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Earlier this week, someone posed the following question
on the online Clarinet Bulletin Board (The Clarinet BBoard ):
What was the first clarinet solo that you took to contest?
Now, I was never a music major, nor did I play one on TV, but I have begun
playing solo recently. So I began to respond, and then I kept responding,
and my answer turned into a blog:
My first solo experience happened last June, at the tender age of 53. This
was the first time I played in front of a paying audience. It was a
competition of sorts, as well: I competed with my stage fright and won!
The venue was Leslie Ball's Cabaret at the Southern Theater in Minneapolis
-- a Saturday midnight staple on the West Bank for the last thirteen years.
The audition was the easy part: You had to have been a Cabaret audience
member at least once before, to get the lay of the land. Then you had to be
willing to get up on stage and do anything you wanted for 5-7 minutes.
Well, I wanted to use my bass clarinet, an instrument I loved, to play some
of the music that I loved. I had been recently reunited with my tall, dark,
deep-voiced lover after a thirty-year separation. We had gotten reacquainted
in the relative safety and comfort of a community band, where we blended in
with the low brass. Now, we felt it was time to make a public statement
about our growing commitment.
I also wanted to explore new musical territory, and play some of the jazz,
and blues, and ballads, and classic rock that had gotten under my skin
during three decades of self-imposed bass clarinet celibacy. High school
and college band was fun -- I played bass drum during marching seasons and
bass clarinet during concert seasons. And I wore a kilt and played in the
pipe band at my Scottish-oriented college. But my musical consumption
during the next thirty years ran more toward the Doors, Willie Nelson,
Leonard Cohen, Tom Waits, and Thelonius Monk. Never learned guitar or piano
-- how could I possibly play any of this stuff?
Well, I bought some clarinet, voice, and piano sheet music, did some
transposing (via Finale software) and did some noodling around. Decided it
was time to go public, but wanted some additional musical voicing to add
texture and not be so exposed out there on the stage. So I recorded
"me and my shadow" playing the second line of some jazz duets.
For some other numbers, I used Finale as my piano accompanist and recorded
that. Burned a CD, bought a portable battery powered speaker (a Fender Amp
Can), and was ready to go.
The night of our public commitment ceremony, my BC lover and I sat off by
ourselves in the theater risers. We kept our arms wrapped around each
other, and frequently swapped spit to reassure each other (and to keep the
reed moist). Our turn came, and we stumbled down to the stage. As we set up
the stand, the music, the CD player, the Amp Can, and the wires, we were
given a very warm and calming introduction by Leslie, the gracious host and
MC.
We launched into our first number, "Well, You Needn't" by
Thelonius Monk. Tentative at first, we gained confidence, due to the steady
accompanying support of our own recorded voice. Got to the buildup and the
long series of syncopated eighth notes, and kind of lost track for a bit.
We were chagrined, but didn't think the audience noticed.
Then we passed out lyric sheets, and had the audience help us out with our
concluding number: Leonard Cohen / Jeff Buckley / Loudon Wainwright's
"Hallelujah." This is a piece that really moves me. With shared
breath and coordinated rhythm, my lover and I emoted this number along with
the audience (about 25 people, including 5 family members and friends).
All in all, it was a great night. My BC beauty and I got hooked on public
displays of affection, and have been back to Ball's Cabaret a half-dozen
more times, with more tunes and more elaborate equipment (including my
homemade BuskMobile!). We've played in a couple of
other venues as well. Recently we put together a demo CD and have been
shopping it around at local coffeehouses and restaurants.
Now, I'm not in it for the money, or the glory (good thing, too!). But I've
realized in the last couple of years that "I've got the music in me,
I've got the music in me, I've got the music in me!" And I'm having a
blast letting it out, exploring it, and sharing musical Good Vibrations
with anyone who'll listen!
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