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Hey music makers!
Hope you enjoyed your weekend
The Super Bowl wasn't quite what I expected. Bit of a snooze fest.
But we watched it with a group of friends, and to celebrate the “Benito Bowl”, the host provided some authentic Puerto Rican cuisine.
My highlight from the night was the tostones and coquito. 🙂
In case you missed it: The Harmony Vault Super Bowl special ends tonight. Pay-what-you-want for just a few more hours.
It's 270 chord progressions in a searchable Notion database (usually $45). Over 200 creators have already grabbed it. Through today, you name your price.
Now, speaking of practice...
I was on a 1-1 coaching call recently, and a student shared something that stuck with me.
She'd been learning inversions and working through a worship songbook. While practicing one song, she began to see how the inversions she'd been drilling could actually make the song feel smoother. Less jumping around the keyboard. More musical.
But she wasn't sure how to make that connection systematic. So I recommended a simple practice structure: spend 15 minutes drilling the inversions for just the chords in that one song, then spend 15 minutes playing through the song using those inversions.
Focus on one song. Not all 12 keys. Just the 5-6 chords she actually needed.
I'm sure many of you can relate to that gap between learning a concept and actually using it. I certainly can. The connection between theory and practice is what keeps me motivated.
That's why today I want to show you the practice method I recommended to her, and why the research behind it suggests it might be exactly what you need too.
📻 REAL SONGS. REAL PROGRESSIONS
💿 "Take Me Home, Country Roads” by John Denver
Key: A Major
Verse Progression (Nashville Numbers): 1 - 5 - 6m - 4 - 1 - 5 - 4 - 1
Same progression in chord symbols (A major): | A - E - F#m - D | A - E - D - A |
These are the chords you'll drill using the method below.
🧠 IDEA OF THE WEEK
The Drill-Then-Play Method
What it is: A two-block practice system that connects technical drills to immediate musical application.
Why it matters: Generic drills kill motivation because they feel disconnected from real music. When you drill the exact chords from a song you're working on, then immediately play that song, practice feels purposeful instead of tedious.
How it works:
Your practice session has two 15-minute blocks:
Block 1 (15 minutes): Drill inversions
Take the 5-6 chords from your chosen song
Play each chord in all three positions: root → 1st inversion → 2nd inversion → back down
Focus on smooth transitions between positions
We’re ignoring rhythm and melody and just locking in the chord shapes
Block 2 (15 minutes): Play the song
Play through one section of the song (verse or chorus)
Use the inversions you just drilled to voice lead smoothly between chords
Focus on moving to the nearest chord tones instead of jumping around the keyboard or guitar
Why this works (according to research):
This method is backed by research on how musicians learn best:
1. Practice what you'll actually use: Your brain learns skills best when you practice the exact thing you need. Drilling the chords from your song means the finger patterns you build are the same ones you'll use when playing that song.
This is way more effective than drilling random chords hoping they'll be useful someday.
2. Immediate application: Learning sticks better when you practice something, then immediately use it.
In Block 1, you learn the chord shapes. In Block 2, you use those same shapes to play musical time. The processing stays aligned across both blocks, which strengthens retention.
3. Strike while it's fresh: When you practice a movement pattern, it stays fresh in your muscle memory for a short time. The 15-minute gap between drilling and playing means those chord shapes are still fresh when you need them.
This helps your brain lock them in faster.
4. Motivation by design: Research on music practice shows that when technical work connects to songs you actually care about, you practice more and practice better. Instead of drilling for someday, you’re drilling for the song that you’re playing in 10 minutes.
Now you have a sense of purpose that accelerates your growth.
The practical payoff:
Instead of drilling all 12 major triads hoping they'll be useful someday, you drill 5-6 specific chords that appear in a song you love. Your brain learns: "These shapes have a job to do."
🎯 CHALLENGE FOR THE WEEK
Pick ONE song and try the Drill-Then-Play Method:
Option 1: Focus on one section
Pick a song you love
Choose just the verse OR just the chorus (whichever has 4-6 chords)
Block 1 (15 min): Drill inversions for those chords
Block 2 (15 min): Play through that section using the inversions
Option 2: Work through the whole song
Pick a song with 5-8 total chords
Block 1 (15 min): Drill inversions for all the chords in the song
Block 2 (15 min): Play through the entire song, voice leading smoothly
Set a timer for each block. Thirty minutes total.
One song. That's it.
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I recommended this method on my 1:1 call, and I'm using it myself again now.
The shift from "practice all the things" to "practice the exact things I need for this one song" makes drills feel less like homework and more like building blocks for music I actually want to play.
Practice doesn't have to feel disconnected when every drill has a clear job to do.
