JD sends an email admitting he is falling short.
But even being a slacker, he has some pretty cool results.
In his words:
“Tim I’m certainly not the best example of how well your program works. I don’t practice nearly as often as 15 minutes every day. But even moving as slowly as I am I can sit down and play Let It Be, Dock of the Bay and Amazing Grace without even thinking about it. I’ve even figured out how to use the chords for Dock of the Bay to play an old gospel song called He’s so Wonderful just by changing up the rhythm. I can just imagine how I’ll progress once I start practicing daily. Thanks for PianoFool and the Layer Method. JD”
So without following the practice I recommend, Ol’ JD is able to do the following:
1) Play Let it Be (without thinking about it)
2) Play Dock of the Bay (without thinking about it)
3) Play Amazing Grace (without thinking about it)
4) Start changing up rhythms, using some chords he already knows to play He’s so Wonderful (most likely without thinking about it)
This is exactly the kind of example of how the Layer Method of Piano program works.
Reminds me of my belt mentor.
A while back I wanted to learn how to make a belt. So I located a local “leather man” and asked him to show me how. Pretty fun couple of hours. Getting a sneak peak on how the real pros do it.
And this last weekend my belt broke. So I had a decision to make. Go buy a new belt, or take the skills I learned from ol Bob to make my own. So I did. I made it. Took about 3 hours.
Yesterday I went to show Bob my work.
He totally crucified it at first.
He said:
The screws are backwards
You didn’t use enough Saddle Lac
You should never dry it in the sun
And you need to put a liner in it
I said… Ah okay. I really like it the way it is.
He said: “Then it’s perfect”
And he’s right about all those things.
And I might change a couple of things, but from his perspective he was looking for perfection. Because he was a professional.
From my perspective, I was looking for enjoyment. And I love my new belt.
It’s a lot like piano.
It’s okay to play for yourself, even if there are little mistakes, you just fight through them. If you enjoy it, well, then, you are a piano player! And that’s all that matters.
Don’t let anybody make you feel like you aren’t doing it right. If you like it, enjoy the time spent at the piano, then forget’em. It’s perfect. 😉
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