The other day I was rehearsing with my band The Tallships. I am very fortunate to play with a couple of guys that have a pretty high skill level with their instruments and share the same vision of music that I do –namely that music is something to be explored and much can be found through expressive and explorative playing (which most/many call ‘jamming’ but I hate that term –it makes me think of endless noodling and instrumental wanking in a potsmoke filled room).
So we just jumped into some riff or groove –I can’t remember how it started but it turned into a 20 minute (or so) uh…’jam’ (ech) that was one of the most satisfying experiences I have had with music in a long time. It brought me back to the very reason I love music and always wanted to play it and always will continue to play.
After it finally wound down and came to an end it felt like we collectively took a journey into some far out places that cannot easily be explained. We all just kind of giggled when we were done- joyful but strangely vulnerable at the same time. I felt 15 again; encountering music for the first time; my passion for music was renewed and I felt cleansed. It really was a trip. Totally cosmic man. Totally.
During our ventures into the beyond, I was struck by how many things became so clear.
• Improvisation is a form of communication that goes beyond left-brain logical analysis and reaches deep into the right brain spiritual and creative components of our psyche.
What I found striking was how focusing on what I think I should play instead of just playing- would make me feel choked and frustrated. So I would just say “Screw it, I’m just going to play whatever and I don’t care”. Then I would find myself in a place where I would step back for a second and say, “Wow, that’s sounds freakin COOL!” If I would let the music draw out my playing instead of trying to force my playing into the music, the best stuff would happen.
• The greatest hindrance to creating good music in an improvisational situation is fear.
Fear that you are going to play something dumb, fear that you will make a mistake, fear you will play something the other guys will think is ridiculous. But it is when you take the risk, quit caring about playing something wrong and just go for it that good stuff starts to happen. There were a few times when we ended up in a place where I honestly had no clue how we got there.
• Trust is essential amongst the people you are playing with.
If you don’t believe that the other players believe in what you have to offer, that will stifle the creativity and consequently the music. A couple of times in the jam I felt stupid because I felt like something I played was stupid, but I knew to the guys is was no big deal so I had the confidence to keep reaching. The next thing I knew we would be in a totally different musical place and what I was thinking or worrying about was gone.
• The most important thing is to not think solely about yourself and what you are playing, but about what the others are doing and how you can contribute to it.
This really is the key. Improvisation is about GIVING-it’s about service- serving the music, serving the greater and bigger picture and serving your other band members.
Isn’t it true the best things in life happen when we are not thinking about ourselves, all caught up in our own little trips- whether it be in relationships, or music or wherever? When improvising, if you treat the music as a separate entity that you are giving to that’s when the magic happens. Get your eyes off yourself and onto the bigger picture. That’s when it really takes off.
GREAT. There are many parallels to draw here from music into real life – the art of living in a team, the freedom of synergy… my favorite point is trust. Never thought of that but probably the most important element.
Being in a band is like being in a marriage eh? Trust, vulnerability, etc.