tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-650160678722829210.post1408976428398633709..comments2024-03-23T13:46:21.790-05:00Comments on Street Musician Daniel: Run Aground AgainDaniel McKenna IIIhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04157964564856145960noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-650160678722829210.post-91939883674348160322013-11-07T16:16:05.861-06:002013-11-07T16:16:05.861-06:00I think it may be the anti-world you've been l...I think it may be the anti-world you've been living in, in a way. Everything almost opposite to the "right" way to doing things - gather food for free, get drunk (or at least buzzed) to work effectively (because to make money busking you have to feel the music and really be "diggin' it", success often equating to owning less stuff (less to carry) rather than more, etc etc etc. <br /><br />On the harps, yeah, the little things need a fair amount of maintenance. There are books and things online about how to maintain them, and professional players get into re-tuning reeds and doing all kinds of strange stuff. Most of it is just sheer "survival" in that, it sucks financially to get a new Marine Band and have it blow a reed the first day, which occasionally happens, and not be able to repair the thing. Most of the problems you're experiencing are due to food particles getting in, I'm sure. And that's easy. You need to buy Special-20's and Lee Oskars because they can be taken apart easily. And you need to get a small "camel hair" brush, and use that and some rubbing alcohol, or even vodka or something, to clean the reeds. Once you open a harp up, you'll see that those reeds are tiny, and just a tiny bit of hair or food can seize one up. <br /><br />In my case, remember I was playing the cornet. Well, I got discouraged because I was mostly just playing exercises and wasn't taking the time to play stuff for feeling and diggin' it. Plus the cornet I had had significant dents, two horrible re-soldered joints, and the final straw was when I learned about the compression test and that horn didn't have much compression. Kinda worn out. So I sold it, and went the last 8 months w/o a horn. Well, I saved up my money and have another cornet, a Yamaha also but actually an older model, and it's great. I got it from a shop called Hornucopia that specializes in brass instruments and well, you get what you pay for. And I paid, believe me, almost $700 for the thing but I can't believe how much better I play on it, even with an 8 month layoff. I mean wow. Maybe some breathing exercises I've been doing and riding my bike a lot has helped, but most of it's gotta be the horn. <br /><br />Now, the reason I like the cornet is, essentially it's a weapon of war. Cornets/trumpets originally were for doing military music and bugle calls etc. You can play one in a snowstorm, on the hottest day, etc it just doesn't matter. Someone pours a growler of beer over me while playing, I just laugh, swish my faithful horn around in the nearest fountain, and keep playing. There is *some* maintenance: Slides have to be kept moving smoothly and not allowed to freeze up, valves need to be oiled, and the whole thing given a bath (using a "snake" and various brushes to clean out the tubing) about once a month. But there's no issues with pads, strings, wood warping, none of that. The price paid is, that it's not considered that easy an instrument to play, and it does take a lot of work to get good. <br /><br />Alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13916394695449933164noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-650160678722829210.post-62673571252788750822013-11-07T15:42:47.634-06:002013-11-07T15:42:47.634-06:00Sub-Leslie? That only exists in the anti-world!Sub-Leslie? That only exists in the anti-world!Daniel McKenna IIIhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04157964564856145960noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-650160678722829210.post-87572695620222817982013-11-06T16:49:11.402-06:002013-11-06T16:49:11.402-06:00So .... your staggering from half-finished drink t...So .... your staggering from half-finished drink to half-finished drink and picking up cigarette butts etc has been living at the "sub-Leslie" level and now Leslie's going to try to elevate you. I hope he can. The thing is, if you really want a studio, and to be able to make CDs, and not sound like a croaking bum, you do need a place etc. <br /><br />Plus, looks like you're putting your self to the head of the line of skeezers for Leslie's gratuitous alcohol. Since, like Bender the robot, you seem to be alcohol-powered, this is a good thing. Alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13916394695449933164noreply@blogger.com