Hey guys!

Hows it going? Sorry I haven't been posting, it just got crazy for me, anyway, I had a question for all you, in a hope that at least some answers could be found.

For the last few months I have been just learning tunes, over and over and over again. It would seem that in my current time and place, the fates have conspired against me as far as finding other people to play with. I have realized very recently (and discussed with Eric) that my music is missing something. I was listening to Bob Culbertson last week as well as great suggestions From Steve on my version of "Penny Lane" and I realized that the music I both write and play is empty. Its just a skeletal structure with no flesh and blood. It seems like my mind functions in the context of melody and bass, but not in harmony. This mindset seems to me to be the furthest extension of my former bass training and I have reached the end! What can I do to make my music come alive, and not just exist?

Thsi is very very frustrating!

I don't think your playing sounds "empty" at all. It's just young; you're at the beginning of your development. The "flesh and blood" is you. That comes from thinking less and feeling more. That all just requires a little time as your feel for the instrument blooms and confidence increases. Learn the notes, but then forget all about them. Your music will come alive when you breathe life into it! We all sound mechanical in the beginning. Probably sounds poetic and corny, but that's just how it works for little ol' me. I think you're doing great, btw.

Hi Steve,

First, I agree with Matt. You're still getting going, and it can be frustrating to learn a new language when you already know how to say so much in another one.

What makes The Stick a great instrument to me is the ability to impart very specific expression to the notes. It's one big reason why I like it more than playing piano. This expression makes so much more out of each note, if you decide what it is you're trying to do, and do it with musical intent. Even the simplest idea can sound really beautiful, not just "simple."

Playing a piece isn't just playing the notes. What kind of emotion are you after? How do you shape the phrases. Are you aware of what you're doing? Are you listening?

When I think of the more expressive players, players like Bob, Ron Baggerman, Steve, Jim Lampi, Tom and Emmett, I think about the energy that they put into the notes. Bending, vibrato, sliding and lots of dynamic variety.

These things don't happen by habit, you have to make them happen. You can train your hands to play the notes, what you want to be thinking about is how you're playing the notes.

Step back. simplify. concentrate on how you're saying what you're saying. Unless you're improvising, the lines are already written, so focus on your delivery.

time for another skype lesson....?

>>What can I do to make my music come alive, and not just exist?<<

A very interesting question for all players. And a very astute realization. I encounter the same thing when playing a tune for the first time. What next to make it come alive?
Some of it of course is dynamics and expression. Also, what can you add to the arrangement to fill it out? Drum parts or horn parts from the original recording are a good place to start. See how many additional voices you can add. For instance on Penny Lane, aren't there lotsa' horns? Very important- as you mature as a player and feel comfortable, you can listen with more ease and make the whole event more musical from inside your spirit.
Your question is very important for everyone.
I always advise my students to go beyond playing information.
Be patient. You're on the right track

Les and Mrs. Paul (fishcakes ya' know)

Bass line plus melody line, both at the same time, and why? Because we can. And yes, there's an unrewarding emptiness there. For one thing, a guitar/bass duo can already do it, and probably better than a Stickist's best efforts. So why try? It seems like one of the most difficult mental disciplines, creative lines independently in each hand, and in the end, what's new?

It has been posted here many times, Stick is much more than guitar-with-bass. Playing in some fashion "according to The Stick" is much easier, and I'd say also more rewarding in the variety of musical styles and genres it opens up:

- Dialogue between the hands, the "listening" hand sustaining its last note or chord, possibly with vibrato.

- Interlocking hands juggling upbeats against downbeats to double the tempo without adding notes - a brain game AKA "FingerSticking".

- Harmonic relationships by distances between the hands and between the fingers of either hand, known as "geographic" playing, no theory or explanations needed.

- Simple LH "motor" patterns that rely on muscle memory, like tapping your foot.

There are many more devices that can add life to your music, as pianists have known since the early 1800s.

Best, Emmett.

I love that term "geographic playing." This is what I love about my Stick so far. The first day I received it (few weeks ago) I just started playing - all by ear while monitoring the relative distances and forms. I was thinking to myself at some point, "jeez, I really should find out what freakn' note I'm playing at least." And I am as I go along - but the instrument is just so intuitive I didn't really care at first.

Personally, I am not bothered by any potential emptiness. For me, the sound created by the Stick is what's great in and of itself. I always thought of the sound produced as something else to add to your sonic palate - not as a replacement for something else.

Cheers,

Matt

Thanks for this, Emmett. I was going to struggle and try to say some things sort of like this. You say it so well and with an authority that really can't be matched. I'm at the 2-year point with my Stick and I have struggled with the "life" issue a lot. I have settled on an approach that is satisfying for me even though I wonder if it's a good approach. I listen to music and when something really speaks to me I want to join the conversation by playing it on Stick. I don't really care what the music is, just that is really speaks to me and moves me in some way. This has led me to pieces by Satie, Bach, Eric Clapton, Ry Cooder, and some movie sound tracks, to name a few. Then I try to "hear" the piece on Stick always trying to figure out how to make it a Stick piece, not a piece being played on the Stick. I have not been sharing the results of this with people much yet, because I'm so busy with the rest of my life. However, I'm making progress and some people, like Steve (the original poster), have been really encouraging me to record and share. I hope to have some more to share soon. At least I'm not writing a book this semester and have lots more hours available.

Steve, I think you are making more progress more quickly than anyone I know. I know you will find a path to musical life if you just keep going. I know this is weird but when I stopped trying to play jazz it seemed to free me from some stranglehold and I feel much more life in what I play. Start with the life and work backwards to the notes and they will have life. This is what I'm telling myself and I hope you find it an interesting thought.

-Eric

The people here have given you a bunch of scattered advice on what really is a centralized problem. And it doesn't have anything to do with the stick.

I was gonna address your concerns here, but in all honesty, to do it proper would take up about ten pages on this post and I don't have it in me at the moment.

If you want the help, send me a pm and we'll go from there. Good luck to you.


Tritone

This is not meant to be facetious, but....
Maybe a short vacation from music making...?
Sounds like you are overworked.

Take time enough to cleanse your musical palate, listen to some completely unfamiliar type of music to absorb/react against...

Just an idea.


Mad Monk.

Hi Steve,

Let me say that by making this observation you are already showing a maturity well beyond your years. What a great post.

The fact is that you already know enough about music to put many of the greatest musicians of the last 50 years to shame. And you probably know enough about the physical aspect of playing the Stick to keep you busy for another decade.

So, how old are you exactly?
Have you backpacked through Europe? Gone swimming naked in an ocean? Wasted endless summer nights talking about life, death and eternity with good friends over too much red wine? Read "Crime and Punishment"? Been so lonely you could cry - a lot? Moved to a foreign city without any contacts? Slept on park benches? Heard music so beautiful that you couldn't play a note on your instrument - for weeks, or even months? Tried four or five different career paths or educational options and quit because you found out the hard way that they "weren't you"? Written poetry? Forgotten about being a musician completely for a year?

I could go on, but I think you can see were I'm going with this. Music is a reflection of your life; of the person you are when you're not making music. And it takes us all a different amount of time before we start seeing and hearing that reflection clearly.

Cheers,
Andy