Simplify
I used the last month of 2019 to regroup. I decided to learn a few new songs before going to a jam again, and more than anything else, continue re-designing the way I practice and prepare for them by applying the lessons learned so far.
The main skill I needed to work on was the ability to improvise on tunes I did not know well. This, together with paying attention to the tunes that were played more often by the regulars and learning them for the following week, could make a huge difference. But I knew something else was missing.
One day I was listening to a podcast when the speaker mentioned a quote from Charles Dickens: “Do what you know”. So simple but, why did it attract my attention so much?
The answer was also very simple: because, out of fear of taking shortcuts, I tend to make complicated things even more complicated than they already are. How could that apply to my actual project of leaning jazz and saxophone and going to live jam sessions? How could I make it easier while still achieving my goal?
The answer was, again, painfully simple: separate the jazz learning from the saxophone leaning, go play with the clarinet until the new jazz language part is steadily improving and your presence has been truly accepted by the other musicians, and then add the saxophone to the equation and play both at the sessions.
And so, in 2020 I started going to the sessions with the clarinet, and this changed everything. My musical ideas became much easier to realize and showcase with the clarinet, knowing the instrument so much better than the saxophone. Other musicians started showing real musical interest in my playing and I started getting good vibes and well as positive feedback from them.
I have since played almost every Tuesday, my goal being to play 30 sessions this year (at this rhythm I will probably update it to 40). I am enjoying every moment on stage, being able to play on almost every tune, and when I get home, I can barely sleep out of pure excitement.
Lesson learned: do what you know, have fun and try to get some sleep afterward.