Weaknesses Exposed

On Wednesday night, two of the double bassists that I play with in the NYCO were unable to make it to rehearsal. Well, in that kind of situation, your weaknesses are completely exposed. Essentially, I held my own. I still have much to work on and a lot to learn. Although, I learned very quickly how much I lean on the others in my section; mostly on when to come in after long rests. Counting is easy, but when the phrasing of orchestra is focusing on off-beats, it can throw you for a loop. Anyway, you have to be very focused when you're under-staffed, especially when your principal player is away.

Tiger Unleashed

Last night I finally received Apple's new OS Tiger for my ibook. It took a while to install but, I'm excited about what it can do. If you have a review on this, let me know.

Honda Civic commercial

Now, those who know me, know that I enjoy most things a capella. The "coolness" factor of being able to perform music without instruments is a feat. This commercial definitely qualifies as cool. Check it out. www.honda.co.uk/civic/ Oh, and make sure to WATCH the ad.

Bass Mute

One of the songs that we are performing for this coming concert with the North York Concert Orchestra requires a mute. I didn't realize that a mute could be used on a double bass in a performance setting, but I guess you learn something new every day. I decided to go cheap and painless with the common plastic mute that goes just around the strings inbetween the bridge and the tailpiece. My analysis, the word "mute" is loosely termed and should not be taken literally. All it does is dampen/take away the upper partials/harmonics. That's another story I should talk about later.

iLife '06

Last night, I received iLife '06 in the mail and I have yet to get my hands wet on all the apps. Being an convert since late 2004, I have been a strong advocate for apple. One of the apps that I can't wait to play with is Garage Band 3. Now, I never purchased iLife '05 and I wasn't very interested with the original Garage Band, but I was turned around by the easy use of pitch correction from this new version. Anyway, I'm curious to see what you think of iLife '06.

Here's a couple of
iLife '06 reviews

Speed Practice Notes

I was going over a couple of the more challenging passages of one of the pieces that I am going to perform as a member of the North York Concert Orchestra. I was told that the best way to get through fast/difficult passages is to slow everything down. Now, I've known about this for the longest time and have used this always. Go through it slow and once you are comfortable, pick up the speed. What I was not aware of until as of late, is that you must practice slowly but as if you were playing in real time. That is to say in a double bass setting, keep your bow strokes short and quick and keep both your hands moving quickly. I have always made the mistake of practicing slowly but with a technique that would not help me when the tempo picked up. I was always getting my hands used to playing long and heavy when practicing for speed. What I should have done was to practice "speed training". I'll get into this a little later. Anyway, you can always learn something new regardless of where you are in your playing.

NYCO Practice

Wednesday night was the first North York Concert Orchestra practice for the new year. It was great to see the group back together playing again. More importantly, seeing and hearing four double basses playing together in that setting was great. It is always nice to get back into things to rekindle your passion for playing and practicing.

Imogen Heap

I normally don't listen to electronic-styled music. But, because of the "Hide and Seek" arrangement by Transit, I began to look up stuff on Imogen Heap. I never heard much about her, but I'm becoming more intreagued with her stuff. Not my favourite stuff but her song writing is quite interesting. Anyway, it just turns out she's at the El Mocombo in Toronto. It's funny how one song can peak your interest.

Happy New Year

It's a new year and I'm finally back to Bloggin'. Just to start things off, a friend of mine brought this to my attention.
visit: www.transit-music.com
From what I know, they are an a capella group from North Carolina. They have an mp3 called "Hide and Seek" that is a must hear.

Take care and keep practicing.

Recording Report Last Night

Last week I wrote a bit about Caroling at St. Joseph's hospital. I met there a good guy who was looking for a bass player. Well, last night I helped him out and recorded a song that he had written. We, along with a few of his other friends, learned his song and laid down his tracks. I think I may have suprised a few people on how big my double bass was, but more shocking, how it could be easily squeezed into a tiny recording studio. All in all, everything went great and my new-found-friend was greatly pleased. The people that I worked with last night are great people and are great at their craft; I hope to work with them again in the near future.

Caroling @ St Joseph's

I'm glad this tradition has lasted 11 years.

Caroling at St. Joseph's hospital every Christmas has always been a fun time. Every year always brings out new people and creates a new choral sound. This time around for its 11th year stint we coincidently had 11 singers. The important thing is that we made a couple of people smile a little during this season. That, plus we had a good time singing, even if we only meet once a year.

Folk Choir Rehearsal

It's always good to take a look at something that you haven't worked on in a while just so that it gets the memory juices flowing. Last night was another Folk Choir Rehearsal before Christmas and it went very well. We took a look at one of the songs that we had worked on endlessly earlier this past spring. I find it funny how muscle memory works. We seemed to remember everything about the song and we stumbled through some of the stuff that we had difficulty with when we were learning the song. I found that when we were a little bit more relaxed, there were no problems; when people would tense up with the difficult parts, we would not hit those trouble notes. It is almost as if some of us built some mental walls and have unconsiously psyched themselves out with their abilites. We worked hard on this song for a long time but it seems we also worked hard at making the hard parts harder. Anyway, it sounded good, but it is always different when singing in front of people. Just relax and enjoy it.

Practice w/ NYCO

Wednesday night, I think I received one of the nicest complements in a while. During this last NYCO practice, we had the pleasure of playing with the lead double-bassist. On top of that, we had a small section session for the first part of the practice; double basses only. We got to pick apart some of our problem spots and worked through them. Most importantly, we learned how to better our technique; something that I can use a lot of work on. The sound that the lead-bassist could produce was hauntingly beautiful. It was so clean and clear and had such a rich attack that i could stop a charging rhino. Anyway, playing with him was a great experience. It wasn't until the end of practice as we were leaving that he asked me some questions about my playing. To is shock, he had discovered that I was basically self-taught. He continued to encourage all that I was doing and if I needed any help, that I could go and see him. To close, he said that, from what had heard, it sounded good. For me, hearing that I wasn't all that bad helped boost my confidence and I can't wait for another session. I could use the practice.

Folk Choir Practice Rehearsal

Last night, we had another Folk Choir Practice. This went really well. We went over an arrangement that I had been working on for a while and I must say that it is coming along nicely. It's always nice to see something like that and watch it come together so nicely. Anyway, there's still a lot of work to do before Christmas so I just hope people continue to practice. Also, at the end of practice, we tried to get through a very difficult song by memory. In all honesty, it moved very well. A couple of rough spots here and there but overall, not bad. I've been a strong advocate of trying to memorize music because I think once it is stored in your head, somehow, it can be recalled at will. Anyway, keep practicing.

Gig Recap

Yesterday afternoon, I had a small jazz gig in Scarborough. Lucky for me it was only 15 minutes from my pad. Anyway, it went well and everyone had a good time. I haven't played with Glen in a while so it was great that we got to play together again. That afternoon, I had the pleasure of playing with the first time, a new vocalist, Jennifer. I first met her at a wedding last year in Toronto and it just so happens she is married to a person I met a couple of years ago while I was working as an Assistant at Villagers. Anyway, she's a great person and a pleasure to work with.

It is always funny when playing with a new person. You always have to be on your toes listening for cues and such. Moreover, you have to really know your stuff and focused when the keys are changed around on different songs.

Wibijazz'n Saturday Night @ YorkU

NOTICE:
SATURDAY SATURDAY SATURDAY
The annual Super Special Winter Concert is coming up soon.
December 3rd @ 7:30
Check out their GIG section for more info.

Also, the 2005/2006 group pictures have finally been posted. Check them out under the SEE US menu.

Lastly Guys and Gals,
They have posted a brand new track in their HEAR US section of the website. It's a sneak peak at what to find on the upcoming album in January 2006.

OR
Visit www.wibijazzn.com

Rehearsal Synopsis

I Had my second rehearsal with the NYCO. Once again, I had a good time. I'm starting to feel a little more comfortable and I'm finding I am learning a lot, but there is still plenty to learn. The first half of the rehearsal was with the entire orchestra, which, in my opinion. Of course, my opinion is jaded because my instrument gets drowned out by every one else. After the break, the rehearsal was held in sections. This was a chance where the orchestra could fine tune everything in smaller groups. This was also a chance for me to feel more exposed and vulnerable as a double bassist. I felt timid and small but I learned where all my weaknesses and problems lay with what we were learning. It was a good practice and I just need to build my confidence. "Strong and wrong" as the saying goes.

Visit:
www.nyco.on.ca

Quote of the Week

"Management by objectives works if you first think through your objectives. Ninety percent of the time you haven't." - Peter F. Drucker

"Keep these three points in mind. One: There are lies, two: there are big lies, and three: there are Statistics. Ninety percent of people asked know this." - BassBassDude

Practice Last Night

I had finished a 4-part choral arrangement over the weekend and last night was the first time the choir looked at it. Overall, things went pretty well. I can't complain too much but when you put a lot of time and effort into something, you sometimes expect the same when you are trying to teach it. Such is not normally the case. Yes, I realize we're a bunch of friends that are just doing this for fun, but, I know that we can always get better. Last night, I had to tighten up sometimes with everything, but, that's okay. We only have a couple of weeks before we have to sing this piece, so a little push is not a bad thing. I just have to watch what I say, these are a good bunch of friends.

Lastly, wine does help take the edge off.

Retrocity: Friday December 9

Friday Dec. 9th, Club 279

Retrocity will be performing its biggest gig ever on Friday December 9th, 2005. They are playing Club 279 (at Yonge and Dundas, above the Hard Rock Café), and they want every single one of you there!

Doors at 9pm, performance at 9:30pm, cover $10

Here's a map for directions









visit:
www.retrocity.ca