OK so yesterday I was at a jam session with some older guys ( P.S. I'm 14 so older guys is 30 + :P) but I'm pretty sure most of em were 50 +. So, yeah, experienced guitarists, I wasn't there to play I was there to learn and what not, so on one point where they all went out to smoke, except the bassist and the guy who plays the piano ( pianist ? o.o that sounds wrong ), who by the way are the guys I'm least familiar with. Then another guy my age grabbed the drums and I grabbed my uncle's Strat ( '85 Strat awesome sounding !).
OK, so I told the kid to lay down a track he didn't do too much ( no "cuts" or anything just plain beat ) but he kept the beat well and it sounded good so I just went with it,so I just started doing some stuff on the G pentatonic scale, you know just playing around apparently good playing around cause the bassist an piano guy grabbed their stuff and started playing along it sounded so awesome and it wasn't just me, the older guys agreed it sounded great. The older guys ( base and piano )that were playing started to play a song from some1 called Stevie Dan ( can't find him anywhere) and told me to just solo over it :P cause I prolly didn't know it and whatever.
So yeah I'm proud of myself that I grabbed the guitar in front of those vets and that I did a good job with it and they liked it and I'm pretty sure they weren't just saying that because I saw their faces when they came back in after the smoke and saw that the one playing was me and how they were all like : O.
OK so this brings me to the discuss part:
How important is it in comparizon to your overall technique that you lose that fear of the public when you're going to play anywhere, be it a Jam session, a concert, a church group whatever.
Yeah and I also played in front of the church guys and they want me in because I play way better than the other guys who play guitar, and I also know alot about music. ( Not trying to be all proud when I say I play better than them, but I do o.o) Well not really alot but you know alot for my age I guess ?
Oh and sorry for saying "older guys" so much in this thread I just don't know what to call em, adults ? xD I think thats worst :P.
I wanna be that guy that you wish you were ! ( i wish I were that guy)
You gotta set your sights high to get high!
Everyone is a teacher when you are looking to learn.
( wise stuff man! )
Its Kirby....
Well done. Great job! It's good fun, eh? :mrgreen:
How important is it in comparizon to your overall technique that you lose that fear of the public when you're going to play anywhere, be it a Jam session, a concert, a church group whatever.
I'd suggest that it's important to get over the real fear, but to retain enough 'apprehension' to keep you on your toes and not feeling too cocky or blase about it. I've seen the most famous of stage actors saying that they never lose an element of "butterflies in the stomach" before going on, and would think that it was time to give up if they did.
In my opinion, the most important thing is to understand about balance. It's good to have a balance between not feeling either too nervous at one end of the scale or too casual at the other end, but it's also good to know how to strike the right balance between being either too shy and tentative with your playing or going too far the other way and trying to make it all about you instead of about a group performance of a song. I.e it's good not to try and grab more of the musical space than the song calls for, or getting overambitious.
Always listen to what the other musicians are doing, support when and where you should be supporting, but give it your best shot and go for it when you do get the chance. It's important to have some sort of ego, and to be confident about your knowledge and ability, but it's also good to know when to let it off the leash and when to apply the brakes... :)
That's how I see it anyway. All the best with your music.
Cheers,
Chris
First, I think most of us here are "older guys" - I think a lot of us either took up guitar as a mid-life crisis relief, or came back to it after a long absence. But older guys is fine....most of us are still younger than McCartney, Jagger, Richards, Elton John, Beck, Clapton, Page etc etc etc!
Secondly, the band who's name you didn't quite catch could be Steely Dan - see if you can find anything of theirs on youtube. Jeff "Skunk" Baxter was, and still is as far as I know, an excellent guitarist.
Thirdly, well done....you seem quite confident in your own abilities, and comfortable enough to play in front of people. You've already achieved something a lot of people here haven't done by jamming in public, it's a big step to take - and one of the first steps on an even longer journey, hopefully.
Finally, I'll agree with Chris and wish you good luck with your music!
:D :D :D
Vic
"Sometimes the beauty of music can help us all find strength to deal with all the curves life can throw us." (D. Hodge.)
The older guys ( base and piano )that were playing started to play a song from some1 called Stevie Dan
I'm pretty sure they were referring to Steely Dan http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Xr-OS3q6Y4&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PMLV05lqsx8&feature=related
..· ´¨¨)) -:¦:-
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((¸¸.·´ .·´
-:¦:- ((¸¸.·´ -:¦:- Elecktrablue -:¦:-
"Don't wanna ride no shootin' star. Just wanna play on the rhythm guitar." Emmylou Harris, "Rhythm Guitar" from "The Ballad of Sally Rose"
First, I think most of us here are "older guys" - I think a lot of us either took up guitar as a mid-life crisis relief, or came back to it after a long absence. But older guys is fine....most of us are still younger than McCartney, Jagger, Richards, Elton John, Beck, Clapton, Page etc etc etc!
Secondly, the band who's name you didn't quite catch could be Steely Dan - see if you can find anything of theirs on youtube. Jeff "Skunk" Baxter was, and still is as far as I know, an excellent guitarist.
Thirdly, well done....you seem quite confident in your own abilities, and comfortable enough to play in front of people. You've already achieved something a lot of people here haven't done by jamming in public, it's a big step to take - and one of the first steps on an even longer journey, hopefully.
Finally, I'll agree with Chris and wish you good luck with your music!
:D :D :D
Vic
Well hopefully not too confident in my abilities, of course I feel good, it rocks to play with other people, but I know I'm still a beginner :P. And yeah these older guys are the kind that dropped guitar for 20 some years and picked it up again going to my uncle's jam sessions.
Oh and thanks alot for the Steely Dan thing, I looked for Stevie Dan and I found some kinda old dude with a look that screamed "pedophile" xD.
And about the guy that spoke about balance, man that is sooooo true, cause after I finished playing another dude grabbed his guitar and it was like WAAAYY Too loud and he was hogging everything, ok he played well but meh I don't like him :P.
Oh and another thing about my experience, it pumped me up hard because of the bassist and the piano guy and the whole dynamic of the bass following me :O xD and the piano doing the things I did and repeating them like a "rhythm" part very awesome!
That is what I love about playing with people who are better than me, when they let me lead ( once in a whiileeee :P ) they can follow what I do and go along to it very nicely.
Oh and the confidence in my abilities is newfound, I gained alot of confidence when all those ( lets just call em vets lol ) vets started looking at me like surprised and telling me that I had potential not only because of the way I moved my fingers but also for my knowledge of music ( thanks in part to u guys and David Hodge xD ) and because I wasn't afraid of doing what I love in public ( and also because of my face while I was playing, o.o I had my eyes closed, very passionate moment xD )
I wanna be that guy that you wish you were ! ( i wish I were that guy)
You gotta set your sights high to get high!
Everyone is a teacher when you are looking to learn.
( wise stuff man! )
Its Kirby....
Congrats Coolnama! Sounds like an experience you'll be able to dine on for some time to come. 8)
Roy
"I wonder if a composer ever intentionally composed a piece that was physically impossible to play and stuck it away to be found years later after his death, knowing it would forever drive perfectionist musicians crazy." - George Carlin
Yes it is cool to play with others :!: As far as nerves I've been giging for about six years now and I still get them. Sometimes it's just a little apprehension and sometimes it's pure terror. Then there are the times I think I'm going to get on stage and pass out. I look at it as a challenge to over come and a good thing. I don't think I play any better or worse because of the Butterfies. I am calmer if I'm playing and singing. If I'm singing without an instrument in my hands, that's when the terror kicks in. So in answer to your question since I've never got over them and I still perform regularly. I'd say it's not important.
Tim Madsen
Nobody cares how much you know,
until they know how much you care.
"What you keep to yourself you lose, what you give away you keep forever." -Axel Munthe
Sounds like you've been having fun playing music- which is what we're all here to do. It's always a boost to the confidence when others appreciate what you can share with them.
Just remember- don't get cocky, and don't settle. There will always be ways for you to improve you playing for as long as you play guitar. And it's always good to get the butterflies before a show- it means that you really care about the experience that you hope the audience has.
Keep having fun!
