RE: Finding your

["Chris Michalek" <chris@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I strive to be the box. :-)

>
>
>
>---- Original Message ----
>From: leone@xxxxxxxx
>To: harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx
>Subject: RE: Finding your "Niche"
>Date: Sun, 4 Apr 2004 13:55:48 -0400
>
>>
>>
>>  All the talk about the various types/styles/genres of playing
>music 
>>reminds me of a theory I had many years ago. This having to do with 
>>niches. I had heard from Pete Fountain where "Emulating your super
>hero 
>>was nice but one should go that extra step and develop your OWN
>sound. 
>>Don't be a copy". (This was before the use of the word clone.)
>>
>>Let's suppose for the moment that we have a wall in our home and it
>is 
>>covered with bookshelves. The shelves are all 12" deep and same 
>>distance apart, (same length). There are 10 of them and they each 
>>represent a different genre/type playing. The fact that some shelves
>
>>are low and some high is insignificant. So, that's NOT to say that
>the 
>>bottom shelves contain bottom dwellers and the top shelves contain 
>>players who are, well..top shelf. The shelve's position doesn't
>matter.
>>
>>  Now, you have 100 musicians and your job is to place these artists
>on 
>>the shelves in the position you think they should be. We could even 
>>label the shelves, such as: Levy (& clones), McCoy (& clones),
>"Toots" 
>>(& clones), Wilson (& clones), etc. I think you get the picture. You
>
>>might even place little pieces of paper saying: Country, Gospel,
>Folk, 
>>Bee-Bop, Hard-Bop, and even "Hey-Bop-a-Ree-Bop". You may wind up
>with 
>>people on each shelf. Some shelves would contain a LOT of artists.
>Some 
>>(the avante garde) would not.
>>
>>  This is NOT the way I see it in my twisted, bizzarro world. What I
>see 
>>is a wall covered with boxes. Each one is a different size and
>shape. 
>>Some are"milk-crate" sized, some would barely hold a "tie-tack".
>Some 
>>are 4" wide and 11" high, while another might be 8" wide and 7"
>high. 
>>Some would be long and thin, others narrow and high, while still
>others 
>>would be cubes.
>>
>>  Here's where it gets interesting. There are -50- boxes. NOW try
>and 
>>place the artists. Not so easy, right? You may find that some of the
>
>>boxes are chock full of "so & so (&clones)" while others have only 1
>
>>name in them. Still others are totally empty.
>>
>>  If a person was to try to make a situation for themselves in the 
>>harmonica/music world, they might choose to join one of the boxes,
>or 
>>they may try for a box of their own. Given that  neither size of the
>
>>box NOR the number of names the box contains has anything to do with
>
>>Marketability but merely indicates the number of people engaged in
>that 
>>particular genre/style, one has to decide where they want to be.
>>
>>  If you choose a marketable genre/style, you may make a living at
>it 
>>and would also (probably) be in good company as there are others
>like 
>>you. If you choose a genre/style solely on how you personally feel
>and 
>>what you want to play (at all costs, and "Hang" the outcome), you
>may 
>>wish to find your OWN box.
>>
>>  In any case, I have found (just ME) that once one gets past the
>"waft" 
>>of recreational and hobby players, the people that stand out (&/or 
>>attract attention), are either VERY different and in their own
>niche, 
>>and therefore hard to substitute, OR are trying to fit a "standard"
>and 
>>sitting in one of the marketable boxes. The choice is yours.
>>
>>Many of the "Greats" were in a niche of their own,( where some make
>it 
>>and some don't). The more "standard" musicians (who conformed to the
>
>>norm) tended not to make it as BIG, but didn't starve either.
>>
>>  If you're wondering where 'I' fit?, I'm just the guy who delivers
>the 
>>boxes. :
>>
>>smokey-joe
>>
>>--
>>Harp-l is sponsored by SPAH, http://www.spah.org
>>Hosted by ValuePricehosting.com, http://www.valuepricehosting.com
>>