What is musicianship?
"Musicianship" refers to anything that can make you a better musician, above and beyond the technical aspects of playing your instrument that music lessons usually focus on. It includes fundamentals like ear training and theory but also higher level skills like improvisation and arranging.
I hear so many people express disappointment that after years of traditional instruction, they can't play by ear or improvise. On the other side of that coin, many musicians who play impressively by ear tell me they feel limited because they can't read music and don't understand the theory well enough to communicate with other musicians. I also know musicians who have gone to music school and earned degrees but then find they are lost in the professional world when faced with practical challenges like taking a job leading a church group and needing to create simple arrangements.
The things I am talking about here - playing by ear, improvising, reading music, communicating with other musicians in the language of music theory, using that knowledge to create arrangements to suit a particular situation - these are all important to one's success and fulfillment as a musician. And yet, depending on the learning path one takes, most people find they are weaker than they would like in one or more of these or other similar areas.
How can I help?
The Musicianship Skills Workshop is designed to give you instruction and hands-on practice in all of this, with video lessons, guided projects, and feedback on your work. And my entire library of hundreds of premium online lessons is available to you for additional reference, including the online courses Basic Music Theory, Harmony and Chord Progressions, and Practical Counterpoint.
In this workshop, you'll be working with a group of other motivated musicians. I'll be your coach, giving you lessons and projects to complete and feedback on your work.
Since it's an ongoing course, it's not limited to a preset curriculum - I can and will adapt to your needs. But you can expect the following general format:
- Each month there may be a new theme
- Every week or two I post new a lesson and/or project for you to work on
- You can discuss the material with me and other students on the Community site
- On Tuesdays, you can ask questions and get feedback during my live Office Hours
- You can post your work and view the work of others, and you can receive and give feedback
- On Thursdays, I may feature some student work live in my Music Master Class (these sessions are also recorded)
- I regularly post additional feedback on projects to the Community
An amazing value!
Both the Music Engraving and Musicianship Skills workshops are free and exclusive benefits of Gold Level Membership, which is an incredibly inexpensive way to get an education that other musicians can only dream of.
Many of us have paid $50 or more every week for music lessons. Or for that matter, thousands on college classes - tens of thousands for a degree. And often, we come away with as many unanswered questions as when we started. It's not your fault; those programs are designed to teach specific subjects but not necessarily to produce well-rounded musicians.
If you're ready to become the musician you've always wanted to be, why not join us? For a fraction of the price of a private lesson with your local teacher, you get world-class instruction in all of these vital areas, a cohort of fellow students to support you in your journey, access to a library of online courses, and more.