Show notes at: leanmusician.com/podcast

In this episode we look at a preview of a talk I'm giving at a music school soon, all based around the composer's writing process. 

Often the writing process can be overwhelming and confusing, but with a framework or process that we can go through we can get unstuck and back into flow. 

In this episode we look at the following stages:

In Part 2 we will look at

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When the first musician you ever sit in with is Rahsaan Roland Kirk, your first gig is when your 10 and names like Max Roach, Clark Terry, Dizzy Gillespie, Roy Haynes, Alan Dawson and Jack Dejohnette are really interested in your development... you know you're off to a good start. Terri Lyne-Carrington is a GRAMMY® award-winning drummer, composer and bandleader with decades of experience. Over the course of her career, she's played with the likes of Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones, Wayne Shorter, Esperanza Spalding, Dianne Reeves, Dee Dee Bridgewater, John Schofield, Lizz Wright, Terence Blanchard and the list of her amazing musical collaborations goes on and on... During this interview we get into talking about how this all came about. We talk about the different styles of band leaders she's worked with & how she herself works with others. It was a true honour to speak to Terri - she's a really great person - very real and super chilled. On the day that we spoke Terri was actually doing numerous other interview for names like Jazzwise Magazine - so I'm really grateful for the time she took to speak to us. Show notes at: https://www.leanmusician.com/podcast/terri-lyne-carrington

Barry Green is a writer, performer and teacher. He was principal bassist for the Cincinnati symphony for 28 years. He’s coached hundreds and hundreds of people on their performance, not just the practical but the inner game. He’s an endlessly fascinated and inspiring musician who’s been on a lifelong quest and exploration of musical mastery. He’s the perfect guest for us to have on. In this episode we discuss, among other things: Barry's 3 books: Mastery of Music, Bringing Music to Life and The Inner Game of Music How Barry became involved in the Inner Game and then how he applied it to music The principles of the Inner Game How Barry has worked with these principles in other professions as well as music The principle of ‘relaxed concentration’ that creates optimal performance How to practice using inner game principles How to deal with distraction and increase your focus The importance of detail and paying attention and more...

In this episode of the Lean Musician podcast I have David Reed on for a chat. David is the founder of Improvise for Real - a methodology and library of materials that allow anyone to start and improve their improvising in a unique and natural way. This interview was really great and I know you’re going to enjoy it. What you’re going to learn in this episode -‍ How David’s worked on building out a simple and progressive approach to modern harmony so that students can actually enjoy the process of going through it. - How to naturally engage in the learning process by savouring and enjoying music, rather than forcing anything. - The difference between playing music and feeling the music - How valuable it is to have your own fascination and connection with music before or above the ‘rules’ and ‘advice’ of teachers. And much more!

William is a concert pianist, professor at the University of Texas & the author of ‘The Perfect Wrong Note’ a book about - as the subtitle says - ‘rediscovering your musical self’. He’s a perfect guest for episode number one & of course that’s no accident. During the episode we discuss his life’s work in education, as well as his deep exploration of practice & performance. At first glance, the concepts that William explores here are non-traditional, but as you will hear - they are from a tradition and musical wisdome that has been around for a long time.