RE: [Harp-L] Joe Filisko and Ron Sorin

[Michael Peloquin <peloquinharp@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Mick posts:

> 
>    Joe Filisko's classes at Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music continue
> to be a valuable resource for harmonica players.

>       I'm not sure Ron Sorin expected all the fuss.  He's a very introverted
> person who has always been content to be a sideman.  Doesn't sing or record
> under his own name.  Remarkably, someone took the time to collect 14 of
> his best solos on other people's records, put them together on a bootleg CD
> and burned a few dozen copies.  They were for sale at the class for 10 bucks
> and went quickly.  All money going to Ron.
>    Ron probably played nearly an hour of blues harmonica, soloing over a
> variety of grooves provided by an ace blues band playing at a
> nice, quiet level.  He never ran out of ideas and I got the impression that
> he could have gone on indefinitely.  Which was remarkable because Ron
> had been off the scene for a long while, supporting a family.  His first
> position work was especially outstanding to me.  At times I had trouble
> distinguishing it from his cross harp, it flowed that naturally at every
> tempo.  Moreover, there was nothing "sweet" about it, it was just plain
> nasty.  Sounded absolutely primeval on the lower end and guitar-stinging on
> the upper.  While most guys neglect the middle octave in that position, Ron
> had no problem making it sound bluesy and swinging.
>    One thing that I've always dug about Ron's playing is that he manages to
> sound deeply immersed in traditional blues harp, yet fresh and inventive at
> the same time.  Quite a bit of his playing sounds traditional but you can't
> quite put your finger on where it came from.  Probably because he has
> tweaked it.  "When you change it, you own it," he explained to Joe's class.
> He also has no problem mixing influences in a single solo.  He might follow
> something that sounds vaguely Little Walter-ish with a quote from Sonny Boy
> ll or Junior Wells and it almost always works.
>     In between playing, Ron fielded questions.  Some of his answers appeared
> to run counter to the Filisko approach to blues harp.  For example, he
> didn't feel it was necessary to spend your playing life chasing or
> worshipping the Big Walter tone.  In fact, Ron seemed to feel that once you
> reached an acceptable level of tone, your time might be better spent
> developing technique and ideas.  He also stated that he was mainly a pucker
> player.  Which is as close to blasphemy as you can get at Joe's class!
>    Sorin is entirely self-taught.  
>    A couple of Ron's observations that struck me as interesting.  He stated
> that he does quite a bit of playing while walking.  He never specified
> whether or not it was being locked into a rhythm or physically relaxed that
> helped him, but insisted that ideas came easier and he had developed quite a
> few harmonica instrumentals while walking.  He also stated that it gave him
> great pleasure to play counter rhythmically against the groove.  To mess
> with time.  Part of this had to do with a sort of musical
> claustrophobia.  Ron said that he occasionally felt "trapped", almost
> panicky while playing a 12 bar shuffle groove and had to do something break
> out.  He also confessed to being addicted to the elusive "zone" where ideas
> flow effortlessly.  He said he's happy if he can hit that moment once in an
> evening and it's what keeps him coming back to the harp.  He also espoused
> an interesting theory that if one makes "mistakes" in the course of playing
> the blues that either sound like they fit or can be musically resolved to
> sound pleasing; these "mistakes" ought to be taped or memorized.  That
> enough of these aberrations can used to help build yourself a unique style.
>    I recall when I met Ron nearly 30 years ago, he told me that he had been
> copping T-Bone Walker horn charts on harp.  He found that they made great
> background riffs behind vocalists and soloists.  That's so Ron Sorin, a
> thinking man's blues harpist.  Truth be told, probably every region of the
> country has a little known monster player like this.  

Joe's Monda class rules! I agree!
I too love Ron Sorin's playing, and from what Mick states, we have similar musical philosophies. I met Ron at the same time as I met Jellyroll Johnson. 1979 or 1980 I was playing at Chicagofest. We opened for Con Hunley who Jelly was playing with. I met Ron and we walked over to hear Muddy (but there was no way to SEE him--huge crowd)
Mick or anyone that knows how to contact Ron, please contact me offlist.

thanks-

Michael Peloquin
http://harpsax.com
http://myspace.com/peloquinharpsax