making the most of lessons... with you!

[jazzcrime]

hey janek,

i guess this can be a general question, although in my case it's more specific. when you're down here in australia i've organised with jon from thump music to get a lesson off of you. now i know at my university here in adelaide every now and then some big names come and give lessons, however there have never been any musicians i've really felt compelled to get a lesson from so i've never actually experienced it for myself.

i guess what i really want to know, is what do you think is the best way to approach these once off lessons with big name players?
i have been putting a little thought into what kind of things i might pick your brain about, what aspects of my playing i might ask you to give your attention to and give me your opinions - but i was wondering what's your perspective on it? what do you usually end up teaching in lessons? do you have a certain pearl of wisdom you like to teach? what kind of things do you asked and in what area do YOU think you have the most to offer?

whilst this situation is pretty specific, i think knowing how to approach a once off lesson, optimise the amount of knowledge obtained and the efficiency of the time spent together would be useful for a lot of people on here.

thanks for your wisdom.

- brett

[janekbass]

I like to make sure the fundamentals of the music and the instrument are covered. It's pretty amazing how some very basic exercises and functions on the bass can present a bit of a problem for people, even those who have been playing for quite some time. That rarely takes too long to cover, and then it's up to the student. I work in so many different fields of the industry with a pretty varied selection of characters, that there's a ton of stuff to ask right there. Whether it's about songwriting, production, touring, being a band leader, being an artist, trying to work on being unique at what you do..... I have plenty of things to say on just about anything you can come up with.

I guess what I'm really saying is, try me. Just ask me about anything you really want to know about, and I'll do my best with the experience I have to come up with constructive answers and advice. In my experience there's a lot you can fit into a one hour lesson, and you'll find that information could last you several months or the rest of your life depending on how far you want to take it.

Easy,

Janek

[Colljo560]

i'll be getting a lesson too

whats your views on recording the lesson? (It's not gonna go up on youtube or anything... Just for a reference)

[janekbass]

you can record the lesson, that's cool with me.

Easy,

Janek