Taking Flight

 

We had a wonderful walk along Sligo Creek and then a great meal with my sister-in-law and nephew today. Been too long since we have had so much time together. I thought I'd play the piece that arrived on the anniversary of my Father's passing in February. As the conversation steered and remained on him for some time I knew I had too.

I simply stood up and got my guitar to play Taking Flight. Emotion swelled as I checked my tuning. After two false starts, I calmed, had a solid beginning and played the piece on the edge. Passion was present but not overwhelming. They were deeply touched as was I. This is why I practice - to touch peoples hearts and to open my own. I'll never understand where these pieces come from, but I'll keep working to master them.

Change One Thing

A vital part of guitar technique for the left hand is to release the fingers when the note is complete. The tendency is to pull them off. Subtle different approach that becomes more challenging when one is releasing 3 or 4 note chords and have the same or similar configuration a couple frets away.  Easier to slide the fingers, but then string noise is introduced. When playing acoustic guitars this is very noticeable.

As I was working with releasing chords in a particular passage, I found myself just thinking release, release.  Suddenly my right shoulder dropped. Unnecessary unnoticed tension was released. Once again verifying the Guitar Craft Aphorism - Change one small part and the whole is changed. Grateful that my thinking about my left hand had a systemic affect on my body. What else might have been released that I did not notice? What else needs to be released?

Photo by Graeme Drawes

The Creative Life IS Messy

 In a meeting with today the notion that the creative life is messy surfaced a few times. After this very fruitful time with this amazing group I took a walk outside to digest the experience. Returning to my practice space I looked at the following captures of ideas related to the same piece Jumping Over Fences.

The initial idea arrived on May 4 of 2020. Added to in June of that year and now again yesterday and today. Still very messy but a form is emerging. There have also been rmp3 recordings and at some video recordings to capture the feel of the piece. Fine to dwell in the mess. But I must take care to not allow the mess to trigger negative thoughts about my ideas or ability to play them as they emerge. Paying attention to where I am in this moment keeps the process productive. Unfortunately I fail to pay attention more than I care to admit. So it goes.

Which End

As I was getting ready to tune, I noticed my copy of the Seven Habits on the shelf and thought about “Begin with the end in mind.” How did I want to be or where by the end of this practice day? In a year?  What do I want/need to learn that will facilitate my next musical release?

Gently adjusting the tuning peg listening to the low C settling in. Noticing tension in my left shoulder I let go a bit. Could I keep both instruments, guitar and body, in tune for the next couple hours. With pausing this was possible and supported the progress I made with a few pieces.

In the afternoon we had a session of the Practice Consortium, a collection of fifty or os guitarists that have been come together again for 7 weeks. Different individuals guide the practice each week based on what they are exploring. Today we were playing with chord inversions across three strings at a time. This is the one time of the week when I use a pic, and am generally challenged as the tempo is increased. During this session, I was “trying too hard” to keep up and it took a toll on my body. After a 45 minutes session, I needed to do an Alexander Technique lie down to relax my back. After 10 minutes I did some gentle stretches. With my body in tune again, I enjoyed lunch outside with my wife, then prepped for and taught our Saturday Qi Gong class. Listening to works in progress as I write this.

Need to have a conversation with my friend who said he is exploring accelerated learning. As I have a lot of respect for him, I’d like to know what he is investigating. What are you investigating?

                                 Photo by Randy von Liski

Frames #3

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rob_adams/ / CC BY 2.0

Thanksgiving Day - a day to pause, reflect, and nourish our seeds of gratitude. Certainly I am blessed with abundance. Family, love, music, and good friends provide me with a life that is so worth living. I spent most of the day with family and loved ones. There was much laughter and harmony.

I found 45 minutes in the afternoon in which I was intending to practice the set for Saturday night. However I began warming up with an improvisation and heard what I needed to hear. The time was spent playing with an idea that appears to fit into what I am calling Frames. This is the third one of which generally will be very short solo guitar pieces that provide a Frame, a window looking in or out. A catalyst for introspection perhaps.

After dinner preparation and a short trip to join family I returned home happy and tired. I did not feel like practicing, but I invoked my two times to practice rule and carried on. My work was not the most spirited but I did what was needed to keep the set list alive in my hands, heart, and head. A small effort, one in a long series of efforts, for which I am grateful to have the time and ability. May the muse whisper to us all today and always.

Recording Blues and Flues

I had scheduled a recording project with Tony Geballe this weekend to begin work on my next solo guitar release. Being an organized sort of fellow I set this up months ago. I did not take into account a sneak attack by the flu. For one that prides himself on his planning skills ... Needless to say guitar work the past four days has been minimal so hopefully the preparation of the past few weeks will suffice.

During the past weeks I have applied a variety of techniques to learning the pieces I wish to record. All are solo compositions of my own that came to me sometime in the past year. The past few months the muse has favored me with several new pieces that kept me busy. Thus three of the four pieces needed to be relearned and one of them went through a fairly major revision. Perhaps this is why I am the least confident of that particular piece " Leaving Song."

Beside dissecting the pieces and practicing transitions and phrasing; I recorded rough takes of all them over time. Much time has been spent listening to these takes primarily on my commute to work to get these pieces in my ear. I can now hear them with out playing them. Even sing them a bit. Plus they have all been notated. This is all new ground for me as I continue to learn what works for me to achieve growth in my musical abilities.

I have also worked with visualizing the pieces. Visualization of the fretboard has never come easy to me. Progress has been made in this area recently probably due to having the pieces in my auditory memory. Last night and tonight while doing my Alexander Technique lie downs I was visualizing while resting my left elbow on the floor and allowing my left hand to move and form the needed chord shapes. I can not verify if this is adding anything to my performance of the pieces but will experiment more.

Photo by:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mfajardo/ / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Playground

Amazed when I did an AT lie down before practicing tonight. The section of my back behind my sternum was not a tight knot. And this on a Friday night when I did not sleep well last night. My efforts with applying the Alexander Technique during my work day and my ongoing Qi Gong practice bearing fruit.

The past two days on my commute to work I have been listening to rough recordings of the new solo guitar pieces I am learning. I began reviewing two of these pieces. Suddenly I found my hands arpeggiating a chord and then another. Trusting my instincts I followed. By the end of the hour I was onto something. A brief break for a lie down. My back and hands felt good and I wanted to keep them that way. Also I was getting emotionally excited about the developing piece and did not want that type of interference.

Back to the piece for another hour and I definitely have a beginning, middle, and an end. All of this was notated. By the end my left hand was feeling like a dish rag. I took a brief break and rubbed some linament into my left wrist to keep it loose. I wanted to create a rough recording for archival purposes but this was not to be tonight. Hand was too tired and the mind uncertain of the piece. Better to let go and protect my body. Onto the floor for another lie down.

What are you doing to protect your body from harm?

Another Low Energy Day

Began the day doing Qi Gong alongside of Sligo Creek with Joann. My body felt out of sorts, most likely due to the emotion of these past days. Refreshed we walked quietly along the creek listening to the birds sing their morning songs.

After errands, lunch, reading, and rest I picked up my guitar. There was not a lost of desire or energy in this act but I knew what I needed to do. My years of disciplined practice bear fruit on these low energy days. Today was no exception.

I warmed up playing Gathered Hearts very slowly, just sounding the notes. Enjoying them, getting lost in them. Then I played the piece with gusto. On to looking at the new piece, When Love is Taken. I spent 2 hours with small breaks for Qi Gong and one for an AT lie down. Slowly this piece is being revealed. Spent some time notating parts that I want to keep available. Made recordings of various rough takes and sections.

A delightful dinner with Joann and back to guitar work. The piece is taking shape. Time to let it and myself rest.

Play the Same Note 11 Different Ways

Years back I read an interview with Luciano Berio and he said that he instructs his students to play the same note eleven different ways. I was intrigued when I read this and immediately took up my guitar. This exercise came back to me recently and I used duration, vibrato, timbre, and various means of attack and saw how richer my options were then we I first played with this.

Reflecting on this on my way to work this morning I decided to add a variation on this exercise. First I played the same note, a D for tonights efforts, 11 different ways. Then I played the D using different variations but played the same note variation 11 times. This quickly focused my listening and was a rich experience.

I then worked on a passage in Dandelion Wish which always gives me difficulties. I slowed this way down and the quality of listening persisted. A short break to allow the 'muscle memory' to set and then on to relearning Prayer From a Small Room, a delicate piece. This piece began while warming up in the dining room at Raft Island last fall. The following morning it flowed out of me in my cabin while practicing.

I revisited Crack in the Door, a piece that is over a year old and has not been played for some time. Glanced at Blossoming from the same period. I need to make decisions as what to prepare to record for my next solo guitar release, The Seven Sorrows. Completed the evenings work with a run through of Matka Boska.