1/9th through the performance / installation / process and I am invigorated by how much it has spawned, creatively it is hard to contain a grasp. Similar was the feeling when I first broke free from the trappings that were constructed over the last decade or so in the pursuance of the guitar as medium. The whole impetus happened to be on a dreadnought that had been tuned to open C for over a year. Something about that particular guitar and the big broad and deep clear ringing of that tuning had me fascinated for a long time. It conjured a piano type quality and like every alternate tuning there is so much to discover.
The Wandarian mode still feels exhilarating to explore. Up until this Concert Obscura series I was afraid to spend too much time in this territory. I was afraid of ruining the magic or not honouring the process fully and scared of lackluster results. Part of the 90 days is to put an end to such negative thinking and openly explore the limitless possibilities. I am learning so much on so many levels. Music, therapy, sound engineering, the juxtaposed struggle to find peace, quieting the mind and body, creativity and the process as well as a live performance routine.
I have learned that I am the hardest audience member to please. The mind goes to many places in these two hour sessions. Today was a real battle to remain focused as life tends to pile so much up. Observing the effects of thought or non-thought has on the outcome of the sound is a unique world to enter into. Sometimes the negative can channel extreme beauty, sometimes the positive thoughts do not allow me to fully develop and theme or idea. The meandering nothingness thoughts are the worst. They clutter and mask melody, don’t allow clear direction and purpose . Playing the guitar is one thing, taming the perpetual thought machine is an entirely different beast.
Today’s performance revolved entirely around the original open C tunings - one major and one minor. All of the material from Volume I was played on these tunings, the first hour today I spent immersed in those pieces, but with an evolved sense of containment versus the origins when I was exploding with the material. Also I am now using the nylon string guitar so the strings act and react in far different ways than that old steel string Fender.
The resonances inside and around the Obscura I have learned, are far greater and more pleasing to the ear with the nylon strings rather than steel. The nylon has a pure rise and fall to the wave, very soft to the touch and as the sound travels around unimpeded by right angles or corners the notes contain unique life forms all unto themselves. The steel strings on the other hand, have harsh attack, sharp ringing vibrations and do not contain the life or beauty of their counterpart.
I am excited to see what tomorrow brings.
