Re: [Harp-L] The Internet

[dan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Dear Robert and List,

I have the highest regard for your abilities, your years of study, your talent, and you taste in music.  In fact, I very much agree that quality of art comes from such study, and dedication.  I have spent too many hours practicing not to agree.  My hours pale in comparison to yourself and others like you, whom I regard with the highest esteem.

Unfortunately, the world defaults to "the average".  As a tall person, I struggle with "the average" every time I board an airplane or buy a car.  I cringe at what I consider "harmonica abuse" every time I hear some singer pull out a harp and play some awful, shrill b.s. on a top 40 record.  I think, "wow.  is it worth it?  why bother working my ass off so some jackoff  with thirty dollars can re-convince the
 whole world that the harmonica is nothing but a novelty toy?"   It's daunting and depressing, and just plain wrong.

I was really frustrated, making similar observations to the ones in your post.  Hell, I still am.  What I started to realize was that nobody cared, and that I looked like a jerk every time I called someone out for their "crap".  Why?  Because the average is the majority.  They think Neil Young just wails on the harp.  They freaking LOVE the harp in Roadhouse Blues.  They eat up reality TV like it's gourmet food at discount prices.  

I struggled with this conflict for quite some time (still do).  Several things currently help me deal with the state of things.

1. A conversation I had with Rick Estrin about how frustrating it is that solid harp playing is under-appreciated.  Rick said to me, "Man, sometimes what's cool isn't for everybody.  McDonald's is for
 Everybody"

2. A conversation with a colleague who was 100% positive that NO music was of any value but classical.  The Beatles?  "Who's that?" he would say.  In order to have a voice in that argument, I came up with the following philosophy:  I envision music and all the possibilities of music as a number line.  At one end is a cave-man simply beating a rock on another rock.  On the other end is a scientist analyzing the frequency of every note played, using an oscilloscope. The point is that there's a place on that number line for everyone.  My wife says, "As long as it has good lyrics. . . ".  It's ok because art is entirely subjective.

3. I went to the Guggenheim in NYC and saw five identically sized canvasses each with a different solid color.  I was enraged.  I was like, "what sort of skill did this require?" What sort of study".  Thinking about that moment, I refined my
 definition of the word "Art".  Art, by my definition is communication through any medium that illicits emotion.  That painting made me angry in its bullshit.  Thus, it qualifies as art.  See, you can't disqualify any art without blowing the whole concept.  Art is art is art, no matter how simple.

4. A conversation I had with Dan Ridgeway.  Dan is a super talented sort of guy who's very laid back. Myself. . . I'm more direct, more uptight.  I was analyzing and picking apart some harp player who was pretending to cover tunes note for note, but who was missing all the nuance and half the notes.  Upon listening to my very accurate nit-picking, Dan looked me in the eye and said, "Why do you have to be so negative?"  Why do you have to hate on everybody?"   That stopped me in my tracks.

5. Any dealings I've had with Jason Ricci.  Jason believes in supporting just about everyone. 
 He gives and gives and gives.  He can legitimately pick up just about any diatonic harp player, and give them a spanking without even trying.  Yet, Jason doesn't.  He loves on EVERY harp player he meets.  He gives of himself, and really limits his negativity (or tries to).  

My point in all this, is that Mr. Bonfiglio, you do matter, and you matter a ton.  The average is the average, and that's as good as they're going to get.  The people that really get the detail and the study and the nuance of GOOD art (or good anything for that matter) are all that matter.  Yeah it sucks that all the money goes to the middle of the curve, but that's just the world we live in.  If you want money, sell out.  If you want your art, well, you stick to those guns and you keep amazing us.

There's room in this world for all of us.  Just have a conversation with someone equally driven, but in a field you
 don't care about.  You'll see that to some people music is worthless.  Sports, or science, or history, or writing or whatever they love matters as much to them as music does to you/us.



--- On Sun, 1/11/09, Robert Bonfiglio <bon@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

From: Robert Bonfiglio <bon@xxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [Harp-L] The Internet
To: harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx
Date: Sunday, January 11, 2009, 9:09 PM

I found another CD of mine on I-tunes stolen with a new cover.  I see  
a lot of my music pirated and sold with no gain on my part.  I see  
CD's on Amazon that I have no part in; in essence the Internet has  
become this global license to steal anything that can be copied  
digitally.

I also see a lot of really amateur harmonica playing on
 youtube that  
would never have seen the light of day without the Internet and  
comments that people actually love the stuff proving that what people  
really want to see on TV is themselves and what they want to see on  
YouTube and the Internet is themselves.

The amazing thing is there are no A&R guys to say this or that is not  
worthy of recording.  Even the music on TV has become a reality show  
format with American idol.  The basis is that if you have natural  
talent you can be a singer, even though you didn't go through  
training or paying your dues in some way, you are better than the  
rest.  There is an element of "in your face" for all the people who  
did the work - they must be some kind of stupid.

This leaves sports as thing left with exposure that has any sense of  
real talent with hard work wins out.  Who
 knows, maybe in 10 years  
reality football and baseball games where neighbors play each other  
in a game show will push those sport events into oblivion.

I think it is time to say that performance was nice, come back after  
a few years of practice and work and we will see how you have  
matured.  we have to start telling people that mediocre is not good  
enough to be successful or we all will putting up with average  
performances for the rest of our lives.

I heard a winner of American Idol sing with the New York Pops just  
after a REAL singer did two numbers from West Side Story.  The  
American Idol singer got blown off the stage; it was embarassing. But  
who cares?  We all should.  We all should hold music and all art to a  
higher standard than "anybody can do it."

Harmonically yours,

Robert Bonfiglio


http://www.robertbonfiglio.com


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