Re: Fwd: [Harp-L] Gunslingers

["steve@xxxxxxxxxxxx" <swebb@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

I think everyone is competitive, to some extent. You have to be to survive in this world. I try to channel my competitive spirit into other things than music and harmonica. First of all, I'm not good enough to get too frisky with the harmonica.  I consider myself a realist and I know where I fit in the musical scheme of things.   My competitive nature is more within myself. I used it to get to where I am on harp, and believe me, I am very much an intermediate player.  I say challenge yourself. Give yourself a goal that is hard to achieve and work toward it. 
I also coach high school varsity fastpitch softball and I play in Texas Holdem tournaments, so I guess that helps take care of my competitive side.
I say to you all, play better than me and I'll love to hear it. 
I have a friend who teaches guitar at a local music store and plays in 3-4 different bands. He's about 50 years old and a great player. He and his wife sometimes play out as a duo and he always has me sit in. We sort of fell into a little head-cutting thing that we now do because the people seem to like it. It's all made up on the spot and he could rip me to pieces at any point. He never does and usually lets me "win" by giving up and declaring me the winner.  We both know the real deal. He has the right attitude and always compliments me. That's the way I think it should be.
  And, for what it's worth, Mr. Fugazzi here is a heckuva harp player who let me sit in with his band one time a while back. I did OK, my normal unexciting stuff, but I had fun. Thing is, he's young and will certainly make a name for himself in the harmonica community. I'm old and I don't care, long as I get to play once in awhile with good musicians.
Steve Webb in Minn, where the cold gives us time inside to practice.

---- mikefugazzi@xxxxxxxxx wrote: 
> I am competitive by nature, but have really been working hard to let that  
> go in regards to music. I've chosen to do this because it takes all of the  
> love out of music for me. I am sure lots of us hear someone online or watch  
> them on YouTube and then have one of the two following thoughts:
> 
> 1. I suck and will never get to the level of playing I wish to be at.
> 2. They suck and will never get to the level of playing they wish to be at.
> 
> The reality of it is, who cares? I would much rather just listen and enjoy  
> the music. So how do I handle the urge? I try to be mindful of my thoughts,  
> adjust my thinking, and stop trying to compare apples to oranges.
> 
> Or I woodshed like mad...currently I am trying to work on chordal vamping  
> in the hopes of being able to do a breakdown like Kim Wilson, Magic Dick,  
> or Jason Ricci. That skill in and of itself is sort of an ego driven jam,  
> but I understand its place in a set and how enjoyable some people can find  
> it. It is also a technical skill that I can use in my regular playing  
> besides.
> 
> I like to listen to musicians who don't show me all their repetoire every  
> single song. In fact, I love the idea of not hearing "everything" they play  
> so that the next time I see them, the music still feels fresh. There is a  
> time to shred, but it doesn't come as often as the time to just be musical  
> and serve the song.
> 
> Locally, I run into harp players that don't want to give anyone else credit  
> or any sort of compliment. Lol. I try not to sweat it, but part of me  
> probably rests easy because, at least in the blues scene, if they sat in  
> with my band I could make them look dumb, and if all else fails, I can  
> probably play "flashier" than they can. Ha! When I first started playing, I  
> had my rear end handed to me a few times...I haven't felt the need to go  
> back out and prove myself, but if the situation came about, I wouldn't fret.
> 
> The biggest competitive road block for me has been not being heard. It is  
> frustrating to try and network like crazy and have bookers and musicians  
> ignore you. Then months later when they finally hear you, they are  
> surprised that you don't suck and, in fact, are part of a pretty good band.  
> So I guess my competitive side comes out more on the business end then  
> playing end.
> 
> 
> > --- In harp-l-archives@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, robert mcgraw wrote:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> > We've covered this territory many times before on harp-l, but why not  
> > again? A couple of thoughts:
> 
> 
> 
> > 1] When I play music with a gunslinger approach, the music suffers. It's  
> > when I lose my ego that the magic happens...
> 
> 
> 
> > 2] Competitiveness comes naturally to human beings; it is a part of our  
> > nature, I would argue. If you think Charlie Parker and Dizzy and all  
> > those be-bop guys were never being competitive at those late night jam  
> > sessions...
> 
> 
> 
> > 3] So I agree, music is not a competition; but people are competitive [as  
> > well as cooperative]...it's a dilemma I think.
> 
> 
> 
> > So let me pose this question: If you feel competitive, how do you deal  
> > with it in terms of music? How do you let go of it? Or maybe you don't,  
> > or maybe you aren't competitive?
> 
> 
> 
> > WVa Bob
> 
> 
> 
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> > --- End forwarded message ---
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