The Business of Busyness in the Great Mediocracy

Artistic taste is inscrutable.  I realize this isn't new information to most folks out there in BlogLand, but it really struck me yesterday as the missus and I were sitting about here at the Secret Underground Laboratory having our annual post-Christmas listen to the greatest hits of Buck Owens.  There was a time in my life when you wouldn't have caught me dead listening to the the Fabulous Bakersfield Sound of Buck Owens and the Buckaroos (or any other music performed by folks dressed up in pink satin cowboy suits) and I absolutely couldn't understand how cats like my dad would listen to this...stuff...and claim to like it.  Now, when I'm in the right mood, I think it's absolutely the bee's knees.  My dad would call that personal growth--me, I think it might be senility, though I have to admit that as I've grown older my tastes have grown vastly more eclectic, and any given day may find me listening to anything from Tuvan throat singing to Edgard Verese to Cheap Trick to that amazing absurdist pop group The Tool Factory Project.  Go figger...

That said, I still have a certain degree of difficulty understanding why people are so bat$#!t nuts about Amerikkan Idol or Britney Spears or why some folks would spend four hundred bucks to see Mick Jagger wave his chicken skin arms around, and I just recently got over my need to sanctimoniously disabuse people of their unwarranted admiration (in my eyes) of a certain guitarist once elevated to the status of diety by London graffitti artists...  But, God bless 'em all, the music bidness (and the arts in general) ain't a meritocracy and, while it may sometimes seem more like a mediocracy, people like what they like and that's just fine.  My dad is still convinced I could make a million bucks if I got into polka music.  Hell, he may even be right about that...

The fact is, there is probably a decent audience out there for just about any art (music, theater, poetry, blah, blah, blah) that is created or performed with sincerity and conviction (witness the works of Ed Wood, Merrell Fankhauser and Ernest Hemmingway), and the real challenge for any artist is how to find that audience.  I've been lucky enough to have found a small but faithful cadre of Usual Suspects that make it to a fair number of my shows and have purchased most of the music I've released, and I am tremendously grateful for their support (you know who you are!).  I'm also tickled pink every time I check my CD Baby account and discover that some cat in Germany or New Zealand or Japan or the UK has downloaded some of my music; and my excitement that someone I've never met or performed for has decided they dig what I do is only matched by my overwhelming surprise that they actually found my music in the first place.

This whole "digital revolution" is a thing to be celebrated in that just about anyone can make a record now without a huge amount of cash or a contract with Satan, and have it be available for more or less world wide distribution with the click of a mouse...but the downside of this whole "digital revolution" is that just about anyone can make a record now without a huge amount of cash or a contract with Satan, and have it be available for more or less world wide distribution with the click of a mouse.  There's just so darned much music out there and trying to get yourself noticed by anyone, much less the folks who may actually like it, is like trying to find the punch lines amidst the sea of pop cultural references in a Dennis Miller comedy routine.  Add to that the fact that more and more people expect to pay less and less for the hot and cold running music gushing from their computers like water from a faucet (unless, of course, it's Mick Jagger waving his chicken skin arms around--then they'll pony up the Big Bucks), and the idea of Actually Making a Living from creating original music makes my dad's idea of forming a polka band sound almost downright practical.  Almost...

So whaddyado?  Well, in my case, I've just decided to stay with the Business of Busyness, and keep playing the gigs--even if it's just for three or four people--sending out the emails, recording new bits of music and releasing them to the winds in hopes that someone who would be inclined to like them notices them amongst the plurality of independently produced music out there in the Great Mediocracy.   Every once in a while, I get lucky and I meet someone who really likes what I do, and they help me share it with other people, and that helps.  Every once in a while, I get involved in a Big Event like the Lute Summit and I get to feel like I'm making some real waves in the artistic world.  And, every once in a while, I find out that another cat from New Zealand has downloaded "The Original Fake Irish Pub Song" or "Bert the Dog" or "Honk" and that makes me smile in a mighty big way, and I imagine them telling their friends about this "mad geezer from the states who does these wicked cool songs about dogs and aliens and weird stuff like that", and I imagine their friends looking at them the way I look at my friends who are into Amerikkkkan Idol....

I can also ask those of you who are reading this to check out my stuff (see the little pictures to the left of this post). If you like it, spread the word. Tell your friends. Tell your enemies. Tell my dad, for heaven's sake! Every little bit helps both my ego and my wallet and keeping those two things full helps me keep doing what I do. 

Speaking of which...here's what's on tap for 2010 (assuming I avoid artistic burnout):

• At least one new lute CD and probably a remix and re-release of an old one (with some new tracks!)
• Probably two new Subterranean Philharmonic Orchestra CD's
• Another CD of songs (by which incarnation of myownself, I haven't decided yet)
• More collaborations with other musicians, including the return of The Atomic Panic!
• More gigs in new venues
• More variety in my Madhatter shows (did someone say "Is...THIS your card?!?")
• Possibly a few more Fest appearances, including some broadside singing by the lovely and talented Mrs. G
• Fewer references to Mick Jagger's chicken skin arms.

OK, that's enough for now.  Stay tuned to this channel for more essential news about...ME.  Until next time, be nice to everyone, eat your veggies, and don't sleep in the subway.

See you on the other side!

Rick

Playing Up and Playing Out: Twin Cities Lute Summit

One of my music teachers once said to me, "you must perform in public and you must perform often.  If you wait to perform until you are as good as your idols, you may never perform at all."  This was in response to a question I'd asked about when I would know that I was "good enough to perform in public."  His point was that, if one is driven to perform, one should perform and keep performing, and that performance drives one to become a better musician.  Playing Out is a healthy and good thing because it challenges you to put together a performance that meets at least someone's criteria (hopefully your own!) for good music. 

The truth of this advice has become apparent to me often in the past several years, most recently in relation to the Twin Cities Lute Summit, which took place this past Saturday (November 21) at Hamline University's Sundin Hall.  For this concert, I joined four other Twin Cities lutenists (Paul Berget, Rocky Mjos, Phil Rukavina, and Tom Walker) for an evening of Renaissance and Baroque lute music played by duos, trios and a quintet--something that isn't often seen.  The music was sublime, featuring works by Vallet, Weiss, Dowland and Vivaldi, among others, and the arrangements made the most of the instruments and personnel at hand.  Concertgoers were treated to lutes of a variety of shapes and sizes and tunings, from a tiny soprano lute to a giant theorbo--the heavy artillery of the lute world--and everything in between.  It was a fun concert in a great hall and I was pleased--and privileged--to participate.  For a glimpse at how the music sounded (and a brief interview about the concert), check out the following link at Minnesota Public Radio:  MPR: Lute Summit.  I consider the concert--the product--of our collective efforts to be a great success, and I feel that at least the majority of the audience felt so as well, but I'd like to comment (hopefully briefly) on the process of preparing for the concert and how it's affected me as a musician and performer. 

To be blunt, all four of these guys are better players than me, with years more experience, both with the instrument and in the idiom of ensemble lute performance.  This was, in fact, my first experience performing in a lute ensemble (unless you count the duet shows I've done with Phil Rukavina as ensemble performance), and some of the skills required to do so are different--or at least differently applied--from solo lute performance.  Oh, I've played in bands before--rock and roll bands, blues bands, brass ensembles--but performing in a lute ensemble is...different...from all of those experiences, in a way that's somewhat difficult to quantify.  It's not quite like chord comping in a guitar band, or like reading single-note lines in brass playing, but a little of both and not entirely all of either.  Huh?  Little bits of the melody or counterpoint flow through each part and then move on to another instrument, and each piece of music is a continual conversation in which everyone gets to speak and every voice is important, but the resulting gestalt is a single expression.  As a friend of mine said, it sort of sounds like five music boxes playing together in perfect synchronization, with each music box playing a portion of the whole.  It's a sound that makes Renaissance music--and Renaissance music played on the lute--distinct from just about any other style of music performance.  Listen to the link above--you'll get what I'm saying.

A concise explanation of why this was a challenging new experience for me notwithstanding, preparing for this performance was a big leap for me, and there were moments (OK, I'll be honest, entire weeks) when I questioned whether I was up to the task.  This was especially true after the first few rehearsals when it was clear that everyone else was getting this stuff and I wasn't.  I kept wondering when the other guys were going to say, "OK Rick, you gave it the college try, but you just ain't gonna make the cut."  I started saying things to myself like, "the concert is far more important than my ego, and if I gotta take a more limited role, I will," and wondered when I would be consigned to the role of roadie.  There were times, in fact, that I actually wished that somebody would kick me out of the group, because it would be easier than facing the shame of blowing the whole damned gig for everyone else...and all that other self-indulgent crap that people sometimes think when things get tough.

Obviously, I didn't get kicked out, nor did I quit, and I managed to make it through the whole concert without blowing the gig for everyone (myself included).  In fact, I'm pretty proud of how I played, and how I spoke, and how I interacted with the other guys that night, and I'm glad I stuck it out, because here's the Big Secret that I learned:  performing with people that are better or more experienced or more bold or more...whatever...than you are makes you want to be better yourself.  And once you want it, you start to work for it and, by golly, most of the time, you get it.   I don't want to sound like a football coach here, but it's a bona fide truth that Playing Up makes you a better musician.  And the beautiful thing about stretching out of your envelope is that it often makes the things that were within your original comfort zone just that much easier to do.  Can't keep us down on the farm once we've been to the Big City, I guess...or something like that.

So here's my little bit of advice, both to myself and to anyone out there who's interested:  Play Up: work with people who are better than you, change your paradigm (i.e., if you're a folkie, get into some funk; if you're a shredder, learn some jazz chords and just comp for a while; put down the cello and play some harmonica)--give yourself something to work toward.  And then, Play Out: take it to the streets and let somebody hear what you're doing.  I believe that music performance (and art in general, whether static or performance) is absolutely essential to Life As We Know It, and it's entirely possible that you might just have stumbled upon the Secret Chord Progression that will make everything all better for everyone. 

Or not...and that's OK too.

I'm done now.  Come see me play sometime and I'll promise not to talk your ear off.

Be excellent to yourself!

Rick

Upcoming Performances

Here's where I'll be playing during the month of December.  In most cases, there's no admission charge, but your generous donations to my Personal Starving Artiste's Fund are encouraged, and CD's will be available for purchase at all gigs.  Be sure to say howdy if you can make the scene!

Friday, December 4, 7:00 pm--Madhatter Coffee Cafe and Tea House, 945 W. 7th Street, St. Paul
An evening of lute music and poetry in a cozy art gallery setting.  Just the right thing to start the weekend.  Free admission, but a $10 donation is suggested. 

Saturday, December 5, 11:00 am--Tillie's Bean II, Corner of Franklin and Nicollet, Minneapolis
It's the grand opening of the new Tillies Bean coffee house in the old Acadia Cafe space.  I'll be joining a cast of tens to celebrate the event with all day music starting at 9:00 am.  My set will include a bunch of acoustic versions of tunes from The Tool Factory Project and Take the Stairs, as well as a couple of new compositions.  Vootie!!!

Saturday, December 5, 3-5 pm--Har Mar Mall, Snelling Ave and County Road B, St. Paul
I'll be providing festive atmospheric music on the lute and vihuela in the main hall.  Come for the shopping, stay for the music!

Sunday, December 6, 2:00 pm--Merriam Park Library, 1831 Marshall Ave, St. Paul
Join me for an afternoon of festive lute music and convivial poetry from the 16th-19th century.  Free admission.  

Sundey, December 13, 4:00 pm--Central Presbyterian Church, 500 Cedar St., St. Paul
It's Tuba Christmas--a room full of tubas, euphoniums and allied instruments playing Christmas music.  You ain't lived until you've heard "Carol of the Bells" on 100 tubas!  Free admission.

Friday, December 18, 4-6 pm--Har Mar Mall

Monday, December 21, 4-6 pm--Har Mar Mall

Wednesday, December 23, 7-9 pm--Har Mar Mall

Is This Thing On...?

I'm a very fortunate cat, and there ain't no denyin'.  I woke up today and no giant alien robots tried to play the old shell game with the houses on my street, hordes of radiation-mutated cephalopods didn't slime me with radioactive cephalopod goo when I went for my daily walk, the state of Minnesota didn't get sucked up into a massive sink hole, and, by golly, we still had plenty of Vietnamese cassia cinnamon for my morning oatmeal.  That's a pretty good start to anyone's day but, more to the point, I woke up this morning and I got to say, once again--like I have every morning for the past three-odd years--"I'm a musician.  This is what I do.  It's all good."

OK, I'm not gonna kid anyone here.  I'm not making what any sane person in the 21st century would consider a "living," financially speaking (though I am doing pretty well by early 19th century standards), but I've got a pretty darned good life, and I get to spend my time doing something that I think is pretty darned important, and that's a pretty darned good thing.  I reiterate: it's all good.

To illustrate, here's some of the stuff I got to do this past couple of weeks:
October 24--Presented a concert of lute music at Twin Cities Tai Chi studio as part of their "Beat the Winter Blues" seminar series.  Boffo concert for some very cool, very mellow people in a really live space.  Thanks, Ray!!!
October 31--Dressed like a pirate and handed out candy to the kiddies on Hallowe'en.  Okay, that has nothing to do with music--I just really like dressing like a pirate.  Arrrr!!!
November 1--Spent the afternoon wiring up an Orange Squeezer clone kit from the good folks at General Guitar Gadgets.  Amazing box.  Nice, squishy guitar tone goodness!
November 2--Rehearsed with the guys for the November 21 Lute Summit at Sundin Hall (see the "November and December Performances" post below for details).  Man, I like me some lute ensemble music.
November 3--Played lute music for the 25th anniversary reception at my old employer.  Yep, I got to go to the offices of my old employer, play lute music and see some old pals for my work today.  Who wouldn't like a job like that??

So where am I going with this?  Well, I just started with this Blogomat thing here, and I figured the inaugural post ought to set the tone for future posts to come.  I like being a musician.  I like making music, performing music, talking about music and whatnot, and I plan to shamelessly self-promote the doody out of myself with this blog, so I hope this microphone is on and you can hear me all the way back to the cheap seats (figuratively speaking, cuz...well...this is a blog and it doesn't talk and stuff, you know?), because there's lots more goofiness to come.   Welcome aboard--let me know what you think.

Oh...and be sure to check out the CD's I have available for purchase over on the left.  I'll blurb a bit about all five recordings in a future post, but in the meantime, you can click the pictures and go to CD Baby for info, sound samples and so on.

Until next time, eat your veggies, share your candy with others, and play nice!

Be excellent to yourselves!

r

November and December Performances (so far...)

Friday, November 6, 7:00pm
I'll be at the Madhatter Coffee Cafe and Tea House (945 West 7th Street in St. Paul) for my monthly First Friday performance.  For November's show I'll be playing some nice, mellow autumnal music for lute and vihuela and reading some poetry about fall, spooks and food.  The program starts at 7:00pm and there's no admission charged, but a $10 donation is suggested, and CD's of my music (lute and otherwise) will be available for purchase.

Saturday, November 21, 8:00pm
I'll be joining four of the best lutinators around for the Minnesota Guitar Society's Baroque and Renaissance Lute Summit at Sundin Hall (on the campus of Hamline University in St. Paul).   This is the Big One, cats and kittens, and if you see only one multi-lute show at Sundin Hall this year, this has got to be it.  For more detailed information, and to request tickets, check out the Guitar Society's web page at: http://www.mnguitar.org/

Friday, December 4, 7:00pm
For the December installment of First Fridays at the Madhatter, I'll be presenting a selection of festive tunes for lute (including some modern arrangements of holiday music) and reading convivial poetry from the 16th-18th century. And don't forget--music CD's make a great holiday gift!  

Sunday, December 6, 2:00pm
Join me at the Merriam Park library (1831 Marshall Avenue in St. Paul) for an afternoon of festive music for lute and vihuela da mano, a bit of historical banter about Renaissance music, and readings of poetry about food, drink and seasonal festivities.  No admission charged.  See the Merriam Park web page at: http://www.sppl.org/locations/merriampark.html