Anthony Wellington has a great lesson when it comes to learning how to play an instrument. His approach involves 4 levels of awareness that musicians find themselves in. What’s great is being able to identify your level of awareness so that you can take appropriate action to reach the next level.
Although Anthony Wellington is a bass player, his approach can be applied to all instruments and even other aspects of life. I saw Anthony performing alongside Victor Wooten a few years ago in Austria, and I was blown away at his skill and talent. What I didn’t know at the time was that Anthony is a great teacher and has a unique and interesting perspective on things.
Below is a video where Anthony highlights each level in detail. If you’re a performing musician, you should strive to reach the last level of awareness. Anthony describes the first and last levels as being the only 2 blissful states. Striving to reach the final level will be well worth your while and is definitely a lot of fun!
The following video is an extract from Victor Wooten’s Groove Workshop DVD. Below the video you will find a brief explanation of each level Anthony touches upon.
Level 1: Unconscious Not Knowing
The first level involves the idea of starting up an instrument for the first time. This is before the practise phase, when you are still unaware of what playing the instrument really involves. Anthony describes this level as playing air guitar. The idea is you’ve never seen someone playing air guitar without a smile, because they’re not worried about the notes they’re playing. This is the only blissful state along with the last.
Level 2: Conscious Not Knowing
The second level involves being aware of all that’s required to learn your instrument proficiently. It can be daunting to approach things like scales and modes for the first time, and it may seem like there is an overwhelming amount of learning required. This results in this level being an uncomfortable state. Most people who play an instrument as a hobby end up staying in this level of awareness.
Level 3: Conscious Knowing
The third level involves having proficient knowledge of how to play your instrument. This means that you’re able to think about things like scales and modes while playing your instrument. Anthony describes this as being the area that most good musicians stay in for their whole career. This is not a blissful state because you’re always aware of what you’re doing.
Level 4: Unconscious Knowing
The final level involves knowing your instrument so well that you don’t need to think about playing it. This is a blissful state because your ability to play is intuitive and ingrained into you. Think about having a conversation with another person. Often you know what you’re going to say before you say it. Playing an instrument should be no different. Anthony describes proficient musicians like Chick Corea and Victor Wooten as residing in this level of awareness.
