Re: weekday warrior

[Mike Curtis <wd6ehr@xxxxxxxxxx>]

<Reading music is nice for rock, etc., musicians> 

I honestly feel that reading is a really great skill for ANY musician to have.
RELYING on reading as the ONLY way to play music is inherently limiting, but
so is playing by ear exclusively.  A balanced mixture of both multiplies the
musicians capabilities.

While traditionally chromatic and what I might call "chromatic style" (e.g.
they play lead melodies as opposed to improvisation, solos, riffs, and fills)
players benefit more from reading, it is nonetheless a very good and highly
recommended skill for traditional style diatonic players, too.  Even if there
aren't charts for diatonic, it can be a big help to be able to read the music
for the rest of the band.  Looking over the keyboard players shoulder, one has
no doubt as to where the song is moving to next, and can much more easily
formulate licks, rests, change harps (if that's your style :-), or decide to
gracefully lay out (hey - guitarists can dream, can't they :-))))

A good ear is great, but knowing for sure where the song is going ain't too
shabby, either :-)

                -o-

And I also enjoyed Chris' post regarding list policies.  We're here to have
fun and a nice, friendly discussion about harmonica and related topics. 
Sometimes it's easy to get sidetracked by other matters, or forget that the
keyboard on the other end is being operated by a human with feelings.  A
gentle, polite reminder is helpful in keeping this most important fact in
mind.  


 -- mike