Author Archives: Jen

September is Baby Safety Month – is your baby safe?

Posted on by

I don’t know a single harp player who doesn’t, in one way or another, think of their harp as their “baby”.  Little girls, big burly men, people entering degree programs, middle aged beginners, pint sized masters – they all have that sense of their instrument being extremely special to them.  They may or may not name their harp.  And they may not all be vociferous about expressing the sentiment, but you can still sense it. 

And since September is Baby Safety Month, let’s review some important aspects of keeping your baby safe!  There aren’t a lot of things to keep in mind, but they are fairly important to assure your baby is taken care of.

In the Home:

1. Protective Posture.  Think about where your harp sits in the room.  While you want it to be accessible (because we all know that if you have to move your harp to play it, you’re not going to play as much) you also want it to be protected – from sunny windows and blow-y air vents and traffic in the room as well as from Fluffy and Fido, and small hands.  If you have the option, you can keep your harp in a corner or more protected part of the room.  No one wants to hear that gut-wrenching sound of a harp hitting the floor!    

2.  Dis the Dust.  No matter which harp you play – even if you play a Dusty Strings (full disclosure – I’m a fan!) – you don’t really want your soundboard to be covered in dust!  Use a soft, clean (duh) dry cotton or microfiber cloth.  If you’re particularly particular you can also use a soft makeup brush to dust the levers and pins (or so I’ve heard, I’m not that particular!).

3. Time to Tune.  Do I really need to tell you this?  The more you tune, the less you need to…

4. Even Keel.  Keep the temperature and the humidity comfortable.  If you are comfortable, your harp will be fairly happy as well.  Too warm, too cold, too dry – your harp won’t enjoy it either.

5. Zip It.  Close the case when you’re not using it.  Ok, this is probably just a preference, but I find that keeping the case zipped up between uses helps it hold its shape (which makes putting the harp in the case easier).  And it ensures that any cat/dog/rabbit/fish hair that might be floating around your house stays on the outside.

In the Car

1. Treat your baby like a baby.  This might be the best piece of advice I got when I first started playing.  Whenever you wouldn’t leave a baby in the car, don’t leave your harp.  Don’t forget that a closed car will be much warmer than the outside air when parked in the sun.  Remember that the glue may soften in the heat which would weaken the strength of the harp.  Park in the shade if you can.  Of course, too cold can also be a problem, potentially ruining the finish, or worse.

2. Watch the Windows.  For short journeys this might not be important, but longer trips are different.  Try to keep in mind where the sun will be – when the sun beats on the window it gets hot so if you harp is in that window, it will get hot.  If you’re able, put your harp on the other side of the car.  If you don’t have that choice, consider blocking the sun with a sunshade (or a t shirt) – just like you would for a baby!

3. Belted or Bedded.  Hopefully you have carefully selected your harpmobile either to carry your harp “belted” or “bedded”.  When it’s belted your harp is on it’s back through a split seat or across the backseat (and you can actually use the seat belt to help hold it in place!).  If you’re not interested in carrying it that way or your car isn’t shaped for that, you can lay it on its side in the trunk or hatch (assuming a large enough back).  If you decide to “Bed” it, make sure you keep it levers side up and that the surface it’s lying on is level.  Conveniently, a lot of cases have the pocket on the lever side, so as long as you keep the pocket up, you will be ok.

4.  Zip Zip.  Since you have a lovely case – use the case!  Whenever possible put your harp in the case when you put it in the car to help protect it.  And put the levers down to protect them from breaking while in the case.

All the time

Ensure you’re Insured.  No matter it’s age or size, a harp is an investment.  Protect it!  I’m horrified by the number of people I’ve talked to who have not insured their harp!  Just do it.  Call your homeowners’ or renters’ insurance carrier and get a valuable personal property or musical instrument rider.  You will probably have to provide a statement of the value of the harp (like the bill of sale or a letter from a seller stating its value).  If you are making money from your harp (gigging) you may need to buy separate insurance which will be available via an organization (such as International Society of Folk Harpers and Craftsman (ISFHC) or American Harp Society (AHS)).  Don’t dither over the price – buy the insurance!

Keep your baby safe and protected.  Are there any other things you do to care for yours?  Let me know in the comments!

 

 

It helps to have a plan

Posted on by

What are you going to do this week?  It’s a fairly innocuous question.  But it has the potential to be a very good week.

But a little bit of preparation can ensure that it is a very good week.  All you’ll need is about 15 minutes and some paper. You can do this on whichever day is your night before your week begins.   You know that writing it down helps bring the thoughts out and makes them real. 

So, what should you capture there before you start your week?  Here are some ideas:

1. What would you like to accomplish this week? Try to be specific so you’ll know if you’ve done it.

2. Make a plan for each day.  Remember that you can include all the things that are part of practicing including analyzing new music, listening to tunes, practicing at the harp, practicing away from the harp, rhythm work, improvising, all the things! Don’t forget to plan which days youl might be away and have little time to practice as well as the days that you know you just really are not going to make it to the bench.  Be realistic!

3. Show up – every day.  If you have plan, it is certainly easier to stick with it.   

4.  Don’t waste your time – since you have thought about what you’ll be doing, do it – fully.  Don’t skate through your practice. 

5.  Be present.  Put your phone away, turn the tv off, close the door (if you have that luxury).  It’s a brief part of your day – be a part of it.

6.  Take the good with the not as good (and include the inevitable flow of your development into account when you plan your week. 

7.  Set your priorities – out loud.  You have already set them, whether you articulate them or not, so you might as well include them in your thinking.

8.  The clock is your friend.  Not only do you want to be sure to have identified when in your day you will sit to play, you also need to know how long you intend to play.  Not only do you want to avoid packing it in too early on a rough day, but you also want to keep the rest of your life going too!

9.  Make a note – when you’ve done for the day, jot down what you accomplished and what you need to do the next time (which might be a tweak to the plan).

10. Don’t let a little bit of structure make you forget that you enjoy this!

You might also strive to always play at the same time of day.  I don’t suggest that only because that I can’t really support that.  My schedule is never that regular.  If you have (or crave) a very steady schedule, then definitely do try to keep to a scheduled time.  But if it doesn’t really drive you, don’t worry about having a regular time – so long as you regularly make time.

Do you have a plan? Will you try some these?  Which ones?  Let me know in the comments.

Have a bath

Posted on by

Ok, let’s start by just taking a breath.  Because it’s been a breath-taking week.  No matter how you look at events and their attribution, it’s been quite a week.Sound Bath

So, we could sit around and kvetch about it.  Between the pandemic and the world and politics and social media and social distancing and east coast hurricanes and west coast fires, and everyone being sure that they know the answer, and everyone else is an idiot, there’s a lot to “unpack” as they say. 

One thing seems sure – many people are feeling many things, including anxiety and ennui. What if someone could give a gift to multiple people simultaneously, that would help ease that, if only for just a brief while? Wouldn’t that be a wonderful gift?

Of course it would be!  Well, guess what?! 

YOU can give that gift.  You can provide that brief respite.  It’s all there, right at your fingertips!

Consider going out and playing for the people near you (and for yourself).  You can create a version of a Sound Bath.

What is a Sound Bath?  It’s an experience that uses sound as an aid to relaxation and meditation.  The music is played to wash over the listener – hence the “bath”. 

While simpler sounds are often used, the harp is certainly a perfect instrument and this is a perfect situation.  All you need to do is play.

Play simple melodies.  Play those tunes you learned at the start.  Play what you’re learning now.  Play from your heart and with the intention of relieving any conflict in your own head as well as creating an environment in which your listeners can relax.

It won’t be a performance.  Perhaps it will feel slightly more embarrassing – after all, you will be inviting others to join you in a bath!  Ask them to join you, to relax, to close their eyes, to breathe, to listen, while you play your harp.  Then bathe them with sounds.

It doesn’t need to be fancy – just play from your doorstep, porch, driveway.  Or go to the park.  Or the Walmart parking lot.  No matter where you sit, be sure you play from your heart.  It will do you good.  It will do them good.  Use your harp and your music as a balm. 

It won’t matter what you play.  What will matter is that you play.  It’ll do you good. 

Will you go out there?  Will you draw a sound bath for yourself and others?  There’s no time limit and certainly no deadline, but there’s no time like the present.  Let me know if you decide to play, where you chose to play, who you played for – let me know in the comments!

Ooops, missed that

Posted on by

It’s been quite a time.  All the stuff going on around us.  Disease. Death. Destruction.  But we’re really lucky – we have our instruments and our music to help soothe us and to aid our journey through the mire.

Most of us try to face toward the future, to the time after all the yuck we’re experiencing.  Therefore, we might not have noticed that time is passing.

And so, the midpoint of the year, which is July 1st (or 2nd, depending on the year and your desired level of precision), has come and gone, by quite a bit – over six weeks (!).  I like to mark the midpoint of the year – to see how things are going and to assess if I’m “there yet”.  At that point in the middle of the year, plenty of time has passed to have started some projects, made progress on others, and to have finished some as well.  With projects in work, I can also get a good idea how I’ll be getting along through the rest of the year. 

I try not to make it too much of a report card.  You know –

SUBJECT GRADE
Effort A
Follow Through C
Completion F

And if it is a report card, for it to be more kindergarten-like:

If you can focus on the critique (of the smiley report card) and avoid the criticism (of the other), then you can make a better assessment too.  After all, at the beginning of the year, you have boundless energy, unending ideas, and a blank calendar.  By the middle of the year, you have less energy, the calendar is mysteriously stuffed AND you have a clearer idea of what you are really interested in.  Because really, you only do those things on which you focus.

At this point of the year, when it’s hot, and still, and called the dog days for a reason, you might find that your focus has drifted.  Between the alluring beauty of the easy things and the unending distraction of the glittery things, you may have lost sight of the most important things (as defined by you!).   That makes this the perfect time to ask yourself if the important things of January have maintained their status in August?  Ok, really the perfect time would have been on July 1st, but today is nearly as perfect a time to ask. 

Then the question is, ask what?  Here are a few questions you might ask (and answer!) in the middle of the year:

  • Are those things identified in January as being important still important?  If not, then take them off your agenda, ‘cause you’re not going to get to them!  But if they are still important, then it’s time for the tough questions
    • Why did they get short shrift?
    • What is stopping you?
    • What do you need to do to get back on track?
  • What has gone well?
  • What one thing do you need to have done by 31 December to consider this a good year?
  • Were the goals set in January the right ones (and if not, what should they be now?)
  • Am I only trying to do this because it seemed important before?

And my personal favorite –

  • Am I enjoying myself? (because, after all, if not, why do it?)

On balance, I’m fairly pleased so far this year.  How about you?  We have about four and a half months to go, so there’s loads of time to keep on and move ourselves to where we’d like to be.  Don’t forget that writing it down helps – both to realize what you have remaining to do and to remember what’s still to go (and why it is important to you).  List the tunes you’d like to learn, the technique you want to master, the events you’d like to play, the people you’d like to meet, etc.

Then you can work on making it happen!  How does your year look here at the mid-point?  Let me know in the comments!

Doubt

Posted on by

This week I was feeling the need for a little inspiration – probably because it’s August and summer and sunny and delightful, so of course I want to be outside enjoying the niceness.  But I’ve got other things to do…like practice.  Do you ever notice how when you most need to practice you also most feel like you need to be more than that?  Or maybe that’s just me.  Either way, this week, just a little share.  If you feel that way sometimes too, this can serve as a reminder that when you’re standing on the horizon, nothing looks close (or do-able) but just like the dawn, just give it a sec and you’ll get there — don’t doubt!

Subscribers received this as a letter sized print.  Not subscribed?  We can fix that – just go here.  Did you like this (or something like it)? Let me know in the comments!

Color outside the lines?

Posted on by

It’s all there in Black and White.

The treble lines, the bass lines.

Five lines of instructions (actually, 10 for us – plus ledger lines!). Play this note at this time…and all those other notes too, in order, as written.

So let it be written, so let it be done!

Except…wait a minute – last week we talked about the importance of asking questions…including my favorite – why? And a few weeks before that we talked about how sometimes meter and tempo get conflated and confused. So, this is sort of the same idea – We often make flawed assumptions about how we know what to play. And this week, we’ll talk about another flawed assumption that can make playing more difficult (and a way around it!)*.

Sometimes we mix up the register and the hand. This is especially easy to do because we are taught that way. And, to be honest, about 99.99999999999999999999999999999% of the time that is the right solution. But sometimes it’s just silly. Imagine if you were presented with this**:

Your experience, your practice and your efficiency all drive you to play all that mess in your left hand – even as the music tells your right hand to pack a bag and go on vacation! And you will likely tear yourself inside out trying to make it happen – possibly with the right hand sympathetically gripping the sound board tightly in terrorized support, hanging on like a terrified passenger on the back of a wobbly Harley.

Or what about this?

Same thing, only this time it’s the left-hand packing for a trip to the Bahamas!

Why do we do this? Well, because the ink said to, so we must.

It has always been thus.

But do we really? NO!!

Because while the ink tells you What and When –

it actually says n-o-t-h-i-n-g about How!

Read that again.

Of course, it’s easy to think like that –

Bass = Left hand and Treble = Right hand

And it’s easy to not think about what hand makes sense to be playing at that point.  After all,

Melody = right hand and harmony = left hand

Sic semper tyrannis

But does it even make sense to do it that way?***

After all, you have one harp and all the sounds come from it. Harmony and melody – all from one source – so really, which hand you use doesn’t really matter.

Now, I’m not advocating that you throw away all that practice and tradition. Instead, I’m suggesting that when you are struggling to make some fingering work, try to work smarter rather than harder.

I’ll remind you: the staff tells you What and When but

not How!

There’s another benefit of thinking about “breaking” the arrangements differently – and that is that the more ways you can look at the music (divergently), the more you will see new ways to play it. You’ll also “discover” patterns that were previously hidden from you that can then be leveraged, and the more you will think creatively (yea divergent thinking!).

Remember that the ink is a guide, but you must make the journey!

Do you ever color outside the lines?  What wonky passages have you struggled with and how did you overcome that?  Let me know in the comments!

* Special thanks to Rachelle Morgan who asked this question in Ask a Harp Pro on Facebook!

** Unceremoniously pinched from Rachelle’s question but slightly modified

***I need to credit Sue Richards for teaching me to think this way. Otherwise, I’d still be fighting to make stupid stuff work out and playing slowly, unable to catch up.

Be Curious

Posted on by

Curious, this topic, is it not?  Exactly!

There are many ways to be creative, but it is easy to believe all these ways require loads of time and resources.  And honestly, many do – retreats, journals, art supplies, new instruments, group activities, etc. can all be time and money expensive.

But curiosity is a surefire way to enhance your creativity and you don’t need a lot of time or money to implement it!

People think curiosity is a talent, but instead, think of it as a skill.  As a skill, you can work on develop it – developing it as your own curiosity. 

How?  Well, I’m glad you were curious enough to ask!  I listed a few things to try.  Even if you are already fairly curious, you might learn some ways to grow that –

  1. Unleash your inner two-year-old and ask Why – two-year-olds do it relentlessly, so why don’t you? (see what I did! 😉).  Don’t just question authority – question everything.  Really push on your assumptions, boundaries, and knowledge.
  2. Unleash your inner ‘tween and ask Why Not – they too ask this relentlessly and with good reason – why not, after all?  What’s stopping you?
  3. Be brave – when you’re alone.  This should be the easiest time to be brave – but sometimes it’s the most difficult because it’s when you’re face to face with your biggest nay-sayer and critic.  There’s no escape.  But still, it is the best place to try being brave – who’s going to tell you no?  Only you.  But this can be your time to:
    1. Explore – ask the questions you might have been suppressing – why can’t you play a Qmin7dimsus chord there?  What happens if you put a jazz chord progression into your trad tune?  What happens if you shift the time signature?  How would this sound in another key or another mode? Or a different register?  There’s no road map, that’s why it’s called exploring!
    2. Record and play back – after all, you’re probably not going to like all the answers you come up with your your questions, but every answer deserves to be heard and decided on its merits (and if like me you make noises but can’t remember them – or if you liked them, or if they even were an answer to your question – recording will help!).
    3. Play like no one is listening – because they’re not!  You can make all the noises you want!  And the great thing about sound?  It dissipates and is gone in an instant!  Yea music!
  4. Be exceptional.  Be the 2% who ask.  It really won’t kill you to ask someone else a question.  And if you think you should never ask a star or harp hero your question – well, they likely will surprise you (if only because they too are curious people…and usually very nice).  They may have a ready answer (if they’ve run into curious people before) or they may not (if you’ve asked a very different question).  But just you asking may incline them to become curious about your question too.
  5. Hang out with other curious people – misery isn’t the only thing that loves company – curious people love to hang out with other curious people, if only to hear what you’ll ask next!  Bonus, you’ll spur one another onto to new topics of interest, new questions, and possibly new discoveries.

Remember, the purpose of being curious and asking questions is not to get answers.  The real purpose is to see what questions arise from the answers you get.  To remain curious, you have to keep questioning – and those pearls you garner will feed your creativity!

But maybe this is a bridge too far for you?  After all, it is easy for me. *  If you want to ask the questions but are timid (even (or especially) with yourself), just start by positing questions on paper.  Just write it down.  Throw it away if the questions make you uncomfortable.

What?

Because it’s not the questions that matter – it’s the questioning that’s so important.  Curiosity grows from questions, not from answers.  And as you become more comfortable with asking questions, you’ll be more comfortable with flexibility and being innovative…. which will lead you to more questions – and a really fun, unending cycle of curiosity and creativity!

Because curiosity didn’t kill the cat – it kept it a kitten!

Like developing any skill, you will have to work at this.  You will need to practice asking questions, especially if it’s new to you.  Try starting out by asking just three questions a day.  Why is a great question starter!  (e.g., Why are my scales sloppy?  Why do you play a D chord there?) but what or how will are also interesting (What would happen if I played this in 3/4 rather than 6/8? How does that melody develop?)  Of course, when you start you might falter.  If that happens – ask yourself why? 😉  It does get easier with practice.  And your questions will get better too.

What are you curious about?  Ask me anything (in the comments below)! 

 

 

* No, it’s not, nothing is easy for me, but I fake it…and frankly, I’m curious if I’ll ever find something that is easy!  

Admiring your handiwork

Posted on by

Is there any more satisfying feeling than letting out a beautiful harmony?

Admiring your handiworkWhen you’re beginning it will be the satisfaction of actually playing the single note – the right note at the right time.  Even better if you used the finger you intended and the note that sounded wasn’t a complete surprise! *

As you become more experienced and more practiced, you add more notes to the harmony, but that joy of the sound doesn’t really dim.

And all of that would be great…if there was only one harmony note or chord required.  But inevitably, the arranger had other ideas and puts a long succession of harmony notes together.

And that’s when the hitch enters the git-along!

The more surprised and delighted you are by the notes hanging in the air, sparkling and glistening like a goldfish in Fairy Dust, the more likely you will be captivated.  And why shouldn’t you be?  After all – goldfish!  Fairy Dust!  Delight!  You did good – your handiwork is admirable.

But that pesky arranger…now you’re expected to do it again.  Probably in a different place on the harp.  With another finger.  And probably at the same time as some melody note!  And again. And again. And again.  Measure after measure.  And then…the repeat! 

Are they mad?!

Sadly, bringing the tune out means you have not really got time to admire your handiwork at the same time you are delivering one admirable handiwork after another.  So unfair!

One of the mysteries you get to unlock relatively early in your journey is this sublimation and accumulation of little joys for a big burst of delight at the end of the piece.

What?   Ok, here’s the translation, sans waxing lyrical –

When you are playing, once you have closed for that note (or chord) –

Move along! 

Get where you are going next!

There’s nothing to see here! **

Because there is a next chord and the one after that, etc. ad nauseum. 

This needs to be practiced – this moving from one beautifully executed thing to another. Because if you think about playing a tune like it is a puzzle to put together, or a problem to solved, or a recipe to follow – your brain needs to sequence through the information – left hand here, right hand place and play – now left hand, back to right hand, and on again.

As soon as you play the left hand, your brain drops thinking about that harmony and that left hand like a hot potato and rushes on to the next thing (probably a melody note or whatever comes next in the sequence).  And it doesn’t think about the left hand again until it must!

All in all, no big deal – you do this all the time.  It’s called serial processing.  But what’s happened?  Well, you played the left hand note (or chord).  You’ve closed beautifully (right?).  And you left it there hanging over the soundboard.    So now, it’s later and time to get to the left hand on again.  AND IT’S NOWHERE NEAR WHERE YOU NEED IT!!!  Because you left it there, hovering over the sound board, handiwork to be admired. 

So, how to fix this?  Well – you practice!  Practice moving while you have the time, and train your brain to process in a controlled serial fashion.

To start with, SLOW DOWN.  Serial processing means you’re dealing with one thing at a time.  You might think you’re a multitasker, but nope, it only looks like it.  For highly practiced activities you can switch rapidly between them but that’s not multitasking. If you’re not well practiced at moving, you will need additional time to think about it and then make it happen. 

LOOK AT THE INTERFACES.  This is how I think of the timing – it is the interface between the left hand playing, the right hand playing, the melody, the harmony, and time.  Getting all of these to line up is tricky, especially at first.  Start by finding where they all touch each other – this is a good place to start. 

LOOK FOR THE HOLES. This is where no notes are being played in either hand – this helps form a scaffolding for your thinking and makes a good movement time!

SLOW DOWN.  Don’t ask me how I know you’ve already sped up!

MAKE THE SHIFT.  As you begin to play, think ahead.  Play slowly enough that you can think.  Once you’ve placed, you don’t need to think about where your fingers are.  And if, as soon as you play, you move to the next place and get your fingers on to the next shape, then you don’t have think about it again until the next time!  This is one of the things that more experienced players are better at…. because they have more practice and they have learned to think ahead.

See what we did there?  We shifted moving and placing further forward in our thinking sequence rather than letting the notes come at us like a fusillade.  But you do need to practice thinking like that.  The sequence becomes play –> move –> place –> play –> etc.  Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

All of this is predicated on your already having learned the melody enough to being to add the harmony.  This is also equally applicable to either hand and to reading or playing by rote.  It does take practice.  And it is totally worth the time to avoid feeling rushed and unconfident.  And once you master this, you can focus on other things that will improve your musicality. 

Have you really learned how to move along rather than admiring your handiwork so you can get where you need to be next?  Do you have other strategies?  Let me know in the comments!

* Sometimes you tell me that you feel like I am speaking directly to you.  That’s because…I am!  No matter where you are on your journey, the difference between us is likely just time and focus.  I was a beginner at one point – an adult who struggled with making time to practice, showing up for lessons embarrassed that I hadn’t had enough practice because I was busy doing other things, but willing to take the lash (which, of course, never came, because I had wonderful, cherishing teachers who gently corrected my technique and repertoire and encouraged me to become the harp player I wanted to be).  I thought it would be easier.  I love playing my harp.  I was afraid of a lot of things – playing in public, music I hadn’t learned yet, embarrassing myself, not getting better, failing – the usual stuff.  And I remember it like it was yesterday – because it was (figuratively).  I share my thoughts here so that you can learn from my mistakes…and go on to make your own spectacular mistakes that I hope you’ll share with me!  We’re all learning – I’m just willing to talk about it! 😉

** We’re talking about the left hand/harmony but this is also applicable and just as important in the right hand/melody.

Don’t be Vanilla

Posted on by

Don't be vanillaPeople often tell me that all Celtic music sounds the same – the Irish tunes, the Scottish tunes, the Welsh, the Galician, the Breton ones too.  When I started playing the harp, I agreed – I couldn’t tell them apart.  The only way I could be sure was that the tunes on Great Highland Bagpipe were Scottish (probably). 

Over time, and with the help of great teachers, I learned to listen.  And over time, by listening, the sounds and styles of the music become less opaque (even to me and I don’t listen very well).  Those sounds and stylistic elements that arise from the music reflect the different, but related, cultures. 

These idiomatic elements are really interesting (especially if you’re nerdy!).  I’m always curious about how people define themselves and the things they create to define their groups.  If you grow up inside a group, you may not even be able to detect the “fence” that defines that group, but you know where that fence is.  And if you are interested, you can not only begin to see the fence, you can even learn what it is made of.

The idiomatic elements are the fence and are everywhere throughout the music.  These elements help define the music.  So studying these (or at a minimum, observing them) can help level up your musicianship.  And if you think this only applies to Celtic music, think again.  Every genre of music reflects a set of idioms.  Whether it’s classical, Top 40, hip hop, Scandinavian, medieval, reggae, whatever – the idioms make the music identifiable (and classifiable). 

Now, while it is possible to make “vanilla” music, most of us would probably rather not.  We want our Irish tunes to sound Irish.  We want the Baroque tunes to sound like it’s the 17th century not the 19th.   Frankly, it can be a little embarrassing to play a tune like it came from somewhere (or somewhen) else – even when you know that to the listener it’s all just “pretty music” – because then it is vanilla!

Just now I’m working on three very distinct projects that definitely need to be presented in their own idioms.  One is really comfortable to me, but the other two are “stretch” projects.  Stretching is exciting and fun…and intimidating.  I don’t know these two stretch idioms so I’m listening to music I’m not used to – seeking to find those elements that are part of the idiomatic fence.  Those are the things I’ll need to incorporate into my music – not just to make the projects work but also to make the output more authentic.

Listening to new music is sort of like developing a crush.  You have to pay really close attention to everything – what is that drum line?  How is that loop built?  Is that a saxophone?  Like a new crush, you find reasons to spend time together with the music.  In that time, nothing is as lustrous or compelling.    And like a crush, the infatuation wanes (usually to the delight of those around you!).   All those things that were so fascinating become a bit ho-hum or tarnished.  Reason returns.  And with that, a new clarity – the idioms may not still be sparkly, but they are revealed and now useful and ready to be incorporated into working projects!  You have found the fence!

So, what are you listening for when you’re trying to get your head around a new idiom?  Here are some ideas:

  • Rhythm – how do they mark time?  Where is the beat? Where is the pulse? What happens in the rhythm – especially the bass and the drum lines?  Are there counters and if so, where, and how?  What’s the time signature or meter?
  • Harmonies – does the tune use a chord progression you expect?  Or does it surprise you? How does the harmony move? Is there a harmony?
  • Melody – How does the melody move? What kinds of intervals are used?  Is it “catchy”? Is it complex or simple?  What drew you to it in the first place?  What kept you coming back?
  • Setting and arrangement – what instruments captured your attention?  What about the arrangement is compelling?  What can you copy or replicate on the harp and what needs to be replaced (and how)?  Will the harp arrangement “scratch the itch” created by the original arrangement?

Once you’ve noticed these things, then you can compare and contrast with your usual music.  You will likely frame this as “difference” between what you know and what you’re learning.  All this will help you find the “fence”.   Then you can incorporate elements – and keep from being vanilla!

Just think what that can mean for your new music!  More – think about what this can all mean for your existing repertoire!   What can you do with this?  How will you stray from vanilla?  Let me know in the comments!