Back to School? Form a band!

It’s that time of year again, when summer break comes to an end. As a result a mass exodus to return to our scholastic programs begins. Whether it be College, Highschool or even Grade school; many artist fail to see a hidden opportunity that education programs bring. The opportunity to mingle, meet and gather other ‘like musicians’ desiring to perfect their craft in a group setting also known as a ‘band’. There are too many famous bands to list that have been formed in this manner.

I started my first band at age 13, and surprisingly I was the only one in the band that was enrolled in a music class. I found my guitarist playing an acoustic guitar on the school yard lawn. We located our bass player while playing loudly in the garage where we practiced. He was cleaning a pool nearby and heard our racket. A knock on the garage door and few minutes later he was performing with us. The keyboardist was located through friends at an adjacent school. This process was no accident, as I used every opportunity I could to tell others I was forming a band, and it worked. Word of mouth spread and the other like-minded musicians found me. I was the youngest in my first band, but I was the one that got it started…so can you!

Other tools that can be used to find your future band members:

Music Shops and Music Schools (Some still have bulletin boards with musicians seeking one-another or events where musicians can meet and perform).
Craig’s List (Post or review ads online from others),
Linked In (for more advanced band member searches),
ReverbNation (Popular Band and individuals can be found here by location),
Band Mix (Online site that can be searched by location, instrument needed etc),
Word of Mouth (Still a very powerful approach, simply tell people what you are doing).
Open Mic (For our more mature players many clubs offer open jam nights for musicians)

The above is just a sample of what has worked for me.

What about home schoolers?

Many private music instruction studios now have programs that introduce students to other players and aid them in forming bands together. One such program is the“Rock Lab” at Music Motive located in San Luis Obispo on Higuera street.

More information for this program can be found here: http://www.musicmotive.com/happenings-and-events/rock-lab.php