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The pieces of Black Neoprene foam got delivered today & I have to say I'm impressed! NO SMELL & feels more durable than I expected!
This self-adhesive foam comes in 1/8", 1/4", 1/2" & 3/4" thickness - there's also rolls of narrower strips, pieces could be great for keeping shoulder rests from slipping around (my shoulder rest actually came with a choice to 2 different thickness to use on it).
I roughly cut 1 of the 4x4 squares down to the shape of my chinrest, cleaned my violin & stuck it on.
My piece is 1/2" thick, but still flexible & has a tiny bit of give if I push on it - it followed the slight contour of my chinrest nicely. I might've gotten by with a 1/4" thick piece, but I opted instead... TO REMOVE MY SHOULDER REST (I was feeling brave)!
I'm HAPPY 🤗 it let's me move freely AND let's me grip securely without squeezing!
Felt GREAT while practicing!
...we'll see if I still feel the same next week (I also have the Impressionist coming from Fiddlershop as backup). 😉
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Kinda geeked that I think I reached one of my goals! Probably not a topic for this blog, but it's exciting.
I wanted to understand, be able to identify, what it is that makes me so attracted to certain types of music. This means I also wanted to know how I could change or form music into more of what I like. Of course it's been a very slow process over the past 5 years... but I've pretty much run out of questions! 🤗🤗🤗
NOW, I FINALLY feel free to have some direction, to actually focus my explorations on more specific areas (instead of grabbing at everything). I'm looking forward to gaining more experience (using what I've learned), along with improving fiddling skills! Life issues still get in the way, as expected, but things are looking brighter.
...I don't need to jump into using DAW quite yet - still have a lot of 'hands on' stuff I want to do that just doesn't need it. I'm STILL in an exploring stage with my little 'toys' I've talked about here (SO MANY THINGS TO TRY!).
I'll have to start a new thread (when I have time) to share what I've learned about Modulating tunes! I've finally started 'doing it' (beyond relative scales), but it's time consuming rewriting tunes in my Notion Mobile app (I need to use a piano keyboard to deal with this). It's one thing to move a tune up or down an interval to a 'relative' key/mode, but completely different for me to change part of a tune to a parallel one, or different type of scale. I have to use the Modal Circle of Fifths Chart to see what accidentals I need to change, but I'd like to think about the blues scale, too. And, even though I've learned a lot about chords to use in these situations - I haven't done anything with chords in my notation app... yet (next big priority).
I definitely need to put a lot of time in, but I can only handle so much of one thing before I need a break for a bit, so still trying out new tunes!
I still haven't decided if I want all of that foam on my chinrest - or maybe only the half closest to me. I need to wait until my denture reline kit gets delivered (looks like another week away). ...haven't been able to stand wearing dentures this past year, so I'll have to see what's comfortable for holding my violin when I'm back wearing them for recording some fiddling.
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So, I composed my first melody on the 7th, but I needed time to make sure I felt it's worth playing & developing - or if it needed to get trashed. This started as my own personal challenge, triggered by a discussion at The Session. As some felt a melody should just 'appear' when inspired - in other words you shouldn't 'try' to make one... I disagreed. 😊 Figured it would also be a good opportunity to work with key changes to see if I could get the feeling of 'dialog', a conversation happening - wasn't trying for an Irish or Scottish type tune, just 'me'.
Thanks to ABitRusty, for encouraging me to use my notation app better (not quite all the way there yet), and AndrewH for helping me get my rhythm right - decided to share what I have, so far...
I haven't memorized playing it yet (very busy month), so this is just the PDF & MP3 from my notation app.
Have listened to it along with a few different syncopated rhythm loops (really liked 2 of them) - but I just want to play this for a while before I decide on chords, or accompaniment.
It's in 6/8, using Cmaj & Cm in the 'A' Part, Am in the 'B' Part. (edited) Rewrote it with a pickup today (been waffling on changing the date), tried some swing but decided against it (yes, I finally found the symbol for 'swing' I'd forgotten!). Had some fun trying an articulation (accented staccato) - and used double bar lines to help indicate key changes.
Of course my biggest mental deterrent to composing fiddle tunes... there's SO MANY OUT THERE - how can anything be new & original?
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Nice tune, @ELCBK I know you mentioned the date. I think you have July 15 instead of June, I wasn't going to mention it, but. you mentioned you changed it after an edit of it, so it must be important to you?
I could be wrong, ot wearing the correct glasses right now, 🤓
🐭
The Bumblebee Flies!
Please ignore any typos. My typing ability on a real typewriter did not transfer to these device key pads.
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@Mouse -
THANK YOU!
😳 Just for once, I'd like to NOT have to edit something! 😖
...will change it next time, maybe back to the original 07 Jun 2024. I didn't really change the melody, just made the time signature happy today.
The date is only important because I think it will be fun to see how I change it, or add to it over time.
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@ELCBK What I do with patterns is code it. 6/15/24_V1, 6/15/24_V2, 6/16/24_ V1, etc. Date, and the version number.
By the way, I added a link to the chat to steer people to your tune.
🐭
The Bumblebee Flies!
Please ignore any typos. My typing ability on a real typewriter did not transfer to these device key pads.
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@Mouse -
Thanx!
Bound to be more annoying things that need fixing...
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You are welcome. I also number that way because when saved, the new version does not overwrite the versions before when saving. This allows me to go back and start over with a previous version, if I have to.
🐭
The Bumblebee Flies!
Please ignore any typos. My typing ability on a real typewriter did not transfer to these device key pads.
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nice @elcbk ! like the snappy stacatto type parts!
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@ABitRusty -
Thank you!
I had never seen this particular articulation symbol before now - liked it because it seemed a little longer/more pronounced than regular staccato. Gives me a feeling I couldn't get by adding some swing.
I might be having too much fun... we'll see if I get sick of it. 🤣
Took a screenshot/video of my tune playing in the notation app tonight & edited it to half speed, so I could learn by playing along (without making a YT video).
Wasn't able to devote any practice time to it last week, so tonight was the 1st time I played thru the whole tune. idk... I'm trying to resist the urge to change the 'A' Part to just an 8 bar repeat - the last few bars in Cm (2nd time thru) kept trippin' me up.
I'll give it a couple days.
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ELCBK said
@ABitRusty -Thank you!
I had never seen this particular articulation symbol before now - liked it because it seemed a little longer/more pronounced than regular staccato. Gives me a feeling I couldn't get by adding some swing.
I might be having too much fun... we'll see if I get sick of it. 🤣
Took a screenshot/video of my tune playing in the notation app tonight & edited it to half speed, so I could learn by playing along (without making a YT video).
Wasn't able to devote any practice time to it last week, so tonight was the 1st time I played thru the whole tune. idk... I'm trying to resist the urge to change the 'A' Part to just an 8 bar repeat - the last few bars in Cm (2nd time thru) kept trippin' me up.
I'll give it a couple days.
Yeah Ive used them for different reasons and just experimenting like in the metronome thread i think it was.. maybe. You can combine them with the swing setting as well AND different midi instruments. It just depends on what youre wanting and something you have to experiment with to appreciate. And sometimes using the settings in a way that theyre not intended for gives the sound you want. Part of the reason its better to jump in with with this kinda stuff than take a long time learning exactly what everything means.
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Whew!
Felt MUCH better playing 'Wistful Thinking' today!
Can't really understand why the Cm stuff gave me grief yesterday. 🤔... come to think of it, not so sure I've ever played anything in Cm (before this).
Ah HA! Looked to see what tunes The Session had in Cm... they don't even have Cm as a key option you can search for! 😳 🤣
...still missed a couple of those fancy staccatos, though.
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ELCBK
Very cool tune, and a great name for the tune, had me thinking oh a small child skipping along in a field of flowers.
Great job.
Mark
Master the Frog and you have mastered the bow.
Albert Sammons
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@Mark -
Thank you for listening!
I'm really glad you felt something from it.
When I changed my tune so it starts with a pickup AND added the 'accented' staccatos, it made me take a closer look at a couple of things.
FIRST: made me realize WHY I wasn't feeling 'Am' in the 'A' Part! It's more obvious to me now, the 'A' Part is actually C MAJOR → to Cm, but looks to me like Am in the 'B' Part (going to edit Post #263).
Worth noting - these are 'parallel' key changes in the 'A' Part, then a 'relative' key change in the 'B' Part.
SECOND: don't know if it's 'proper' to use the accented staccato on the 2 & 5 the way I did, or if it possibly causes the feel of a meter change - but I definitely still feel the beat (pulse) on the 1 & 4. Feeling a 'flying' staccato at the very end (3 up-bow staccato in one bow stroke). ... made me read up on different types of staccato!
I want to show slurs, but still working out what I feel is the best bowing. And, if I end up with a little swing, I don't think it would be the whole tune.
May need to change something, like add a couple rests - so it feels like there's room to breathe (?)
I'm sure folks will eventually offer me advice. 😊
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ELCBK said
So, I composed my first melody on the 7th, but I needed time to make sure I felt it's worth playing & developing - or if it needed to get trashed. This started as my own personal challenge, triggered by a discussion at The Session. As some felt a melody should just 'appear' when inspired - in other words you shouldn't 'try' to make one... I disagreed. 😊 Figured it would also be a good opportunity to work with key changes to see if I could get the feeling of 'dialog', a conversation happening - wasn't trying for an Irish or Scottish type tune, just 'me'.Thanks to ABitRusty, for encouraging me to use my notation app better (not quite all the way there yet), and AndrewH for helping me get my rhythm right - decided to share what I have, so far...
I haven't memorized playing it yet (very busy month), so this is just the PDF & MP3 from my notation app.
Have listened to it along with a few different syncopated rhythm loops (really liked 2 of them) - but I just want to play this for a while before I decide on chords, or accompaniment.
It's in 6/8, using Cmaj & Cm in the 'A' Part, Am in the 'B' Part. (edited) Rewrote it with a pickup today (been waffling on changing the date), tried some swing but decided against it (yes, I finally found the symbol for 'swing' I'd forgotten!). Had some fun trying an articulation (accented staccato) - and used double bar lines to help indicate key changes.
Of course my biggest mental deterrent to composing fiddle tunes... there's SO MANY OUT THERE - how can anything be new & original?
Imagine if everyone had that mentality. We would have no new tunes. 
Great job Emily. I'm impressed. Keep it up. It feels like you're really enjoying the electric violin.
"The richest person is not the one who has the most,
but the one who needs the least."
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Sounds excellent to me, bang on in tune, has a spooky feel to it.
Wouldn't sound out of place as a TV theme for a costume drama, maybe Georgian, lovely rolling feeling to it.
Great playing no doubt about that, much applause:)
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@Fiddlerman , @stringy -
THANK YOU!
...but I can't take any credit for 'playing' Wistful Thinking, yet - just composing it!
Post #263:
I haven't memorized playing it yet (very busy month), so this is just the PDF & MP3 from my notation app.
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Whether it is you, or the App. The tune itself is extremely catchy and very neat. Take credit, you deserve it.
🐭
The Bumblebee Flies!
Please ignore any typos. My typing ability on a real typewriter did not transfer to these device key pads.
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I thought you had played it I know it is well within your skill to do it, but it doesn't matter in any case as I completely agree with Mouse about the composition, it is very catchy and I stand by what I said about TV theme, and it's general feel, as I said much applause.
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Could you post the sheet music on here for your composition, I have listened to it quite a few times and would like to try to play it with your permission. Not to post it anywhere but for the pleasure of playing it.
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