T H E

M O T I V A T E D
M U S I C I A N
GET ON TRACK, STAY ON TRACK

f e a t u r i n g p a s q u a l e g r a s s o
MYMUSICMASTERCLASS.COM MARCH 2021
What's
Going On?
The renaissance is coming, but I know it’s
hard to imagine during these trying times.
Just think of all the talented musicians
practicing and creating new sounds during
this quarantine.

There are no weddings or corporate gigs to

occupy our time, so we all have time to
recharge our creativity and rediscover our
love for music.

So, we all need to remain strong and

persevere through this adversity.
When the curtain is finally lifted, be
prepared for some awe-inspiring creativity
from all over the globe!

MMMC | 01
Mar
 BE KIND
WHENEVER
POSSIBLE.
IT IS
ALWAYS
POSSIBLE.

DALAI LAMA

MMMC | 02
 TO BE OR
NOT TO BE
(CANCELED)

MMMC | 03
 Ifyou’re a human and I think you are, you’ve probably heard of cancel culture.

Now, I’m going to approach this subject from a

very neutral standpoint. We will discuss simple
cause and effect; if we engage with others in a
certain way, what are the consequences? If we
are thoughtful, kind, curious, and open to
feedback from others, the hope is we engage in
constructive dialogue and avoid "cancellation".

In the US we have free speech. This constitutional

right is a great freedom we should not take for
granted, as not everyone has this liberty.

While there are obviously some caveats, you can

say some very volatile and subversive stuff.

I believe that free speech is one of the things that

makes this country great. That being said, there
is a difference between freedom of speech and
freedom from consequence. Since we live in a
free country and we have freedom of beliefs,
others have the right to express that your speech
is offensive. This is the yin and yang of democracy
and the root of our modern dilemma.

We write this guidebook for musicians and we

want all of you to succeed in the industry and/or
fulfill your musical goals. This means getting
along with people, making friends, making
beautiful music with others and hopefully being a
part of the wonderful musical community that
stretches around the globe. I believe that you
should be treating all of your musical peers as
family because we are all in this together.

MMMC | 04
We live in a modern world where nothing is said in a vacuum. Instead, a
passing sentence that was meant to remain private, was said in jest, or could be
misconstrued out of context can go viral and completely destroy your career
and life. So, with this article, I simply want to remind everyone that what you
say on social media is more permanent than a tattoo, since the latter can
actually be removed. Slow yourself down before posting (filming, interviewing,
etc.) if what you have to say could incite passion and/or a reaction in others.
You can do irreversible damage and there could be unintended consequences
you never would have anticipated. That being said, if you truly feel that what
you want to say is that important, we all have the right to speak our minds. Just
be sure you are ok with the potential consequences.

MMMC | 05
 KNOW
YOURSELF

From the time we are children we are often told that we can
be anything we want to be. This is a beautiful and
encouraging statement and at its core, I believe it to be true.
Many people have the ability to learn how to play an
instrument and/or sing, considering themselves to be
musicians. Now just like anything in life, there are degrees of
proficiency ranging from just learning how to hold an
instrument, to being one of the best in the world. For those
of you not seeking a career as a professional musician, the joy
of making music is often enough. That being said, musicians
looking to pay the bills with their skills will have to take a
thorough look at the competition around them.
MMMC | 06

This kind of honest evaluation is
difficult, to say the least, because
professional musicians are combining
something they truly love with their
main source of income. This can
sometimes lead to them having a slightly
jaded perspective of both their place in
the industry as well as where others
stand.
MMMC | 07
The truth is that we as
musicians don’t have to
be the best at everything
or even the best at
anything to be successful.
But we need to know our
strengths and weaknesses
in order to carve our own
paths. Some musicians
are very good at being
authentic across several
genres, but they are not
masters of any single
style. Other musicians
have a strong niche and
put all their energy into
capitalizing on it. Lastly,
some musicians fall
somewhere in between.
Again, the real secret is
having an incredibly
honest perspective of your
playing and accentuating
the positive. This means
that not every gig will be
for you and you are going
to have to pass things up
if they don’t fit the bill. I
know that money is tight
and in general I tell up-
and-coming musicians to
take every gig offered to
them, but there are times
when you shouldn’t.
For instance, if you are not a strong reader and you are offered a gig that
is 100% sight reading, don’t do it. It could damage your reputation
because it will likely be a train wreck. Or if you don’t really listen to or
enjoy afro-cuban music, but are called to be a sub in that style, politely
decline. Notice that I specified that you “don’t listen to or enjoy afro-
cuban music”. That’s the key point here and it’s what I’m trying to get
across. If you ARE interested and practicing afro-cuban music, then
taking that gig could be a valuable learning experience even if you’re at a
lower level than the rest of the band. But, these are the decisions you will
have to make within your career.

As your career progresses and your reputation begins to blossom this will
become clearer. Often times a musician will get a reputation for being
great at one style, but band leaders might assume they can play anything.
This is not necessarily the case, so if you get called for something that is
not in your wheel house (and that you don’t enjoy), it’s often better to pass
it up.

The same goes with pursuing other musical opportunities. Just because
you see a bunch of your peers making money doing something specific
doesn’t mean it will work for you. Also, just because musicians you admire
can play things beyond your abilities, doesn’t mean you need to be able to
emulate them for success. You have to do some soul searching and find
what makes you special. If you can carve out a strong path, you may be
able to find an audience and revenue stream with untapped potential. So,
essentially you have to know yourself, be comfortable with your abilities
and be the best version of yourself possible.
MMMC | 08
 YOUR TIME IS
LIMITED,
SO DON’T
WASTE IT
LIVING
SOMEONE
ELSE’S LIFE.

STEVE JOBS

MMMC | 09
 Multicultural Motivation
FRESH PERSPECTIVE

Are you out of creative ideas?
Are you feeling stagnant?
Do you want an instant fresh perspective?
Here are some ideas to take you right
out of that ditch!
OK, let’s start this article with the simple fact
that there are 195 different countries in the
world. Now, a simple google search has
provided me with the info that there are 1264
genres of music! Damn, who knew, right?
So, my question to you is, how many genres of
music do you currently listen to? Less than 5,
10, 20?
Most musicians consistently listen to less than 5
genres of music and may listen to others
occasionally or in passing. In a way, this makes
perfect sense since we know what we like and
we want to listen to the style(s) that we perform
(in order to get better, etc.). That being said,
this can lead us to eventually hitting a brick wall
with our creativity since our musical language is
restricted to the same genres, artists or even
albums. So, let’s break out of the box for a
minute.

MMMC | 10
I know COVID19 is creating problems for travel and touring,
so we are going to partake in a musical journey this month.
The rules are…

Every day, pick a different genre of music to listen to from a country other than your own.
Do a little Googling to find some cool artists and/or some playlists. Stick with that genre
and see if you can hear its essence. You can use Youtube, Spotify, Amazon Music,
whatever! Just find a new style of music and get into it. Some examples could be Afrobeat,
Konnakol, Benga, Indian Classical Music, Balkan Music, etc. Or you could be interested in a
particular instrument like the Guzheng, Oud or Sitar. It’s wide open, so go venture down the
rabbit hole.

Once you’ve done this for a week, pick some of your favorite songs and make a playlist.
Listen to them and try to chart them out in a basic way. Then play along with them on your
instrument. This doesn’t have to be exact, just enough to submerse yourself into the vibe.
Try to match the feel and the harmony as much as possible. This kind of work has the
potential to give you a creative spark as well as broaden your musical horizons. Good luck
and please use the worksheet to help organize your international journey. Happy traveling!

MMMC | 11
 MUSIC IS A
WORLD
WITHIN ITSELF,
WITH A
LANGUAGE
WE ALL
UNDERSTAND.

STEVIE WONDER

MMMC | 12
 FEATURED CATS MARCIN
PATRZALEK

Many of the elite musicians we film at My

Music Masterclass talk about how they like to
practice new things to stay current.  Many also
say that they are always checking out the
young cats to see what new sounds are
becoming part of the musical landscape. 

RITA
PAYÉS

JOEL
ROSS

Marcin Patrzalek
Polish guitarist, composer and
producer known for combining
fingerstyle, percussive guitar
techniques with modern
electronic and orchestral
production.

This is important work for musicians because Rita Payés

although there are only 12 notes in western
music, techniques and sounds evolve.  So if you
want to continue working in the scene and
remaining relevant across generations, you
must stay aware of what’s trending in music.  instrument.
In this section we feature artists who in our
opinion are doing some really cool stuff!  Here
are this month’s picks…
MMMC | 13
Wonderful voice, great
trombone playing and a
charismatic presence. Rita has
lived and breathed music since
she was a child and studied
piano and trombone which
later became her main
Joel Ross
Joel Ross has been refining an
expression that’s true to his
sound and his generation and
shares the culmination of a
year-long exercise in
experimenting and risk-taking
on and off the bandstand.
 CHANGING IT UP
If your hands are on autopilot and you’re regurgitating licks you’ve
played a million times before, here are ways to break out of the box!

Sensory deprivation – Put on a blindfold or play your instrument in complete darkness.

This will take your eyes completely out of the equation. Do this for at least 30 minutes,
but the longer the better. Make sure to listen to every note you play and try to hear
what note comes next. Play slowly enough that you can really hear what you want to play.
Once you’re comfortable with this process, you can play at any tempo or feel you like.
You’ll be surprised how much more engaged your ears are when you can’t see. Also, you’ll
be able to really feel the instrument in a deeper way since your tactile sense will be
heightened.

Retune - If you play an instrument that can easily be tuned, change the tuning so that
your hands can’t find their usual shapes. Start improvising slowly to find notes
and make melodies. See if this new tuning can give you some new and exciting
combinations you never would’ve played before.

MMMC | 14
 Start again - Play a new instrument
and try to make music with it. The
less familiar you are with this
instrument the better. For instance,
if you are a pianist with no guitar
experience, try one. Or you can try a
ukulele, harmonica, whatever.
Playing different instruments will
force you to hear and approach
music differently than with your main
instrument.

Use your voice - Sing everything before you touch your instrument. Make sure to sing at
least a measure of a melody and then try to play it on your instrument. Make sure to
match it exactly and don’t add any embellishments that you didn’t vocalize. The longer
the phrase, the more challenging it will be. You can sing a melody by itself, a solo over
chord changes, whatever. Just make sure to sing first and play afterwards.

Use restrictions - The use of traditional restrictions is well documented in practicing, so I

won’t go too in depth here. Essentially, you limit yourself to a certain range, string set,
group of notes, etc. These restrictions will obviously vary depending on your instrument,
but by improvising within these confines, you are forcing yourself to break your regular
patterns and muscle memory.

MMMC | 15
 ONCE YOU
BECOME
PREDICTABLE,
NO ONE'S
INTERESTED
ANYMORE.

CHET ATKINS

MMMC | 16
 PASQUALE
GRASSO
5 QUESTIONS

What have you been listening

to recently?

I’ve been listening to

Charlie Christian's radio broadcast (1939-1941)
Paul Gonsalves meets Earl Hines (1972)
Bud Powell Inner Fire with
Max Roach and Charles Mingus (1953)

MMMC | 17
What is your favorite album of all time and what is so
special about it?

It's very hard to choose one in particular, but for this

purpose I would choose
One Night At Birdland with
Charlie Parker, Fats Navarro,
Bud Powell, Curly Russell and Art Blakey.

Some of the best music I have heard in my life!!!

What are you currently working on in the practice room?

Well, every day is a little different, depends

on what’s on my mind. Practicing guitar
and the mechanics of it is one of the things
that I dedicate a little bit of time to every
day. Playing with records, transcribing solos
and learning new tunes.
MMMC | 18
What younger or up-and-coming musicians
are you digging right now?
My brother Luigi is one of my favorite musicians and person to
share the stage with. He has always been one of my
inspirations since I was a little kid.
Stefano Doglioni is another great artist that I enjoy playing
with. He has such a great feeling for music. We’ve been playing
together for more that 10 years and he’s one of my favorite
people in the world!
Keith Balla is my favorite young drummer and a beautiful
human being.
My all time favorite musicians to listen to and play with are
Zaid Nasser on alto, Chris Byars on tenor, John Mosca on
trombone, Sacha Perry and Tardo Hammer on piano,
Ari Roland, Paul Gill, Neal Minor and Neal Cane on bass,
Clifford Barbaro and Leroy Williams on drums.
Check them out!!
How are you staying sane in this quarantine and do you
have any tips for other musicians currently in isolation?
Trying to fill up my days with things that I enjoy doing and
finding a way to make a living as a musician. Reading and
discovering new records has helped me a lot during this time.
Hope that everyone is doing ok, and I'm looking forward to seeing all
of you in the near future and playing some beautiful music for you!

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MMMC | 19 15% Off!

 WHAT’S YOUR
EXCUSE?
Why didn’t you practice today? Why
didn’t you get through your to-do list
this week? Why didn’t you finish
that song you’ve been working on?
Whatever you’ve been meaning to
do and haven’t:

What’s your excuse?

Let’s start by seeing how much time

we’ve spent on our devices.
With iOS and Android, you can now
easily see how much screen time
you’re getting every day. These
devices offer a sobering look at what
apps occupy most of our time and
how many times we reach for our
phones, etc. Almost everyone
(including myself) is slightly
horrified when we see the numbers,
but this should be a wake-up call. If
we can cut out even 30 minutes of
this screen activity, we can chip
away at the list of things we’ve been
putting off. For details about how to
see your device usage, just google it
and you’ll see where to look. It’s
easy and it’s part of the operating
system at this point.
Phones and tablets aren’t the only
things that occupy our time. Your
preferred distraction might be video
games, TV, whatever. Now, I’m not
going to condemn any of these
things, because all of them are fine
in moderation. As a matter of fact,
you could argue that these things
can act as healthy rewards for a
productive day, etc.
That being said, if you find that you
aren’t able to get important things
done in your musical life or every-
day life, you need to cut out the
extracurricular activities until you
chip away at the backlog.
MMMC | 20
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MMMC | 21
 CONCLUSION
The light is peeping through the end of
the tunnel and we need to hold on a
little longer. As always, make sure to
revisit past issues of this guidebook
since they all contain timeless
information. Stay safe, stay healthy,
stay sane and keep making music!

MMMC EDITION 009