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short and sweet
From laertes22 on 6/16/2014 9:52:23 AM
This will be a short entry, per the title.
My practice schedule has been thrown out of whack, because of different IRL stuff. The time I normally devoted to early morning practice has had to go to other stuff (mainly I think I am going to have to still get up at 4 or 5AM, but I may have to devote that time to exercise instead for health reasons). And my practice time for the past 2 weeks has been cut to 30 minutes to and hour per instrument instead of my previous to 2 hours per instrument. I moved one of my banjos to the living room, so that if I have a spare minute her or there or I am wasting time with TV or podcasts, I can pick the banjo up and get a few minutes extra practicing.
On banjo, I have mainly been practicing Cripple Creek and Old Joe Clark. Old Joe Clark is one of my favorite old time tunes, and I found a good arrangement that is easy enough for me to play, but which has lots of Hammer ons, pull offs, ASPOs, etc. These are all techniques that I am not good at and need practice. I am very awkward with them and my rhythm/timing is not great, so this tune gives me good practice, so I can get those embellishments to be automatic and natural. Cripple Creek, I despise and is my least favorite Old Time Song. However, it is fairly simple and has lots of techniques for me to practice and lots of interchangeable bits for me to play around with the arrangement. I am also desperate to increase the # of songs in my repertoire, so Id Est Quod Id Est.
I am also trying to work on some slightly more difficult versions of Angelina Baker and soldier's Joy, as well as a couple songs with Bonaparte in the title. :)
On fiddle, I am working on more or less the same songs.I change my bow grip slightly and have noticed that I am bowing much straighter or more consistently. My double stops, are also getting better.
Two more weeks in SC, then I will be in Charlotte for a week, so I am hoping to check out at least 1 or possibly 2 Old Time Jams.
On a totally non-banjo related note, my lady and I took knit and crochet lessons together about a year ago, and knitting is kind of a thing we do as a couple-no, banjo is not my weirdest hobby. :)
As we are planning on setting a wedding date for sometime next year, I am plotting on possibly knitting her a wedding shawl. :D
-Genford
8 Comments |
 | VioletMoon says:
6/16/2014 10:08:09 AM
I'm sorry. Knitting is not weird! You'll have to find something better than that if you want to impress us with your out-there hobbies. ; ) I am--by the way--the goddess of dish rag knitting.
I am, um, not doing very great on the exercise front at the moment BUT I was very good at the healthy living last year and I really think it affects playing in a positive way. I actually though lifting weights helped my bow arm. It's time well spent.
It's funny to hear your lack of love for Cripple Creek. I really enjoy it. I've only bumped into one tune that I pretty much despise and I can't imagine practicing it in any long-term way. Is there another tune that can teach you the same things as Cripple Creek?
The wedding shawl sounds like a wonderful idea. It's not just the making it. It's the thinking that goes on during the making of it, too. A handmade heirloom is quite a gift.
Cyndy
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 | laertes22 says:
6/16/2014 10:18:20 AM
Fellow knitter!
We have been doing knitting (I also crochet, she doesn't) for about a year. My Lady is a fellow queen of dishrags, scarves, and baby blankets-anything flat. I tend to prefer working in rounder mediums on circular needles or dpns-cowls, socks, hats, etc.
I had been walking and running to improve my health, but I feel like the weather in SC is either always too hot, too cold, or too rainy which messes with my schedule. So, I am thinking about taking up yoga. I feel like it would help my health, my work life, my music practice, and just about everything else. Plus, there is a 5:30AM sunrise yoga class near me, so I hope that will work out.
-Genford
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 | skiptomylou says:
6/16/2014 3:27:20 PM
yoga is fab! yes, great for your health, your mind, and great for straightening you out when you are a musician and tend to spend long periods in one position, ending up with cricks in neck etc. a sunrise class sounds awesome!
i only work on tunes i really like these days - things i hear and think 'wow, i'd really love to be able to play that' - i need that to keep my enthusiasm/motivation up during the learning process. plus, i just think life's too short to sit and play c..p you don't wanna.
Sounds like you are still doing tonnes and achieving a lot despite having to cut back a bit,
(every so often i take the notion to knit/sew/do handicrafts, i go and buy wool and needles and stuff, then sit down and remember that i'm utterly rubbish at anything like that :)
best
Jill
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 | Zischkale says:
6/18/2014 8:16:52 AM
You're in prime old-time jam country, so take advantage of it! Glad you're sticking with it--slow and steady on those various techniques--don't be shy about slowing the metronome down.
Glad you're keeping fiddling up too--your suggested exercises have been very helpful to me, including the Blackest Crow arrangement in Ignoramous. I've been playing that every time I practice. Really helping with double-stop accuracy, I think.
I'm with Cyndy, I'm a fan of Cripple Creek (wondering what her least favorite song is now). It's sort of the Smoke on the Water of old-time banjo, sure, but it's a blast to play. Listen to Jarrell's version if you need a new angle on it. You could always replace it with Greasy String.. : p
Always good to have a hobby with the significant other. Plus, as poets have said, "Tempie wants a nine-dollar shawl"...
Keep up the good work. I've been sporadic about my practice routine, but haven't missed much time practicing banjo. Posted a new video yesterday and gearing up for 4th of July with the family, where I should have the chance to play some tunes for a small audience.
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| VioletMoon says:
6/18/2014 8:26:38 AM
Liberty. It's Liberty. But I played it at a dance with Charlie Walden a few weeks ago and it actually grew on me a bit. : )
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| laertes22 says:
6/18/2014 8:29:30 AM
I've got a question for Cindy and Aason-where do you hold the bow at? Specifically, under what part of the bow do you put your bent thumb? In the little crook of the frog? Under the little leather bit? Under the metal bit? I've been experimenting with my grip as I realized that some of my bowing problems may be from improper (read uncomfortable/uunbalanced grip) and I am curious as to what other people are doing.
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| VioletMoon says:
6/18/2014 8:48:16 AM
I don't think about bow hold very much but I just picked up the bow and at the moment my thumb is in the middle of the silver wrapping. I was choking up farther (natural migration, not planned) but I've started playing with more wrist and now that I do that doesn't happen any more. I almost never play father back, though. Sometimes I feel my fingers over the top of the bow with my little finger touching (feels strong and stable) and sometimes I just hold it with three fingers (feels loose) but I'm pretty sure my "grip" is pretty gentle. I will occasionally drop the bow. : ) I think my bow hold depends on the tune and I suspect bow holds morph with experience?
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| laertes22 says:
6/18/2014 8:58:25 AM
That's what I was thinking. When I first started, I was choked up on the frog end. I literally had my thumb hooked into the little inner crook where the frog is. It was uncomfortable and felt really unbalanced. And I had a lot of trouble bowing straight. I didn't change it because my teacher had never said anything (admittedly we use skype, so maybe he just couldn't see it). I did noticed that when I watched vids or saw pictures that the way they gripped the bow was much closer to the middle than the frog. Lately I have been trying with putting thumb under the little leather bit or under the silver lining (which may be actually called the "bow grip", go figure). I sound better and my bowing got much straighter almost over night.
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