The new issue of Mel Bay’s Fiddle Sessions is here, including part two of my article about how to play accompanying chords with other musicians. There are also transcriptions of two different jazz violinists’ takes on “Go Tell Aunt Rhody”, and an interview with a hard-of-hearing fiddle player.
In other news, one of the bands I’m in, Big Sur, will be at the Tractor Tavern on Saturday, October 22nd, opening for Zoe Muth & the Lost High Rollers, about whom I hear only good things. If you’re in the area, come say hi?
I am so pleased to announce that I’ll be teaching two classes in the next two months through Whatcom Folk School, a wonderful non-profit that advertises and handles registration for classes in the community on a huge array of subjects.
—— Rock n Roll Music Theory (or Folk, or…) – AUT11-40
Do you ever feel like the musicians around you are speaking in a secret code? Let’s talk music theory, and how it really can actually help you, no matter what kind of music you play. Class will be tailored to the needs of the participants – so we’ll start where you are and with what’s relevant to the music you’re interested in.
Square one! We will go over the basics of how to hold the fiddle to maximize playing ability and long-term physical health. We’ll also go over where the notes are on the instrument and learn a few tunes from various folk music traditions.
I’m pleased! Fiddlesessions.com, a blog run by the music instructional publisher Mel Bay, has posted an article I wrote. “Chords: What To Play When You Don’t Know What To Play” is part 1 of a 3 part series about how to accompany other musicians during jams or band situations when you are not soloing. I hope you’ll check it out, and perhaps leave a comment if you’ve got something to say about it. (Ideally the comment will be about the content of the article, not my dorky author photo, but do what you gotta.)
Here I am, probably playing accompaniment chords, while jamming on klezmer tunes with Kristin Allen Zito, Jenna Bean Veatch, and others not shown. Maria Sonevytsky took this picture last week at the Puget Sound Guitar Workshop. Have you ever been to music camp? Check out the ones listed in the “links” section of this website.
For many of us, but especially those of us who are adults, it is difficult to do things we don’t already know how to do. Learning an instrument, especially if it is our first instrument, is humbling. We may feel like small children, knowing what needs to happen but without the wiring in place to make our hands act in accordance with our intentions. Even when we quiet our inner critic, our spouse or children or cats may wrinkle their noses at our best attempts. We turn on the television and see reality shows where people sing their hearts out, then turn to face a panel of judges who are paid to be merciless in their criticism.
Even if your deepest musical wish is to be a professional, idolized by others, leave that wish outside the practice room. Practice time is for you, not the imagined or real people you hope will give you better love if you master this instrument.*
the plateau
Maybe you are on a plateau. If you aren’t on a plateau right now, you will be someday. When you are on a plateau, it feels like you’ve been stuck at exactly the same level for a long time. You’ve been walking and walking and not getting anywhere. You remember the climb up to where you are now, that exhausting but intoxicating feeling of progress, but it’s a distant memory now. Practicing doesn’t seem to make a difference and it’s increasingly difficult to remember why you ever thought this was fun or worthwhile. You may consider quitting your instrument. A lot of people do at this point.
Allow me to suggest that everyone who has ever mastered an instrument (whatever that means, exactly) has crossed many, many of these plateaus. Allow me to suggest further that you are actually getting somewhere, even if you feel like you’re walking in circles or backwards. Entertain the possibility that an epiphany is around the corner. It could take any of a variety of forms: a sudden intuitive sense of something your brain hasn’t been able to understand rationally; an encounter with a genre of music you didn’t know existed and which ignites you completely; a new friend with whom you share an instant and inspiring musical rapport.
In the meantime you need motivation to keep practicing. For that to happen, practicing has to feel a bit less like drudgery.
kindness to yourself
As Fl!p Breskin likes to say, “I have a procedure for you”:
Stretch. Breathe.
Bring your best self to your work.
Take 2-3 minutes to make sure your muscles are loose and your mind is clear.
First, play something you feel. Start with your favorite tune.
If every tune feels wrong today, make up something that expresses how you’re feeling.
Decide what to work on today. You do not have to practice every tune or exercise assigned every time you play. Pick one or two things to focus on today.
Get down to work. Spend as much time as you can (five minutes, or five hours) on your focus area(s).
This is work, but it should be joyful work. If you get frustrated, take a step back. Stretch tense muscles. Break the hard thing up into smaller chunks, and focus on just one chunk for now.
If you’re having trouble focusing, take another minute to stretch and breathe. Play a slooooooow scale. Stand in front of the mirror and play open strings, watching for straight bowing, or places you’re holding tension in your body, etc.
It can be hard to look at a rag written out in a fiddle book and get a sense of what it’s really supposed to sound like. Generally, the tune will be written out with straight eighth notes, but if you play it that way, it doesn’t sound like a rag at all, and a lot of the musical phrases will sound really boring. “Why am I playing these same three notes over and over for two bars?” you may ask yourself. Put the right “swing” on the notes and it will start to make sense.
Here’s a collection of rags I found on YouTube to help you start to catch the “feel” I’m talking about:
Everyone knows this song, right? Scott Joplin is the textbook ragtime composer. I like this guy’s piano rendition of Joplin’s most famous tune, “The Entertainer.” (This pianist also does a nice “Maple Leaf Rag“, another famous Scott Joplin piece.)
OK, here’s another piano example. This one’s a 1967 recording of political satirist Tom Lehrer’s song, “The Vatican Rag”:
Pay special attention to the timing of the vocal melody. Can you sing or hum along? Do you feel how some notes are shorter than others? Look at his body–isn’t he swinging a bit? Don’t you kind of want to swing back and forth, too, when you hear this music? That’s probably why they call this a “swung” rhythm!
So, okay, enough of the piano. Here’s a fiddle version of Black & White Rag. It was originally written for piano–hence the title’s reference to piano keys–but it’s now commonly played on a lot of different instruments.
There are lots of fiddlers playing this tune on YouTube, but I like this guy’s lazy swingy feel, even at his fast tempo.
Here’s a great piano version of Black & White Rag, if you’re confused about how the piano and fiddle ragtime sounds relate to one another and want to compare: Winifred Atwell Plays “The Black & White Rag” (I recommend starting at the 0:37 mark.)
Eileen Troberman, an Alexander Technique instructor, discusses and demonstrates sitting posture, for maximum efficiency and minimum discomfort. Share this with your non-fiddling friends, too!
