Tuesday, May 15, 2018

What Did You Miss This Week? (Week 530 #574)

Joe took some time last night to remind folks to keep instruction to the band to the bare minimum. Going into elaborate arrangement details with a band is just not likely to stick. Give them key, groove, tempo, starting point (top or from the V)...then state the key a second time and count it off. Arrangement points you should be able to navigate through signals, or, if the song's extremely complicated, make sure the band has a chart well ahead of time.

Joe suggests you have that minimum information printed on a note card when you come up, so you don't forget what to say. Are you unsure how little to communicate for the band? Ask the B1 band to help you learn that.

Naturally this led also to a little discussion of how to successfully kick off a song. Learn to communicate tempo with some simple body motion as well as a firm, regular count off and you'll be well on your way to success. It is also good to consider starting from the V in many cases, so the band has a little time to gel and you get a feel for it and the key before you start singing.

Class Notes

  • No news this week! 


Misc.

EXHIBIT:
Amplified blues is being celebrated at the Chicago History Museum through August of 2019. Here's a great Reader article about the exhibit - When the blues electrified Chicago.

BOOK:
Always  Been a Rambler
G.B. Grayson and Henry Whitter were two of the most influential artists in the early days of country music. Songs they popularized--"Tom Dooley," "Little Maggie," "Handsome Molly," and "Nine Pound Hammer"--are still staples of traditional music. Although the duo sold tens of thousands of records during the 1920s, the details of their lives remain largely unknown.

Featuring never before published photographs and interviews with friends and relatives, this book chronicles for the first time the romantic intrigues and tragic deaths that marked their lives and explores the Southern Appalachian culture that shaped their music.

- Grant Kessler, B1 Blues Crew