Last week was one the busiest playing weeks I’ve had in a long time. It’s not often that I have many weekday/midweek performances, so it was kind of a new experience for me. This is also on the heels of a couple of sub gigs I’ve recently done, so I’ve been thinking a bit about playing music and playing with different people.
– So many great musicians! There’s always that amazing player in town that you haven’t met, or that person you’ve seen around but haven’t listened to and then they blow you away.
– Interacting with a lot of different musician friends makes me a better saxophonist. Sometimes when playing in a band, you get really comfortable just doing what you’re already good at, so it was great to be challenged to play in a different way to fit whatever setting I was in.
– I can see now the huge difference time can make on a band and the way musicians play together. The level of music-making that comes from people that play together all the time and have done so for a while is super high.
– On the other hand, there were many moments where I really felt like there was some awesome music going on with people I had either just met or didn’t know very well, so I guess it just depends.
I made many of these same points in my previous sideman post, but recent events brought them back to the forefront so I thought I would share them again. That’s what a blog is for, right?
– Art