Jam Session #1

One of the top items on my bucket list is to become proficient enough at some instrument that I’d be able to jam with a band or group of musicians on the regular. Early last summer, I decided to start working towards this goal instead of putting it off until I “had more time.” After getting a MIDI Keyboard, a pair of studio speakers, a mic, and downloading Apple’s Logic Pro X, I was on my way.

The part I enjoy most is laying down a beat and coming up with simple new melodies to throw on top of it. Sometimes I’ll lay the beat down (the usual sequence of kick drum, hi-hat, snare drum, kick drum), loop it, pop open a synthesizer, and play different variations on melodies for an hour at a time. I’ve realized after several of these sessions that simply informal, unstructured jamming is what I love most. So instead of kicking myself about not producing an entire radio-quality tune, I’m going to start publishing my jam sessions. Here’s the first.