Re: [Harp-L] Rhythm and Tone

["Bob Laughlin" <rlaughlin@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

That "suspension",,it's like the pause a trucker uses to switch gears. One
has to have the faith that there IS another gear to switch to. Experience
helps, and a good ear, and the willingness to listen.

There are other, hidden messages being told WITHIN the obvious
message/groove. Someone needs to become "available" to tell them. That's the
guy who's willing to step back for a moment, "drop the ball" in a sense, and
then unexpectedly pick it up with a new story.

If the band members all have a good internal clock, this freedom to switch
gears is available to the soloist, when his/her turn arrives. If not,
someone might get momentarily lost. This is what makes a good band,,or not.
Everyone has to keep up "his/her end of the bargain", rhythmically.

Tick Tock, Tick Tock,,


----- Original Message ----- 
From: <IcemanLE@xxxxxxx>
To: <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Wednesday, May 16, 2007 5:52 AM
Subject: Re: [Harp-L] Rhythm and Tone


>
> > They should be able to show you what it means to play behind,  ahead
> > of, or on the beat.  Or, when you're trying to figure  out why you
> > love certain harp players, think about their  solos'  cadence, not
> > just the notes.
>
>
>
>
> The way I approach this concept with my students is to get them to
> understand where the beat is by attaching themselves to the groove and
playing a
> simple repetitive rhythm groove - from the "Church of the Sacred Hut-tah
Hut-tah"
> (one of my old incarnations). This is done like "wax on - wax off"  in
"The
> Karate Kid".
>
> When it becomes second nature, I then show how the groove attachment
still
> exists even when stepping away from actively creating something on it. At
this
> point, the groove pulses the student whether he plays or not.
>
> Finally, I show how to let this groove take the responsibility away from
the
> student and put it into the realm of the universe providing the foundation
> for the student to leap up into the air and float above it for a moment,
> gravity  and the arc of the projection pulling the student back to the
groove
> eventually. In the mean time, one floats free of the attachment but is
committed
> to rejoining the groove already in progress (like after those news  breaks
that
> interrupt the flow of the tv show and then the announcer says "and  now we
> rejoin the program already in progress"). While floating above the
groove, one
> can create very unique ideas and move away from playing ON the beat,
placing
> notes all around the beat with almost no way to crash and burn  unless one
> loses their confidence in surrendering to the unversal groove and  feels
they
> have to resume responsibility and MAKE the groove  happen.
>
> The Iceman
>
>
>
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