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Dirty-South Blues Harp forum: wail on! >
Last nights gig and a new direction/understanding
Last nights gig and a new direction/understanding
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waltertore
2060 posts
Mar 10, 2012
5:43 AM
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I did a gig last night at an art gallery. It was not an art show, just my music. The gallery was set up with tables and chairs. There was a $5 cover and it was packed. People came out to hear music as the focus. I have been on pretty much a 10 year hiatius from playing live gigs because the quality of them has degenerated to music not being the reason for coming. On top of that with me making everything up as I go along such gigs are worthless. I need an interactive audience that is willing to open their hearts.
Last night was the environment I need for Spontobeat to work. People came in and were there for music in an intimate setting. I explained what I do and as the music started I could feel the discourse in their souls. I am hyper-sensitive to peoples feelings(the root of spontobeat) and being out of the intimate listening focused club setting for so long it was like my first gig all over again. The difference this time is I didn't have the hopes of future stuff going through me like- will this lead to something that will lead to something that will lead to something........ that always was present when I was playing for my livelihood. I was just there playing like I do in my studio everyday. The tension in the room was big and I easily could have said screw this and left. It wasn't bad vibes, just confused vibes. Getting older and more relaxed with who I am let me not react to this and let things settle in in their own time.
We as a people expect things and in this case, to see a musician with a somewhat of a blues backround, expectations are present. Several people were there that were stevie vaughn fans. when they heard I had one of his old guitars they got real excited. Expectations were there and I was not the one to fill them..... These things are subconcious and when I started performing the confusion in their souls started talking to me loud and clear. They weren't angry, just confused. I start and stop songs often if the groove doesn't feel right. I told stories, jokes, sang of addiction, poverty, wealth, social predjudices, death, hopelessness, shame for our wealth and what we could do with it instead of serving our own comfort, love, hate, violence, and other such topics as they flowed through me. Basically the all night spontaneous approach is an unknown to most music lovers. I could feel the audience getting stressed. they wanted this guy to play some stuff they expected. They were curious, wanted to dig it, but were off kilter with it. It wasn't so much a song per se but a feel they expect with a musical performance. In response I was challenged to get stressed as well. When this happens the gig goes south quick-I have done this too many times........ This time I hung with the tension and stayed relaxed. Without getting too wordy, it was just plain me being me and people became curious, trusting, and soon we were grooving.
It is amazing how as a species we are programed to what to expect from things. Go in an italian restraunt and have a circus performing and no food? Go to an art show and see no paintings on the wall? Go to a music concert and hear a guy sing, talk, preach, cry, laugh, with no plans of where it is going, not a familiar song all night, wondering what will come out of his mouth, instruments, song lenghts, subject matter, and the underlying root of it all being a totally spontaneous occurance? I realized last night these things are unerving to most. It must touch on a primative thing with order/safety or something along the basic survival wiring. I got to talk to people about it and these were the things they told me. It was the first time I have talked about this stuff with an audience before, during, and after, a show.
Having spent the past 10 years, 30-80 hours a week alone in my studio performing and recording my music all came to harvest last night. People have often asked me why and how can I do such a thing? I have had no answer other than it simply makes me feel good so I keep doing it. Now I see that this time alone has allowed me to develop in a way void of audience reaction. This was a great ally last night because in the past I have struggled with this stuff to no end and I realize this is why I quit playing live. Now I have come to peace and I see lots of great live gigs on the horizion! Anyway, I had a great gig and will be back next month. Getting older is a great thing. Walter
PS: My wife was there and suggested I change my logo to simply- Spontobeat. I like it. She felt it would bring focus to what was going to happen more. So from now on I am going to be known as Spontobeat.
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walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year.
" life is a daring adventure or nothing at all" - helen keller
3,800+ of my songs
continuous streaming - 200 most current songs
my videos
Last Edited by on Mar 10, 2012 6:06 AM
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XHarp
475 posts
Mar 10, 2012
6:14 AM
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Glad you're finding your groove.
Interesting analysis of the audience. I always found that people like their music much in the same way as food. They like the comfort recipes first.
It sounds like you had that going on early but I'm sure you won them over eventually.
Sounds like a great night. Good on you.
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"Keep it in your mouth" - XHarp
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Frank
351 posts
Mar 10, 2012
7:18 AM
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Way to go Walter - you seem proud of yourself, which you should be. You have alot to offer and to share yourself like you did is powerful!
I was at a bar watching Bernard Allison perform shortly after his father Luther Allison died...Bernard is a fiery intense blues artist and could really keep the audience interested because to me he felt like an extension of the audience, he made us feel comfortable - "apart of something special". There came a point in the show where he began reminiscing about his Father and he suddenly began breaking down and sobbing, I was moved to say the least and walked up to the stage and held him and try to comfort him...he did pull himself together and gave us a night of music that was felt in the core of the bones.
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waltertore
2061 posts
Mar 10, 2012
8:08 AM
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thanks guys! My last 10 years of pretty much music isolation is helping me realize Spontobeat is a whole different thing that what people think live music is about. I also realized there is no limit to what I can do onstage. There are no predicessors that set the rules. My challenge is to not let the conventional music boundries influence my performances and to not let my ego fall into disapointments with acceptance. As I was pulling up to the club a young black woman carrying a baby met eyes with me. We exchanged soul messages. She was hopeless. A victum of poverty(the gallery is in a borderline neighborhood). She was willing to sell her body to me for whatever I could pay. Her baby would lay in the front seat and us in the back. Good times for me and good times for her. Money for drugs for her and sexual intamancy for me. I sang that song last night. I am feeling more excited about performing than I have in years. The audience is unacustomed to the energy I bring in. I will be patient and assure them via playing that it will be safe. I am not a musician, not a bluesman, not a poet, not modern, not retro, not anything but the moment in time as it umfolds.... Life is good! Walter
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walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year.
" life is a daring adventure or nothing at all" - helen keller
3,800+ of my songs
continuous streaming - 200 most current songs
my videos
Last Edited by on Mar 10, 2012 8:12 AM
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kudzurunner
3070 posts
Mar 10, 2012
9:30 AM
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Thanks, Walter. That's an awesome post. I've rarely seen an artist, much less a blues performer--we're stoics!--articulate that sort of rite of passage with as much eloquence and bravery and attention to emotional subtleties as you've done here. You've got much to teach us about such things. I'll be very interested to hear where this all goes.
You're absolutely right about audience expectations. They can be deadly--or, as you've shown here, they can just BE: they can just be present, as a challenge and prod. It's the easiest thing in the world to let an audience's initial negative reaction produce a bad attitude on your part followed by a shitty gig. The real test of a performer is managing to stick with it, be true to yourself, AND, if possible, connect in some unexpected way with what's actually alive in the audience, so that you've won them over, or at least gained their respect, by the end.
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jdblues
82 posts
Mar 10, 2012
11:00 AM
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It's great that you've been able to connect to a live audience again. Wish I could have been there.
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harp-er
45 posts
Mar 10, 2012
11:16 AM
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Insightful. Inspiring. Deep. Thoughtful. Moving. Honest.
Almost incredible, but not. I believe it. Thanks, Walter.
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Matthew
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harpdude61
1278 posts
Mar 10, 2012
11:45 AM
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Walter,
You are someone very special to this forum, the blues genre, and the music world as a whole.
Much to learn from you.
Thank you.
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walterharp
836 posts
Mar 10, 2012
12:38 PM
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happy for you... it would be good if it could get to a point where what you do is the expectation of the audience, but for that you would need one of the regular gigs like you had in austin
given that you put your music out on the internet, it seems that you have a need to allow others to hear your stuff, and this experience seems to solidify that doing such a thing person-to-person can be very fulfilling. so at least you are now more open to the idea of performing more i guess
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waltertore
2062 posts
Mar 10, 2012
1:33 PM
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Life is simpley simple and I am finally figuring that out! I guess one has to spend a lot of time experiencing complicated to understand simple. Thanks guys. Writing my thoughts/feelings here on this forum has been a kind of journal in this journey. During my hiatus I was always excited to play a meaningful gig but was carrying too much baggage from my disapointments/fighting much of the time to make Spontobeat an accepted form of music. I am finally decompressed from my balls to the wall way of doing life. Now I am enjoying just being me. Walter
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walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year.
" life is a daring adventure or nothing at all" - helen keller
3,800+ of my songs
continuous streaming - 200 most current songs
my videos
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Hobostubs Ashlock
1726 posts
Mar 10, 2012
2:14 PM
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Sounds like you handled the situation like a pro,Ive had a couple exsperiences,where I filled in when the main band was on break,And start in and was like the whole bar didnt even know I was playing,Thats a weird feeling,I was doing my original stuff and they didnt know any of The songs and I havent had alot of exsperience on stage,to be able to work the audience,I ended zipping though a few songs thinking man when them guys going to get back on stage;-)I played some harp for a very short time a couple years back ,with a fellow about 20 years younger than me,that could just work the crowed ,like a pro,In a way he is cause thats what there doing for a living now,Ive really admired how confident and relax he did it,Like he had a positive energy flowing as He BS with them,Plus he had some great songs,which didnt hurt,But I saw that its a must to be able to do that if your going to front a band or a one man band,I just dont know how to get passed being shy and reseaved.Im glad your show did well,and did you get any video?
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Hobostubs
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smwoerner
48 posts
Mar 10, 2012
3:12 PM
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Walter, I’m glad you had a chance to get out and have a new experience. Performing live as you know is very different and it’s been 10 years for you. So there were probably some vibes being sent out by you as well. After all this was new again and a different type of venue.
I think some times you don’t give other very much credit. Yes, I’m sure some of your audience was uncomfortable with the format or lack of. I also expect others were fine with the format but just didn’t connect. Some probably appreciated your talent but may not have agreed with your message.
I’ve been to many spontaneous type of performances, dance music, poetry and other arts. Sometimes they’re great sometimes they’re not. Maybe it my mood at the time, maybe it’s the mood of the performers. Maybe it’s the message or lack of.
I think far more people get the concept than you want to acknowledge. There have been many times I’ve talked to folks after open mic nights and had them say I don’t where that story came from or how I found that rhyme. I’ve seen many performers stop in the middle because they didn’t like where something was going in them or maybe in the audience.
Also please remember that sometimes when people don’t get it it’s not always there fault, sometimes it’s the fault of the messenger or maybe even the message. Some people like apples some people like oranges. Neither is right, neither is wrong.
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waltertore
2063 posts
Mar 10, 2012
4:09 PM
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smwoerner: Thanks for responding. Sometimes this net thing is a real drag. If one doesn't be minutely detailed it leads to mix ups. I have done probably 200 gigs over those 10 years of hibernating. I also have played art gallery gigs in the past. Well over 90% of my gigs were done pre net forums and youtubes. Back then the only audience you reached were the ones sitting in front of you. Yes, many people touch on spontaneous stuff as they perform. Yet as I talk to people in detail I have yet to find someone that is totally spontaneous everytime they perform. When I have talked to people that do improv they often has set scetches of what they are going to do. I don't have any and this is the vibe that makes for confusion which I easily can take as disconnect. I have reached out to the improv community but the music end of it usually involves lots of high tech playing and they don't respond to my stuff. I have yet to find someone doing it in an american roots context. I live in a different place and am finally coming to peace with that.
This is getting off my point here but I wanted to give some more backround info. My point is I am learning to be at peace with this discomfort and keep being me. That often brings the audience in because they realize it is ok on a subconcious level to be unnervered, afraid, confused. It is my responsibilty to hold steady and peaceful.
I beleive we are born with all the cards of the universe and it is just a matter of if we allow ourselves to grow into them. I am growing into them more consistently. Most of my live gigs over the years have been good ones but when they went bad it was like a bad acid trip. That took a toll on me along with pushing so hard to make the music industry accept what I do. Add booking myself 200+ gigs a year around the world, my mind and body finally surrendered to my soul and I listened. I grew and these past 10 years have been well spent out of the scene more so than not. Thanks and I hope you are not offended by my response. Walter
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walter tore's spontobeat - a real one man band and over 1 million spontaneously created songs and growing. I record about 300 full length cds a year.
" life is a daring adventure or nothing at all" - helen keller
3,800+ of my songs
continuous streaming - 200 most current songs
my videos
Last Edited by on Mar 10, 2012 4:13 PM
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Sarge
126 posts
Mar 10, 2012
6:52 PM
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Well, if I would've been there, the audience would be whooping and hollering with me or looking at me like I was an idiot. At your performance at the Bean, they were whooping and hollering with me.
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Wisdom does not always come with old age. Sometimes old age arrives alone.
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