I sat in on my son's youth wind ensemble rehearsal today and was struck by this comment made by the conductor as he was trying to get the musicians to use dynamics and play with emotion;
"Notes are boring! Nobody wants to hear just notes!"
I thought this was quite a gem and applies to about any kind of music you are doing on any instrument.
I am always torn on Sundays between listening in on the reharsals and learning from this talented young conductor, and stepping outside into Balboa Park and playing a bit of harp in the outdoor corridors.
Some new musicians can't tell the difference between boiled beef and a well prepared steak yet. Intermediate musicians can tell the difference, but have not learned to prepare the steak. I know I can't cook a good steak. The more I learn, the more I realize how little I know.
Another thing I have heard this conductor tell the kids is you are not done when you get the notes, but rather are at a point where you can START to work on the music.
Last Edited by on Dec 09, 2012 11:55 PM
And to the degree of the shaping and nuances in which a note can be dynamically manipulated on a harmonica in particular is staggering... choices that can make even the best of players acquire a twitch in their face :)
Or another way to think about it is...(Notes aren't boring,it's the player!)Or another way to say it is, (the notes are only as boring as the musician playing them!)
Last Edited by on Dec 10, 2012 8:39 AM
I love all the little elements of playing harp: changing the tone shape on held notes, flexing the warbles, changing attacks & decays, use of "grace notes", etc. &then, after knowing all that, two beers & it can all evaporate with the alcohol. :)
There are plenty of notes in there. I loev the differnt pitches of the toms.
One of the things I love about the harmoinca is the range of timbres you can achieve. With my trombone I can change the timbre a bit(but usually for the worse) and I can get a Wah Wah if I use a plunger on the bell. But with a harp I have a much wider range of expresion.
It seems the pieces I get the most positive feedback on are slow pieces where I focus on tone and expression.
