I sent my kid to Music Institute in LA back in 2011 and in 2018 he bought me a car.

The brief period of time that I spent at MI (at the same time as you) was one of my favorite times of my life. It was amazing to be fully immersed in music theory and surrounded by like minded people. When I first signed up, I was worried that everyone would be self-involved and competitive, but it was the exact opposite - everyone was friendly and eager to help one another. In fact, it is one of the few bright spots to me in this current music nadir. I wish I could have done the whole program (I was older, married with a child and self-employed). I've never made greater progress or felt better about my playing than I did during that period. I got out of bed every day ready to go and took every opportunity I could to sit in with teachers and learn. Great video Nicky! It's been wonderful to follow your musical success / journey. Keep it up! :)

Great insights. I am the father of a 17 year old high functioning autistic kid who apires to be a working musician. He puts in the time, literally spents 8 to 12 hours a day playing , we have recorded with friends and studio guys at a few different studios. Sweetwater was a nice one. We write songs and stuff , try to give as much experience as I can, anyway I digress. He is a senior in high school next year and we are discussing where he should go from here. Videos like this are great for people like us , we appreciate it.

Another Great Video Nicky! I couldn't agree more about playing different genres, the fundamentals you gain are priceless... Oh and I'm self taught 🎸🎸🎸🤘🤘🤘

Great advise! Thank you for your insight!

Luv the vids Nicky, right on point!! Keep em comin!! 🎸

Awesome! Love these

Great insight! Thanks!

I love these videos Nicky, keep them coming! Before I moved to Nashville, I had been playing music “by ear “ for 17 years. Right before making the plunge I thought I better learn some music theory. With the guidance of my Aunt (a College Music Professor) I studied and was tested on two semesters worth of music theory in the span of three months 😅. It completely opened my mind to “The language of music” and broke the barrier to completely understanding the Fretboard!!! Regardless of the path you choose, formal training is a must if you want to quickly become a professional musician!

Great video! I was at MI in 08 and agree with everything you said. I felt the live playing workshops (LPW) are what helped me the most. I used to try and do at least 3-4/week. It gave me the confidence to play shows/gigs in the real world with little or no rehearsals and really set me apart from other musicians.

Great way to break it down.

Well, I might as well throw this out there. At almost 70 years of age, I'm way past my prime learning years, and looking back I can clearly see that most of those were wasted years so far as my guitar playing. I had exactly one lesson. One. I was married with children and simply couldn't afford more, so I did the next best thing (for me) which was to pull a chair beside experienced players and learn from watching them. Honestly, I've never advanced beyond knowing a lot of chords in several positions, but I did develop into a pretty good rhythm player. I've used what little I know to write a few songs and entertain my family, which makes me happy. I really enjoy your videos and am happy for you that you are able to make a good living doing what you love! Never stop!

"you go to college to study musicians that never went to college" haha! My experience with big american colleges was a couple of years in the late 90's. Amazing experience, I was already gigging and playing tough. It did help me out in a few situations through life, expecially with teaching as you say. Now I think the same big name college is manily a pop singer school. with the wealth of knowledge available online, I'd spend time looking for work now, if playing is all you want to do and not teaching (or anything where you need a piece of paper).

another excellent video ----

Great breakdown. Very good info for how you translated that experience into actual work. For what its worth I'd add community to the list of why it's worthwhile to go. I went to MI in the 90s when it was cheaper and the program was a 12 month course. 90% of students took that and few did the 2 or 4 year thing. I came into it a barely competent bass player and I left pretty damn good. Sure the curriculum was helpful but being around all the other musicians for a year, all the labs and playing with instructors that were far better than me is what made me good. It was performance based, not book based and that spoke to me. So if you want to get good quickly then......yeah its worth it.

Ive been playing and have been self taught for 7 years now but I've recently started a band with a couple of friends of mine and its been fun seeing them learn as they go and one friend of mine already knows more music theory than me, lol. But I do feel you in school giving that structure, I lost mine after i started working full time but Im deciding on going to school here in my community college. Dont have any expectations, just really happy to be able to be part o the musical ride!

100%. School can be a tactical advantage for some, because it *can* allow someone to make a living asymmetrically teaching, while they’re building a career touring/sessions. School helps players compartmentalize concepts to share with others, which equals $. And well, $ is good….lol. I had a student move to Nashville who now tours consistently. After moving, he look lessons with an *A-list* Nashville cat who we all know and love. The one critique he had was the players inability to teach concepts. So, there is value in having a certain amount of academia, but it has to be viewed in prospective. It’s not a substitute for hard work, and feel, etc.

Great info!!! 🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶 Now, back to da woodshed!!

I liked what you said about being required to learn different genres. I think that if you teach yourself you will shy away from styles you don't like. At a school you will be exposed (by curriculum) to those styles. You may learn a lot from those and incorporate them into your daily playing. .

I attended MI GIT Hollywood in 1994, back then certificate program was one year. Best time of my life, I would do it again at now age 50 if I could. 100% correct when saying you only get out of it what you put into it. Worth every penny.

Second half sounds like my friend from Michigan. Jeff Blando. Plays for Slaughter and Vince Neil. Worked his way in.

Back in the day = classical-trained piano players (like Elton John) were all the rage!

Shout out to the University of North Texas. I went there in the '90s and just was surrounded by amazing musicians. Some who are making it big right now and just being around that energy and watching people who are so much better than I was was just a great experience. Plus the accountability that you mentioned is very important. At least it was for me. Great video

❤

99% of the music industry success… of course skill… but lotta Who ya know… and being in the right place at the right time!!!!! PERIOD!!!

Lots of great musicians dropped out of Berklee.

I graduated MI's Associates Guitar program in 2011, was the best time of my life. I became 10x and more of a player than I could've ever hoped to be. Agreed on the education part far as the degree doing anything for you work/income wise - almost everyone hiring for music teachers want you to have a degree (which I understand but it has so little to do with your ability to do that job regardless of what your playing level or musical knowledge is). There's no way I could have learned as much as I did in that short time if I hadn't gone. It also allowed me to earn a living with my instrument which was my only goal, and I'm still doing it. I haven't been super fortunate on the performance or gigging side of things but most of the gigs are insulting and also tough to forfeit a shift of students to take on (I'm still in L.A.). Absolutely agree with you on all this though, wanted to add my .02. 🤘🤘🍻

What is the difference between the nashville vs la guitar workflow? I almost understood that but would appreciate a more detailed breakdown of this.

Check out Tommy Emmanuel . My understanding is that he's self-taught and doesn't know theory. Another good source of approach to guitar is Steve Vai's "Little Black Dots" if it can still be found. It changed my approach to the fretboard. Also, check out Woodie Guthrie's do ra mi song. It's the key to the kingdom

I have a different experience in a different "art" discipline. I went to Brooks Institute of Photography (1980-81) and quit after 4 semesters because I was paying a crapload of money to be taught by people who had no "real world" experience to speak of...I didn't feel I was absorbing the things I way paying to go there for. So I went out and spent 1/10th the money to take workshops from photographers I had great respect for and who's work I admired...AND who were internationally acclaimed. I learned more in those week to two weeklong workshops about how the real photography world works than spending all that money on something that wouldn't translate to navigating the world I wanted to work in. In fact only a small percentage of my classmates actually made a career out of photography. I also assisted some of those photographers and took no-pay internships with magazines, add agencies, commercial studios...you name it...and the connections I made along the way paved my way to getting those firsts breaks. I appreciate your honest take on this subject...I wish this kind of discussion was out there when I was making these decisions. Not sure how I landed on your channel...well I've played guitar for years.....I played in dozens of bar bands from the time I was 14...but never had any formal training...very little theory to speak of. I was too lazy to put in the discipline to learn the underpinnings of what I learned and played by ear. I could learn and play most anything...I had a natural sense of timing and feel (I come from family of musicians), but I had a very limited understanding of what I was playing because I wasn't interested. Now at 63 I'm trying to put in the time to build the theory chops I never had the interest or patience for...It's both daunting and liberating. I have such admiration for "real Musicians" and the work it takes to get there...and frankly to simply survive. It takes busloads of work and dedication and nothing builds chops in any realm like being thrown into the deep end...whether it's your first session gig or live performance or in my case photographing a marketing campaign for a film with an entire AD/Marketing team looking on. Virtuosity doesn't exist without dedication few are willing to commit to.

When my son was in a band in high school and considering college, he asked me what I thought of music school. I told him to research available jobs for music school graduates and compare it to the available jobs for his next choice...graphic arts. He's now a part-time band member earning a ton of cash in a high tech company with a B.S. degree in computer technology...and loves his life. I had the same problem as a young musician....I ended designing integrated circuits for everything from toys to spacecraft. Our company helped make anti-lock brakes ubiquitous.

I am familiar with the curriculum at M.I. Would you not agree that a more cost effective approach would for someone to a Jazz Studies major OR Applied Music ' Classical Guitar major and complete an Associates Degree at a State University or Community College ? Such would provide the credibility of completing a program at an Accredited University, not simply and "Accredited Institute ? Further at a Community College or University, it won't matter if someone is a Violin Performance Major, Jazz Guitar or Classical Guitar Major, simply because ALL music majors are required to take the same history, counterpoint, form and analysis, band scoring, orchestral scoring, choral arranging, etc. classes. We visited Nashville last summer. You are correct. :). We were very "discouraged" by the number of guitar players and "hopeful players" who simply can not read a score. Not even a note, key signature or tempo marking. I remember in the '70's Atkins once stated, "If you put a score in front of people they tend to stiffen up". Both the Jazz guitar and Classical guitar professors at school responded, "Only if you are not trained and don't know what you're doing". :). It is good that you have the valid statistical advantage of being able to read scores. NEVER apologize for it. You took time out of your life to become trained and subsequently - better and....more qualified than those who did not. :). It is good that you are "gently and firmly encouraging" people to be better trained and of more value to live performance and recording efforts. :) Antoine

Did you ever play with Jimmy Capps. He was really good guitar player. So sad he passed away.

study something lucrative like computer science, study music on the side. Don't end up broke, depressed with no practical job skills at age 45. (speaking from experience)

I’m worried that if I come to play (Lead singer) in Nashville, I couldn’t get work because I’m old school Country singer. I do some Southern rock as well but, Mostly Real traditional Country music.

Would you suggest MI to someone in their late 30’s?

Do you have a cheat system for reading notation on a session? Thats the one thing that held me back from going to school

My hope is that because everyone is moving to Nashville, that id be one of the A guys left in LA😂

Makes me think is a small way thank goodness I don't have a stitch of talent...

The short answer is NO ! The long answer is NO ! It’s not worth it. Ask around and find a really good teacher.., who is “playing out.., OFTEN !” He’ll get you started and expose you to better musicians and musicianship as you develop. Make sure he’s STILL out there playing, weekly, and playing different genre’s of music..!

Just find a teacher who went to MI and ask him to teach you everything.

The debt can be so crippling. It could end a career all by itself because you could have to end up working low paid jobs (because you don't have the skills to get a high paying "real job") to just feed yourself and pay off the debt before you can establish yourself as a player.

I think you need talent to attend such an institute. To be successful in the music industry appears to be very difficult. No Serial Killer.

Guitar gods don't teach, because they know we could be just as good as them, if they sincerely taught us.