Always run tape. That was a piece of advice I got as a young musician, and I still think it’s really good. I don’t just mean you should record your clients warming up, although I think you should do that too.
Record yourself practicing. It’ll keep you honest. I mean, run your recordings like it’s a dash cam.
If I had a penny for every time I heard a studio conversation that starts with, do that thing you just did, followed by that thing? No, the other thing. I record my last doctor’s visit ’cause they gave me news about my hand and I didn’t trust myself to remember it.
I’m not saying to be sneaky about it, but record your shows. And here’s the thing. It’s not necessarily just to document them.
It’s because your performance anxiety may hinge on you wondering how you did. Record that job interview. You’ve got a phone.
Run tape. Run tape. Record everything.
You may never listen to it, but you may actually perform better with one less thing to worry about because that recording is there. That helped me and I hope it helps somebody else. Share it with somebody who belongs in a Beat Kitchen class.
