Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Jim Morris on July 18, 2017 at 9:28am

I listened to the clips Dustin and my advice to you is the same as I tell my students no matter what the instrument Practice at least 30 min every day - more if you can. Learn tunes and songs to the point where you don't really need to think about them - just play them unhesitatingly and with feeling. It sounds like you are off to a good start and with more time and practice you should be able to reach a point where you have enough comfortable songs to do a gig. Write down each song you work on and listen to how other players do those songs. Try to emulate what they do and add your own style to it. Good luck with it all!

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Permalink Reply by Dustin Aurand on July 18, 2017 at 9:41am

Thanks. K have several songs under my belt for a setlist. I just need to write it down, practice my technique, and go over what I k ow. I'm better than the videos. Also, I plan on busking for a while, and get my name out there.

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Permalink Reply by the anonymous pick on July 18, 2017 at 9:58am

i have to agree with  Jim  , especially  the  "add your own style to it." .  in fact ,  you could take it a step further  and do everything totally original .  Anything original  or improvised on the spot , can never be played "wrong " to  others .  Don't treat your sight issues as a  "disability"  , infact  , it is an advantage  .  You  are   more  aligned to "feel"  and "hear"  music  and find it in the guitar  than most  players  that just  go through the motions  are . many a blind player are amazing musicians  due to that  very reason.    Play around with it .  care free  , find  and remember what sounds great  .  replay   that  ..    / rinse   / repeat . ;-)   that should replace the uncertainty  in  playing exact song  notes   . with pride and confidence   while having fun ;-)

Hope that helps  .  ;-)

But what do  i know ? we are all still learning , just at different levels and start times ;-)   

 

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Permalink Reply by Dustin Aurand on July 18, 2017 at 10:07am

Thanks. As stated earlier, I just need to go over my setlist, and instead of playing note-for-note songs, look for places in them for improvizatipn. Ivalso tend to solo better with a slide.

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Permalink Reply by the anonymous pick on July 18, 2017 at 10:12am

you've got my vote  ..  rock on  ;-)

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Permalink Reply by Jim Morris on July 18, 2017 at 10:38am

Yes, I 2nd what pick said. Original material can never be "wrong" . Busking is always better than playing alone since you get feedback from listeners. But there is great value in "woodshedding" and working things out to make them sound the way you want. Add some videos to the CBN page and you will (usually)get supportive comments and advice. Especially if you ask for the advice. Many folks here are kind to the point of not giving constructive criticism. I'll never find fault with kindness but many times it's a big help if someone suggests a different way to do something. And, you've got my vote also. That's 2 votes of confidence in you Dustin and I bet there will be more!

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Permalink Reply by Ron "Oily" Sprague on July 18, 2017 at 1:20pm

Dustin,

Please understand that my comments to these videos are visceral reactions on a single, first viewing. They are not meant to be hurtful; they are meant to help you become a better performer. I will not tell you things like "You suck!" I WILL be critical. You have asked for advice, and I will give you the benefit, such as it is, of what I see and hear..

Market busking: If people don't realize you're blind, they are going to think that your inability to control your eye movements, looking toward the ceiling, etc, are evidence of you not being interested in the audience. I don't know if you engaged in banter with any audience members, but you have to learn to engage with them in a meaningful way. One of the reasons that both Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder wore sunglasses was to prevent the audience from seeing their somewhat uncontrolled, directionless eye rolls. Understand that many people find this unnerving, and it will distract from your musical message. I suspect, from the soft sound of the vid, I know why you wanted so much advice about amps. Your git cannot be heard over the background conversation. Also, I don't know, based on this limited sample, if what you're playing is connecting with them at all. I have found that most people have a very limited attention span for any kind of instrumental in a public place, unless it is expertly played. I cannot honestly judge from this particular vid if you have guitar skills, because I can't really hear what you're playing. Which means the audience can't either. In addition, you're going to have to develop some kind of stage persona. This will take much time and experimentation, until you hit on something that resonates with most folks.

Barnes and Noble 1: OK, I have to admit, after viewing and listening to this, if I didn't know you were attempting to play St. James Infirmary, I'd have thought you'd literally just picked up the git and were trying to slowly, painfully pick it out from memory. Far too tentative. This will not go over well with a bar crowd. Believe me, I have played mellow sets in front of a raucous heavy-drinking crowd, and they almost never work, no matter how good the songs or my interpretation were. You need to become far more fluid and much faster with going from note to note; this will require a LOT of practice on your part. In addition, there are lyrics to St. James Infirmary; you need to learn them, and sing them, from memory, playing far more fluidly and recognizably than shown in this vid. There is also a huge incongruity in playing this particular song in a Santa hat in a B&N; most people would expect you would be playing Christmas carols, not a really, really old proto-blues tune about addiction. You may love the blues, but that particular audience may not.

Barnes and Noble 2: OK, a little more recognizable, now we have a Christmas tune, but still, you played this in what sounds like 3 different keys. You do not reliably know where you are on the fretboard yet. Being mostly blind, and based on my experience dealing with profoundly blind friends, you should have fairly finely-tuned ears. In this vid, you are making some serious fretboard location mistakes, as I can tell from your attempts at tonal correction from the vid. You need to do at least two things: 1) learn the notes on your fretboard, both fretted, and unfretted. Get them absolutely, irrevocably down. 2) learn how to get from one place to another on the fretboard quickly and accurately. You need a LOT more practice at this.

Your strumming style: you may think it is clawhammer / rhythm based, but right now, it is really, really rudimentary. You need to work on speed and accuracy for the songs in your set list. Try to make your set list have some coherency' my sets are often called "eclectic," because I play in a lot of different styles across a fairly wide range of music. And I am still overwhelmed by how good some of the guys I play with are. You need to work your set list really hard. I note from the Comments in your replies to pick and Jim that you say are better than on these videos. That may actually be true, because the camera can intimidate, but if this is what you sent the bar owners, then there's absolutely no way he can tell that from the information you provided. Consequently, he's right. Your skills, right now, are not what he's looking for. He may actually BE expecting EVH-like abilities, because 1) he knows what his patrons will like, and 2) he's going to presumably pay you.

None of this was meant to sound mean. There are plenty of blind musicians who have absolutely rocked their instruments. You can get there, but you're going to have to put in a lot more work, over a much longer time. You also need to figure out what you have to offer that people will want to hear. I agree with pick: turn your disability into a selling point. Realize that, if you do, you're gonna have to be able to back it up with some serious skills, or an entirely different musical approach that catches people's attention. Just playing a cigar box guitar may catch their curiosity for amaybe 10 seconds, but then they're going to have some kind of musical expectations. I have been playing guitar for 40 years, in front of small, medium and large crowds, and I'm still learning all the time. The important thing, for you, is that you've started, and you're trying. You're going to have to keep trying, be furiously persistent, and do as many performances in front of people as you possibly can. You will eventually learn what works and what doesn't. You'll also have to develop, if you haven't already, a thick skin. Humor works well in this regard. Right now, from those vids, I see someone who is almost painfully earnest. That's good, because it will help you with persistence. But I also do not detect any humor. You need to get comfortable, in front of the camera, and in front of people. Jim's suggestion, which you've actually already taken up, of posting more vids on CBN and asking for advice, is a great one. Do this as often as possible for the next year. Then go back and review them, and see just how far you will have come.

I fully believe you are capable of doing this. Just put in the work, woodshed a whole heck of a lot, and practice on 1) learning the fretboard, 2) making your slide technique faster, much more reliable, and more fluid on the songs in your set list, 3) work your disability, 4) develop a stage persona, 5) develop some stage banter and humor, and finally, 6) experiment. A lot.

You'll get there. We're here to help.

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Permalink Reply by Dustin Aurand on July 18, 2017 at 1:42pm

Thank you. So should I do more upbeat songs? The B@N show was to help sell the CBG kits that they sold at Christmas. If people ask questions, I answer them. What do you mean by stage banter? I'm in Toastmasters, so I try to work on eye contact; and such. For a persona, maybe a hat and shades? As far as learning the fretboard, I know some scales, (diatonic major, blues, Raga, and Arabic.) I currently use a Micro Cube amp. I didn't have one for that video, because it was my first time playing at the market. What would be good songs for a bar audience? Any tips for learning to sing with the guitar? Thanks.
I

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Permalink Reply by Jim Morris on July 18, 2017 at 1:50pm

I told you Dustin you'd get advice if you asked for it. Ron's advice here may seem blunt and a lot to take in. I've been a performer for a long time and a lot of what he says is stuff I still need to work on. Instead of looking at this as a huge thing and trying to do all of Ron's suggestions at once try to break things down to bite size chunks. Thinks like finding the notes or chords without searching around for them and learning words to songs are small steps that I think you can manage in a reasonable amount of time. The parts about stage persona, sense of humor and bantering with an audience are things that will gradually come after you've gained more confidence. Practice is the magic that makes it all happen. I often work at a new song several hours over several days before I feel it's ready to do live or for a video to post. The prep work is what makes it all flow.

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Permalink Reply by Ron "Oily" Sprague on July 18, 2017 at 2:11pm

Yes, it is a lot to take in. Yes, you need to do it in small chunks. Practice your instrument, first and foremost. The other performance stuff will indeed come with time. If you're in Toastmasters (I was a TM Mentor until recently), then that will definitely help with confidence in front of an audience. Much of that is transferable to musical performance.

I'll echo Jim's comments re practice. When original songwriting, I'll get a song written in a matter of an hour or two (some come much faster). But then I'll woodshed the snot out of it, daily for at least 30 minutes, if not an hour, for up to a month, depending on the gig timing. I have been doing this, musical theater, and choral singing at church and elsewhere for a very, very long time, so I know that I CAN give a creditable 3 minute performance with minimal preparation, but I very much prefer to have worked ANY individual song for about 3 weeks, on a daily basis, before I exude confidence and stage presence. Think seriously about that: hours of practice for a 3 minute performance. You can work a set list this fast, too, but only if you know the songs extremely well. Just remember, the Rolling Stones have been live performance touring for over 50 years, but even they still do rehearsals.

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Permalink Reply by Dustin Aurand on July 18, 2017 at 2:15pm

I think what I'm gonna do is continue to.busk and livestream, to build a fan base, work on my technical chops, and singing/harmonica, and when spring/summer concert season rolls around next year, start applying for shows, and get some true gigs. Will it take longer? What are done good performing songs to learn?

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Permalink Reply by Jim Morris on July 18, 2017 at 3:22pm

Keep at it Dustin and remember to have fun with it. As for good songs, that all depends on what you enjoy and what a potential audience might enjoy. As I get older I lean more towards doing what I enjoy and don't worry so much about whether the audience likes it. But you can't go wrong with covering hits by groups like CCR or the Beatles or the Stones. Old Motown songs are crowd pleasers for many varied groups. I get requests for My Girl by The Temptations all the time. Under the Boardwalk and Stand By Me are easy to play and audiences often sing along. Don't forget the advice about doing your own material. Watch some of Bemuzic's videos. She busks regularly and does all her own material. Get some of the fine instructional videos by Justin Johnson or Keni Lee Burgess and spend time working with them. You'll learn songs at the same time as learning how to be a better player.

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