I have a good friend who is an extremely talented musician and artist who used to work at the Evil Guitar Center. One of the reasons we jokingly called it that is because of the intrusive sounds that offensive guitarists would impose involuntarily upon the ears. It must have been particularly intense for him working a full shift while trying to block out the distorted clichéd chords and songs that we’ve all experienced too often.
Guitarists in particular tend to be an extraverted, showy, and proud breed of musicians with an internal burning need to convey their talent to the world. This is gross generalization I know, but we all know that there’s truth in it. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that you shouldn’t be proud of what you play and how you play it. Nor am I saying that you should be timid and hesitant as a musician or artist. However, I do know that it’s as guitarists, musicians, artists, and humans, that it’s difficult for us to simply slow down and to be sensitive to our surroundings.
Years ago I used to play in a band with several friends of mine. We practiced regularly, played out, and enjoyed creating and connecting with others. Our bass player, whose main instrument was guitar, was a little different but extremely talented. We all knew it but didn’t really talk about it. During one of our first song writing sessions we got about three quarters of the way through the song and got stuck, struggling for direction. Several of us stepped up and voiced our opinions on how we should collaboratively proceed. Our bass player said, “why don’t we turn the lights out?” After the skeptically leery looks and doubt dissipated from the room, we figured, why not? We ensued and ended up creating some pretty amazing musical parts that were both cohesive and pure. In that moment I was really taken with our bass player’s suggestion. Not only was it a creative and fresh approach to our obstacle, but essentially he was encouraging us to strip away our visual crutches and really just listen. His suggestion was brilliant, and hit the mark of what we should always be striving for as artists…to be sensitive to our surroundings, to listen and allow emotion to direct you, and to ultimately cultivate a space so that what wants to emerge can.
My desire is to be more like the instrument than the player, to let the music use me, and in order for that to happen I have to be in a place of humility. If I’m sensitive to the music, listening acutely to my emotions then I can yield to all else. At that moment I am then ready for what the music wants to say through me. The better I can refine this process the more pure the emotion, and ultimately the better I will be able to connect with others through the art and/or music. I think of the British Romantic Poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge and The Eolian Harp when he says
“Be but organic Harps diversely fram’d,
That tremble into thought, as o’er them sweeps
Plastic and vast, one intellectual breeze,
At once the Soul of each, and God of all?”
To me, this paints a beautiful picture of a harp that is being played gently by the breeze. I want to be that harp, allowing the music and art to be the intellectual breeze that plays and directs, and allows for genuine creativity, ultimately making authentic connections with others. Duke Ellington may have said it best when he said, “the most important thing I look for in a musician is whether he knows how to listen”.
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Rick McDonough is a very talented guitar player/solo musician who has also worked as a producer and engineer. His current projects include:
Eymard,
Hidden From Blackout,
While Rome Is Burning,
Struck Last May, and
Paravell.
Tags: inspiration, expression, listening, rick mcdonough