What is the ability level needed to be a session guitarist type caliber musician?

What is the ability level needed to be a session guitarist type caliber musician?


?|||The most important thing you need to know is to be able to get in the other musicians shoes just as if you have been with them for years. A session guitarist for instance, myself, can play any styles whether its from finger-tapping to cool jazz. YOu need a good musical vocabulary and lots of soul. Even if you don't have a degree in music, that doesn't take away your ear and your skills. I have met many musicans who barely could ready but they had an awsome year. What I used to do is play the riff on the guitar and the person would learn it on his instrument. Although this is not too obvious, a skilled studio musician as to be on the ball and very very quick to blend into whatever the music demands.


Takes a lot of practice and a lot of jamming with different musiciand , different styles. Experience can only be azquired, not bought.|||I know some session players and all of them have extensive knowledge of theory, as well as musical genres, since they're often called upon to play very different styles of music in a single session. The must be able to sight read music, but also have an ability to improvise on the spot. None of my friends has a music degree, but they're all guitar bores who've spent every free moment practicing for as long as they can remember. They're all very gifted to begin with and completely committed to learning every technique that exists to the point that they've sacrificed normal social lives. Basically, they're entirely devoted to the craft of playing. While most people listen to music, they study it and mentally break it down into its components so they can learn from what others are doing. They've also got perfect meter -- like they've got metronomes built into their brains.





Session players are the absolute best of the best. They're expected to show up ready to play anything from jazz to grunge with perfect fluidity, even if they've never heard the tracks ahead of time. Frankly, they're amazing, especially to those of us who lack both the innate talent and dedication required to master many styles of playing.|||You need the highest level of ability. You should probably know how to read music, not just tabs. A degree from an accredited musical is not needed, but will only help you learn what you need to know, as well as give you something to put on a resume.





These studio guys are supposed to be professionals. You need to be able to play just about every style/genre around.