Re: [Harp-L] Breaking Out of a Rut



First, don't be afraid to give up your signature licks. Maybe that's
what you think you are, but what you really are will come out no matter
what. Don't hesitate to let go of anything and everything. You can
always go back to it.

Second, work hard on whatever new and difficult stuff you can. Get
outside your comfort zone and learn things that are unfamiliar. Learn
licks that are so alien to you that you have to play them reaaallly
slow - slow enough that you need time to hear the next note or chord or
split in your head, then figure out where it is, then find your way to
it and play it. Use this process to burn some new pathways through the
underbrush. Once the paths are carved, you can run them much faster and
you'll have new places to go.

Third, don't be afraid to totally walk away from everything and take a
breather when it feels right. Not when you're just feeling lazy or even
because you feel like can't take it any more - when it feels right,
you'll know. When you come back, new things will have happened "while
you were sleeping."

There was a harp-l thread a few years back where a number of people
weighed in on this. One thing that was often repeated was that just
when you feel like you're hitting an immovable wall, that's just before
you break through.

Winslow



--- Bobby BlackHat <Bobby@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> So I'm listening to a recording of myself and realize that I'm
> sounding
> pretty sad.  I flashback to my early days of learning to play harp
> when no
> matter what song I tried to play it always came out sounding like
> Home On
> The Range.  CAN I GET A WITNESS?  So anyway ,I realize I'm in a rut. 
> A bad
> one that I can't seem to break out of.  Now of course I have some
> signature
> licks that are just me and I don't want to loose my identity.   
> Sonny Boy
> had licks that were the essence of Sonny Boy and with just a few
> notes you
> know who it is.  Same with BB King.  One note from Lucielle and
> there's not
> doubt that BB is in the house.  So my question for the collective is
> this....How do I break out of this rut?   How do I add some new
> flavor to
> the mix?  I know I'm not the first to get bogged down like this so
> please
> share some of your tip and techniques.
>  
> Bobby
> http://bobbyblackhat.com
>  
>  
> _______________________________________________
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> 



       
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