I don't know music. Not really. I like what I like, and sing at church. I can follow notes, up down,1/2 beat whole note, and stay on pitch if I can hear the notes, but I don't know the process of writing the music, lyrics, or playing an instrument. It takes dedication, skill, talent, and time. A lot of time. No one is born knowing anything but discomfort and content.
We have to learn to sit up, crawl, and walk. Even a very talented person would have to learn to do something like playing music, drawing, building, or even photography (I had to throw that in there, you know). I can not pick up a guitar and play a song even if I had the music in front of me. I can't sight read to sing a song, I have to hear it and follow along. When I picked up my camera for the first time I had to learn all the buttons if I wanted to actually learn how to use the most out of it. I had to learn how to edit. My photos were lacking and boring nothing more than snap shots. Even the ones that were "technically" OK, weren't what one would consider a great photo.
I respect musicians of all genres. I know there are some people that can pick up a microphone and belt out a beautiful note, but that's not what I'm talking about. This band, Pilgrimage, they are hard and they are loud. They have talent and skill. They have a presence. Trust me, I know, they are a difficult band to shoot. I have to work around people and invade some spaces because the audience loved them. They bring an energy to the room. All the good ones do. Last night all the bands had "something" to them. They had their friends, families, and fans. The bands cheered each other on. I looked out in to the audience and would see members from the other bands playing in front of the stage listening and encouraging. There was no competition, I didn't see anyone lean over making snide remarks about what so-n-so was doing wrong. Of coarse I couldn't hear them, but their body language showed support not judgement.
As I've said, the bands present last night had something, they all brought something to the table. True to the "season" it was love. Love of music, the audience, and each other. It's an amazing site to see. Go to a local show. You can see it there. The other band members aren't stashed away back stage like the internationally famous ones. They are in the mix, it's hard to tell who is who until they jump up on stage for their turn to shine.
Take a note from them. They look hard, maybe even "punkish", as if you would be afraid to run in to them in a dark alley, but they are people. Read that again, they are people. Just because someone has tattoos and piercings, or saggy jeans and a tough presence doesn't mean they are with out feeling. That they don't love. There was love there at the Preservation Hall last night. A love for music and each other.
Special thanks to Heavy Hitter and the Preservation Hall, and of coarse:
You rocked it.
No comments:
Post a Comment