Essential Tech for Music Students

Essential Tech for Music Students

As modern technology improves and becomes cheaper, innovative solutions that make everyday life easier are more abundant than ever before. 20-years ago, the idea of a Smartphone was nothing more than science fiction, but today the Smartphone is an indispensable tool for most of us. Similarly, new technology has helped musicians and music students alike.

We’re going to explore some of the Essential Tech for Music Students that continues to make mastering music easier. Some of the items listed have existed for a while but have been improved or become more affordable thanks to technology, and some items are new and fast becoming staple elements for modern musicians.

Record Yourself

The ability to record music is nothing new. In 1877 Thomas Edison created the first phonograph cylinder and forever changed the way we consume music. Of course, early recording technology was prohibitively expensive, and reserve for only professional musicians.

Even 30-years ago if you wanted to record yourself, you would need to head to a professional music studio, which, if paying out of pocket, could set you back a small fortune.

Luckily, music technology has caught up, and now anyone can build a small home studio.

The benefits of home recording: If you are playing in front of your music teacher, one of the teachers main priorities will be to point out your mistakes. If you don’t know what you’re doing wrong, you can’t improve after all. But even the most fortunate musician doesn’t have 24/7 access to a music teacher.

So, when you’re practising the best thing to do is to record your session and listen back to what you did. That will allow you to identify what you need to work on most.

There are two options if you want to record yourself at home. The first is to set up a small home studio. Check out this guide on setting up your first home studio if you want more info.

The second option is to use a portable recording solution like the Zoom H1 Handy Recorder or a Smartphone with a decent Smartphone microphone like the Rode Smartlav+.

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Isolated Playback - Why Headphones Rock

Building on the point above, another way to monitor your playing is by using good-quality studio headphones. Now, you might find yourself asking why you need studio headphones, after all, you’ve got the ones that came with your phone.

The truth is that most commercial headphones and earphones have a bass boost built-in, which means that you are not getting the pure audio of your instrument. That bass boost can colour the sound of what you’re playing, and even make clean playing sound messy.

Studio headphones, on the other hand, tend to have a flat response. That means that they give far more accurate feedback.

The benefits of using headphones: There are distractions everywhere – from the dog barking to someone watching TV in another room. If you’re having a jam session and just having some fun, this isn’t an issue. But, if you’re trying to improve your playing, you want the audio to be isolated so that nothing draws your focus.

Another advantage (especially for string instrument players) is that headphones will let you hear how cleanly you press your string down, and how clean your changes are.

Stay On Time and In Tune

Every single musician on the planet should have access to an instrument tuner and a metronome when they practice. Of course, we’re using some hyperbole here for the tuner (keyboard players, for example, can’t tune their keyboard, so they don’t need a tuner), but the metronome is non-negotiable.

There’s nothing new about the metronome or the tuner. But both are prime examples of how technology is making certain things more accessible. Even today a wooden piano top metronome with the swinging arm can cost you a few thousand rand, whereas the digital equivalent will only set you back a few hundred rand.

If you don’t want to spend any money, you can even find free metronomes or tuners for your Smartphone. We love the Fender tuner app for guitars, basses, and ukuleles. And since it’s got a chromatic function, you can use it for anything you like.

And if you’re looking for a simple free metronome, did you know that Google has one you can use?

But not everyone wants to use their phone to tune their guitar or as a metronome. If you prefer single-function tools, there is a wide array of tuners and metronomes available.

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Sheet Music or Tablature Software

If you are still learning to read sheet music, it can be tricky to learn a song that you’ve never heard before. As your ear and music theory knowledge improve, you’ll eventually be able to read a piece of sheet music and listen to it in your head as you read along.

If that concept seems beyond comprehension, think about it like this: As you read this piece, there is a voice in your head narrating what you’re reading. IF I TYPE IN ALL CAPS, your brain will make that seem more aggressive, AnD iF i WrItE lIKe ThIs, then sarcasm is implied. Music works the same, and as your skill grows, you’ll hear not only notes but nuance.

But, in the beginning, you won’t have the skill to get the full value from reading music. But what you can do is use sheet music or tablature software like {90flat.io} or Guitar Pro. These tools will allow you to playback your sheet music so that you can hear what it should sound like.

Conclusion

Technology is making the way we play, write, and learn music easier than ever before, but nothing will beat good, old-fashioned, hard work. If you want to perfect your playing style, you still need to put in the hours.

There is no secret sauce to getting better other than dedication. The tools we’ve spoken about are exactly that – tools. A hammer in a toolbox is useless – it only serves it’s purpose when being used.

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