I'm also of the opinion that one should "practice and practice and practice!" The problem nowadays is practice WHAT? In the old (pre-technology) days, with only a few vanilla-flavored arranger keyboards available, you had the time and energy to work on things like keyboard technique, improvising, rock/jazz/latin, etc licks, learning new songs, even non-musical techniques like learning to interact with an audience (much more stable and less crude than they are today), how to deal with the inevitble "hecklers," how to book jobs, advertising, etc.

Now, I don't know what to do first? There are so many directions to go in! Let's see, do I sit at the piano and work on my finger dexterity, do I learn more Ethnic music (I live in a multi-ethnic area and massive immigration is rapidly changing audience listening preferences), there's my blues and boogie woogie patterns that I'm trying to perfect, there's this new ABBA song I want to learn, there are Classical pieces I want to add to my repertoire, do I want to work on my "voicings" today, do I want to spruce up my walking bass lines, and Lord knows what else?

Or...do I walk over to my arranger keyboard and study this new era of "computer technology"...a new operating system, styles to edit/improve/delete/replace, drum patterns to put together (hmmm, would a real drummer do this?), how to play to sound like a guitarist, trumpet player, violinist, how do I EQ/add effects/filter my sounds, put performances together, etc

I'm getting tired just writing it out. I'm wondering how everyone else here manages to do it all between working on your "chops" and tweaking your machine. And then, there's the messy job of constantly hustling gigs. Even my nursing home accounts need to be nurtured regularly as there's always some unemployed novice musician ready to show up at their doorstep with a simple harmonica and a drum box and a $10 bill in his hand ready to hand it to the AD for the opportunity to play for the residents. (only kidding on that last one, but it's almost at the point where many are going out working for the equivalent of a ham sandwich).

I'm starting to look at the law of "diminishing returns." Is all the effort you're putting into practicing going to put the same amount of dollars in your pocket at the end of the week as spending that same amount of time marketing yourself.

Sad to say.....Donny is right in this respect. We might as well face facts. The audience doesn't care about or respect good music or good musicianship anymore....or whether you're playing a Ketron, Roland or Korg (or how well it's been "adjusted")......they just want to be entertained....and the more outrageous the act, the more you're going to be working. No different than the half-time Super Bowl show. Lots of glitz and pyrotechnics and flash.....keep everyone excited and the adrenalin flowing. Keep people in excitement mode. Somehow I can't picture crowds like that sitting there and wanting to be entertained by the Mantovani Orchestra or Jerry Vale....top headliners in the 50's when life was simpler and legit music was not only appreciated but expected and "respected!"