What You Learn Learning Music: The life lessons music teaches those who would learn to play
Nov 2026 · Sold by Simon and Schuster
Ebook
130
Pages
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Eligible
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infoThis book will become available on November 3, 2026. You will not be charged until it is released.
About this ebook
What You Learn Learning Music pulls back the curtain on how musicians are actually made—through practice rooms, bandstands, mentors, mistakes, and community—and why those lessons matter far beyond music.
Discover how jazz, practice, and community forge artistry, confidence, and lifelong learning in the world of music.
What does it really mean to “learn music”? Veteran musicians Kevin Bales and Mike Shaw invite you behind the curtain, revealing the discipline, mentorship, and improvisational spirit at the heart of jazz and beyond. Through candid stories and podcast-style conversations, they show how the lessons of jam sessions, purposeful practice, and the wisdom of legends like Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong shape not just musicians, but resilient, creative individuals.
This book isn’t about chasing perfection—it’s about finding your sound, building confidence, and learning to play for your audience, not just yourself. You’ll get practical strategies for practice, advice on navigating the business of music, and real talk about making a career from your passion.
From the thrill of live performance to the power of community support, What You Learn Learning Music is a must-read for educators, aspiring artists, and anyone curious about the craft behind great music.
Discover how jazz, practice, and community forge artistry, confidence, and lifelong learning in the world of music.
What does it really mean to “learn music”? Veteran musicians Kevin Bales and Mike Shaw invite you behind the curtain, revealing the discipline, mentorship, and improvisational spirit at the heart of jazz and beyond. Through candid stories and podcast-style conversations, they show how the lessons of jam sessions, purposeful practice, and the wisdom of legends like Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong shape not just musicians, but resilient, creative individuals.
This book isn’t about chasing perfection—it’s about finding your sound, building confidence, and learning to play for your audience, not just yourself. You’ll get practical strategies for practice, advice on navigating the business of music, and real talk about making a career from your passion.
From the thrill of live performance to the power of community support, What You Learn Learning Music is a must-read for educators, aspiring artists, and anyone curious about the craft behind great music.
What You Learn Learning Music pulls back the curtain on how musicians are actually made—through practice rooms, bandstands, mentors, mistakes, and community—and why those lessons matter far beyond music.
Discover how jazz, practice, and community forge artistry, confidence, and lifelong learning...
Discover more
About the author
Kevin Bales
Kevin’s initial career move was to the University of North Florida where he met, performed with, and went on to record and tour with a number of monumental artists: Wynton Marsalis, Louie Bellson, Eddie Daniels, James Moody, Ben Tucker, Ira Sullivan, Sam Rivers, and Nat Adderley. In 1994, less than a decade into jazz, Kevin won the American Pianist Association’s Jazz Piano Competition.
Meeting Bunky Green at North Florida led to five years of tours. His encounter with guitarist Nathen Page blossomed into 15 years of spot tours and four albums. His work with trumpeter extraordinaire Marcus Printup includes recordings on Blue Note/Capital Records. Ten years of tours and recording with vocal iconoclast René Marie culminated in a Grammy Nomination.
His recording of music composed by Fred Rogers, Beyond the Neighborhood, was named one of the top 10 albums of 2018 by Cadence Magazine and AllAboutJazz.com. While still a senior at North Florida, Kevin was drafted into a full teaching load, which continues to this day as Lecturer at Georgia State University and with selected private students.
He has performed in some of the most acclaimed clubs and festivals in America and around the world: the JVC Jazz Festival in New York, The Bakery in Los Angeles, The Kennedy Center and Lincoln Center jazz series, the Toronto and Edinburgh jazz festivals, and the Moscow Center for the Performing Arts.
Mike Shaw, M.A.
Mike Shaw is the author of The Musician, a work of literary fiction (2021). He co-authored Understanding Economic Equilibrium: Making Your Way Through an Interdependent World (2021), with Federal Reserve Chief Economist Thomas J. Cunningham, Ph.D., and The Leadership Edge (2024), with Culture and Leadership Consultant Michael B. Ross.
He is a jazz columnist for online music and arts publications EarRelevant and ArtsATL, and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and co-hosts a weekly podcast, Music Life and Times, with Kevin Bales. He has followed a double career path, as musician and writer.
A singer-pianist, he began touring in the late 1960s, performing in nightclubs and on concert stages, ultimately settling in New Orleans in the late ’70s. He currently heads up an Atlanta-based jazz quartet.
Kevin’s initial career move was to the University of North Florida where he met, performed with, and went on to record and tour with a number of monumental artists: Wynton Marsalis, Louie Bellson, Eddie Daniels, James Moody, Ben Tucker, Ira Sullivan, Sam Rivers, and Nat Adderley. In 1994, less than a decade into jazz, Kevin won the American Pianist Association’s Jazz Piano Competition.
Meeting Bunky Green at North Florida led to five years of tours. His encounter with guitarist Nathen Page blossomed into 15 years of spot tours and four albums. His work with trumpeter extraordinaire Marcus Printup includes recordings on Blue Note/Capital Records. Ten years of tours and recording with vocal iconoclast René Marie culminated in a Grammy Nomination.
His recording of music composed by Fred Rogers, Beyond the Neighborhood, was named one of the top 10 albums of 2018 by Cadence Magazine and AllAboutJazz.com. While still a senior at North Florida, Kevin was drafted into a full teaching load, which continues to this day as Lecturer at Georgia State University and with selected private students.
He has performed in some of the most acclaimed clubs and festivals in America and around the world: the JVC Jazz Festival in New York, The Bakery in Los Angeles, The Kennedy Center and Lincoln Center jazz series, the Toronto and Edinburgh jazz festivals, and the Moscow Center for the Performing Arts.
Mike Shaw, M.A.
Mike Shaw is the author of The Musician, a work of literary fiction (2021). He co-authored Understanding Economic Equilibrium: Making Your Way Through an Interdependent World (2021), with Federal Reserve Chief Economist Thomas J. Cunningham, Ph.D., and The Leadership Edge (2024), with Culture and Leadership Consultant Michael B. Ross.
He is a jazz columnist for online music and arts publications EarRelevant and ArtsATL, and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and co-hosts a weekly podcast, Music Life and Times, with Kevin Bales. He has followed a double career path, as musician and writer.
A singer-pianist, he began touring in the late 1960s, performing in nightclubs and on concert stages, ultimately settling in New Orleans in the late ’70s. He currently heads up an Atlanta-based jazz quartet.
Kevin Bales
Kevin’s initial career move was to the University of North Florida where he met, performed with, and went on to record and tour with a number of monumental artists: Wynton Marsalis, Louie Bellson, Eddie Daniels, James Moody, Ben Tucker, Ira Sullivan, Sam Rivers, and Nat Adderley. In 1...
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