Thursday, September 24, 2009

Banjo jamming for the win!

Ok, so I'm trying my hardest to get it all done, and for some reason, I think putting my poorly-made banjo video on my blog is more important than my Nursing Research class study objectives. (Doesn't that just sound boring...well it is.)
Oddly enough, when I try to look this video up on youtube, I can't find it. Other people can, strangers in fact, and I know this because one actually posted a very nice comment. Go figure.

So for all my fans (hi Mom, May, Hank, and maybe Lily (although she's busy at the hospital right now), here it is...

Saturday, September 19, 2009

You Got the Devil in Your Eyes (when you play the banjo) Case and Point-


I've been playing Liz's banjo almost every day. I take it off the wall when I get tired of reading a textbook, which unfortunately happens almost instantaneously. I take turns with all the instruments, like they are each a child of mine, but I admit that the mandolin and guitar would be a bit jealous of old Banjo these days if they could be.

I'm writing a tune that I really like to play, which never fails to amuse and amaze me. I mean, how can I be a creator of these rhythms and notes that sound so good and feel so wonderful to play? I really don't understand it, and that's probably the magic in music. But anyway, there are no words to this tune yet, and I don't know if there will ever be. Maybe I can get someone else to write them for me. I feel like my lyrics are always kind of, well, bad. Nothing poetic about them, and if I try to make them that way, one can tell they are forced or just really sappy.

Ever since I've had my MacBook, I've used the imovie program with the built-in microphone and camera to record myself playing. I now have 74 clips, and a total of about six hours of just me and an instrument. (Actually, there might be a couple clips of me dancing, and if anyone ever stole my computer I would be more worried about them watching those clips than them stealing my identity and ruining my credit- I guess they're kind of embarrassing.) But I love my music clips so much. The majority of these clips are nothing special, but than sometimes I will go back and watch them and it will be a song that I really like, or some little tune that I fiddled around with for a couple of days back at the start of college. I'm kind of thinking that it would be fun to share them, for anyone that was at all interested. But like I said, I've made them to help me remember songs that I make up, or when I just need a distraction from something.

So, if I figure it out, I will put up a clip of the new banjo song I'm working on... we shall see.
I also want to start recording songs for Owen and Billy and Shayla's baby to listen to. That would make me so happy. Problem for me is I don't have a lot of extra time and since I ain't a professional musician, nor do I have a good way to record myself, I think it will take quite a long time. But I'm not giving up on the idea.
No no, never!