Musical Updates
For much of the year, and into last year, I have been (was) taking music lessons. First voice lessons and then piano lessons. Of the two, the voice lessons have been more successful. However, those ended in the spring when my instructor moved away and I’ve not resumed them with a new instructor - at least not yet.
I still have three piano lessons scheduled this month, but may put them on hiatus as well to let some other things calm down (mostly some house rearranging and minor remolding - replacing the flooring in two rooms as part of the rearrangement). Hopefully, once rearranged I’ll be able to set up the keyboard in my new office without it taking up the whole room and may feel like I can practice and resume lessons.
But, overall, I’m thinking that singing is my strength. So, that is what I should focus on. I will need to go back to the songs I worked on when I had voice lessons and try them again - recording them and listening back so that I can be sure I’m still on key, pitch, etc.
But, I’d also like to expand my {word I cannot spell well enough to fix with spell check, that means list of works one is able to perform}. I’ve got a few songs that I have lyrics and accompaniment tracks for that I could work on. Obviously, most of these are mainstream songs - although thanks to a program that does an OK job at stripping vocals from sufficiently complex tracks (it fails miserably if the track is essentially mono) I have a couple of filk standards (“Mal’s Song” and “Hope Eyrie”) available.
However, I’m running into an odd problem. Having only recently discovered it, I’m finding Stan Rogers’ “White Squall” a very inviting song to learn to sing. [It is a bit odd to think that someone from New Mexico enjoys songs about The Great Lakes, many of which are disaster songs - fictional or non-fictional. On the other hand, I spent many years in the Chicago area, and my dad’s family comes from Grand Haven, Michigan]. But, karaoke-version.com doesn’t have a version. Nor have I turned any up in my other searches. And, I cannot strip the version I (currently) have because it is from Apple Music making it a DRMed AA3 and the program needs a non-DRM MP3 to work.
Another thing I’m thinking I should try a bit is song writing. One idea I have is to take my grandfather’s story about an ancestor who ended up working in Chicago (or Milwaukee) as an operating engineer for a hotel boiler; but would periodically swap jobs with a friend who worked a steamer crossing to Grand Haven. This song would fit well with “White Squall” and “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” (another song I’m tempted to learn).
One other thing that I’m still tempted to do is pick up and learn (or refine to correct skills) a cajon and/or other hand drum. At least short-term, I think if (when) I start spending more time in filk circles these might be useful instruments. Longer run, these might also become what I’d be likely to use should I end up doing more formal performances; relying on either accompaniment tracks or (preferred) someone else providing accompaniment.