losing motivation

[frog]

Hi all,
Would appreciate some advice. I've been learning congas for 2 years with a great teacher, and playing in a school workshop salsa group (not so great). I'm working really hard on my technic and playing along with CD's etc but recently I've started getting bored and not enjoying it.
Any tips before I go out and shoot myself.

Gracias amigos

[GuruPimpi]

Hello Frog!

Loosing motivation is something normal. You say that you have a great teacher and as i understand you're not so pleased with your salsa group... Maybe you should relax a bit with your technique workout? It's about playing it easy not hard.
Usually my tips don't work for others, but anyway, when I got bored and frustrated i tossed away the written exercises, quit playing on CDs and just took one drum and started to let myself go, without being occupied with technique, oh and it helped me a lot to play my drum in a shelter with low light on, some scented candles... For me it was about again finding myself in a drum and vice versa, cause I was drowning in technicalities and comparison with others... You enjoy playing drums, don't forget that!

Hope it helps!

Primoz

ps:...I ain't no SuperSonicFreakin'TumbaManiacPlaya, I'm a TumbaLover

[deadhead]

Sounds like you need a new band to play with. You should be having fun playing. Is it the salsa music that you don't enjoy playing, or is it the other band members? I myself enjoy listening to Latin style music every now and then, mainly just for the conga parts, but I'm a white hippie kid, I like the grateful dead and jam bands, salsa is not my thing and never will be. Just because the instrument is latin based doesn't mean that only latin music can use congas. Find a band that plays music that YOU enjoy.

I could be going the totally wrong direction here, maybe salsa is your thing, and if thats the case then it sounds like your bandmates aren't allowing you to do your job. From my experience with the few bands I've played with, the majority of non-percussion musicians take the rhythm section for granted. They don't understand that we are the backbone, without us they are nothing. I can't stress it enough to my guys that THEY follow ME and not vice versa, as a percussionist you should never ever have to slow down or speed up to get in time with the rest of the band, and if you do, you need to find yourself some real musicians to play with, that or you can't keep time and shouldn't be playing drums in the first place. Latin music especially, you are the center that everyone else plays around, you are the heart beat.

[mco]

Hi Frog,
Are you just concentrating on conga drums? Try mixing it up by practicing bongo and timbale playing. Not only will it help you get out of a one-drum rut, but it will also teach you how the other percussion parts fit together and complement one another.
While I generally love to practice my congas, there are some nights where it feels like a chore. On those nights I'll do a light practice on the congas and concentrate on the timbales or take out my bongos and riff. You might also want to try playing a cajon.
If you need more of a challenge, add a cowbell with a foot pedal to your set up. If you really want to push it, use a cowbell w/ pedal on one foot and a clave block w/ pedal on the other foot. Another challenge: if you're right handed, try reversing your strokes and play the right hand parts with your left and and visa versa.
To add variety to my conga workout, I'll vary what I practice . Some nights I'll take a break from practicing the usual Cuban/PR rhythms and work on Brasilian rhythms while on other nights I'll practice only 6/8 rhythms.
Hope this helps.

mco

[bongoron]

DO you sing? Even if you aren't on mike, singing along can really put some extra fun into performing. I don't sing on mike in our church band, but i do in my own band. I still sing in church anyway. It's pretty hard not to enjoy music while you're singing....not sure if it's even possible!

God bless!

-Ron

[akdom]

Hi all

Frog is not responding yet..

Your comments make sense.

The only time I was bored with percussions was when I had to practice and play alone since there were no drummers where I lived (tiny country in central america).

But you have a band and a teacher.. If you are bored, try any of the very good above mentionned advices.

Singing is really cool and help you "forget" about your drumming...

Also, what is your "job" in your band? are the other members "listening" to you.

I play in a latin band, and I am fully in charge of the rhythmic section, including clave, bells, a drummer, timbales guiro maracas etc.. this helps me not to get bored at all.

Percussionists are very often considered as "extra" musicians.. In latin music, they are in front, they lead all the other instruments. If your position is not this one, make sur that you gain consideration. If your band is not so great it might come from this..

Let us know.

B

[pavloconga]

Hi all,
Would appreciate some advice. I've been learning congas for 2 years with a great teacher, and playing in a school workshop salsa group (not so great). I'm working really hard on my technic and playing along with CD's etc but recently I've started getting bored and not enjoying it.
Any tips before I go out and shoot myself.

Gracias amigos

Hi Frog,
I think it's just part of the journey. I have been playing 14 years or so and I have had many times where I have reached a plateau (or sometimes a brick wall!) and have at times felt like giving up.

Sometimes it's good to have a break from the drums, or learn from a different teacher or play with new people, or a different band.

Hang in there!
Pavlo

[Charangaman]

Hey Frog,

Just leave it for a few days.. The drumz will call you back.. I have neverfelt that way though, I am haunted by the drumz always..

[Bachikaze]

I like what GuruPimpi said about loosening up on the disciplined practice, at least for a break.

Sometimes you need to go to a drum circle and let loose with your own technique. Experiment with different ways to strike the drum on your own without concern for what is "right", but where you get the best sounds. This is the best way to become more intimate with your drums anyway.

Also, be creative about what you play. Don't get stuck in a rut. Find drum jams and circles. Play with an "African" group for one night; jam with a rock band. It's especially liberating to play with other styles of music and instruments that will not impose any ideas--or at least the same ideas--on you of what is acceptable or unacceptable.



Edited By Bachikaze on 1176480259

[Mano Teo]

Hi Frog,

All the above posts are great.

Also, try taking a little break before you get totally burned out. A few days or a week away from the drum without any guilt and I'll bet you'll be hungering to come back.

Also, ask yourself what you want to do with the drum. I started to get bored and I realized that I wanted to do more than just practice exercises, hold down a groove and have a few rote phrases and "recursos", which was all I'd been working on with my teachers. I started working with solo transcriptions, just a measure at a time, to add to my vocabulary and to learn how to "speak" more with the drum, which is what I wanted to do all along.

[Quinto Governor II]

Hey frog,

Like mco said, if you can, try some of the other latin ensemble instruments. I too sometimes feel more inclined to practice one of the other instruments. And to really break the routine I do some recording. I highly recommend doing this if you can also. It really lets you see how you are progressing, and besides that its lots of fun. I try to play as many parts as I can, starting with a clave or bell part and then building on that. I'm not that great of a player, but I'm trying to improve all the time. It's my passion, or as Joseph Campbell would say my bliss, so I hardly ever get bored. If you love the drum, the feelings of boredom won't last long. One reason I love congas, so much is for their versatility. With more than one you can do so much on your own. A lot of the rhythms are structured so that one person can play a version of an ensemble rhythm so to speak. If I had concentrated on the djembe in the beginning I would have progressed at a slower pace. So keep at it, and let us know how you are progressing. Here is a link to one of my crude recordings. Again its crude but I had a lot of enjoyment making it.


http://www.supload.com/sound_confirm.php?get=1394877613.wma

[frog]

Thanks all,

For the great advice. A couple of things really struck me:
I like salsa but I never really dreamed of playing it, it's more reggae, caribean, soul, funk, latin jazz, acid jazz so changing to do that would be more motivating, problem is finding people who do that!

Secondly I've repaired the djembe and I'm off to play in the park with my African buddies (I started 6 years ago playing Mandingue rythms West Africa) this weekend.

Thirdly I'm going to loosen up on the technique and concentrate more on what I want to say.

Fourthly I've got to get better!!!

Thanks everybody

[CongaTick]

Sometimes trying too hard...

...is trying.

Sit back and listen to CD's of music you like. They'll bring you home.

[chris hansen]

If you need more of a challenge, add a cowbell with a foot pedal to your set up. If you really want to push it, use a cowbell w/ pedal on one foot and a clave block w/ pedal on the other foot.

What would you need for a set up like that and how much would it cost? I don't know much about drum equipment but that sounds like fun.