The New Gigging Drummer

No matter what length of time you've been playing the drums, there comes a point when to get the most from this instrument you really have to join a band, or at least jam with a few like-minded friends. Drumming alone at home is great fun, but not a patch on the excitement of playing along with other musicians and really driving a band. If you are just starting out on this path, I hope you will find this article useful.. I've drawn on my many years of experience as a performer, and hope to help you get the most from your music.

Firstly, you do not need to be a brilliant player to benefit from playing in a band... If you look hard enough there are always opportunities to play along with others... maybe a jam session at the local pub, a church music group, or a small band with a few old friends, all of these are a great way to expose you to playing live.

Perhaps you've been having regular drum lessons, have got a good sense of rhythm and know enough beats and fills to be able to play along with backing tracks of some of your favourite songs.... well now's the time ditch the backing tracks and find some real musicians. Check out the notice board in your local music shop for musicians wanted adverts, or check the local paper or even the internet (there are now several websites dedicated to bands/musicians wanted). As already mentioned, local Jam nights are a great starting point..you can go along and if you feel confident enough get up and perform one or two songs with the house band in a relaxed atmosphere. This should give you the boost you need and these places are often packed with other musicians looking for bands.. who knows who you could meet??

How Much Should You Practice, As a Beginner?

As a beginner, you might be asking yourself many questions; one of those questions is certainly how much you should practice when first learning how to play the piano. This is an age-old question and there is no particular answer. However, there are a few things you should know when you practice the piano in order to decide how often and for how long you should be sitting at the piano in a given week.

First of all, the key when learning anything new - musical or not - is consistency. Your brain needs to be subjected to that new thing you are learning on a consistent basis in order to truly assimilate the information. This is a mistake that many piano beginners make, unfortunately. They'll either go to their lessons once a week and think that this is all you need to learn how to play the piano, or they'll sit down for a few hours one day and practice without ever coming back to the instrument for the rest of the week.

Think about it: if you were learning a new language, you'd have to practice it and have frequent conversations with a native speaker in order to keep it up and learn new words. If you were learning how to solve mathematics equation, you'd have to work on it frequently before you can really say that you 'know' how to solve this equation. The same goes with playing music. Regardless of what instrument you play, you'll have to practice if you want to improve and become better. There is no fast tracking and there is no way one day of practice a week will help you. So, what you need is to make sure that you practice the piano at least 5 days a week. Everyday is better, if you can pull it off, but not everyone's lives allow them to do so.

Soccer to Heal Wounds in Afghanistan

One of the biggest challenges in Afghanistan is somewhat self-imposed, you see, we've determined that it's best to "win the hearts and minds of the people" and therefore, we've engaged in a little nation building, with the first step guaranteeing security there; easier said than done with insurgents from Pakistan and Iran, and the ever menacing Taliban amongst various other players and occasional jihadists. There are IEDs, local community betrayals, and people changing sides faster than a game of musical chairs.

So, what should we do; go fly a kite? Well, interestingly enough that might work, but I also have another thought here; Why not build soccer fields? How so you ask. Well, below is a quick run-down of what I have in mind, so let me explain and then let's discuss it.

Phase I

-Have Elders Bless it and Take Partial Credit
-Build Soccer Fields in all Cities/Towns/Villages
-Make them 10 abreast, or two-rows of five
-Use "Kite Power" for lights for night play
-Use "water-from-air" technology to drip irrigate the fields
-Supply nets, goal posts, marking chalk, grass seed, uniforms, etc. (bought in-country)

Phase II

-Supply iPad type tablets to keep score, run the tournaments, schedule, and APPs for practice.
-Use Tech to teach techniques, plays, coaches.
-Athletes to compete must do well in school to play, Elders decide the what level they must reach.
-Teach kids; mining, metallurgy, manufacturing, road building, construction, etc.
-Filming of games, players, posted to YouTube Afghan style.
One day a week - kite contests, where the best flyers come to compete.
Don't give the people hope, show them hope, give them a reason to live their life experience and to love life. That's real change.

Now then, recently I submitted this proposal to a debate team to pitch, which involves future policy makers in the US, along with future military commanders. I was asked what the possible risks would be to such a concept. Yes, there would be some risks, but those risks could turn into benefits too.

Risks:

1.) Taliban condemns soccer play as infidel activity, works to undermine it - could also result in a severe back-lash of community against Taliban
2.) Elders could see it as undermining their authority.

Are you beginning to see why this plan needs to get done, and what wonderful progress can be made in the name of; "winning hearts and minds" in Afghanistan? Indeed, I ask that you please consider all this and think on it, and if you have any other suggestions, please feel free to email me.