The Amazing Jam Sessions

Growing up, playing with other musicians was extremely inspiring. The guitar took on a whole new dimension and eventually led to a rewarding teaching career. I hope to pass along that same inspiration to my students by having some amazing jam sessions.  A person never knows where it can lead. Even if they don’t pursue music, my hope is that each student can look back and have a great memory and be able to scratch “playing in a band” off their bucket list.

How the Jam Sessions Work

June was our first open jam session which started right after the student band finished. Everyone is invited, and their parents and friends are welcome too.

There will be two full bands each month. Each group will consist of 3 guitarists, a bassist, a drummer, one or two vocalists, a ukulele player, and possibly a keyboardist. Each band learns a song in the one-on-one lessons and then plays their assigned part at the show.

During the performance, the song is played 3 times. The first time is to get comfortable with the levels and playing in the group. This time through is with the pre-recorded song. After that, it will be played twice more to tighten up the song and allow the parents to record it. The older students are invited to solo over a 12-bar blues if they would like to.

No one is required to solo, but everyone is welcome to. Each of the soloists will take 2 rounds of solos. We will go over the solos in the one-on-one sessions for the students who want to play during this section.

There are two 27-inch monitors which display the chords and diagrams on the screen just in case anyone gets lost.

Anticipation

Despite a little twinge of nerves, the rush afterwards is incredible and addicting.  What stops most people from participating is the fear that they will not do well and become embarrassed. But with one simple 5 note scale called the minor pentatonic, it is easy to hit every note in the blues jam perfectly. The pentatonic scale is simple to learn and play. It can make a brand-new soloist sound like they have been playing for a while.

One thing that is very nice is that there are no egos.  Some of the students have never played an instrument and are only a couple of months into guitar lessons. And the people who have been taking lessons for a long time are very supportive of the other players. The new students are learning alongside other students who may be soloing for the first time.

Having such a positive environment is a great way to get started before trying a club or open mic where sometimes the musicians might be a bit less accepting of new players.

The Reward

Trying a jam session really helps because it drives a person to want to learn more and get better. There is nothing like having full set of musicians, including a bassist and drummer, to jam with. The feel of the music is so important, something a lot of people miss out on.

On top of gaining inspiration, playing with other musicians is a great way to meet people and have an opportunity to start a band.

Encouraging Students

If you are not sure about trying it, feel free to stop by to watch and see what it is all about. That is a great approach. Then if you decide you would like to try it, I will get you slotted into the next available band. Before you know it, you will be hooked!

As with everything, just taking that first step can open a door to something incredible. Putting yourself out there can build a lot of confidence.

Let me know if you are interested in signing up, it could be a life changer- it was for me!