I have a great guitar experience I'd like to share with everyone. Over the summer, a classmate of mine passed away in a car accident. Today, my school held a memorial service and asked a friend of mine to sing. She, in turn, asked me to play guitar for her. This friend and I play together alot, we've performed at coffeehouses and a banquet. We really have alot of fun doing it and we play whatever songs we feel like playing. Well anyways, this girl was a big Godsmack fan, so it was decided that we should play Serenity by Godsmack to end the service. Well, this happened on Tuesday, and neither one of us had heard the song before in our lives. So I downloaded the mp3 (legally! cost me a whole dollar) and got some tabs. But I had to put this into a solo acoustic arrangement. So her and I sat down and worked out an arrangement in Drop D 1/2 step down.
What was so great about this was that I was able to look at how the song was played and take parts out or completely make other parts up from scratch. The result was a song that sounded nothing like the original yet still had the tone and feeling of the original. After the show, the chaplain of the school called the song "haunting" and even complimented me on how i was able to make the song sound like that. The ending that we came up with gave me goosebumps. I played an open power chord (bottom 3 strings open) and as the chord was fading away my friend sang "i need serenity" in the most incredible tone that was so sad and kinda hopeful at the same time. I know it was a sad occasion, but I felt proud of us that we could do that in 2 days and that it all came together so quickly and that it left such an impression on everyone there. So many people came up to us to tell us how much that song meant to this girl and how it fit the occasion and how it was just so perfect. I'm feeling pretty good about my guitaring right now.
Just wanted to share, hope you enjoyed it.
That's really cool. why don't you record it ? and put it up for us to listen to.
Well done
Minus Human
And all the things you said to me
I need your arms to welcome me
But a cold stone's all I see
Let my heart go
That's an awesome story. And a good example of the effect music can have on people.
Thats why we're all doing this.
Glad you got a chance to remember, keep it up.
Kido
Sorry to hear about your classmate, but that was a good read.
Music truly is a wonderful thing.
Thanks. Sad occasion, great story. Sometimes a song is just a song, but other times music and reality collide for a truly powerful experience.
As Kiddo said, that's why we're all doing this.
Yes, music is wonderful. They originally wanted us to play amazing grace, but I realize now that if we had played amazing grace, no one would have cared, and it wouldnt have made an impression. We chose to honor her with a song that meant alot to her rather than a generic hymn and that was what made it powerful, in my opinion. For those who knew her, I think it meant a little something extra to them and I felt amazed and awestruck to know that something my clumsy little fingers created could bring people together like that. Not to take away from my friend, she's amazing. AMAZING.
And Kido's right. After I had a chance to digest the whole experience I realized that that's what I wanted when I first had those dreams of playing guitar when I was a little kid. The dream may have gone wayward till bout 2 years ago, but it found me again and I'm so glad it did.
Look at me getting all sentimental. Aaaaah I need to go spend some QT with my guitar.