Far be it from me to argue with a per-fesh-un-al such as yerself, but I still think when it comes to music, when you think about it too much, you lose part of the soul. I suspicion that most of us hang around here more for the inspiration we derive from your music than from your good looks, charm and personality... ;)
Bill in Nashville On Tue, Jan 19, 2010 at 7:41 PM, Mark Seale <[email protected]> wrote: > Tater - > > I don't know what brought this on, and from the sounds of it, I don't want > to. Now, I'm not going to tell you not to practice and keep working, > everybody has to do that. But I will say that what you do inspires a bunch > of us to play music musically. Listening to you and really hearing what you > do got me out of the "shove as many notes in as possible and play as fast as > possible mode." Your rhythm and drive and right hand shed a whole new light > on music for me. And for that, I'm eternally grateful. Sure, when compared > to a classical, pristine piece what you do sounds raw, but that's what draws > so many of us to it. > > Keep doing what you're doing and always strive to do it better tomorrow > than you did today. > > Mark > > > On Tue, Jan 19, 2010 at 7:25 PM, mistertaterbug > <[email protected]>wrote: > >> Okay, I've decided to go back to the drawing board. It's been looming >> on the horizon for some time, bugging me, nagging at me in the back of >> my mind, one of those things that I know needs doing. So here goes... >> >> While it's true that I've taken some flack of late from uneducated >> n'er-do-wells with snappy comments regarding the "slop" I play and how >> I'm apparently luckier than Kenny G in my musical success based upon >> my apparent lack of ability to be an actual musician, this is not the >> basis for my conclusion that things need to change. There's a lot of >> things that need changing around here really, and the musical aspect >> is only one of the pieces of the puzzle. I'm getting fed up with >> feeling like the weak link in so many chains, not all of them musical. >> Call it a delayed New Year's Resolution list, if you will. >> >> As middle age comes and settles in more firmly I find myself wanting >> to play better, to understand more, to feel a connection with what I'm >> doing that's not been there in quite some time. Yes, I've been winging >> it. But then I suppose I've not fooled everybody judging by the latest >> flurry of comments and my own personal feelings of musical unrest. I >> need a feeling of belonging to what I'm doing, I need to feel I'm >> doing it well, that it's a part of me. So far, no cigar. >> >> I sat here today and played "Black Joke w/Variations" as I do every >> couple days(or so...there's part of the problem right there; lack of >> consistency and regularity) and made a greater effort to play the >> notes cleanly and with character. Egad. You'd think I never saw this >> exercise before. I used to play at it every day, every morning first >> thing, out on the porch with the mando and the 'dola to do my ritual, >> my mando-meditation. But now I'm playing it and paying attention to >> detail in a different way. I am reworking my right hand some due to >> feeling some wear and tear over the last 38 years and it's hard, REAL >> hard. I'm working on making it work smoothly and relaxed, but feeling >> strong and sure. I'm watching my pick angle. I'm watching how much >> motion I use to make the strokes, how I cross over strings to get to >> the next, listening to the sound of the notes, the evenness of the >> tremolo(or not, in this case), watching my pick angle, etc. Everything >> I can think of. And I know that the more I work, the more things will >> turn up that need attention. >> >> Truth is, I spend a lot of time working, but not efficiently. I waste >> 30 minutes here, an hour there not focused on anything. Now I don't >> mean to say that putting one's brain out of gear now and again is not >> a good idea, but being on auto-pilot all the time, not filtering what >> goes in and comes out, is not really a good idea. So, the tune books >> are out, the paper is out, the iTunes list is open, lyrics are at easy >> reach. I'm not sure I even know how to accomplish what I want to get >> done. If I sit and ponder it too hard the task will just seem like too >> much of a mountain to climb. Maybe in pieces small enough to chew is >> the way to go, but I feel like now I have to chew all the time to get >> ahead and see real success, real progress. Real progress will instill >> passion for success. >> >> I find I've got a lot more things I want to get done, and feeling I'm >> playing at the level I think I should be is high on the list. I have >> raised my standards for myself. I have quite a collection of material >> I want to learn and explore. The list grows and I just sit and watch >> it without whittling any of it away. I know myself well enough to know >> that this will all nag me in the back of my mind until I do something >> about it. Here I go... >> >> mistertaterbug >> >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "Taterbugmando" group. >> To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. >> To unsubscribe from this group, send email to >> [email protected]<taterbugmando%[email protected]> >> . >> For more options, visit this group at >> http://groups.google.com/group/taterbugmando?hl=en. >> >> >> >> > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Taterbugmando" group. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > [email protected]<taterbugmando%[email protected]> > . > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/taterbugmando?hl=en. > >--
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