Welcome to our forum. A Message To Our New and Prospective Members . Check out our Forum Rules. Lets keep this forum an enjoyable place to visit.

Currently working on errors from the latest (SimplePress) forum update. Many issues have been resoled and others are being worked on. Thank you for your patience.

AAA
Avatar
Please consider registering
guest
sp_LogInOut Log Insp_Registration Register
Register | Lost password?
Advanced Search
Forum Scope




Match



Forum Options



Minimum search word length is 3 characters - maximum search word length is 84 characters
sp_Feed Topic RSSsp_TopicIcon
Frustration - A GOOD Thing!
Okay... I'm choking a little saying this.
Topic Rating: 5 Topic Rating: 5 Topic Rating: 5 Topic Rating: 5 Topic Rating: 5 Topic Rating: 5 (1 votes) 
Avatar
ELCBK
USA
Members

Regulars
September 25, 2024 - 4:14 am
Member Since: June 10, 2020
Forum Posts: 9221
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline

Up-to-your-ass-in-alligators.jpg

THIS usually feels like a good analogy of my life (in general) - but I see it can also apply to my fiddle learning, playing & creating music. 

 Frustration, stress, & worry don't exactly help me focus, but CAN be a powerful incentive for me to change - except, I'm not usually thrilled about it.  So, I do enjoy being reminded that things aren't always what they first seem, and splendid gifts can come in horrible packaging. 

...Alligator Stew, anyone?    

 

 

Jean_Laurent_Clement_Violin_with_Alligator_Case.jpg

 

PBS Antiques Roadshow Appraisal video: Jean Laurent Clément Violin with Alligator Case - pretty snappy!  😏

Avatar
ELCBK
USA
Members

Regulars
September 25, 2024 - 5:42 pm
Member Since: June 10, 2020
Forum Posts: 9221
sp_UserOfflineSmall Offline

So, the "needing persuasion" that Tim Harford talks about at the end of the video... sheer willpower hasn't worked this past year - guilt, yeah, but "Just do it!" 😳 NEVER works for me. 

HATE I've been choosing 'the easy road' because I'm feeling exhausted.  Convinced myself it's great I'm playing music I get excited about, but it's things I can easily focus on (melody, rhythm, intonation, bowing)... without really thinking too much. 

At the opposite end - there's my guilt trips, mostly because I've gotten impatient with myself not feeling up to working on aspects of music that take more effort & concentration.  I'm working to resolve things outside of music, things that drain my energy & resolve, but I've had to figure a way to convince myself that I have no other choice but to dig in... grin and bear it, or choose to see (what I want to work on) in a different light.  It's ended up being a little of both. 

Normally, if something in music has me frustrated (maybe intimidated, or overwhelmed) I'd break it down into smaller parts to tackle - but 'what' to tackle, when faced with many parts/options, can lead me into the 'choose easy vs hard' trap!  So, instead of individual 'parts' - I looked for what the things I've been avoiding lately (like playing variations, backing, improvised parts of songs) have most in common.  It's IMPROVISATION, for me.  Back to the 'needing persuasion' - I had to keep it very simple for right now, so I chose RESTRICTION.  In otherwords, I decided to restrict myself to ONLY playing some aspect of IMPROVISATION on my fiddle - nomatter what pieces I choose to practice. 

Improvisation, IMPROVISATION, IMPROVISATION (chanting this as I type). 🤭

 

giphy.gif

 

I only started to do this 'improvising everything' a couple days ago... today I was better at not falling back into my regular kind of practice.  Hope I can keep it up - want to make it feel like the 'natural' thing to do everyday (all the Fiddle Hell Workshops are coming in handy now).  Btw, I really am breaking 'improvisation' down into different types in my practice, but found it helps to keep my mind calm by focusing on ONE word - hypnotizing myself!  

 

How are YOU dealing with YOUR fiddling frustrations?

Forum Timezone: America/New_York
Most Users Ever Online: 1287
Currently Online: wtw
Guest(s) 35
Members Birthdays
sp_BirthdayIcon
Today DeeLight41
Upcoming Killerkhezu, Ferret, HDuaneaz, Preanix, laserbrainz, Writer, chendricks, BillyG, rsmith6322, EricBluegrassFiddle, ACDSherlockian, Dan, jose6ph, Kody, music_master, K@1t1yn
Top Posters:
ELCBK: 9220
ABitRusty: 4422
Gordon Shumway: 2932
Mad_Wed: 2849
Barry: 2690
Fiddlestix: 2647
stringy: 2502
Oliver: 2439
DanielB: 2379
Mark: 2293
Member Stats:
Guest Posters: 3
Members: 31794
Moderators: 0
Admins: 8
Forum Stats:
Groups: 16
Forums: 84
Topics: 10944
Posts: 139383
Newest Members:
Jerry, weilina, mackmickey Sp, LaicCdfgen S, Dr_Sandra_Lee S, jamescorrey67, dex469, fufvhe, broohkale S, Dr_avashamban S
Administrators: Fiddlerman: 16613, KindaScratchy: 1760, coolpinkone: 4180, BillyG: 3747, JoakimSimplePress: 0, MrsFiddlerman: 2, Jimmie Bjorling: 0, Mouse: 6376