Jazz Education

Some Mumbo Jumbo and a Music Lesson

Last Sunday I had a nice long shmooz with my father and mentioned to him that I was keeping a blog. When he asked what it was about (he figured it was all about guitar) I told him, “well I write what’s on my mind concerning personal development, guitar, spirituality, online promotion and law of attraction.”

“Stay away from the mumbo jumbo” he said. I think he had my survival in mind and figured I’d turn people off with other quasi-spiritual banter. I think he felt that my blog should be about guitar and music so that I can sell merchandise or links and help my survival.

I suppose if I was younger I would have been vibed out by a parental disapproval incident, but with a big fat smile on my face I said “too late!”.

The most helpful info that I got from my older music teachers often had no musical content, but was psychology and spirituality. As the mind and spirit fall into the right groove, great music and an abundant career pour out into your life from a whole different angle.

I have seen it time and time again in my own life and career.

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If there is one thing that I can say to you, with every ounce of love in my heart and every molecule of compassion that I have, no matter who you are and what you do it is this: you get what you think about, whether you want it or not.

So, this is in fact a music lesson.

I hear how some musicians see others who have made a big career and say “so and so isn’t that good” – and their career is in a place that they’d like to improve. I have seen musicians repeatedly take low paying jobs or even find that they can’t survive as a musician and say “gigs don’t pay enough”.

I have also seen musicians effortlessly soar and learn at warp speed and show brilliance too! I have seen musicians arrive in NYC with a goal and accomplish it faster than veterans who have been here for years.

What do they all have in common? They are using the same force in 2 different ways – the law of attraction. Everyone is getting what they are envisioning, and more importantly – feeling.

What are some things a musician can do to get better, improve one’s career, and enjoy playing? Here’s just a few tips:

1. Appreciate Yourself

Appreciate yourself and stop beating yourself up. This is the worst poison a musician can digest. Many musicians think that a self inflicted beating is good, right and will improve their music. No. That’s wrong, take it from me.

Whose approval do you want anyway? The feeling of approval only comes from inside, so give yourself some. It’s okay, and it doesn’t cost anything. You can do it all day if you want. Can you let go of wanting approval and just be? Yummy-ness awaits you right here. Let go of wanting approval, and be on the lookout for this state of wanting.

The more faults you see in yourself, the more you get. The more good you see, the more you get, so see the good.

2. Appreciate Others

It is such a trap to criticize others, and once you do – the self criticizing happens. The 2 go hand in hand. It feels bad. It’s weird – but when I have found fault with others, within a week I find the same fault in myself. It is a downward spiral.

The more faults you see in others, the more you get for yourself. The more good you see, the more you get.

If you are in a groove of finding fault with yourself and others it may feel “phony” for you to start making the shift. Just find one thing that’s good either in yourself or someone else. Don’t try to “stop criticizing” but “start appreciating”. Like “wow, they have a great tone” or “that melody is pretty” or “I appreciate how hard so and so had to work at that” or “wow, they play great in the upper register”. Any little good you can find will nourish you.

If you can’t find any good in a situation then think back to ANYTHING that you appreciate, like a pet. Activate your psyche into appreciation mode.

Rather than racking my brain and leaving something out, here’s a little list of qualities that will either get you in the right direction or inspire you. This is from a site I found online regarding “abundance” – which does not just mean money. It means fulfillment in all areas, music being no exception – composing, playing, career and all that.

The positive quality is the first one listed, and is followed by the opposite. Check yourself to see and use “appreciation” as a tool to get yourself on the positive side. I will leave you with this today.

1. Honoring your worth and time/ Not honoring your worth and time
2. Giving and receiving freely/ Not giving or being open to receive.
3. Opening your heart/ Closing your heart.
4. Expecting the best to happen/ Worrying that the worst will happen.
5. Coming from your heart/ Getting into power struggles.
6. Doing your best/ Cutting corners.
7. Wanting everyone to succeed, cooperating/ Competing
8. Focusing on how you can serve others/ Thinking only of what others will give you.
9. Telling yourself why you can succeed/ Telling yourself why you can’t succeed.
10. Coming from your integrity/ Compromising your values and ideals.
11. Being aware and paying attention/ Operating on automatic.
12. Applauding others’ success/ Feeling threatened by others’ success.
13. Embracing your challenges/ Choosing safety and comfort over growth.
14. Releasing things easily/ Hanging on to things.
15. Believing it’s never too late, taking action on your dreams/ Thinking it’s too late, giving up.
16. Giving yourself permission to be and do what you want/ Waiting for others to give you permission
17. Believing your path is important/ Not believing in your path.
18. Doing what you love for your livelihood/ Working only for the money.
19. Detaching, surrendering to your higher good/ Feeling needy or that you must have something.
20. Giving to other’s prosperity/ Giving to other’s need.
21. Doing your higher purpose activities first/ Putting off higher purpose activities until you have more time.
22. Seeing yourself as the source of your abundance/ Viewing others as the source of your abundance.
23. Believing in abundance/ Believing in scarcity
24. Believing in yourself, self-confidence, self-love/ Worrying, fears, doubts, self-criticism.
25. Clear intent and directed will/ Vague or undefined goals.
26. Following your joy/ Forcing yourself, creating “have to’s” and “should’s”
27. Surrounding yourself with objects that reflect your aliveness/ Keeping objects that aren’t tools to express your aliveness.
28. Expressing gratitude and thanks/ Feeling the world owes you.
29. Trusting in your ability to create abundance/ Worrying over finances.
30. Following your inner guidance/ Ignoring inner guidance.
31. Looking for a winning solution for everyone/ Not caring if the other person wins.
32. Becoming your own authority/ Not believing in your inner wisdom.
33. Measuring abundance as fulfilling your purpose and happiness/ Measuring abundance only by how much money you have.
34. Enjoying the process as much as the goal/ Doing things only for the goal.
35. Clear agreements/ Unspoken or vague expectations.
36. Thinking how far you have come/ Focusing on how far you have to go.
37. Speaking of abundance/ Talking about problems and lack.
38. Remembering past successes/ Remembering past failures.
39. Thinking in expanded, unlimited ways/ Thinking in limited ways.
40. Think of how you will create money/ Thinking of how you need money.
41. Focusing on what you love and want/ Focusing only on what you don’t want.
42. Allowing yourself to have/ Feeling you don’t deserve to have.

Rock vs. Jazz, Part 1

By Adam Rafferty 1 Comment

Rock and pop musicians can learn a lot from jazz musicians. Jazz musicians can learn a lot from rock musicians though – and this is what I find more interesting!

The rockers can learn about harmony, melody, rhythm, counterpoint, form, technique, practicing, swing, and great tunes of years past. I have taught many rock / blues / folk guitarists who soaked up this new knowledge and are amazed that it even exists.

Jazz musicians can learn about this though – that rock / pop musicians have to take responsibility for getting a following, having a mailing list and putting butts in the seats at gigs. Ok, the big jazz names like George Benson draw a crowd, but for the most part this is a foreign idea to jazzers.

What I am talking about is that even local rock bands & performers have to live with the reality of bringing an audience to a gig whereas jazz musicians usually don’t.

Many local jazz musicians are hired to play background music. Even if it is a jazz club, it is in a sense background music. Patrons go expecting to hear a great band, and maybe go because they are familiar with the band. Even at a jazz festival where bigger names play, the audience is built in, and attendance is not the performers problem. Big companies fund the festivals and record companies get their acts on as promo.

This situation allows many jazz performers to play music that may not be 100% appealing to people, since pleasing the audience is “not their problem” nor is a return crowd. They didn’t necesarily get the gig because of crowd appeal. There is the possibility for a disconnect here between “getting the gig”, “playing the gig” and “drawing / pleasing the audience”.

Ok – this is NOT true for all jazz performers. Some musicians learned in an environment where energy and entertainment value was supremely important.

What I am saying is this: for many jazz performers, even the highly entertaining ones, drawing an audience is an afterthought, whereas for a rock / pop musician it is everything.

It’s easy for a jazz musician to defend and say “my job is to play music – it’s the venue’s job to get the people”. And while I know nothing of promoters yet, I am talking about the nitty-gritty hands on, “getting people to a gig” work that musicians in other genres need to do.

I need to enter this realm of the butts in the seat being my responsibility. This is a rude awakening. Ouch. Is this fun? Am I looking forward to it? Is it my problem?

Frankly, I see this as a really cool challenge. Because once I have a following (in the acoustic world) nobody can take that away from me. I’m not thrilled with the busy work of mailing lists, phone calls and “it being my problem” – but in sheer dollars and cents, if I can draw a crowd – that makes me more desirable. Gigs can get bigger and better, and more people will want to hire me.

There is just a mercenary honesty to this that somehow appeals to me. An executive can’t flick an off switch and turn your following “off”.

When one considers the idea that CD’s are on the way out, (who knows what kind of pirating with Mp3’s will go on) – the concentration on live show, and the merchandise sold there is more important than ever.

Providing Contrast For an Audience

By Adam Rafferty Leave a Comment

Greetings!

Well I am writing this after a day and a half of preparing & uploading YouTube videos. Will I ever get off the computer?? Oh nooooo…..

As a freelancer a lot of work with no up front results need to go in. I.E. – one must have faith that what one is doing will yield a result. I do. And there’s no getting around it at the time of this writing – if you are a musician and not on youtube, you are missing out. What a cool way to get people to see you play music! In just a few short weeks I have been able to send video links to bookers & record labels – and not to mention, get new fans.

It’s funny, being a performer and understanding (or trying to understand) what audiences like. Crafting an act is a little bit like what they tell you about picking up girls – you gotta be a little bit of a prick. Be nice, be charming – but just a smidge cocky, but in a friendly, confident way. Being too sensitive, too nice looks like you are weak. Ever try to be nice & sensitive and see the girl you have a crush on go for the prickiest guy in the room? I have been that guy!

You can be the prick, and then when you got the “girl” feel free to be nice and show the sensitive side. Similarly – give the audience the “show” tunes and once you got ’em, ballads are ok.

Were I left to my own devices, I’d probably play ballads all the time. I love playing notes and letting them ring out and I can just stay in that meditative state forever. Nice for me, but not for the listener after an hour. I gotta tell you – audiences keep me on my toes. I know that I have to entertain and create excitement. It’s a little bit like what I mentioned about being a “pick up” artist.

A big part of my interest in acoustic guitar as opposed to a straight ahead jazz sound is that I can get that “roar” out of an acoustic when it is strummed. I had been missing that with the clean electric sound I was getting. Seems like a paradox, I know.

Ok, if you are an icon like James Taylor then maybe you can go and play ballads all night. But I’m not (yet).

So, in offering a “balanced” solo acoustic guitar act – I am keeping in mind that I need a healthy mix / awareness of

tempos – fast, medium, slow
rhythmic ideas – different grooves
tunes – melodic, funky, fast, more classical, more bluesy
a few freaky technical display tunes, just for the circus act
originals vs cover tunes
textures – arpeggios, single line, contrapuntal stuff
dynamics!!! everything from big flamenco strums down to whispery harmonics
shmoozing vs playing
how I will start & end the act!

If any of these elements is not there, it could potentially be a Thanksgiving meal without stuffing, or a Japanese meal without wasabi. Know what I mean?

I love how Tommy Emmanuel has a bulletproof show. I went with some friends, and there was something for all of us. I loved his ballady, melodic originals the most but I think the more typical audience members (non musicians) liked the energy, the contrasts – and even the sillier stuff like him singing “Heartbreak Hotel”. I mean – whoa – this guy kept everyone’s attention for 2 hours – just a man and a guitar. That is equally, if not more amazing than the playing itself!

That being said I invite you to watch the vids on you tube. The only “pretty one” I have uploaded at this time is “She’s Leaving Home” by The Beatles. All the others are tricky freaky audience attention grabbers.

https://youtube.com/profile?user=crescentridge

No more Mr. Nice guy – I want to “pick up the chicks” !!! (musically speaking) 🙂

I sincerely hope you are entertained!

Until next time –

Rhythm

By Adam Rafferty 2 Comments

Greetings musician friends!

Well, I just spent all day yesterday re-recording the Dr. Lonnie Smith tune “Play it Back” on solo acoustic guitar. I have had the honor of playing this with him live at a few gigs and jazz festivals, and it’s one of those tunes that jam bands are jumping all over.

It’s a blues that never goes to IV chord, and has a characteristic little riff and break at the V chord.

Anyhow, that being said – I feel honored to have played with Dr. Lonnie, as he is one of the remaining jazz, blues & funk greats from the past. But man, let me tell you the stuff he does on gigs now is the future – he gets WAY out there!

I love the way he just rocks this whole groove on the stage and that’s part of what I am going for in my solo guitar act. Not to be a good guitar player, but to be a house rocker, a musical force like a Lonnie. That’s the thing with the greats – they are a musical force, not just a good instrumentalist.

So why did I re-record? Well, see my entry about spiritually vs technically correct. I have done recordings where I did not feel the groove was on the money, and had engineers, sidemen, friends, family – everyone say “It sounds good”. And then I go to listen and it just ain’t movin’ me, or makin’ my feet tap.

That’s why I re-recorded. The difference is so subtle – if you A/B the takes, they sound the same….but wait – I find myself grinning with the new take.

And, the thing with music where the groove is off is this:

1) you hear a piece of music, sense a possible groove and start moving your body
or maybe just tapping your foot

2) something in the music goes against the grain of body rhythm, you have to stop moving, and get a new frame of reference, and try to hook your body moving up to it again. Doing this continually as the music unfolds is the worst exhaustion I know. Eventually, one is forced to disconnect from the music in a “body rhythm” fashion and is forced to listen “from the neck up”.

OUCH. God forgive me, I have in my past created music that does this. Being stressed with studio time & costs, not hiring the right people, and just lack of experience and feeling off-center can knock the groove out.

Finally I feel like I am getting it!

When the groove is on:

1) you hear a piece of music, sense a possible groove and start moving your body
or maybe just tapping your foot

2) the music is obeying the same law that your “body rhythm” obeys. You, the listener can move your body and every little pop and squeak from the music your listening to goes right with how you are moving.

When this happens, a momentum known as “depth of groove” builds, and the joy and enjoyment build and build because you are in a flow, and you never have to “correct” where you are at in the trajectory of your dancing or foot tapping motions.

So, just like Stevie Wonder says in “Sir Duke”:

“But just because a record has a groove
Dont make it in the groove
But you can tell right away at letter ‘A’
When the people start to move”

The final judge is not me in this case. Of course it is good if I feel good about the music I am making, as no amount of whitewashing, accolades or praise will ever make me feel good if I feel that my music sucks.

You, the listener have to enjoy the music for me to be happy. And I’ll know by the twinkle in your eye, or the vibe “between the lines” of your email, or tone of your voice if it really turned you on.

So it is not about the money, the ego trip, the career; it is about the music being right. Whatever good follows that is gravy!

Say Goodbye to The Shiny Silver Disc

By Adam Rafferty 3 Comments

I recently did a new recording project here at my home studio and thought about “pressing” my CD. That’s what I’ve done since 1993 – recorded and pressed CD’s.

I can’t believe I sound like such an old fart here – but I finally got an iPod about 6 months ago. I have not bought a CD in what feels like at least a year. My Dad subscribes to Rhapsody and has not bought CD’s.

Just “google” the term “the future of cd’s” and you will see bleak articles. The day of the shiny silver disc is over I think.

Hmm…doesn’t seem like such a good idea to spend a lot of money pressing CD’s of my new music. A quote from Discmakers came in at around $2300 for 1000 CD’s with the tax, shipping and an extra $400 for them to do the design.

Now, as a working musician what can I sell on gigs? I have always sold CD’s as a main part of my tour income, not to mention online sales.

I also have an instructional DVD and 3 guitar books I have written, all of which are reproducible by any 13 year old on a computer.

What is it that I can offer that is unique: my performance! You still can’t copy that experience digitally, so step one is that our performances – i.e. the experience of having us there performing is special. But,merchandise has really helped supplement income at gigs.

Ok, I can also sell frisbees, t-shirts and mugs but that’s a lot to carry. I probably will get tees made, but whoa! I’ll have a lot of carrying in the airports!

I did see something extremely interesting the other day – a service that allows musicians to sell music downloads at gigs. WHAT? Yes – check it out.

https://discrevolt.com

You sell the fan an attractive physical card with a unique download code on it, and they can go home from your gig and download the music. I suspect we’ll see lots of variants on this soon.

Any thoughts? Let me know….