine for as long as it served my purposes and then I’d edit it accordingly. Being able to look back at old routines and habits allowed me to get a really accurate sense of what I’d worked on and for how long and what changes I’d made over time. Some things stayed in the routine and something’s came and went.
One thing that I never discarded was my approach to rudimentary work. That was always a big thing for me and allowed me to gain the degree of technical proficiency and articulation that I was always striving for. it was an important element of my playing and something I enjoyed working on. The diary was a great way to keep track of everything I’d done and how I’d progressed because there were also notes and tempo markings.
Stay Focused
Certainly not the least consideration is the one of focus. Learning to truly focus while you practise is a real game changer. The better you are able to focus the more efficient your practice will be and the greater the results. If you are watching tv while you practise or are checking your messages you’re ability to absorb execute, evaluate and recall the process of your work will be seriously impeded. Five minutes of heightened focus while you practise will serve you better than 30 minutes of being only half present. The difference is significant.
Stay Relaxed
It’s a simple idea but not so easy to achieve. The tendency is for us to tense up when we are concentrating or attempting a difficult task. Checking your physical and mental state is something that you can start to be aware of and incorporate into your practice and your playing. You’ll find the process of working on your practise materials more efficient and more effective. Combined with your ability to focus successfully the whole process of building and maintaining your musical capabilities will be so much more successful and satisfying.