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6 Steps To A Solid Performance

One of the highest compliments a musician can be paid is being recognized as a solid player. When I think of a solid musician, I think of someone who knows their role, plays their parts, and does it all well. If you’re looking to be a solid drummer, take a look at these 6 Steps to a Solid Performance.

1. Listen. Before everything else, listen to the songs that you’ll be playing. You need some idea of how the songs go before you can start practicing.

2. Practice up. Now that you’ve listened, it’s time to get behind the kit and practice. And by practice I don’t mean band rehearsal. You should spend time practicing prior to rehearsal. Remember, practice is done on your own, rehearsal is done with your bandmates.

3. Get comfortable (behind the kit). When you get to the gig, get comfortable behind your drums. Give yourself time to setup, evaluate and adjust. There’s nothing worse than getting halfway through the first song and realizing you want to adjust that cymbal that’s too high.

4. Warm up. After you setup, warm up! You need to get loose and stretch all of the little muscles in your arms before you give them an hour-long workout. Do this before you practice too! For some ideas on how to warm-up exercises, check out this article.

5. Focus. Now that you’ve done your part to prepare, it’s time to focus. The last thing you need to be thinking about as you take your place on stage is dinner. Before you get on stage, focus your mind on the task at hand. Run the setlist in your mind, review transitions and question areas. This will go a long way during the set.

6. Relax. Ok, it’s go time - relax. Everyone get’s nervous; it’s natural. Don’t make things worse by working yourself up. Take a breathe, sit back in the pocket and rock it.

What do you do to prepare for a performance?