Untertitel (131)
0:02I couldn't possibly recognize that it
was going to be as important a moment
0:09But I knew that nothing else
along my life’s journey
0:13had affected me in that way.
0:14And that was it— I heard the lap steel
guitar and there was no turning back.
0:22What’s that light inside of you?
Is it a dream? A beat?
0:27A beautiful sound? A heartbreaking song?
0:30Whatever it is, we’re here
with working musicians
0:33to help you grow and share that gift
with this wild and wonderful world.
0:40The guitar. First of all, it's something
that you can carry around with you.
0:44I really, really love that about it,
0:46because I had a lot of feelings
about not belonging
0:50and trying to find my place in the world.
0:53So having the guitar as this very
travelable companion
0:59made a lot of sense to me.
1:00It accompanies the voice so well.
1:02So for me it was about the songwriting.
1:04It was about the singing and the guitar
was just the vehicle to do that.
1:09So, I don’t think the clarinet
would have worked for me.
1:12I started on, when everybody starts
their instrument in the 5th grade,
1:16I played the clarinet.
1:18I loved playing music with other people,
played the flute for a little while,
1:21and then eventually
moved on to the alto saxophone.
1:24I think I just wanted to try them all.
1:26But finally I wanted
to be in a symphony orchestra.
1:28So I had heard of the oboe.
1:30I didn't know anybody that played it.
1:32I went on YouTube and just watched
video after video
1:36and player after player
of this interesting instrument.
1:39I mean, the rest is history— I loved it.
1:42I am obviously an oboist and I've been
playing for probably 14 years now.
1:49I heard the lap steel played
when I was very young,
1:52and it was the sound that pulled me in in
a way that was a mystery that to this day
1:57I’ve been in pursuit of.
1:59It's always difficult to put words to what
and why an instrument pulls you in,
2:05that mystery is part
of what makes it special
2:07to the person playing that instrument.
2:10I have very clear memories
of music finding me.
2:14And I think as a as a child I was maybe
I was struggling sometimes
2:19and I needed to escape.
2:22And I had this shelter, which was music.
2:25Over the years— so as a very young child,
I played different instruments.
2:29I end up playing guitar and then bass,
2:32and for me it works really well
with my personality.
2:36Bass is more about sort of a combination
of rhythm and harmony.
2:40You have to love groove,
2:41and you have to sort of appreciate the
power of repeating a bassline basically.
2:46I always loved meditating,
2:48and I think from early age I found
playing bass somewhat like a meditation.
2:54First answer, real honest:
2:55I chose the piano because this girl I had
a crush on in 3rd grade played piano.
2:59So I was like, oh shoot, let’s go!
3:01I also fell in love with the piano,
so that worked out well.
3:06I was 8 or 9 when I started playing piano.
3:09I was 13 when I started telling people I
was going to be a songwriter for a living.
3:13And it never really stopped from there.
3:15I played alto saxophone for probably
10 years because I love jazz.
3:22There's a part of me that had to realize
you only have a certain
3:25amount of hours in a day,
3:26and if you're going to play something
and play it to a professional level,
3:30you gotta triage, right?
3:31So saxophone was awesome and I love it,
but it just wasn't doing it,
3:34you know what I mean?
3:35I think the piano is
a super power instrument
3:39because all of music theory
is laid out before you
3:42once you understand the piano.
3:44Now, I also play guitar.
It’s not as linear.
3:47I can bring theory structure to the guitar
because I understand it on piano first.
3:53I will give credit to one of my
first piano teachers.
3:56Her name is Florence.
3:57I would bring her a song and I'd say,
I want to learn this song.
4:00And she'd say, okay,
first try it on your own with your ears,
4:03and then come back and I’ll show you
what you should adjust.
4:06And so I fell in love
with the sheer process of
4:09realizing that all of these keys
in front of me mean something,
4:13and if I sat here long enough, I could
sound like people that I look up to.
4:19How did I get from a love of music
to the drums?
4:22I think that there’s
an element of patience
4:25that’s required in learning music.
4:27I think drumming didn't
inflame my lack of patience.
4:32I had plenty of opportunities to learn
piano and I felt disconnected from it.
4:37I had plenty of opportunities
to learn guitar—
4:40I felt totally intimidated by it.
4:42Drumming, it seemed to be
initially simple enough
4:50to where I felt an immediate shock
of power and excitement.
4:55And I didn’t feel intimidated
by the complexities.
4:59I felt a balance of gratification
and satisfaction
5:03that the fact that it gave me that
so quickly,
5:06it then kind of circumvented
my tendency to be impatient
5:11and unwilling to learn.
5:12I think when you pick an instrument,
5:14you shouldn't skip the part where
you think, what kind of person am I?
5:18Is this going to be a good
avenue to express myself?
5:23Or am I going to be just frustrated?
5:25If you need constant attention
5:27and you want to be in the front
of the band all the time,
5:32I think when you want to make that choice,
5:35let's say you want to get into a band
or you want to pick an instrument
5:39and there’s guitar and there’s bass
5:41and you want to decide which one
is right for you,
5:44you might want to consider
the element of rhythm,
5:47the sort of ability
to move a whole room of people,
5:52with playing a bass line.
5:54In the beginning, I just wasn't
really very passionate about it.
5:58Now, I pick up my guitar and I
can’t imagine doing anything else.
6:04It’s an outlet for me.
It’s like my form of self-expression.
6:07The same way I love art and photography,
6:10music is just another way for me
to express myself.
6:15There are guitars with nylon strings.
6:17There are guitars with steel strings,
all different shapes and sizes.
6:23Acoustic and electric guitar.
6:25They feel so different and you definitely
do have to cater your playing style to it.
6:31And I actually find that playing
acoustic transfers over to electric
6:35better than playing electric
transfers over to an acoustic guitar.
6:39Yeah, it’s an exciting venture,
the guitar.
6:42I mean, every time I pick it up,
I’m learning something.
6:44I’m still learning new things every day
and trying to improve myself.
6:50It’s the connection.
Music is a language.
6:53It's a way to connect.
6:55When you go to see shows,
see what moves you.
6:58If something touches you,
6:59you probably have something
within yourself that is similar.
7:03So what's your thing?
7:04You probably have your own special
thing to to bring as a performer.
7:08Sometimes it’s an energy thing,
7:10like you open doors
and the right thing will find you.
