Doldrums
"a becalmed state" - "a dull, depressed or bored state of mind"
These definitions are hitting home over the last week or so. I've tried different exercises, riffs, positions and music to listen to. The jam last Sunday didn't help - vocalist didn't even bother giving me a solo in 2 out of 3 songs. Next set had a really good harp player that rocked and left me wondering "what the H___ am I kidding myself about". I know there are 2 steps forward and 1 step back stages and plateaus but I sure don't like not being excited about what I'm doing. Maybe I'm just hitting some roadblocks that require perseverance.
I guess I'm just looking for the sympathetic ear of people in the know. Am I alone or are there any ideas out there as to how to break out of the doldrums?
Thanks for listening!!!
Thanks for sharing, Hank. As I try to streamline my life and make more time for practice I see the challenges to our character that this pursuit can require us to meet. I look up to guys like you who are ahead of me. Time to face the chorus forms myself now.
Hank, you might look for other jam venues. Many blues clubs and bars have an open jam night that allows you to sign up for a set, which gives you a 2 or 3 song priority over the club band (which is usually made up of other jam sessionist regulars). You wait on the side lines for each person to take their turn, then someone will call you up to the bandstand. It's a great way to gain experience and not get pushed around by the other band members.
Also, if you know some other players, set up some of your own jam sessions in your garage. Playing for friends is the best way to gain confidence. Who knows, it might even lead to the formation of your own band.
As to your comment of "What the hell am I doing here?" - THAT will never go away!
Thanks to all for taking the time to respond.
@David - I appreciate your comments (and am humbled by them). I guess its the 'anxiousness' of wanting something that I can hear in my head to come out of the harp :-) I will take your suggestion and work on working on favourite licks and working on chorus forms AND trying to solo (fills) like you in between ;-) Hah!!!
@ Anne Marie - so many challenges that sometimes we forget that its the joy of the journey and not the final destination that is the real purpose. I have to keep reminding myself of this!!
@jj with only one jam that is appropriate this is tough but I will look into seeing if there are some players around that would be interested in an acoustic jam that would be more casual than the 'performance jams. I've also never tried an "open mic" that seems to be more for vocalist/guitar types but maybe learning a few "solo" pieces (will I ever get Quiet World down?) would give me reason to try one.
Main thing - thank you. I'm hoping its not just me but a more common thing that many of us experience as we go down this road.
Open mic is different in different venues. In a coffee shop, it might just be more for the vocalists and guitar players that you mentioned. In a blues club, it is something different. You can be anything in these sets - vocalist, guitar player, or harp player (or all three). To work the mic at those clubs, you would have to have a bit of a repertoire of licks, and maybe a solo or two. You'll only get a two or three song set before it's the next guy's (or girl's) turn, so you don't have to have much of a catalog. You don't necessarily have to have solos down, as you can go up and just play backup to the club band.
I've been to many of these clubs on open mic night (my favorite is Black Eyed Sally's in Hartford, Connecticut) but I haven't played any yet with my harps. I'm way behind you in my proficiency level. The environment on these open mic nights are very low pressure. Most times - unless you really rock the house - folks at the bar don't even pay much attention. They're all just yaking and drinking among themselves. You're kind of like background music. The club band doesn't criticize or stand in your way. They are there just to provide backup to the newbies and wannabees - and practice a little themselves. Nobody's going to giggle and point at you. I've seen homeless-looking people stand up and do sets - and some of them were GREAT.
I might just head out to one of these clubs tonight myself. I'm sitting in a hotel in Montreal right now. There's a party in the courtyard below my window, so I can't get much work done. A popular blues club named Bistro a Jojo is just down the street. It's like 150 degrees here right now, and all the women are walking the streets half-naked.
Why am I sitting here talking to you?!?
whhhhaaaaaaa!
"i aint no good!"
"folks dont let me solo!"
"i dont feel like practicing!"
whhhhaaaaaaa!!
think like a loser, you gonna be a loser!
think like a winner, you gonna be a winner!
c'mon, hank!
you know you got skills!
you know you are improving!
just take this time to enjoy what you can do and where you're at!
set the harp down for a week or so.
find a different activity. something adventurous and healthy.
(btw- spell checker had no clue on "whhhaaaaa")
you'll get your groove back, my man!
Yeah - some friends will pat you on the back and some will pat you (not with their hand) a little lower down!!!;-) Both are needed.
You're right eharp!!! and I thought in the harp world it was spelled waawaawaawaa (or is it wah wah wah?). Moving on............
well played, hank.
you know when the s**t hits the fan, i am right behind you!
go see a harp or blues act!
better yet! make plans for the bean blossom blues fest just south of indy. last weekend of august!
The best players are the ones that keep on the path and keep going... period. You love the music... you love the instrument... what's better than that! ;-) We are all capable of great things, we just don't know how long it will take.
I feel your pain... jam sessions are tough... even for pro's. Also, to command a bandstand takes a lot of experience... give it time. Keep going to them... pay your dues and little by little the people running the jam will give you more play time and learn to trust that you can do a good job. Keep paying your dues... you'll get there!
Having the pleasure of being your teacher at bluesharmonica.com since the beginning, I've seen your progress. You work very hard and have accomplished a GREAT DEAL over the past six months. You are doing things that other entry level pros aren't doing. With this said, sometimes technique can grow faster than experience. I recommend that you take this month off from learning "new" material and focus on taking your favorite licks from the songs you've studied and put jam tracks on and apply the chorus forms. Play and have a good time placing what you've learned into context.
After this month make sure that you are using 50% of your practice time doing this... this is very important.
A side note... if you were to listen to the recordings you sent me over the past months and then transported yourself back in time two years and listened to it, you would say "man, this guys sounds great! If I can sound as half as good as this guy I'd be stoked!" My studies are very rigorous... you have to step back sometimes and appreciate how much you've gained ;-)