Re: [Harp-L] Was: Buckeye Cancelled, Now: Personal Connection?

[Peter Langlois <morekias@xxxxxxxxx>]

One of the reasons I became a harp player (about 18 months) and have taken
such an interest is that I find Blues to be highly accessible, without
knowing the lyrics, without knowing the artist.  It is (my opinion of
course) just easy to enjoy, very movement inspiring, and completely relaxing
while energizing at the same time.

I'm new to Harp-L but having a good time sharing the content and wisdom of
the group, and like the spirit and interaction in the group.

I'll be attending SPAH this year.  Missed the Virginia fest because of work
but I'm here in VA and looking forward to getting more harp exposure

Cheers

PETE
Leesburg, VA

On Wed, Apr 20, 2011 at 12:46 PM, Tom Albanese <reedwrecker@xxxxxxxxx>wrote:

> Not to take exception with anything that's been written and I may be taking
> it out of context, but here's a little story. Last week I played at a local
> high school event called "Focus On The Arts". It was at a large suburban
> high school just north of Chicago. A very well organized three day event
> that included music, poetry, visual arts, dance and other performance art.
> The band I played with could be loosely defined as "blues rock", for lack
> of
> a better term, and without dropping names we had several well established
> guest musicians who joined us on stage, some of whom were firmly entrenched
> in the blues. My expectations going into this show were uncertain at best
> but a gig's a gig and I tried to approach it with an open mind. The
> audience
> was made up of at least 90% students from the school, and I would guess
> most
> had very little prior knowledge of what blues music was actually about.
> They
> turned out to be one of the most enthusiastic and appreciative audiences
> I've ever played for. They cheered like crazy after every song, stood and
> danced in the aisles and seemed to be having the time of their lives. There
> was definitely a personal connection there and I'm sure that there were
> more
> than just a few newly converted young blues lovers who walked out of the
> auditorium with smiles on their faces that afternoon.
>
> FWIW
>
> tom albanese
>
> On Wed, Apr 20, 2011 at 10:59 AM, Mike Fugazzi
> <mikefugazzi@xxxxxxxxx>wrote: <snip>
>
> >
> > <If you aren't playing music familiar to them, for example playing pre
> war
> > blues to teens, then you better find another way to make a personal
> > connection.  If you are in a band that plays what the crowd wants to
> hear,
> > the personal connection is less crucial to the success of that event, but
> > I'd argue the lack of connection would not net long-term sustainability
> > with
> > that audience.>
> >
> >
>