Yeah...so does anyone do this when they couldn't be bothered doing 'formal' practice, or is it just me being a lazy ne'er-do-well?
I've been through phases of practicing a solid one hour, two hours often more, running through tunes, stopping and going over phrases, and often trying to work out sets, for the hell of it.
But often, whilst cycling, running, driving home from work, the internal hi-fi system kicks in and new sets appear, so that upon arrival home, after a brief exchange of salutations, the machines are out of their cases, and I proceed to potter, ie mucking around with changes, or triplets, whatever..
But it's not structured practice, just pottering. Any other closet potterers?
Another one I meant ask the gang here. Has anyone tried taping their solo efforts, purely for self-assessment, or listened to ones'self practice solo through a small amp?
- good way to keep the ego down to a manageable size, that is pocket-sized, one you can take with you without fear of retrospective embarassment. Closet tapers, 'Out' yourselves now!
So there ye go - ye always get value for money from me - two discussion topics on the one thread.
So the tune to play today is Vincent Broderick's "The Midsummer's Night"
..is that the same as Lughnasa? (not the band, ye Egypt, the celebration of the celtic god Lug)..or is that later in the year?
Yep, I tape myself fairly regularly. And also listen to myself through an amp. It not only helps me be very clear about just how good I'm...not...and what progress I've made, but it also gives me ideas about where I could change a tune, add an ornament, whatever. Somehow I can't always hear those things when I'm playing. And you're absolutely right. It keeps the ego in check very nicely!
I'm getting to be more of a potterer than I was when I started. But the only way I see obvious progress is when I really put some solid practice time in. Every time I think, "eh, I can leave this alone for a bit" I pay for it and have to spend a few days getting back up to speed.
By the way, taking a break from mowing the lawn...er, weeds. No reading for me today
(Hi Chris!) I have to say that recently I haven't had much time to practise-practise -- it's almost all been pottering about. I'm waiting for the garage door to dry at the moment (or rather, the wood filler plugging up various holes and scrapes to dry), and then I need to sandpaper and paint the thing. That may happen tomorrow morning, depending on how much patience I have left (it's just going sunset soon, and the garage is on the west side of the house -- I'm running a short and hot fuse!).
George Keith told me last he was in Denver that his best bit of advice is to tape yourself practising, and then listen to it after a rest. Not only good to keep your ego downsized, but also a good way to see if the bit you thought sounded good really did, and if the bit you thought was bad was really all that horrible.
Saturdays -- they stopped being about leisure quite some time ago, I think. Heh.
Eeeech, I've been taping myself recently (singing) and it's quite tough to hear it back. That little Sony digital mike is great but it isn't very flattering... I hope...
However it certainly is useful. I recorded one song which is a great favourite of mine and was shocked to hear that it sounds quite robotic the way I sing it. I'm so focussed on the way it feels on the inside that I haven't really heard how it sounds from the outside. I guess that's the point of recording yourself, huh...
Definately a good idea.
And as for pottering... it's a shame they don't do a degree course in it, I would have got my MA easily by now, with gold stars. (I'm sure it's an Art). There's also the British(?) term 'faffing' which covers alot of the same ground. If they only had faffing in the Olympics, I'd have a stack of gold medals and a lucrative deal with Nike...
I have just started to tape myself and play through a small pignose amp.It certainly wakes you up to what your at.some of the stuff I thought I played well sounded very patchy and some of the patchy stuff sounded good .Keep practicing is your only man
"Pottering" is the only way I ever practice tunes. When I'm driving I listen to CD's, sing along to tunes, slow them down in my head, think about what my fingers and bow have to do to get the sound I hear in my head and then when I get home, out comes the fiddle and away I go. Or as I'm lying in bed trying to sleep, a tune will pop in my head and I think up new variations, and then I can just play it the next day when I wake up. It's the best way, in my opinion, because you're not stressed about not being able to do a certain thing while you're actually practicing - does this make any sense? In other words, figure it out in your head beforehand and then that takes all the frustration away. I also do my best tune practicing in front of the television or when I'm meant to be practicing something mundane and manditory for college.
I practice whenever I can... thats the joy of a whistle, snug in the pocket ready to spring into life.
I used to practiceI scales etc, when I played classical on the flute, which was a bit of a grind but did pay off.
I usually isolate the technical stuff in a tune and practice that...for instance "The Sweeps Hornipe" has plenty of arpeggios and triplets
I do record myself...all the time... I've even got a web page with recordings all over it. It's obviously partly an ego thing but it also has been a great help for my own development a sort of self teaching device which hopefully helps others too.
The recording process a great leveller. like when I hear my own voice on a recording, I cringe. It's similar with the whistle...that's a good enough reason for me to keep practicing,
I love it in a session when the tunes flow effortlessly...I reckon that takes quite a bit of past pottering by everyone
By the way are you the person who sang a song in "The Duke of Edinburgh" It was the night of the UEFA cup final Celtic v Porto? If it was, thanks, I was moved I hope to get up there soon...a very enjoyable session.
I potter every day! It's how I wind down after the dreaded day job. I regularly record myself. Not because of ego, but to see how I'm going with a tune/intonation etc. My early efforts were awful, but I kept them and even though I wince when I listen, I can see how much I've improved. GOOD for SELF ESTEEM when feeling useless.
Now I have a pick up on my fiddle and an effects pedal 'thing' that plays through a practise amp. Which is not ITM I know, but great fun to mess with. And sometimes I do something that I couldn't have quite heard or might not have noticed without. So I can add a little new edge or decoration to a tune.
Taping yourself can be frightening. If the mic's not good you can sound dreadful. And if the mic is good, you lose the excuse of not having a good mic...
but seriously - it's a good way of laying bare the deficiencies in your technique, particularly with regard to phrasing/timing, though it's not great for the ego (a trickle of cold sweat runs down his back as he realises that it must have sounded JUST like this at last nights session ... Dare he return?)
If you've never before recorded yourself practicing it's a big shock to the system when you first do it. It's then that the dreadful realisation sets in that that is how you really sound to others. However, all is not lost. I found the thing to do was to go back to basics, recording my slow scales, arpeggios, etc, concentrating on quality of tone and intonation, and getting that right before I started on recording my tune practice. It's the only way.
Trevor
I've been known to waste(?) entire days pottering around the house with a mandolin or whistle, perhaps picking up a guitar, mouth-organ or leaking melodeon, or sitting down at the piano now and again. The problem is, the tunes I enjoy playing the most are the ones I can already play. When I have the time to play at home, I can never remember the tunes I need to work on.
One of the great things about playing an instrument whist walking around the house is experiencing the different acoustic properties of different places. Sometimes you suddenly hit a sweet spot - usually in a doorway or narrow bit of corridor - where the instrument seems to have all the resonance of Montserrat Caballe's rib cage (I believe she has one in there somewhere).
Incidentally, is this Lug the same fellow (I use the term asexually) as Lud or Luth, that London is supposedly named after?
On the plus side of taping yourself, have you ever run across an old tape and thought, "Wow, who is that? Oh...that's me!"? Usually, it's followed by "How the hell have I gotten WORSE?".
There's the other experience of breaking out the recorder to grab a tune from a friend, only checking it first to make sure the tape is empty...revealing to the friend that you recorded yourself singing show tunes after a bottle and a half of red wine late one night while your wife was out of town. Not that I've ever had that experience...
Jerball, I have indeed had the 'how have I got WORSE?' experience. Been having it this week. I made some recordings once, a few years back, with a really beautiful
David - Lugh gave his name to several European place names, the only one I can remember offhand is Lugo, in Northern Spain, so London probably is also (I've got a feeling I *should* know this!) In the same way the River Danube is named after Danu (as is Tuath De Danann = people of Danu).
Pottering about.
Pottering about.
He- lloo-ohh...
.
.
.
.
.
Hello??...
.
.
Anyone there?
..it must be the silly season at 'the session'.
Or they're all watching Big Brother....
Or they're reading the new Harry Potter book...
..Ahh!...which reminds me, Pottering About.
Yeah...so does anyone do this when they couldn't be bothered doing 'formal' practice, or is it just me being a lazy ne'er-do-well?
I've been through phases of practicing a solid one hour, two hours often more, running through tunes, stopping and going over phrases, and often trying to work out sets, for the hell of it.
But often, whilst cycling, running, driving home from work, the internal hi-fi system kicks in and new sets appear, so that upon arrival home, after a brief exchange of salutations, the machines are out of their cases, and I proceed to potter, ie mucking around with changes, or triplets, whatever..
But it's not structured practice, just pottering. Any other closet potterers?
Another one I meant ask the gang here. Has anyone tried taping their solo efforts, purely for self-assessment, or listened to ones'self practice solo through a small amp?
- good way to keep the ego down to a manageable size, that is pocket-sized, one you can take with you without fear of retrospective embarassment. Closet tapers, 'Out' yourselves now!
So there ye go - ye always get value for money from me - two discussion topics on the one thread.
So the tune to play today is Vincent Broderick's "The Midsummer's Night"
..is that the same as Lughnasa? (not the band, ye Egypt, the celebration of the celtic god Lug)..or is that later in the year?
So, Happy Whatever,
Danny.
# Posted on June 21st 2003 by Rudall the time
Re: Pottering about.
Yep, I tape myself fairly regularly. And also listen to myself through an amp. It not only helps me be very clear about just how good I'm...not...and what progress I've made, but it also gives me ideas about where I could change a tune, add an ornament, whatever. Somehow I can't always hear those things when I'm playing. And you're absolutely right. It keeps the ego in check very nicely!
I'm getting to be more of a potterer than I was when I started. But the only way I see obvious progress is when I really put some solid practice time in. Every time I think, "eh, I can leave this alone for a bit" I pay for it and have to spend a few days getting back up to speed.
By the way, taking a break from mowing the lawn...er, weeds. No reading for me today
# Posted on June 21st 2003 by soft black stars
Re: Pottering about.
(Hi Chris!) I have to say that recently I haven't had much time to practise-practise -- it's almost all been pottering about. I'm waiting for the garage door to dry at the moment (or rather, the wood filler plugging up various holes and scrapes to dry), and then I need to sandpaper and paint the thing. That may happen tomorrow morning, depending on how much patience I have left (it's just going sunset soon, and the garage is on the west side of the house -- I'm running a short and hot fuse!).
George Keith told me last he was in Denver that his best bit of advice is to tape yourself practising, and then listen to it after a rest. Not only good to keep your ego downsized, but also a good way to see if the bit you thought sounded good really did, and if the bit you thought was bad was really all that horrible.
Saturdays -- they stopped being about leisure quite some time ago, I think. Heh.
zls
# Posted on June 21st 2003 by Zina Lee
Re: Pottering about.
Eeeech, I've been taping myself recently (singing) and it's quite tough to hear it back. That little Sony digital mike is great but it isn't very flattering... I hope...
However it certainly is useful. I recorded one song which is a great favourite of mine and was shocked to hear that it sounds quite robotic the way I sing it. I'm so focussed on the way it feels on the inside that I haven't really heard how it sounds from the outside. I guess that's the point of recording yourself, huh...
Definately a good idea.
And as for pottering... it's a shame they don't do a degree course in it, I would have got my MA easily by now, with gold stars. (I'm sure it's an Art). There's also the British(?) term 'faffing' which covers alot of the same ground. If they only had faffing in the Olympics, I'd have a stack of gold medals and a lucrative deal with Nike...
# Posted on June 21st 2003 by Nell
Re: Pottering about.
I have just started to tape myself and play through a small pignose amp.It certainly wakes you up to what your at.some of the stuff I thought I played well sounded very patchy and some of the patchy stuff sounded good .Keep practicing is your only man
# Posted on June 21st 2003 by Dphil
Re: Pottering about.
"Pottering" is the only way I ever practice tunes. When I'm driving I listen to CD's, sing along to tunes, slow them down in my head, think about what my fingers and bow have to do to get the sound I hear in my head and then when I get home, out comes the fiddle and away I go. Or as I'm lying in bed trying to sleep, a tune will pop in my head and I think up new variations, and then I can just play it the next day when I wake up. It's the best way, in my opinion, because you're not stressed about not being able to do a certain thing while you're actually practicing - does this make any sense? In other words, figure it out in your head beforehand and then that takes all the frustration away. I also do my best tune practicing in front of the television or when I'm meant to be practicing something mundane and manditory for college.
# Posted on June 21st 2003 by carafiddle
Re: Pottering about.
I practice whenever I can... thats the joy of a whistle, snug in the pocket ready to spring into life.
I used to practiceI scales etc, when I played classical on the flute, which was a bit of a grind but did pay off.
I usually isolate the technical stuff in a tune and practice that...for instance "The Sweeps Hornipe" has plenty of arpeggios and triplets
I do record myself...all the time... I've even got a web page with recordings all over it. It's obviously partly an ego thing but it also has been a great help for my own development a sort of self teaching device which hopefully helps others too.
The recording process a great leveller. like when I hear my own voice on a recording, I cringe. It's similar with the whistle...that's a good enough reason for me to keep practicing,
I love it in a session when the tunes flow effortlessly...I reckon that takes quite a bit of past pottering by everyone
Dave.
# Posted on June 21st 2003 by Twiz
Re: Pottering about.
Lughnasad, Lughnasa, Lunasa = third of the great Celtic fire festivals on the crossquarter days of the year - 1st august (nearest calendar date)
dave
# Posted on June 21st 2003 by Dawros Whistler
Re: Pottering about.
Dave, come on then - what's your URL?
# Posted on June 21st 2003 by Nell
... I meant Twiz Dave... unless you have a URL too, Dawros? Can we call you Davros? (Scary baddie from Dr Who, for non-Brits)
# Posted on June 21st 2003 by Nell
Re: Pottering about.
Helen,
I hope to get up there soon...a very enjoyable session.
It's http://www.whistleworkshop.co.uk
It might not be everyones cup of tea but I do my best.
By the way are you the person who sang a song in "The Duke of Edinburgh" It was the night of the UEFA cup final Celtic v Porto? If it was, thanks, I was moved
Dave.
# Posted on June 21st 2003 by Twiz
Re: Pottering about.
I potter every day! It's how I wind down after the dreaded day job. I regularly record myself. Not because of ego, but to see how I'm going with a tune/intonation etc. My early efforts were awful, but I kept them and even though I wince when I listen, I can see how much I've improved. GOOD for SELF ESTEEM when feeling useless.
Now I have a pick up on my fiddle and an effects pedal 'thing' that plays through a practise amp. Which is not ITM I know, but great fun to mess with. And sometimes I do something that I couldn't have quite heard or might not have noticed without. So I can add a little new edge or decoration to a tune.
# Posted on June 22nd 2003 by Fiiddle R
Re: Pottering about.
Taping yourself can be frightening. If the mic's not good you can sound dreadful. And if the mic is good, you lose the excuse of not having a good mic...
but seriously - it's a good way of laying bare the deficiencies in your technique, particularly with regard to phrasing/timing, though it's not great for the ego (a trickle of cold sweat runs down his back as he realises that it must have sounded JUST like this at last nights session ... Dare he return?)
# Posted on June 22nd 2003 by Ottery
Re: Pottering about.
If you've never before recorded yourself practicing it's a big shock to the system when you first do it. It's then that the dreadful realisation sets in that that is how you really sound to others. However, all is not lost. I found the thing to do was to go back to basics, recording my slow scales, arpeggios, etc, concentrating on quality of tone and intonation, and getting that right before I started on recording my tune practice. It's the only way.
Trevor
# Posted on June 22nd 2003 by Trevor Jennings
Re: Pottering about.
Hi Dave (Twiz)
# Posted on June 23rd 2003 by Nell
Re: Pottering about.
I've been known to waste(?) entire days pottering around the house with a mandolin or whistle, perhaps picking up a guitar, mouth-organ or leaking melodeon, or sitting down at the piano now and again. The problem is, the tunes I enjoy playing the most are the ones I can already play. When I have the time to play at home, I can never remember the tunes I need to work on.
One of the great things about playing an instrument whist walking around the house is experiencing the different acoustic properties of different places. Sometimes you suddenly hit a sweet spot - usually in a doorway or narrow bit of corridor - where the instrument seems to have all the resonance of Montserrat Caballe's rib cage (I believe she has one in there somewhere).
Incidentally, is this Lug the same fellow (I use the term asexually) as Lud or Luth, that London is supposedly named after?
# Posted on June 23rd 2003 by CreadurMawnOrganig
Re: Pottering about.
On the plus side of taping yourself, have you ever run across an old tape and thought, "Wow, who is that? Oh...that's me!"? Usually, it's followed by "How the hell have I gotten WORSE?".
There's the other experience of breaking out the recorder to grab a tune from a friend, only checking it first to make sure the tape is empty...revealing to the friend that you recorded yourself singing show tunes after a bottle and a half of red wine late one night while your wife was out of town. Not that I've ever had that experience...
# Posted on June 23rd 2003 by jerball
Re: Pottering about.
Jerball, I have indeed had the 'how have I got WORSE?' experience. Been having it this week. I made some recordings once, a few years back, with a really beautiful
# Posted on June 23rd 2003 by Nell
Re: Pottering about.
David - Lugh gave his name to several European place names, the only one I can remember offhand is Lugo, in Northern Spain, so London probably is also (I've got a feeling I *should* know this!) In the same way the River Danube is named after Danu (as is Tuath De Danann = people of Danu).
Danny.
(named after the biblical prophet!)
# Posted on June 23rd 2003 by Rudall the time
Re: Pottering about.
Ah yes, Daniel that well-known lion-tamer.
Trevor
# Posted on June 23rd 2003 by Trevor Jennings