Mike Valeras's Page

We live in a “Get It Now” society more than we ever have before. There’s a phone application at our fingertips that gives us anything we want, anytime we want it. This is not the path of mastery. The ever-growing social attitude of “I want it now with the least amount of effort.” is not only the antithesis of musical progress, but a cancer eating away at it. Private instructors and colleges are dumbing down their curriculum and standards for monetary reasons, thus creating future generations

In my last post, I spoke about defining your passions in music. The next step in your development is your path. Now, this is where most self help books would talk about setting goals. I’m not going to do that. We are, after all, musicians and not Olympic decathletes. Now don’t get me wrong. Professional goals are necessary. I have major ones. I want to teach 100 students a week. I want to play on the biggest sessions in Nashville. I want to perform at the most prestigious jazz festivals all o

Over the years, I’ve been asked many questions regarding practicing and motivation. Due to the recent interest expressed by some of you on this matter, I would like to respond by exploring reasons for, and ways to avoid, “Hitting the Wall.” Today’s post, the first of three, will address what I believe to be the most important element of any artist’s/musician’s quest for self-improvement. Passion.

It is my belief that if you are to excel at s