coming from silence

How can we make the most of our musical solos?

There can be a natural tendency when playing anything soloistic, to rush in, or be otherwise unprepared to make the very most of our "spots".  Whether they be in jazz, classical or any other type of music, having a mind that is overly concerned or over- active when these moments come along can make the biggest of differences. A musician I know whose mastery of this is very evident is drummer/percussionist Asaf Sirkis.

"Silence will always be the underline of every sound you make. It can be very powerful if you know how to use it. It will always give you all and everything you need to know to learn quickly and to adjust to different situations. For instance, when I play a piece of music for the first time and I'm not really sure what to play or how to approach it, I'll come back to silence by relaxing the body. When you're physically relaxed you might find that you don't need to play as many notes and when you play less everything becomes much clearer to you and your fellow musicians (and listeners too). It might not sound perfect at that stage but you'll be able to connect to the music much more and get a sense of direction. If there's anything that needs to be practiced it'll become clear to you immediately. "

It is easy to understand how something as physical as playing drums would lead you to a healthy mind/body connection, but these are sound tips for anyone who wants to truly connect to what they are doing. Asaf again....

"In my practice and my teaching I use simple meditation techniques to help me/the student to relax first before playing any exercise. Usually, I'd start by doing a short breathing meditation before the exercise. Focused and relaxed, I'd usually play the exercise much slower than I would have otherwise. I let my body dictate the pace - it knows what to do, all you need is to simply follow it. Relax, play slower, more silence, learn quicker. This process is also much more enjoyable then the kind of 'got to get this done this week' kind of attitude. "

This is going to be helpful for calming nerves in general. We must all stop thinking of our bodies as just the thing that carries our heads around, and start taking them into our awareness as we perform. The music we play deserves this of us surely: that we be present when it is played. There is nothing mystical here; coming from a place of silence will give you the opportunity to deliver the very best you have, even if the piece itself is highly energetic (especially if the piece is such).

"Personally I try to use every opportunity to come back to meditation and silence. When I play a concert and one of the musicians takes a long intro/outro on his own I'll use this opportunity to meditate and when I come back to playing the drums it always feels a bit 'sweeter'. Or when I play with a band that plays together for a long time and we all know the material very well, its nice to be able to drop out sometimes or just playing very little - then everybody experiences silence. It is very powerful. "

Thank you Asaf!

everyone, please check out Asafsirkis.co.uk