The Silver Lined Tennis Shoes

The Silver Lined Tennis Shoes

      “We’ll be walking a lot on our field trip tomorrow” - says the 5^th grade teacher – “whatever you do, don’t forget your tennis shoes! “You won’t be able to participate in gym class if you don’t have your tennis shoes.” “Please bring an old pair of tennis shoes for the rafting trip.” We’ve all heard these phrases at least once, if not many times over.

      I mention the phrases listed above because they’re familiar to us. We can all identify with them. But… they have absolutely nothing to do with this story. The tennis shoes that I’m referring to belonged to Mickey Dora, one of the main characters in a book that I recently read titled “The Surf Sting” by Linda Cuy.

     Mickey and Linda traveled around the world several times in search of the best surfing waves, the best food, wine, parties, and lifestyles that they could possibly find. No!! They didn’t need comfortable tennis shoes because they had to walk a lot – c’mon man. They needed shoes so they could quickly, efficiently, and most importantly bust ass out of hotels and restaurants before being confronted with the bill, or even worse, by the law. It was a common enough occurrence that Linda got nervous when Mickey wore his tennis shoes to dinner, or to a party. She knew, that at some point, he was going to make a break for it. She had to be focused, and nimble on her feet. It was all about the shoes.  

      Behavior like this isn’t ethical; it’s mean, and selfish. But, in every story, including this one, there’s always a silver lining. The ‘Surf Sting” is an intense, but exciting book taking the reader through approximately 20 years of tennis shoe scams and so much more. Just reading about Mickey and Linda was exhausting at times – can’t imagine having lived their lives.

     Having said all of that, it makes perfect sense that the more I read; the more I struggled to identify redeeming qualities in these characters. What was to love about them? How did they move mankind forward? Well, the simple and short answer is the fact that they were absolutely lovable at times. I know that sounds complicated, but aren’t we all? You’ll just have to read the book to learn about their gentle and agreeable moments, of which there were at least a few.  

     What Mickey and Linda did was to have the gumption, the drive, the strong sense of adventure, and the unstoppable determination to never live in a box, to never settle for a comfort zone. They wanted to feel the most outer reaches of what it meant to be alive, to be human beings on earth. They never wanted to settle for what they viewed as a ho hum, or ordinary life. Of course, I would never ascribe to their life styles. But, what I would ascribe to is their desire to follow their hearts, to a fault in this case, but with no less commitment and passion. Mickey and Linda always went for bust, and that’s my take away, that’s my silver lining.

       Gaining a wider audience for my music in order to promote love, passion, grace, compassion, and goodwill is very important to me. 2018 will be the year that I wear my tennis shoes with an air of certainty, and with a freshly infused focus a la Mickey Dora. The way to include these characters in my life is to challenge myself to respectfully reject behaviors that are overly cautious, safe, ho hum, and hum drum. It’ll be more about choosing the more exiting, impactful, and powerful option when life presents it. It’ll be about busting the bubble of comfort, and welcoming in the challenges of which I will be aptly prepared for with my new found tennis shoes.

     So… if you see me attending an important business meeting with tennis shoes on, then laugh to yourself and say, “oh snap, Dave’s not joking today, he’s go his tennis shoes on, he’s chasing his dream, he’s ready to run, with a new found passion, commitment, and sense of adventure!” And so I hope you find a new pair of tennis shoes, and are able to have the confidence and commitment to seek out challenges that will cause you to grow in every way possible in order to feel the outer most reaches of what it means to be alive, and what it means to be a human being on this grand place, that we call earth.

Until Next Time, Surf It Mellow My Brothers and Sisters - the MD

The Surf Sting by Linda Cuy

The Surf Sting

By Linda Cuy

     Book reviews have never been a part of my blogs. But… that was all about to change, as I got further, and further into reading the “Surf Sting” by Linda Cuy. Thoughts, and comments filled my mind as I contemplated this fantastically intriguing, hair-raising tale of two men, a wonderfully spirited, and attractive young lady, and a cast of quirky, colorful characters that all played fascinating roles as the three main characters crisscrossed, traipsed, and circumvented the globe numerous times all the while running from the law, running from themselves, and running from each other. What a ride, what a read, what a story! Special thanks to my good friend Ira for recommending this book, otherwise, I would’ve missed out on meeting this extraordinary group of people. I would’ve missed out on being a part of their lives, their travels, and their journeys – thanks Ira

     

Synopsis

     The twists and turns of this true story began with Linda Cuy pursuing the illusive, and mysterious Mickey Dora with all of her heart, with all of her mind, and with all of her soul. Mickey was, and still is, revered as one of the greatest surfers to ever hit the waves of Malibu. He had movie star qualities, leading man looks, a magnetic, and engaging personality, classic cars, and a wardrobe that rivaled those of Hollywood’s finest fashionistas.

     The Surf Sting is a true account of Linda Cuy’s relationship between herself, Mickey Dora (da Cat), and Don Wilson (The Pirate Captain).  The story begins with Linda as a young teenager during the early 1960’s. Linda struggled to make sense of the lifestyles of Mickey and the Pirate Captain. Neither one of the men were interested in settling down, and they both needed quite a bit of money to support their ambitions which included world travel, full time surfing, and attending any, and all soirees that served only the finest of foods, and the most extravagant wines.

     Having spent her childhood in Southern California; Linda was a bit naïve, but yet quite curious about the lifestyle of Mickey, and his friends. The curiosity almost killed the cat, but not quite. She was about to be catapulted into an incredible new, and challenging world full of adventure, capers, stings, run ins with the law, seedy characters, frustrated FBI agents, rival girl friends, and a few heartfelt characters that saved her life.

Food For Thought

     The Surf Sting is a great read from the first to the last page. It’s characters are engaging, loveable, frustrating, smart, funny, compassionate, selfish, patronizing, mean at times, stingy, thrifty, wasteful, charitable, and giving. They were downright dishonest one minute, and good Samaritans the next.

     I must admit that there were times when I felt a little guilty for liking these characters. As I began to think about this dilemma I was reminded that we all have struggles in our lives. These three were determined to achieve a particular life style, but their journeys were not executed in a straight, neat and tidy manner.

     Their road to success was full of potholes, trap doors, unexpected twists, and turns, dark days, dark nights, depression, and sorrow. But, they also experienced great triumphs, unbelievable sunsets all across the globe that most of us will only dream of. They experienced great love lost, and great love gained. Their toes touched the tips of hell’s fire, while their bodies and souls were kissed by the halos of heaven.

Until Next Time, Surf It Mellow My Brothers and Sisters - The MD

Amazing Guitars: Renaissance to Rock

"Amazing Guitars: Renaissance to Rock"

           - is a brand new show that I’ve written, produced, and recently debuted to a wonderfully excited, and enthusiastic audience at the Turnage Theatre in Washington, NC.

This show has been a long time coming. My wife and I were extremely fortunate in being able to collect a handful of amazing instruments that were handmade by Lawrence K. Brown, a nationally recognized luthier. It all started back in 2004 when I became a doctoral student in classical guitar at Shenandoah Conservatory. Being at the intersection of being in school, and being able to obtain those instruments was fantastic. I was interested in teaching the history of the guitar at a college, or university someday, and was chomping at the bit to see how well these instruments would sound in a recording studio.

So… I set out to learn about the repertoire, performance practices, and history of each of these early instruments. The fact that I was able to hold, and play these instruments was absolutely invaluable. That doesn’t mean that I was comfortable with them. Holding these instruments was quite awkward for a very long time. The technique requires that you angle your hand such that your forefinger juts out almost straight as if you are pointing at someone while you hold your thumb back, moving your thumb and forefinger up, and down simultaneously, and in opposite directions – much like the motion of a flat pick that you use for guitar playing. It often felt like I was starting all over with these instruments in terms of learning how to obtain a consistently smooth, beautiful, and musical sound. As you can see below, I still haven't quite mastered the correct hand position - work in progress.

My interest, and momentum for these instruments began to wane after I graduated with my DMA in Classical Guitar in 2010. I was living in Los Angeles. I wasn’t teaching at a college, or a university. My career was moving in the direction of composing, recording, sound design, and touring with musicals. There were times during those years that I contemplated selling these period instruments. They just sat in cases. I didn’t like that.

But, thankfully, the story didn’t end there. It seemed like just as I was ready to write these instruments off, someone would ask me to use one of them on a recording leaving me to think that there might be a future for them somewhere down the road. I had also dreamed of being a side person/studio musician. In that case, the more instruments, and creativity that I could bring to the table the better!! So, I started experimenting with recording the instruments. I found it to be lots of fun, and quite satisfying. That was the beginning of me finding a way, a path, and a journey for these instruments to becoming a part of my everyday work.

There’s my everyday world, and then there’s the world out there – the one that’s much bigger than my own. So with that in mind, I took my instruments to my son’s high school music class. I showed the instruments to fellow musicians, and enthusiasts whenever possible. I made a point to learn something new about each one of them every time I demonstrated, or shared them. Even with all of that, it was still a really long time before I would become comfortable with them. I was working for the day when I could speak about them intelligently at length, and with a strong sense of passion, energy, purpose, and importance.

It became apparent to me that the only way to achieve this goal was to write, and produce a show involving all of these instruments, and to include fun, interesting, and informative facts, and anecdotes about the history of the guitar, its performers, builders, patrons, and roles in society.

My only shot at really accomplishing this was to manage by deadline. In other words, I would need to book the show, and commit to doing it in order to force myself to finish it. I finally saw my chance to commit to writing, and presenting this program through Linda Boyer – who runs the Beaufort County Traditional Music Association. I was attending her weekly bluegrass jams at the Turnage Theater in Washington, NC.

I asked Linda if she would mind if I presented my program after one of our weekly bluegrass jams. I was thinking that it would be something super low key, no pressure. She was definitely into the idea. Linda contacted me fairly soon after our conversation asking me to take a 7 pm time slot at the Turnage Theater here in Washington, NC. Another band was scheduled for 8 pm so I knew it would be a challenge with 9 instruments on guitar stands, a pedal board, and a music stand. In reflection, I now realize that this time constraint was in fact a blessing in disguise as it required that I be concise, succinct, interesting, funny, accurate, and inspiring all while covering hundreds of years of history all within a span of 45 minutes.

I was up for it, I did it, and I had a blast. It was much more satisfying, and fulfilling for myself, and for the audience than I ever could have imagined.

I hope that that performance marks the first of many more to come. I have my second show coming up on Oct. 26^th at 12 p.m. at Beaufort County Community College. It’s really exciting to think about how the show might evolve, and change over the coming years. I want to include other musicians in duets, with jams between polar opposite instruments. There is no limit to the production, and performance options for this show.

Interesting, and Fun Facts

Did you know that we don’t have an example of an early renaissance guitar? The guitar that you will see at my presentation was constructed from a picture on a book that was published in 1551! The renaissance guitar flourished most of all in France. Chances are that you’ve never seen a guitar like this up close, and personal. The Renaissance Guitar is on the right hand side of the picture below. 

Did you know that there are two instruments that go by the name of “Vihuela” (pronounced v-way-la)? The vihuela that I own is a reproduction from the renaissance period 1450-1600, and was popular in Spain. There is also a vihuela that originated in the mid 1800’s, is popular in Mexico, and is used in mariachi bands.

Did you know that Robert de Visee, one of the greatest French guitarists of the 17^th century played the guitar in the evenings at the bedside of Louis XIV?

If you’re interested in booking the show, need any music for television, movies, or corporate applications – or you just want to check in, then please e-mail me at thedavereynoldsproject@gmail.com. I'd love to work with you!

Special thanks to Tom Whelan for these fantastic photos, to Anna Radmall for editing, and a special thanks to Bruce Tillman for all of his unbelievable work with marketing, and promotional materials for all of our recordings, social media, performances, and our website!! 

Until next time – surf it mellow my brothers and sisters! – The MD

The "Zen Burglar"

June 6, 2015

Wow, what a cool place to write. I decided to take a stroll last week through old town Camarillo, CA. My wife was out of town, my daughter was at work, my son-in-law was working on his computer and my grandson was taking a nap – it seemed like a great time to get out and do some writing, take an adventure, and just get moving. I was looking for a place to have a meal, and a glass of wine that didn’t have a “chain” feel - a place where I could sit down and not feel like I was taking up a table, or being weird by writing on my laptop as a single at a two top in a restaurant. I was looking for a cool writer’s hang.

So, I proceeded to walk up and down Main Street at least four, if not five times - probably looked like a nut as I passed by the same people over and over, but I was on a mission. And besides, I know I’m a nut, so no worries there. Despite all of the walking, I struggled to find an establishment that fit the description of what I was looking for - then it came to me, seemingly out of nowhere. It was a very narrow restaurant with a somewhat clunky entrance - a bit understated to say the least. I had noticed it several times, but never stopped when suddenly it dawned on me – hey wait a minute, that’s exactly what I’m looking for! 

I decided to pop in and check out the “Sabores Peruvian Café.” Jackpot from the very beginning, I took one quick look around the room and noticed a warm, cozy feel, but more importantly, I saw my spot. It was as if that destination had been prepared for me all along. There it was in the back corner, a couch and a couple of big comfy chairs nestled against the back wall. The vibe was nothing short of super cool coffee shop – a writer’s hang. So, there I was, with my house cab, my laptop, sitting on a killer couch in the corner - ready to write!  

A quick side note – something that I just remembered about wine abbreviations. I was picking my wife up a few weeks ago from the LAX airport. I got there a little early because I was driving in from Vegas and didn’t want to be late. I was super early so I walked around the airport for a while when I finally decided to sit down somewhere and have a glass of wine. So, I made my way to a bar at the bottom of the international terminal, sat down and asked the bartender for a “cab.” He looked at me like I had two heads. I looked at him like he had three heads. We were both staring at each other and wondering what the problem was – what’s the communication breakdown here? I quickly refined my request and said, “Could I please have a house cab.” With a big smile on his face, the bartender laughed and explained that he had just moved to town from NYC. He was positive that I had asked for a taxicab. He was puzzled as to why I would seek to hail a cab from the bar. He was wondering if he had missed the memo on how cabs are hailed at LAX. It was really funny. I guess you had to be there. 

Anyway, back to the story. The title for this blog came to me a few nights ago when I was talking to my son and daughter about selling our house, which is currently on the market. We were talking about how safe our city streets are, and how incredibly safe our town is. Newbury Park is a great sleepy little town nestled in the Santa Monica Mountains. It’s reminiscent of Mayberry, Barney Fife and Sheriff Taylor. 

I was rehearsing my lines for what I would say to perspective buyers might they inquire about our safety rating. I blurted out something like “no one will ever rob, or steal your physical possessions in this town – the only thing that we have is the occasional “Zen Burglar.” That term just rolled off my tongue like water. It was really funny. I have no idea where it came from. I proceeded to describe the Zen burglar as someone that robs people of their joy, of their fun. The Zen Burglar places judgment on others without admitting, or remotely feeling like he’s judging anyone. The Zen Burglar worries about everyone but himself. He would say that he’s simply holding people responsible for themselves. He’s quick to point out others shortcomings when he hasn’t begun to deal with his own. He knows deep down inside that the root of his frustration has little to do with the people that he’s judging. He just hasn’t figured out how to “let it all go, how to just be comfortable with not having everything be exactly as he thinks it should be. The Zen Burglar has a bit of an ego, and he’s a bit controlling to say the least. The Zen Burglar has issues.  

So where does the Zen Burglar come from? Do you have a Zen Burglar in your house from time to time? Have you ever been a Zen Burglar? How does the Zen Burglar grow and manifest in the first place? Well, with me it was with thoughts like “man, my son should be doing this, or my son-in-law should be doing that, and my daughter should be doing this, or who didn’t do their dishes earlier today, which of you clowns slept late, who didn’t take out the trash? Of course, in reality, none of this stuff matters at ALL! Certainly not enough to live in a state of misery – not even close!

The real key here is to know and to act upon the fact that the more you let go of controlling others, the more control you’ll have over yourself. Do you have control over your own emotions, or does your sense of self-control come from controlling others? You might think that you’re at the top of your game when you’re controlling others, but your sense of self-control is actually zilch, 0, nada! You know what I’m talking about here my friend, can I get an AMEN! 

When I’m not careful I’ll walk into a perfectly balanced loving home and completely bring down the house in one fell swoop with just a few words like “who didn’t do their dishes, who left laundry in the dryer? It’s going to be rough for you guys when you can finally afford your own apartments!” What? Is dad home? The Zen Burglar didn’t just say that did he? Is that how he spent his day, and his drive home? I thought he was surfing, or working out, or composing, or meditating. Doesn’t he meditate on being calm and relaxed, or has he been stewing and festering again over whether or not the laundry was in the dryer all day – yeah… that’s what threw off his day – the laundry. The Zen Burglar’s at his best again. 

That sounds absolutely ridiculous, but that’s the way a lot of us roll – don’t deny it. It’s a lifetime of work for some of us to get to the point where we are able to keep ourselves centered, loving and supportive of others, especially our families. Sometimes I think my kids should have it as tough as I did, but then I realize that my wife and I have worked really hard in order to provide a better life for our kids and us. I should be rejoicing, dancing and thanking God that my wife and I can give them a better way then we had. So why don’t I? Because I have an ingrained extremely narrow vision of how life should be that’s inherently flawed. It’s a very restrictive, and small way of thinking. Why shouldn’t my kids have great success very early? Why shouldn’t they have great abundance? Why should I tell them they need to work harder and it won’t be easy and work your fingers to the bone and don’t expect anything in return and on and on and on... That’s not helpful, there are other ways – it’s the Zen Burglar tearing a hole in the universe – not cool. 

One more thing, its time for me to stop thinking that I created all of this goodness – there is a God after all. I’m not controlling anything despite what I think. It’s been incredibly illuminating through writing this blog to allow myself to step back and just live the life that I’ve been blessed with. I haven’t slept, felt more joy, or done much anything with more excitement and happiness then I have since I wrote this blog – thank you to whoever put that term Zen Burglar in my mind because it was meant for me to work through and for no one else. One more thing, here’s to once again regaining a beautiful sense of peace and love no matter where I am, who I’m with or what the circumstances are – it’s all good, it truly, truly is.

Until Next Time My Brothers and Sisters, Surf it Mellow – The MD

5/50

            I was recently privileged to teach guitar lessons to a very young girl named Andrea - she was five years old, and the youngest student, by far, that I’d ever worked with. I’ve taught a boatload of lessons in my day including working with musicians from primary grades through the college and university ranks, as well as serious pro players at Line 6, but never a five year old. I soon realized that my challenges were not only going to be in working with Andrea in terms of lesson planning etc., but she was quite small in stature. How would she hold her guitar? Where would she sit? What would she understand? Well, whatever was on my mind at the time didn’t really matter, the lesson was upon us – time to get going.  

A quick and easy option for me was to suggest that Andrea and I work out of a beginning level guitar book. That sounded like a fantastic idea – right? After all, we were standing at the front desk where the books were being displayed - brilliant. I leaned over, grabbed a book, and proceeded to show it to Andrea and her mother. They both looked at me with big bright eyes, expressing a mild degree of stress and confusion when Maria, Andrea’s mom exclaimed: “Andrea can’t read, she’s too young, (awkward pause). This book won’t work.” My jaw dropped. Brendon, who was working at the sales desk was equally surprised to hear about this challenge – he later told me that his jaw dropped upon hearing that our new student couldn’t read. I think I kept my cool on the outside, but I was equally, if not more stressed and confused, on the inside. I had never taught a student that couldn’t read. This was a first for me. I’m 50 years old for crying out loud, I should know how to handle this. I had to think fast. And so, with my head swirling about with a bunch of  “what should I do scenarios,” the three of us proceeded to walk, in a single file line, back to my teaching studio.

Improvising and navigating through different learning styles and abilities on the fly is one of my strengths. I love it. But, this was different. There are entire schools, researchers, and philosophies dedicated to teaching music to very young children. Only one problem, I’ve never studied any of them. I’ve heard of the Suzuki method, but other then that, nada, zippo, nothing. I had to think fast. Then it dawned on me. I had just viewed a Ted Talk featuring Victor Wooten in which he spoke of the natural resting place of music, where it comes from, what it is, and what it’s not.

I had already spent quite a bit of time reflecting on that Ted talk. I had also participated in a discussion on the topic at our Tuesday morning Line 6 guitar class. As it turned out, those ideas were going to be pivotal for this guitar lesson. I knew, at that moment that this lesson would have to be taught from my heart, not my mind. My standard go to academic approach would have to be shelved – kicked to the curb. Time to let it flow, let the joy of music, and the love for new adventures and challenges take root. Let them take their own path, their own timing. It was time to let myself go forward with confidence and joy. And so I did, for the first time in my life, proceed without a safety net, no map, no directions, no method book, just my heart and 50 years of life experience. I was a bit nervous, but ready and excited to move forward. I was in the same place as Andrea. Neither one of us had any idea of what to expect.

It takes about 30 seconds to walk from the front desk back to my teaching studio. Lucky for me, that’s all the time that I needed. Suddenly the words “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” flashed into my head. Andrea is the perfect age for that song. It had only been a week or two since Peg, one of my adult students had asked to learn songs to sing and play to her nieces and nephews. Twinkle Twinkle was the first song that we worked on so it was fresh on my mind.  

Andrea and her mom’s eyes both lit up like Christmas trees when I said that we’d be working on “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.” They were so excited. You’d think that they had won the musical lottery – that’s how much positive energy they exuded. In their minds and hearts they had won the musical lottery – so awesome to see and feel that energy. I pulled out a piece of paper and wrote down the first phrase of Twinkle Twinkle. I used tablature notation, and made sure to use large numbers. Tablature is a process for documenting guitar music that doesn’t require musicians to know how to read modern musical notation i.e. reading notes on the five line staff, or on the grand staff etc. I made a crude drawing of each of the six strings of the guitar and wrote down numbers indicating each fret where Andrea would need to place her fingers. The numbers alone don’t indicate rhythm, or right hand fingerings, but the melody is certainly there.

Although Andrea didn’t have any issues with the melody, there were still a few other important issues for us to work out. Andrea’s mom purchased a small guitar that Andrea could hold in her lap. They also brought in a very small chair from home that was comfortable. I have a feeling that Andrea spent more time on her moms lap then on her chair because she didn’t seem to be comfortable in her chair during our lessons. So, on her mom’s lap she sat!! No big deal because the fact is that something very unexpected and profound arose from their seating position. I was pleasantly surprised and happy to feel two times the energy, two times the joy and an overall incredible execution of musical expression that could only have come from two people, mother and daughter participating as one. Cool idea they that two of them came up with and musically and emotionally powerful to boot. I don’t think the outcome was in their minds when they decided to sit that way, but they sure felt it when Andrea performed.   

There was no way for me not to have fun and experience lots of joy when I was working with Andrea and her mom. I was transforming from being an academic to being a fun and happy person, musician and teacher. I never lost sight of Victor Wooten’s talk. I was not only in charge of making, or breaking this five year olds love for music, but for her love and respect for her future music teachers as well. It was a lot of responsibility on my shoulders to nurture her through her first experience with learning a musical instrument.

In terms of our lessons, we spent the first couple of weeks getting Andrea comfortable with reading tablature. By the third week she understood enough of the tablature to be able to play all of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. I made sure to sing every time she played so she could hear the lyrics and the melody in her head and feel them in her heart. I’m a horrible singer, but it got the job done. Kids that age don’t judge – Andrea seemed to enjoy my singing – it was all a part of expressing our joy together. We were singing, and playing guitars and laughing. I was beginning to understand and internalize what Victor Wooten spoke of in his Ted Talk.

We didn’t spend a single second on music theory, reading music, or interpreting time signatures. We didn’t work with a metronome. Although all of those skills and techniques are very important at some point in a musician’s development, it was not at all important to us. It was such a huge breakthrough for me. I’ve spent many years in academia. This was a great release and lesson for me on getting to the root, and to the heart of the music, learning to wade through all of the academic and music related minutia – I was learning how to use my heart – not just my mind.

My next great challenge was how to work with Andrea on rhythm and her emotional, and musical expression. I needed to do all of that without introducing any music theory. The first thing that came to my mind was “stall.” I needed some time to figure this out. Happy Birthday. Perfect, I’ll sketch that song out in Tablature and consider it a great way to continue working with Andrea on how to read tab and learn notes on the top three strings, not note names - just pitches, timbres and hand positions etc. I was also betting that she could sing the words and the melody to Happy Birthday in her sleep.

Great idea for sure, Andrea and her mom had a similar reaction to learning that song as they did with Twinkle Twinkle. I sketched out the first phrase to Happy Birthday and away we went. I was still gently nudging Andrea to memorize her songs. I flipped her music pages over periodically to test her memory. That seemed like a good idea but I noticed that Andrea was a bit taken back from time to time so I eventually stopped doing it. I knew that there wasn’t any real reason to have her memorize the songs if it made here anxious, or nervous. None of us wanted that so I stopped suggesting or pushing. We completed all of the phrases for Happy Birthday and Andrea was off and running with two songs!

Week four. Andrea came back and was eager and excited to play both songs for me while sitting in her moms lap. I took out the music for her and asked which song she would like to play first. Andrea looked at me with great confidence and said “I don’t need the music, please flip the page over.” She was basically saying, “I’ve go this, I don’t need any charts!” It was awesome. I was shocked and yet so happy and amazed. She proceeded to play the melodies for both Twinkle Twinkle and Happy Birthday and from memory – wow!!

Week five. So… now she had the melodies from memory, but what to do with the rhythm – hum? Then it came to me. “Hey Andrea,” I exclaimed. How about singing while you play? Why don’t you sing Twinkle Twinkle. Even better how about us singing together while you play the melody. Without hesitation she began to play and sing and I guess it was the singing that pulled the melody along because she played perfectly in time and with great expression– I was absolutely blown away and astounded. I guess it makes sense that her singing tied the whole thing together. She did the same thing with Happy Birthday. She couldn’t play the song on the guitar as a standalone exercise but when she added the singing then it all came together – incredible.

  There was one more important hurdle. Andrea was playing with a very hard attack. She was playing the notes in a very short, and rather rigid fashion. I wasn’t going to use those terms with her so I decided to ask Andrea to let the notes at the end of each phrase ring just a wee bit longer – let them breath and enjoy listening to them. I demonstrated on my guitar and she got it. I conducted a lot for Andrea and that seemed to help her stay on track with rhythm and emotion. I explained that Twinkle Twinkle Little Star is a lullaby and can be sung and played for babies. Andrea’s eyes lit up and she and her mom said that one of their family members was expecting a baby very soon. Andrea would play this song for the new baby. It was clear that Andrea now had a perfect understanding of the purposes of that song. I asked her to play and sing it as if the baby was in the room. She knocked it out of the park!! She had the correct notes, the correct rhythm and a great sense of musical expression. Someone in her family also had a birthday coming up. She was super excited to prepare Happy Birthday for that occasion.

It’s incredible to think that all of that learning and newfound love and affection for music arose, developed and came to full fruition in just over one month. I would have to say that it was a lifetime of preparation for me to get to point where I was emotionally, and spiritually ready as a teacher and musician to be able to work with Andrea in order to have us both learn so much about ourselves, the people around us and the reason why music is such an important part of our lives. Thanks to my students for showing me what’s really important!!    

Victor Wooten’s Ted Talk – Don’t Miss This!!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zvjW9arAZ0

Until next time – surf it mellow my brothers and sisters! – The MD