I think the two are related but I find that I do them in reverse order. I would guess that many people tend to learn a tune by playing it repeatedly, THEN they try to memorize it.
I happen to have a good ear, so I'm essentially "learning" songs constantly just by listening when away from my instruments. Whether it is background, Muzak, active listening, I subconsciously visualize/analyze everything I hear...bass, chords melody, rhythm, so when the time comes to play a tune, more often than not, it's just...there under my fingers. It may need some refining to get the nuances or structure, flesh out a more interesting voicings/arrangement, more efficient fingering, etc., but the bones are mostly there on first attempt.
Other musicians (particularly classical players) often grill me about how I memorize hours of Bach or how I play so many pop/jazz/folk/rock songs by request in front of an audience despite never having actually played them on the box before. My answer is that I usually haven't memorized how to play the tune, I'm basically just playing along in real time to a version I hear in my head and my fingers are able to make it up on the fly.
For those that want to improve memorization, I've heard experts talk about these 4 key elements:
1) Aural - Be able to hear it in your head
2) Structural - Understand the harmonic progression/melodic arc, repeated sections
3) Visual - See the score in your head (if you're using one)
4) Physical (muscle memory) Know what it feels like when playing
I would also add to this 5) Lyrics. They can help with the melody, structure, rhythm
You don't need all of these, but they do work in tandem with each other, so if one or more of these fails, the others can keep you on track.
I happen to have a good ear, so I'm essentially "learning" songs constantly just by listening when away from my instruments. Whether it is background, Muzak, active listening, I subconsciously visualize/analyze everything I hear...bass, chords melody, rhythm, so when the time comes to play a tune, more often than not, it's just...there under my fingers. It may need some refining to get the nuances or structure, flesh out a more interesting voicings/arrangement, more efficient fingering, etc., but the bones are mostly there on first attempt.
Other musicians (particularly classical players) often grill me about how I memorize hours of Bach or how I play so many pop/jazz/folk/rock songs by request in front of an audience despite never having actually played them on the box before. My answer is that I usually haven't memorized how to play the tune, I'm basically just playing along in real time to a version I hear in my head and my fingers are able to make it up on the fly.
For those that want to improve memorization, I've heard experts talk about these 4 key elements:
1) Aural - Be able to hear it in your head
2) Structural - Understand the harmonic progression/melodic arc, repeated sections
3) Visual - See the score in your head (if you're using one)
4) Physical (muscle memory) Know what it feels like when playing
I would also add to this 5) Lyrics. They can help with the melody, structure, rhythm
You don't need all of these, but they do work in tandem with each other, so if one or more of these fails, the others can keep you on track.
