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Over on the guitar discussion board I moderate, http://santacruzguitarplayers.com, I started a group project. I supplied the basic tracks of a song (percussion, guitar, voice) I had written and demo'd with GarageBand on my Mac. I asked the folks on the board if they might contribute some lead instrument ideas.

I was having difficulty getting a lead instrument track down on a demo for a song I had written, called "Big Valley." The idea arose from realizing I could ask ...

The Strawberry Music Festival held at Camp Mather, near Yosemite National Park in California, runs for 4 days around both Memorial Day and Labor Day. Thursday (9/4/09) marks the beginning of the Strawberry's fall festival.

This fall festival line up is an exciting one for me. It's heavy, as usual, on roots music featuring a lot of folks I've never heard --or even heard of! So I'll be soaking up new (to me) music almost all weekend.

But the mandolin players, as far ...

Some of you mandophiles are probably aware of the Healdsburg Guitar Festival. Every two years Luthiers Merchantile International of Healdsburg CA puts on a convention and exhibition for guitar luthiers. A few hundred one-man (or very small shop) builders bring examples of their work hoping to sell or take orders from custom instruments. LMI also hosts discussion panels and luthiery lectures for builders. For players, they offer instrument demonstrations of the exhibiting builders' work, a cabaret ...

I bought it new in 1990 from a little shop in Davis, California that no longer exists called plainly enough, Davis Music. It shipped in from St. Louis on special order. It was magnificent, my first new guitar. But it was summer and St. Louis is very different in the summer from Davis. The neck settled and the 12th fret sprung within 2 weeks. But a trip back to the shop and a visit with their luthier set it right.

It was my main guitar for 7 or 8 years. Gigged with it in dozens ...

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While my wrist recovers from some mild RSI...
Enjoy!
2002 Fender FM-988 (mandocaster)
2007 Fender Eric Johnson Signature Model Stratocastster


Daniel

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Besides copious amounts of jamming from Thursday night to Sunday night, The Strawberry Music Festival provided a rich source of mandolin listening pleasure.

Thursday night the Dry Branch Fire Squad brought their traditional Bluegrass crossed with Will Rogers style to the Music Meadow Stage and tore it up. Friday afternoon they hosted a workshop, and Friday night they played a final set at "Amy's Orchid Lounge," a special late night venue at Strawberry that charges festival ...

In my last post on this subject I came to the conclusion that the ability to play more than one instrument is a good thing. It broadens musical perspective, it highlights similarities and differences between instruments, and it helps development of music theory knowledge.

But playing an instrument and focusing on an instrument are quite different musical pursuits. Anyone who can play a few songs and/or tunes with a moderate degree of musicality on a musical instrument can be said ...

As you may or may not know I am the moderator over at the Santa Cruz Guitar Players Forum. Recently on that discussion board one of our regular posters posed the question, "One instrument or multiple instruments?" It’s an interesting question, and one that can only be answered definitively for oneself.

But that doesn’t mean examining the topic is pointless. The examination alone may prove useful reinforcing your own opinion. Or it can serve as an opportunity to change ...

Just to catch you up...

I did see the insanely good Andy Statman that Sunday afternoon (3/23/09). He is, in a word, amazing. Go see him. Buy his CD. You haven't lived right until you've heard him roll through chromatic versions of "Rawhide," "Turkey in the Straw," and "Back Up & Push" that were surely making Big Mon squirm uncomfortably in his grave. Indeed, the old cabin home on the hill itself might have been creaking in musical discomfort ...

Friday #1
This is a regular Friday afternoon thing. John and Ken come over and we just play. The line up is mandolin (we all three play it), guitar (Ken and I play it (John used to --claims a '68 Gibson SG in a closet somewhere that he has not touched in more than 10 years --what a tease!)) and fiddle (John plays it).

John loves Texas Swing, Ragtime tunes, and old timey tunes. So I've been learning things like "Pig Ankle Rag," "Chinese Breakdown," and ...