HOW TO BECOME A SESSION MUSICIAN? - GUITARISTS, BASSIST, DRUMMER AND SINGER ADVICE #3
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- Опубліковано 26 сер 2024
- Do you want to be a session musician? There are too many musicians in the world being churned out like a factory with the same setting. Break the mold and think of a niche otherwise you risk being another faceless boring musician with the same videos of the same styles and its forgettable!
get out of the safe zone and have a niche, whether thats sight reading, upright bass playing, double bass drum specialist or just looking like a zombie! Think of how you can do something more than play the same clean funk groove on guitar..
By the time you get to the front of the que you will be too old and life will have past you by!
I'd love your thoughts and comments below on anything I can help with and you can find more of my content on all the usual socials!
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Hey! I'm Damian Keyes and I've worked with musicians every day of my life for the past 20 years. The internet is deeply untrusting understandably and here is my background so you can have the full picture.
When I was 18, I was signed to a major label (dropped 6 months later) and at 23 I co-founded a Music University in Europe called BIMM (valued at $300M). I’m also a bass player, I’ve played for a number of artists including Eric Clapton, Alanis Morrisette and Billy Cobham. I initially retired at 30, but realised that life gets boring if you’re not building!
I have always been in-between the music industry and education which is how I ended up building my UA-cam channel - I’ve been teaching artists how to release music long before it was a ‘niche’! I now educate artists around the world with my Academy, UA-cam channel and I work directly with labels internationally alongside owning a live agency and management company.
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All of the session work I've done (online and in person) has been from folks who know how I sound, like my tone, and want me to get involved with their work. I had to tell them directly (not in a post on social media) that I do session work and would love to contribute to their music.
How did you get to meet those people that need things performed on their albums? I'm pretty sure I could be a session first player but idk about all the jazz chords and vamps and all that. Well I guess I do know the chords I just don't know their names...lol. I'm self taught and everything I've ever learned was heavy metal, rock, or some blues stuff. Now I'm wishing I didn't miss time on jazz and fusion and stuff. I was too busy trying to shred like dimebag it Joe satriani or Kirk Hammett. I've noticed there are two approaches to the guitar, play scales over the key, or play scales over each chord change. I've noticed the really good guitar players like Marty Friedman and Kiko do that. They just play over the chord progression. That's a lot funner too.
@@manicmurph It's all about putting yourself out there and making connections. Whether that's live in your local music scene, online, or both, people have to be able to discover you, hear you, and contact you.
As far as musical approaches go, -you definitely want to be able to tackle different types of chord changes if you're going to be playing a variety of music. If your talents lie in a particular genre tho, you can always try to specialize rather than trying to do everything. Either way, you'll need to be able to quickly learn songs, parts, and arrangements by ear. You'll need to be able to produce solid tones and parts that fit the song. And most importantly, you'll need to be able to take criticism and not get deflated. People will tell you that they didn't like a certain part or solo and sometimes not be able to articulate specifically why - it's your job to gauge the situation and whip out something else without taking it personally.
It's a tough job and it's hard to get consistent work unless you're in a major music center and you're constantly out playing and making connections, but it's definitely rewarding work if you can get it. Best of luck!
I once worked really hard to learn to read sheet music smoothly, and I didn't get very far at all. I had once practiced it a lot for a period of time and then I got a lesson with some people and the people with no experience were better at reading rhythm than me. I almost feel dyslexic, but I shouldn't be, since I learned to read letters and words just fine.
For some reason, I don't find it difficult to write.
Something that did help me was learning to read intervals, rather than only letters.
And keeping my eyes on the page, instead of looking at the keys, else I get lost.
Anyway, I still think your advice is great. Both finding a niche and learning to sightread.
Amazing info, still SUPER relevant especially in these times! Maybe even more today.
I sight read, and it helps me to work all the time....he's right !
Same I do it on guitar
For bass; dead notes, octave flexibility, and jumping from finger style to pick to slap and back.
Like any trade, just dive in. , you will/can master it.
I enjoyed being call a crazy bastard Soo much more. Don't like the Monky intro
Great intro. Totally took me by surprise
Very well done! Any advice for a seasoned bassist who wants to learn to site read? Maybe where to start? Thanks!
This is a great question I will make a video on it asap. Thanks dude :)
I guess my niche would be that in self taught and into metal and rock but I been wanting to learn the more complicated jazz licks from the 50's and 60's. I can only read tab. I know the regular notes it just takes to long to figure it out and you can learn on tab a lot faster then going "okay E G B D F or the in between notes FACE. It's just easier to learn tabs if you're playing bass or guitar.
how long would you think it take to learn to sight read? like 'reading english'. i am serious about becoming a session guitarist, although i am 31. i have been playing since 12. i can read but im slow. theres nothing else i'd rather enjoy more. please let me know your thoughts! i have some chops but im practising more and more everyday and learning jazz right now. thanks!
stringsnare A guitarist called "Stringsnare?" Cool.
How's it going for you man? I'm 29 and pretty much the same boat now.
1:01
Buckethead!
Vintage Damian! Nice to see that you are still the same person you were years ago :-)
Anyway, I think this is solid advice. I most certainly can't sight read quick enough to play things through on the fly but I can read a little bit. I imagine it would take a year like you say to learn to do it properly and have facility.
I'm from Canada and I'm currently 19. is there even a point in trying to become a session guitarist? I live basically in the middle of nowhere, but I have a friend who can play the guitar insanely well, I've been practicing a lot too and have improved quite a bit in a short amount of time, people have told me I have talent, I think my niche would be the blues. I'm studying business but I honestly want my career to be at least related to music, should I be studying music instead? I'm not sure what to do and feel like time is running out. I've read so many articles that musicians nowadays make barely any money, but I still want to do it, playing the guitar is my favourite thing to do, I feel like when I be social and go to bars etc. I could be practicing instead. what're your thoughts?
I'm 16 and I want to also become a session guitarist, I would say for you since you live in the middle of nowhere to move to a city where the "music scene" is but before all that make sure to master you're talent and become a unique player and try to make multiple streams of income by doing different jobs not just being a session guitarist when
you go off and live by yourself.
@@m0ralesi42 this is good advice and you'll need a job in the meantime while you break into the music scene, be humble and true to yourself play the kinda music you love, maybe bring in some elements of country and some jazz knowledge to make you stand out a bit as a blues player. Don't expect to be a superstar but work hard and see where it takes you! 19 is still very young I'm about to turn 26 and I started at age 21, and I'm still striving to be the best possible version of myself. Good luck!
And I wouldn't completely cut your social life, just prioritise for events that are worth it. Making some sacrifices is essential but I wouldn't advise turning into a recluse :)
Neesh? I've got one....Learn the songs required to be performed backwards and forwards. I read but only to double check the spotty portions of the song, if there are actually any. Most music from our modern day is bland, basic, horrible, terrible, not music.....sorry, got lost for second thinking how we now "watch" music instead of actually "listening" to music. I agree, if you can read well in real time, it would be beneficial for pianists, drummers, and guitarists but the way music has been dumbed down is possibly why most don't venture down that road. I'd rather have someone with a fantastic ear, than someone who read music well any day. But that's just my humble oblivious after 30 years opinion.
I play for the game of being seamless all formats do you think my dyslexia will mess with me trying to learn to read music
i can site read, can i work in Nashville
Sorry you’re overqualified, just learn I IV & V
what about a Popeye's bucket? :'D
While that's kinda the case
A very tough, hard-boiled and top notch bass player told me that; the rockers so stupid to read music so they came up with that shit called 'tabs'.
Makes no sense considering tablature is hundreds of years old and existed long before the electric guitar or rock music
@@DrMbutu Maybe you're right but I guess he meant they prefer tab as a short cut instead of learning the real language of music.
Dude dann huff was a beast in the danger zone solo