Music

[shadowspar]

Inasmuch as I've always thought it'd be neat to play a musical instrument, for the longest time I considered it to be out of reach -- something that only "cool kids" did. I was a computer geek, so being good with technology was my lot in life, and making music wasn't. I toyed with the idea of picking up an instrument for years, and of course never did.

Something twigged when I went to the Writing About Testing conference this past summer, though. Chris McMahon, the organizer of the conference, played bass professionally for years, and puts together a jazz night every Thursday. It's about as informal as you get -- a few friends getting together in someone's house to play some jazz standards. As it turns out, a couple of the WAT attendees are accomplished musicians in their own right, and we were treated to a fantastic show.

I thought to myself -- here are a bunch of largely amateur musicians who throw together an amazing jam session every week. This is totally something I want to get into. I have no idea how to assemble it here in the Sault, but still.

This was also my first real insight into the workings of jazz. It came across to me as "musician's music" -- there's a library of standards that everyone's more or less familiar with, everyone gets a turn to solo, and improv is the name of the game. It's music for those who enjoy not just playing music, but creating music. =)

When it came down to thinking about I might like to play...well, I've always liked percussion, and I've been drumming on desks, my lap, whatever I could get my hands onto. as long as I can remember. Drum kit jumps out as something I could try, but...while I understand why the drum kit is so popular -- it's incredibly versatile and finds a place in any genre of music -- it's also incredibly common, and I want to do something different. I've been completely fascinated with timbales ever since I learned of their existence, and would love to pick up a set. Unlike, say, rock music, though, I have practially no familiarity with the different styles of latin music. There's also the non-trivial problem that Sault Ste Marie isn't exactly a hotbed of Música Cubana either.

The other thing was that I'd like to pick up pick up something that can carry a melody. I've adored the sound of the bassoon since the age of about five, when I first heard Peter and the Wolf, but they run thousands of dollars just for a student model that isn't even made of wood. Strings? Cello and Double bass are amazing, but part of the point of this exercise was to be able to jam with the folks I might meet up with while travelling, and there's no way in hell I'm trusting a musical instrument to the tender mercies of an airline's baggage handling. Violin is wonderful but can get a bit shrill -- I'm looking to play something a bit lower, and frankly, I'd rather that beautiful singing E string be next to someone else's head rather than my own. What about viola? A fifth lower than a violin, it's got a deeper, darker sound; it fits in a reasonable-sized case, and while there's not as huge a repertoire for it, violists are not that common a bunch. While on the surface it doesn't seem like an instrument you'd find outside of the classical setting, I coincidentally stumbled across the music of Basia Bulat, whose backing band includes Allison Stewart on viola:

I wondered about finding an instrument that I could play solo, on a concert stage, in a pub, or just in the living room with a few friends, and this tipped me off that I might have stumbled across one with that potential.

As it turns out, all this speculation on which instrument to take up was cut short by my family buying me viola lessons for Christmas. This coming Tuesday will be my fourth lesson, and while I can't say that I'm making anything like a pleasing sound yet, I'm improving every week, and it's really cool to not just be able to hear a note that you've made, but to be able to feel it and see it as you draw the bow across the strings.

We'll see how things pan out. =) My goal right now is to not suck, which is a loftier goal than it sounds. "Not sucking" -- a notion I also got from Chris -- is roughly defined as "if you hear a tune in your head, you can play it on your instrument", and do so without stumbling or hesitation. Being able to play on a stage with a symphony or a bunch of folk musicians might one day be nice, but I'll be happy if I can get to a point where I can express music through the viola as fluently as I can type words on a keyboard.

Comments

[amethystfirefly]

I almost, almost picked up a viola off of Freecycle a few weeks ago. The only reason I didn't was because I just don't have the money for lessons. -laughs- But now I'm jealous of you!!

(Also! I'm from the Upper Peninsula, by the Keeweenaw. XD Small world!)

[shadowspar]

Heh, it might sound like sour grapes, but I was really surprised how much work it can take to get a disused viola or violin back into shape. We're in the same situation with a hand-me-down violin we got from a cousin who bought it almost a decade ago for her son, who got through about two lessons before giving it up. New strings, a bow re-hair, and getting everything set up correctly can cost more than one of the mass-produced instruments is to buy new. So if it's any consolation, the freecycled viola may not have been a good value at any price, depending. =)

Yeah, I remember you mentioning that you were originally from the UP. We've never made it out to the Keeweenaw area, unfortunately; only as far as Marquette, and a few trips to Chicago via Escanaba and Marinette/Menominee. We've been pretty remiss about exploring the western UP as a whole, actually.

Yeah, it's definitely a small world, especially in this part of it. =)

[amethystfirefly]

Yeah, I don't remember how old it was. I got the impression it wasn't too old, though. But I have a flute that needs to be refurbed because I haven't played it in so long, so I figured that it'd be best not to go get another instrument.

(I don't play my flute because have chronic bursitis and tendonitis in both shoulders, along with arthritis. could see myself going through that if I were in a band or something, but I'm not. -laughs- And practicing scales and all that isn't really my thing, because I learn music in a weird manner.)

Anyway! when I stopped to think about it, I figured the viola would be best if it went to someone who would *definitely* play it.

If I move back home, you'll have to visit or something. XD

I remember that my brothers sometimes listened to a radio station out of Ontario when the nights were clear. It was better than the crap we had normally. -laughs- I think it was from Thunder Bay, though.

[shadowspar]

Heh, if you get back in the area, I'll have to see about dropping by to say hi. I'll bring a viola if I've managed to get to a point where I can stand to let other people hear it. =)

Yeah, the radio propagation up here can be weird and interesting sometimes, eh? I remember getting some stations from the Upper Lower Peninsula on occasion...and once (strangely enough) bringing in one from somewhere way north of here, like Timmins. Unfortunately it always seems to be various degrees of fire-and-brimstone christian radio that I pick up >_<

[amethystfirefly]

Clearly, God must want you to hear the News, then. ;)

[hypatia]

i finally learned how to re-string my (weird, non-standard) guitar. we can cheerlead eachother's musicality!

[shadowspar]

Excellent! Go go GF band? =)

You're well ahead of me in the stringing-and-tuning department -- I've just discovered why people say tuning a violin or viola using the pegs is so difficult. I accidentally nudged one of the pegs while practising last night, and when I tried to tighten it, the tension of the string just unwound the peg right back to where I started. I tightened it again, it slipped back again; I tried wiggling it a bit in the pegbox to give it a bit more traction, and one of the other pegs slipped ^_^; So today I'll be dragging my poor, wounded viola into my teacher so that she can help me get it back into tune. The whole thing was pretty comical, actually.