House Concert

Lauren and I played a show last night at the Black Sheep Ranch in Clinton, CT, hosted by Andrew and Suzanne Wallach. Also playing that night was Sarah Blacker from Cambridge, MA.

I'll be honest with you, I had no idea what to expect. But coming away from the show, I have a whole new respect for well organized house concerts. There were about 30 people there, all for the single purpose of listening to the music. Because it's still cold out, we played in the living room, so it was very cozy. I actually sat on the edge of the couch while I played, so it was a lot like playing at home minus the flannel pants. We go back in July to play outside, where they say there are sometimes 50+ people filling their backyard.

Lauren sold some of her CDs, a lot of people were interested in both performers upcoming releases, signed their mailing lists, etc. Some of the guys there even noticed some of the nerdy music stuff I do when I accompany Lauren, something that doesn't usually happen. It's always kind of fun to geek out with somebody about the lack of well placed voice leading in a guitar accompaniment.

If you know of similar house concert series around you, or you live close to the Black Sheep Ranch, I suggest checking them out.

Music Mileage

I spent a great deal of last weekend writing an article for MusicianWages.com. It felt like it was sucking the life out of me because the whole time I was trying to find the right words, I felt like I should have been playing guitar. The article is really just about getting to work. Tackling those things that seem impossible, or finally doing the small, simple tasks that you put off just because they take time.

I used to be a competitive distance runner, and sometimes getting up at 5 to get an extra few miles in before class seemed like a waste of energy, but no matter how bad I felt on the run, I knew I was getting better than the guys that were sleeping in. It's not always about running faster than the competition, it's about running more. As long as you're putting in the miles, you'll see results.