Learning music

All skilled physical activity, including music, should be preceded by a warm-up. This resource from The British Association for Performing Arts Medicine (BAPAM) offers some useful exercises to help you prepapre physically each time you play.

In October 2016, we ran the Festival of Making Music - a weekend of music-making workshops in Scotland aimed at exploring shared concepts of rhythm, melody and harmony using simple tunes as a basis for improvisation.

Following the success of the workshops (conducted by award-winning educator Professor Richard Michaels BEM), we have created a video series to allow everyone to benefit from his top tips on improvisation.

This session demonstrates how to re-harmonise a melody using the II-V-I sequence.

In October 2016, we ran the Festival of Making Music - a weekend of music-making workshops in Scotland aimed at exploring shared concepts of rhythm, melody and harmony using simple tunes as a basis for improvisation.

Following the success of the workshops (conducted by award-winning educator Professor Richard Michaels BEM), we have created a video series to allow everyone to benefit from his top tips on improvisation.

This session demonstrates how to make use of different modes, like the Dorian, Ionian and Myxolydian.

In October 2016, we ran the Festival of Making Music - a weekend of music-making workshops in Scotland aimed at exploring shared concepts of rhythm, melody and harmony using simple tunes as a basis for improvisation.

Following the success of the workshops (conducted by award-winning educator Professor Richard Michaels BEM), we have created a video series to allow everyone to benefit from his top tips on improvisation.

This session demonstrates how any tune can be made to sound more colourful and interesting by using the II-V-I chord sequence.

In October 2016, we ran the Festival of Making Music - a weekend of music-making workshops in Scotland aimed at exploring shared concepts of rhythm, melody and harmony using simple tunes as a basis for improvisation.

Following the success of the workshops (conducted by award-winning educator Professor Richard Michaels BEM), we have created a video series to allow everyone to benefit from his top tips on improvisation.

This session demonstrates how to improvise on a standard tune, using the chord changes of G and D7.

In October 2016, we ran the Festival of Making Music - a weekend of music-making workshops in Scotland aimed at exploring shared concepts of rhythm, melody and harmony using simple tunes as a basis for improvisation.

Following the success of the workshops (conducted by award-winning educator Professor Richard Michaels BEM), we have created a video series to allow everyone to benefit from his top tips on improvisation.

At Making Music we're having a look at some of the music that our members make, and we've decided to begin with Barbershop. What makes this genre so unique? Why is it so easy for Barbershop singers to get hooked on this music? And what's this about 'singing polecats'?

Three of our corporate members – WKMT, The Sokol Piano Academy and Your Space – are offering discounts on lessons to Making Music members. Find out more about how to claim below.

WKMT: 5% off piano lessons

WKMT offers piano lessons in London (studios in Kensington and Camberwell with home visits also available) to children and adults of all abilities. Lessons are available Monday to Sunday 9am to 9pm.

Making Music volunteer Martin Jones – an experienced composer and arranger of music for leisure-time ensembles – gives us his top tips for success.

No one can really just pick up an instrument and play it perfectly but we know how hard it can be to find time to dedicate to practice. Below we explore a few different ways to practise and ideas on how to make your practice more enjoyable and effective in general.