Re: [Harp-L] Real creativity

["Bob Laughlin" <rlaughlin@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Here's another factor, as yet unaddressed. One may indeed have some manner
of creative inspiration while playing, yet be yoked together with others of
limited skills, unable or even unwilling to follow another's inspired lead.
I could see having a sudden thought, to move, say, to another, higher key,
unplanned, yet spontaneous. In a jazz setting, many artists are, I would
say, at such a skill level as to be available, ready for such changes. In a
blues setting, the structures are most often fixed, limiting the amount of
spontaneity one may realize if so desired. (Picture the scene from "Back to
the Future, where Michael J. Fox's character gets "inspired", playing some
licks the other players have not yet been exposed to, in a historical
context. They basically stop playing, scratching their heads at this
flourish, one even calling "Chuck Berry" on the phone so that he hears it.)

So, when one has some ideas, it's always a good idea to write it down,
record it somehow, introduce it, during rehearsal, to one's significant
others, rather than merely expecting them to follow your spontaneous lead.
Short of that, hand signals might do the trick. (Some sort of signal for a
key change, for instance.)

Which begs the question,,

Who's in charge? Is a band a true democracy? I say not, in most cases. The
"hand signals", if any, are hardly coming from the drummer, or the bassist.
Most often they're coming from the singer/harp player, or the singer/lead
guitar. So the "spontaneity", in a traditional blues setting is coming
primarily from one source, where in a jazz setting, you see it frequently
coming from whoever's "turn" it is, or something, depending on the group
dynamics.

Anyone here have a site where one can go to find out all the proper hand
signals? I've done some crane operation. I know the hand signals. I'm not
always sure what all those musical ones mean. Hand spinning in air. Hand
suddenly raised. But I have my hunches, developed through careful
observation,,(Laughter)

Good suggestion: Learn to read, and write music, for the sake of the
preservation of some of those inspired musical thoughts. Gather with others
who do the same.

Okay,,that's not gonna work here,,haha

Record your ideas. Hand out copies to the other band members to listen to
"at their leisure", for next rehearsal.

Next best suggestion: Learn to follow the leader.

Third best suggestion: Kiss up to the guy or gal who owns the van.

Best suggestion of all,,

Have fun, enjoy the fact that we live in a part of the world that isn't so
war-torn as to completely prohibit the idea of musical enjoyment.


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Barnum, Ansel (Ansel)" <Ansel.Barnum@xxxxxxx>
To: "Vern Smith" <jevern@xxxxxxx>; <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Sunday, May 06, 2007 10:47 PM
Subject: RE: [Harp-L] Real creativity


> You're right: There's the premeditated creativity of the composer who
carefully calculates his musical thoughts with
> consideration; then there's the improvised creativity of the performer who
extemporaneously streams his musical thoughts without
> thought. The former is best exemplified in classical, the latter by jazz.
(Both are equally impressive, valuable, etc--I'm not
> making a value judgment here.) Blues, however, tends to occupy a middle
ground where players often preconceive their solo (a la
> classical) then play variations on it (a la jazz). This hybrid can result
in great music as it harnesses the strengths of both
> approaches.
>
> My inquiry into "real creativity" concerned the apparent stagnation of
either means of producing original music. Much of blues
> consists of standard rhythm changes with standard melodies with standard
lics with standard solos. Yes, it nevertheless makes
> wonderful, moving music. But eventually after years and years of
listening, the patterns start to become apparent and, admittedly,
> tiring. Even more disheartening is when the "heroes" in ones pantheon of
players start to recycle their own songs, lics, and most
> troubling of all, even the solos. When this happens, it seems to augur the
end of innovation. This means you're forced be content
> with what has been created till now, for new ground no longer is getting
broken. This is the tragic truth that lovers of classical
> must come to terms with. Fortunately for them, they have a larger
catalogue to rotate through.
>
> I think it's a stretch to compare the repetition that plagues blues with
the repetition that benefits classical. Yes, in both
> genres repetition can be employed to build and contrast musical ideas. In
this case the repetition is *intentionally* used for
> desired effect. However with blues, the unhealthy repetition I refer to is
the result of stalled creativity that has settled into
> a comfortable rut for replaying the same thing the same way every time.
(Note that whereas classical has its hands tied when it
> comes to playing the notes the composer ordered, blues should be tacking
advantage of its freedom from a score!)
>
> Maybe I'm just nostalgic for the early days of initial infatuation with a
new love, when everything was titillating with the
> excitement of a first encounter. Maybe I just need to come to terms with
the fact that my relationship has entered the
> steady-state of a marriage whose lustful beginnings are gone, replaced by
the romance of familiar routine. Maybe I need to have an
> affair: Jazz?
>
>
> Ansel
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vern Smith [mailto:jevern@xxxxxxx]
> Sent: Sun 5/6/2007 1:27 PM
> To: Barnum, Ansel (Ansel); harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: Re: [Harp-L] Real creativity
>
> Ansel, YOU are the one to turn to for all of the freshness and creativity
> that you demand.  No one else will ever satisfy your thirst for newness.
> However, don't expect that many others will share that much hunger for new
> material.  Material that is new as the harmonica meets the player's lips
is
> unlikely to be memorable.
>
> Your definition of musical "creativity" is different from mine.  You seem
to
> define it as the ability to improvise something pleasant for the instant
> occasion..  I define it as the ability to craft something of lasting
appeal.
> You seem to be thinking of the creativity of the performer while I think
of
> the creativity of the composer.
>
> You may overlook the fact that the audiences often demand that that the
> older performers replay their past triumphs.  They like to recall pleasant
> old associations.  Very often, when the old performers try something new,
> the audience is disappointed that they cannot come up with something as
good
> as they did when thay were at the peak of their inspiration and powers of
> composition.  With maybe a very few exceptions such as Bach and Mozart,
the
> muse doesn't speak to the composer continuously or with equal strength
> through the years.  Many of us still wait for that first inspiration.
>
> You may also overlook that repetition is at the very core of music.  A
theme
> such as the ...- of Beethoven's fifth occurs over and over with the
newness
> appearing in variations.  Nor does that lessen our pleasure in hearing
that
> same symphony many times. Almost every good song introduces a new theme,
> then repeats it, sometimes with variations.  And if the song is really
good,
> we like to hear it many times...otherwise recorded music would not be so
> popular.  Audiences crave the familiar.  The clever artist can deliver it
> with enough of a new twist to make it interesting again, but not so much
as
> to spoil it's old charm.
>
> The jazz musician comes closest to playing something fresh every time the
> harp meets his lips, but it may appeal mainly to jazz buffs.  Are you one
of
> them?
>
> Vern
> Visit my harmonica website www.Hands-Free-Chromatic.7p.com
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Barnum, Ansel (Ansel)" <Ansel.Barnum@xxxxxxx>
> To: <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Sunday, May 06, 2007 8:54 AM
> Subject: [Harp-L] Real creativity
>
>
> >
> > Recently I'm beginning to become disillusioned with my childhood harp
> > heroes. Last night I heard one of them in concert which was admittedly a
> > great show. However, it was the same one I'd heard last year, the year
> > before, and so on going back to when I first heard them ten years ago.
And
> > that seems to be the trend amongst most in my harp pantheon. Yes, they
> > conceived of great music at one point in time, but they don't continue
to
> > do so, instead replaying the great ideas they (or someone else) thought
of
> > in the past. And even those that do periodically come up with new
material
> > on a CD just rehash it like a jukebox in concert.
> >
> > So my question is: Where is the *real* creativity? Who are the musicians
> > that play something fresh every time a harp meets their lips? I
certainly
> > appreciate that the diatonic harp and blues form imposes constraints
that
> > chromatic jazz players do not face. Which is why I'm searching for those
> > geniuses able to break through these barriers to that zen state of art.
> > Who can I turn to for inspiration of exciting, dynamic, creative music
> > that continuously flows into the instrument--in this case, a diatonic
> > harp?
> >
> >
> > Ansel
> >
> > _______________________________________________
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>
>
>
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