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Topic: The Elusive Attributes Of Finesse |
Bill Hankey
From:
Pittsfield, MA, USA
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Posted 14 Jan 2007 11:02 am |
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| Finesse is the elusive entity that has kept innumerable practicing musicians striving to reach. Is there a point where a conscious effort should be made to ascertain our own abilities? |
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Stu Schulman
From:
Ulster Park New Yawk (deceased)
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Posted 14 Jan 2007 12:32 pm
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Huh?
_________________
Steeltronics Z-pickup,Desert Rose S-10 4+5,Desert Rose Keyless S-10 3+5... Mullen G2 S-10 3+5,Telonics 206 pickups,Telonics volume pedal.,Blanton SD -10,Emmons GS_10...Zirctone bar,Bill Groner Bar...any amp that isn't broken.Steel Seat.Com seats...Licking paint chips off of Chinese Toys since 1952. |
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Bill Hankey
From:
Pittsfield, MA, USA
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Posted 14 Jan 2007 12:58 pm
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| Stu, It's difficult to attain finesse on the steel guitar. That assertion isn't hotly contested to my knowledge. |
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Stephen Gambrell
From:
Over there
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Posted 14 Jan 2007 1:09 pm
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| Bill, you're wearing yourself out, coming up with these topics! Don't re-injure yourself!!! |
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Joe Savage
From:
St. Paul, MN
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Posted 14 Jan 2007 1:23 pm
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nevermind
Last edited by Joe Savage on 15 Jan 2007 8:07 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Eric West
From:
Portland, Oregon, USA, R.I.P.
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Posted 14 Jan 2007 1:25 pm
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Well other than "notes not played" getting a lot of dubious acclaim, could possibly a person having differing sensual input/processing make an incomprehensible difference in Finesse?.
What if a person is Color Blind?
Maybe he or she is playing a "Red" song, and it has more Finesse when it is interepreted in "Blue" with their particular difference in innate giftation.
Just a thought..
Love ya Bill.
EJL |
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Mike Wheeler
From:
Delaware, Ohio, USA
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Posted 14 Jan 2007 2:19 pm
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 Eric, where do you come up with this stuff?!?!
_________________
Best regards,
Mike |
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Eric West
From:
Portland, Oregon, USA, R.I.P.
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Posted 14 Jan 2007 2:53 pm
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Well I got that little mental whirlwind off a recent "Elephants of Tone" thread...
 <;0)
EJL |
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Bill Hankey
From:
Pittsfield, MA, USA
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Posted 14 Jan 2007 4:01 pm
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| Eric, that Fender you're embracing may well reflect a continuance of a determination to mount a significant motivation to excel. I think when you ascribed to the innate theory, the finesse nail was struck squarely on the head. It's a penetrating theory, going deep as the spike into seasoned oak. Thanks for the enlightenment. |
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Jon Jaffe
From:
Austin, Texas
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Posted 14 Jan 2007 6:09 pm
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Of course Bill, ole Willie S said it best,
”This above all: to thine ownself be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man.”
Also, it is easier to read! |
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Bill Hankey
From:
Pittsfield, MA, USA
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Posted 14 Jan 2007 7:16 pm
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| Jon J., "Willie" Shakespeare would be fascinated by the intricacies of the steel guitar, moreover, he would be drawn to the difficulties in which finesse plays such a huge role. |
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Eric West
From:
Portland, Oregon, USA, R.I.P.
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Posted 14 Jan 2007 7:48 pm
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Well Bill FWIW, you're welcome to any of my opinions. Just be careful with them. If it was thirty years ago, they might have damaged my career..
<;0)
EJL |
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Brint Hannay
From:
Maryland, USA
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Posted 14 Jan 2007 9:42 pm
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Bill, surely attempting to ascertain our own abilities is futile, as objectivity is impossible, either from ourselves or from others.
All part of the unbearable lightness of being. (Thanx and a tip of the hat to Milan Kundera) |
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Bill Hankey
From:
Pittsfield, MA, USA
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Posted 15 Jan 2007 2:32 am
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| Brint H., futility is the product of clutter, that frequently abounds in the absence of absolute pitch. The pitch memory chases down finesse in each instance, when it is closely associated with a habitual persistence to achieve successes. Musical expression comes from the heart, and it signifies artistic values, with an individualistic flavor. There isn't a better place to pour out feelings, bringing us in line with expressions of gratitude, and satisfaction. Sharing musical achievements has a greater purpose. It fine tunes our desire to please, not just others, but.. we may enjoy the rewards of achievements; as well. |
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Jim Bob Sedgwick
From:
Clinton, Missouri USA
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Posted 15 Jan 2007 5:34 am
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| Pretty Good, You? |
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Bill Hankey
From:
Pittsfield, MA, USA
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Posted 15 Jan 2007 6:38 am
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| J.B.S., Yes, it's not Shakespeare. Sometimes a person has to speak for himself. |
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Gary Ball
From:
Lapwai, Idaho, USA
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Posted 15 Jan 2007 7:18 am
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Betcha Jim Sliff could straighten you guys out?  |
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CrowBear Schmitt
From:
Ariege, - PairO'knees, - France
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Posted 15 Jan 2007 8:35 am
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Bill not only are you eloquent in English,
i notice you're good at French too
i love you too Bill
yes i would shoot myself if i weren't into striving towards that conscious effort to ascertain my abilities & not just in Musik either or finesse but in all that i have to do while i'm down here |
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Brint Hannay
From:
Maryland, USA
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Posted 15 Jan 2007 8:46 am
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Ah, perhaps Bill, and Crowbear, are using the meaning of "ascertain" which is marked as archaic in my dictionary:
"To make certain, exact, or precise".
I was thinking of the present-day meaning: "To find out or learn with certainty". It was to that meaning that my post above applied. |
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A. J. Schobert
From:
Cincinnati, Ohio,
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Posted 15 Jan 2007 11:36 am
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| Bill I'm just curious what do you do for a living? I would have to guess english teacher? or is it just surface inteligence that we tap into on the forum? |
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Mike Shefrin
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Posted 15 Jan 2007 11:57 am
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deleted
Last edited by Mike Shefrin on 21 Jun 2007 1:59 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Bill Hankey
From:
Pittsfield, MA, USA
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Posted 15 Jan 2007 1:12 pm
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A.J.S., I became free lance as a worker having realized early on that each precious moment of the day should not be squandered by making poor choices. When I was 5 years old, I learned the value of scrap metals. In my early 20's, I trucked 100's of tons of metals from my own dealership. Copper, light brass, red brass, auto radiators, aluminum, block tin, lead, zink, cast iron, # 1 steel, # 2 steel, etc. became my livelihood. I have always involved myself with country music, playing
steel and lead guitar in local bands. It's just natural that I would become involved in antiquity, and have many friends who deal in quality antiques. New England has
seen an increase in shops of late.
I would like to thank everyone for the nice thoughts, and especially the kind words that have been written. When I'm at my best, I like mechanical challenges that are found to be a real struggle to overcome. I try not to let my English fall by the wayside. Years ago, on WTIC Radio, in Hartford, Ct., DJ Bob Steele would recite a word for the day. He would give the correct spelling, and all the general information given by Webster. Needless to say, he pointed me in the right direction,
or... did he? |
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Chris LeDrew
From:
Canada
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Posted 15 Jan 2007 1:27 pm
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I think musical finesse is something someone else has to notice in your playing. I don't think one can presume they have it. Finesse is a quality that's observed, not affirmed by the self. Unless of course, you fancy yourself "finesse-ful".
_________________
Jackson Steel Guitars
Web: www.chrisledrew.com |
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Mike Shefrin
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Posted 15 Jan 2007 1:37 pm
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deleted
Last edited by Mike Shefrin on 21 Jun 2007 2:00 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Brint Hannay
From:
Maryland, USA
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Posted 15 Jan 2007 7:21 pm
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| Chris, thanks for (pretty much) seconding what I was trying to say. I say "pretty much" because you can never be sure others are "right" about your playing either. I think everyone has plenty of moments where they feel they've really been "doing it", and no one among colleagues or audience seems to notice anything, and plenty of other moments when they're cringing with embarrassment over how badly they're playing, only to receive multiple compliments on how great they sound. That's why I figure it's best not to worry about it, just, as quoted above, "To thine own self be true"--which is not as easy as it sounds. |
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