“It's strange to me too, but we're talking about practice man, we're not even talking about the game... the actual game, when it matters... We're talking about practice …”
-ALLEN IVERSON-
Practice, practice, practice. Are we talking about practice?
Practice is one of the most important habits for improving your skills. I have at various times been a bad, a great, a middling, a good, an average and an extremely very not talented musician. In order to achieve such varied results, I have always maintained one practice…practice.
One can practice anything anytime anywhere, but I suggest you practice in the type of space named for such an action, the practice space.
Don’t confuse the practice space with the rehearsal room, for the practice space offers far less pomp or vanity. Practice is the chaos of creation, all gore and ooze. Rehearsal is the umbilical cord cut, cleaned and slowly metamorphosed into the belly button. Practice is the shit. Rehearsal is the wipe. A practice space is your means to do (or don’t) whatever. It is home to idea. A base to determine what is next. Once the next is determined, then comes the next next and after next, before next, and potential for maybe next.
“Practice is the best of all instructors.”
–Publilius Syrus–
The merits of a good practice can be proficiency, expertise, growth, improvement, progress and development. It can bring you joy, sadness, comedy and pain. It can teach you, break you, shake you and perhaps even make you (something you might not ever be without it).
The merits of a good practice space can be drums, amps, posters, beers, pedals, found objects, garbage, mismatched holed socks, headbands, old records, toys, stale bagels, sweat, fantasy, hope and poorly told late night jokes. If you want to become a troggly boggly you are going to need a practice space.
So what should you look for in a practice space? Well one, you're going to want to find space. You have options in space. Closed space, open space, small space, packed space, outer, in, up or downspaces can all suffice. How much space should be in your space? My current practice space is a tidy 12 by 18 feet long and wide and another 18 feet tall. This volume is good mainly because it can be filled well with volume.
Volume is a good indicator of what you might practice in your space. If your space is too small, you might never mallet a proper gong. If your space is too large, you might daydream spelunking to cure the cavernous. If your space is just right, you might do it all wrong. If you live in the country, perhaps your space is the space. If you live in a soundproofed bunker, then most certainly that space can be your space. If you live in the city, be thankful you find any space at all.
Great practice spaces may or may not lead to great art. Bad practice spaces may or may not do the same. If you can’t make great art in your space perhaps just make great art on it. My practice space is adorned with fabulousness such as these motorcycle driving lovers making out on a black velvet sunset.
What your space looks like inside and out can determine what sounds you might make.
My current practice space is all door drawings and whiteboards.
The songs reek of mustache and corkboard.
Stickers and car parts.
Garbage cans and discarded soda.
Find your space. Or their space. Or our space. Fill the space as best you can. Fill it with art and items and people and stories and sound. Practice making space to find the space and create the space needed to practice whatever you need to make. In space. In a space. In the space…
Space practice…far out…
“Everything we do is practice for something greater than where we currently are.”
–Adam Smith–
The Allen Iverson rant on practice will go down in history as one of the best!
wait is this inspired by Thanatosis ???? so much space!!