RE: Channeling the Rage (was somethin' else)

["Chris Michalek" <chris@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I've given alot of thought to "the zone"  many think of it as a state
of bliss etc... but for me, there is too much energy going on for it
to be blissful and happy.  I now call it the rage channel.  It's that
moment where nothing else matters except your immediate goal.  The
rage channel is neither destruction nor construction.  It is both and
can be neither.  What matters is how it is resolved. 

To the topic of playing in tune.  Being in tune matters but not as
much as playing in rhythm. Not time but rhythm.  rhythm is the pulse
of the tune, of life, of nature, of the moment.  Capture the rhythm
and capture your audience.  The most primitive form of music is not
harmony or melody it is rhythm.  It is something that all living
things can feel and understand.

>
>
>
>---- Original Message ----
>From: harplicks@xxxxxxxxx
>To: chris@xxxxxxxxxxxx, IcemanLE@xxxxxxx, harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx
>Subject: RE: Channeling the Rage (was somethin' else)
>Date: Fri, 27 Feb 2004 08:58:39 -0800 (PST)
>
>>--- Chris Michalek <chris@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>>> 
>>> yeah, but the best players often begin their
>>> solos with intent but transition into
>>> inspiration and then back into intent.  Listen to
>>> guys like Howard Levy or Michael Brecker you can
>>> tell when they are "thinking" and when they 
>>> are "feeling" 
>>> 
>>> I call this "channeling to rage and finding
>>> resolution"
>>
>>"Channeling the Rage." A very cool concept.
>>
>>I really like this approach (not that I would
>>consider myself among "the best" players). But I
>>often ~try~ very consciously, start my solos with a
>>deliberate musical statement (based on something
>>within the song, like the head) and then just flow
>>out for a while, allowing myself to experiment and
>>take musical risks, build excitement/tension etc. 
>>
>>Then I'll try to reign it all in toward the end to
>>re-iterate the original musical statement (or
>>something closely related). 
>>
>>To me, this makes for a very satisfying solo. 
>>
>>Now, whether any of that is played "in tune" is a
>>whole 'nother question. I highly doubt it as I've
>>never really thought much about this whole issue. I
>>rely heavily on my ears to tell me where I am,
>>tonally speaking and try to adjust on the fly. If
>>it sounds good, it sounds good. If not, I get the
>>heck off the phreakin' stage. LOL!!
>>
>>Harpin in Colorado,
>>--Ken M.
>>
>>P.S. I admire the heck out of you guys! :-)
>>
>>=====
>>"When you speak of Walter Horton, the first thing you think of is
>his tone, that big, fat tone."
>>---Li'l Ronnie Owens
>>
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