Musician Tips 1 - Every musician should consider putting together a musician's survival kit of some sort. This kit should include things like extra audio equipment accessories, tools like pliars, wire cutters, tuning keys, etc., first aid (band aids, etc.), and miscellaneous items necessary for musical emergencies.

Musician Tips 2 - Get in the habit of keeping two of everything on hand at your studio or rehearsal studio. It helps to have a couple of keyboards, two guitars, two drums, etc. Keep all good and heavy equipment at the rehearsal site, while having a smaller, lighter instrument offsite for additional rehearsal time inbetween band or group rehearsals. This saves on time for setting up as well as wear and tear on the good equipment.

Musician Tips 3 - Be on time to band rehearsals and gigs! If you're late, it can cause a stressful situation. Remember, you play an important role in your band. The other musicians are counting on you to be responsible enough to show up on time and do your job. After all; that's why they're paying you. Be on time.

Musician Tips 4 - Be willing to help set up and break down on a gig, even if it’s not your equipment. It goes a long way as a gesture of goodwill.

Musician Tips 5 - It is easy to get hooked on a teacher, especially if they are good at what they do and your personalities work well together. Even so, take the opportunity to explore other teachers, even if just through a single lesson or masterclass. You never know what you may pick up from their "bag of tricks".

Gifts for Musicians

Musician Tips 9- Leaders, be open to suggestions from fellow band members. It never hurts to try something new. Some musicians are very schooled and/or very experienced... or maybe simply very creative. Listen to their input and consider their musical ideas. That's why you hired them. They're not just robots that want to be told what to do.

Musician Tips 10 - Have weekly or monthy meetings with your band. Lay everything out on the table such as the rules and the expectations for your band. If you have this understanding from the beginning, it should eliminate much confusion down the road.

Musician Tips 11 - Make sure you know the correct attire for the performance and follow it exactly. When everyone has a “uniform”, it is easy to ruin the appearance by not following suit, even if the uniform consists of black pants, casual floral shirts, and black shoes and socks.

Musician Tips 12 - Try to be considerate of other band members on road trips. Many will object to smoking or drinking in the vehicle. Others may want to get a little rest rather than listen to blaring tunes or raucous conversation the whole way there. It’s more important to arrive safe and ready to perform than to have a party on the way down.

Musician Tips 13 - If there is money involved (which most of the time there is), be sure everyone is clear on what their slice of the pie will be. Draw up contracts if you have to. Take the necessary measure to make sure everyone understands the money. Many great bands have broken up over money issues.

Musician Tips 14 - Show up at rehearsal having practiced on your own. It saves everyone’s time and helps you play better together.

Musician Tips 15 - To promote your band, make a professional looking business card, flyer, and website. The more professional you look, the more your chances of being hired. A strong presence can boost your group's reputation.

Gifts for Musicians

Musician Tips 16- If you ever mess up than don't try to go back and fix what you messed up on, just go off from where you messed up and maybe no one will notice! -Xarumy

Musician Tips 17 - Herbie Hancock tells a story about playing a session at the plugged nickel where he hit a chord that was wrong; dead wrong. But, Miles Davis was listening so intently that he made it sound right by the notes he played over the top of the chord! In the jazz world, I think that Miles is the epitome of listening and playing off of what you hear. So many of us would do well to emulate this.

Musician Tips 18 - A drumming friend shared this advice with me a while back: "Leave your ego at the door." While it takes a certain amount of ego to shred your guitar, thrash your drums or rock your keyboard, remember that, as a musician--and especially as part of a group--you're there to entertain your guests, not to show your attitude or be a diva.Your bandmates will appreciate your professional attitude, and your guests will appreciate your professionalism on the bandstand...

Musician Tips 19 - Songwriters - Keep a tape recorder or small notepad with you at all times. You never know when inspiration will hit and if you don't have some way to record a melody or capture the lyrics they may be lost forever.

Musician Tips 20 - If you're having a hard time playing or singing in general compared to your usual ability level, try this: Play or sing something that has a very lyrical and singing quality to it, not something that is very technically challenging. Sail right through the melodies. A half an hour of this has been known to clear up unusual problems for more than a few musicians!

Musician Tips 21 - There's always been a lot of drugs in the music business. You'd be smart to run the other direction. Keep your distance as much as possible and don't buy into this notion that you have to do drugs to be creative. Nonsense!

Musician Tips 22 - Protect your hearing! Take it from one who knows. My ears are ringing loud right now (I have Tinnitus) and I would give anything to go back and do it over again... but I can't. As a musician, you owe it to yourself to Invest in some earplugs and earphones. Use them during band practices and as much as you can on louder gigs. Don't forget to keep earplugs with you for music concerts too.

Musician Tips 23 - Never, ever, EVER argue with another musician on stage. This is so unprofessional and it just makes your band look bad, not to mention embarrasing the other members of the band.

Musician Tips 24 - Out of respect for the audience you're playing for, try to avoid taking extended or extra long breaks. So many bands like to stretch those breaks out and sometimes really abuse it. The crowd wants to hear you play and at least some of them are there just for you, so respect this and don't keep them waiting.

Musician Tips 25 - Don't take a break if you see people showing up during a slow evening and it's time to stop.

Gifts for Musician

Musician Tips 26 - Trumpet player Rafael Mendez was quoted as saying something to the effect of "Make every note you play a solo." Take that to heart the next time you perform, even as a member of a group. Although you want to blend and play your part of the musical process without overpowering the group, a solo mindset will make you a stronger group member.

Musician Tips 27 - Don't get caught up in dogmatic approaches to playing or singing. Quite often, someone who thinks they have solved everyone's problems gets a lot of press or spends a lot of marketing money to get their product, method book, seminar DVD, or idea out there. While there are certainly guiding principals of technique, everyone has slight differences in body and mind.

Musician Tips 28 - Get multiple sets of directions and take them all. Get the ones your bandleader or band member has. Get an alternate set from Google Maps or another mapping service. Make sure that at least one set of directions has an actual map on it. And have phone numbers for the band leader, band members, and gig location in case something should happen.

Musician Tips 29 - If you are driving to the gig, make sure your vehicle is well maintained, gassed up, and ready to roll well before the day of the gig. This is even more important if you are giving others in the band a ride.

Musician Tips 30 - Be flexible. A performance is rarely ever exactly what you expect. Hopefully, this variety will keep things interesting for you. Be ready and willing to change the order of tunes or set lists. Be ready to stretch a song, cut another short, and even let the event organizer use your microphone to make announcements.

Musician Links

Find more Musician Tips at LeaveaTip.com

Stay tuned for more Musician Tips!

Search for More Tips at AddTips.com

Learn how to be a better musician and play music like the pros. At AddTips.com
you can find tips for band students and band members that allow you to rise
to a new level in music. Learn about how to play your instrument better, music
theory tips, songwriting tips and even how to get more gigs. Tons of music tips!
Don't miss all the unique music gifts available online for guitar players, piano
players, bass players, violin players, saxophone players, and drummers!

LIST OF MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS

AddTips.com - 1000's of TIPS on eveything you can imagine.
If you have music tips to share, please add them to our site!

AddTips.com