On Paths and Dreams
For a long time now I've known what I like and dislike. I'll be 52 this year and I'm pretty aware of how I want to spend the rest of my time on this planet, however long that is. If I live to be my father's age, who'll turn 78 next week, then this is my last 1/3. Then again my mom was 74 when she passed, with a lot of unrealized dreams and wishes. But enough about that.
The point I'm trying to make is that I'm lucky. From a very young age I've known what I wanted to. Music! The thing is, that for many reasons I'd sidetrack myself, be it because of relationships, or just laziness and a lack of a proper work ethic. To be a good musician you really have to make an effort. I've cut corners. I've stopped and started.
So, here I am, 2020. It's pretty clear to me that I want to compose, play and write. It's what I find the most fulfilling. There's really nothing stopping me. Now it's easier than it's ever been. I have to stop thinking if anyone will care about my output and just do it.
My guitar playing has gotten measurably better in the past weeks because I've been working consistently on my picking and muscle memory is starting to do its work. My alternate picking across strings has improved, the fluidity of my one string lines to. I have to work hard on chords and inversions. Another area I need to improve significantly is theory. Go deeper into harmony and composition, terminology. And finally, I must also improve my work on DAW's. I currently use Logic, but I should be able to work on Pro-Tools also. After all, I've taken a course on the basics of it with over 20 hours of hands-on work. I have songs, I have my workstation, I have equipment.
Now, I have to get my voice and guitar playing as smooth as possible to record them. Which, now that I think about it, I've been working on guitar technique but so much on vocal technique. Time to get to it.
Early March is my target date for putting out my next acoustic album. It's been a while.
The point I'm trying to make is that I'm lucky. From a very young age I've known what I wanted to. Music! The thing is, that for many reasons I'd sidetrack myself, be it because of relationships, or just laziness and a lack of a proper work ethic. To be a good musician you really have to make an effort. I've cut corners. I've stopped and started.
So, here I am, 2020. It's pretty clear to me that I want to compose, play and write. It's what I find the most fulfilling. There's really nothing stopping me. Now it's easier than it's ever been. I have to stop thinking if anyone will care about my output and just do it.
My guitar playing has gotten measurably better in the past weeks because I've been working consistently on my picking and muscle memory is starting to do its work. My alternate picking across strings has improved, the fluidity of my one string lines to. I have to work hard on chords and inversions. Another area I need to improve significantly is theory. Go deeper into harmony and composition, terminology. And finally, I must also improve my work on DAW's. I currently use Logic, but I should be able to work on Pro-Tools also. After all, I've taken a course on the basics of it with over 20 hours of hands-on work. I have songs, I have my workstation, I have equipment.
Now, I have to get my voice and guitar playing as smooth as possible to record them. Which, now that I think about it, I've been working on guitar technique but so much on vocal technique. Time to get to it.
Early March is my target date for putting out my next acoustic album. It's been a while.
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