I got me a bit of a fiddle whoopin’ this past weekend, courtesy of Bay Area native and Nashville fiddler Megan Lynch.
A whoopin’ with love, that is.
Megan is a studio musician as well as half of the touring bluegrass duo of Bill Evans & Megan Lynch. Not only has she been playing fiddle for a reallllly long time, but she also has an amazing professional ear for vocal harmonies, arrangements, and all goodness that is bluegrass.
It was fun having her in our session this week, and all her criticisms were of the most constructive variety. She encouraged each of us to come out of our shells, and mirror our playing with the meanings of the lyrics.
For instance, I learned how to play the fiddle angrily. Up until Sunday night, I didn’t know or think that was possible. Most of us associate a fiddle with sad, happy, lively, or melancholy feelings.
But now, I can make my best wooden friend have some 'TUDE!
But perhaps the most important take-away lesson of the evening was that of a new (supposedly scientific) study that Megan shared with us.
As it turns out, humans can reach the most extreme state of pleasure via three different sources: harmony singing, childbirth, and, well, you can guess the last one.
We suddenly found ourselves possessing a very great responsibility.
In a relaxed venue with no pressure, we sat in a circle and deconstructed each vocal line to examine how close we were to attaining that perfect sound. It certainly wasn’t an easy task, but there was something so peaceful about us sitting on the floor for 30 minutes away from the chaos of the outside world -- just focusing on making pure and angelic sounds -- that I really had no desire to leave.
So with another month of practice and hard work, we very much hope to use our harmonies to get listeners to that euphoric state.
And if we don’t, then you still have two other options, but you’re on your own for those.
How many chick musicians does it take to change a light bulb?
No, seriously. Guess.
Answer: Four.
One fiddler to bend over and serve as a table, one bassist to unscrew the light cover, and one vocalist to hand the bulb to the bassist.
And we can’t forget the singer-songwriter in the other room to provide us with inspirational music during our trials.
This and other exciting bouts of randomness punctuated our first off-campus rehearsal session. Convening at Kristina’s apartment on a stormy Wednesday night, the gals of the band met to refine parts, solidify arrangements, and do some vocal work, all while making valuable time for asparagus, prosciutto, and Humboldt Fog breaks.
While it wasn’t the longest session we ever had, it was still one of the most important. Now that we’re getting closer to the performance date, rehearsals seem less about learning chord structures, lyrics, or melodies, but more about dynamics, tonal nuances, and subtle signals among bandmates.
And I think all of those variables are improved leaps and bounds when you really get to know your peeps. Whether it’s music or any other team venture, I’m convinced that hanging out together outside of your formal environment and/or meeting time does wonders for your overall goals. You can say what you’re feeling musically, try something new without wasting 'official' rehearsal time, and just learn how the others tick.
Not to mention you can get to sample some killer cheese and have free and enthusiastic help for home repairs.
Getting closer
As of this writing, performance day is in one month. Exactly.
Should I feel more prepared?
I feel that four of our songs are pretty much there. However, there are two others that we’ve barely touched, and we only have one or two rehearsals left until sound class.
Is it possible that we can still be ready in time? Will we have to shorten our set? Is this common with other bands, or is it just us?
Stay tuned to find out.
Take the Stage is a band performance workshop and project of Nell Robinson Music in partnership with the Freight & Salvage and the California Bluegrass Association. Please contact hilary@nellrobinsonmusic.com for more information or go to nellrobinsonmusic.com/tts.
