Re: Sloppyness (was: Re: Hiromi)

["Tony K" <bigtony@softhome.net>]

> As an aside to this already off-topic thread, one of my complaints with 
> something like a Berklee / GIT education is that they drill the mistakes 
> right out of you. A side effect of this is that people are left with 
>only 
> their imagination to rely on, as they rarely have need to recover from 
> mistakes, which is often some of the most inventive playing, IMO.
>

I had a friend when I was learning to play who told me if I made a 
mistake, 
just repeat it and everybody will think I did it on purpose. ;)

Wasn't it Miles Davis who said that if you aren't making mistakes, you 
aren't playing Jazz?

I do agree that there is a lot to be said for how you recover from a 
mistake 
and how you learn from them.  So much of what I've been doing lately is 
complete improv which seems rooted in exploration and exploitation of 
mistakes!

Tony

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Chris Muir" <cbm@well.com>
To: <Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com>
Sent: Wednesday, June 21, 2006 2:19 PM
Subject: RE: Sloppyness (was: Re: Hiromi)


> At 1:33 PM -0400 6/21/06, Dean, Hal  wrote:
>>Call me a nitpicker on semantics, but I'd say the Hendrix Experience was
>>LOOSE, not sloppy. There's a world of difference. A loose outfit may be
>>communicating on a higher plane, while sloppiness is often a sign of the
>>opposite - inattention to the moment.
>
> I think that sloppy and/or loose playing can also come from trying 
>things 
> that are on the edge of your ability to pull off. I really enjoy this.
>
> One of my favorite guitarists is Phil Miller (Matching Mole, Hatfield 
>and 
> the North, National Health, etc.). In many of his solos he is reaching 
>for 
> _that_ note or phrase, and barely makes it, which can come across as a 
> little sloppy. I would rather listen to someone like Phill Miller 
>grasping 
> for thing, than most other guitarists playing it safe.
>
> ---
>
> As an aside to this already off-topic thread, one of my complaints with 
> something like a Berklee / GIT education is that they drill the mistakes 
> right out of you. A side effect of this is that people are left with 
>only 
> their imagination to rely on, as they rarely have need to recover from 
> mistakes, which is often some of the most inventive playing, IMO.
>
> -C
>
> -- 
> Chris Muir           | "There are many futures and only one status quo.
> cbm@well.com         |  This is why conservatives mostly agree,
> http://www.xfade.com |  and radicals always argue." - Brian Eno
>