Covid Reopening - maybe

Ontario has been in a provincial lockdown since January 12, 2021. Measures will be partially lifted starting tomorrow, February 10.

I am waiting to see if I can welcome students back next week after Family Day on February 16 . If Peterborough is designated as a Green or Yellow Zone, I will welcome students back with my Covid-19 Protocols in effect at my studio. I'm betting on Yellow at this point.

Students can opt to remain with online lessons for as long as they wish.

If Peterborough is designated as an Orange, Red, or Grey Zone, online lessons will continue.

Weekly Streams

 I've been trying to get back into the groove by performing a weekly set of covers and originals. Since I began, I feel my hands and my voice have been gradually finding their way again. It's important for musicians to continue practicing their craft, and for me, having a weekly goal in the form of a performance helps with that. Without performing, it is difficult to have a reason to do anything musical. Streaming isn't the same as performing. I miss the audience, the listeners, and the travel.

Having said that, I have been passively working on my Level 6 guitar material. It's going slow, but it's nice work on something tangible and challenging.

I went through a two-week period making saxophone duet videos on YouTube as well. They are educational in nature and make use of a common saxophone duet book. Other saxophonists can play along with the video using the book. I'm not sure if it was a good idea or not, but I made 14 videos. If there is demand, I'll make more. My YouTube channel's most popular video so far is one where I play transcriptions of old rock and roll saxophone solos on a live gig. I offer the transcriptions to those who request them. There has been about five requests for the transcriptions so far. I intend to do some more but I'm not sure what kind of a format to use. It was really nice playing the solos along with a live band, but that is impossible right now.

If you'd like to see my weekly show, come over to my profile on Street Jelly on Fridays at 7:30 until Christmas. It's interactive with chat.

Unfocused

Hi everyone, I thought I'd check in. I've been quite unfocused for the last three months. It's hard to stay motivated without shows to prepare for, or not playing with other musicians. I played my sax for about 30 minutes today, and found I'm really out of shape. That's to be expected, as I haven't played it much.

A while ago, I was trying to record a song but I didn't get far with it. This past week, I've been working on a guitar lesson video to put on my YouTube channel. That's been difficult because of the technical learning curve and script writing. I've also been developing an original set of tunes using only guitar and voice. Outside of music, believe it or not, I've been brushing up on math and physics through an educational website. I'm all over the place.

I have so many things pulling at me musically, but I don't know what to focus on. I wish I had a manager to keep me on track. I'm not entrepreneurial in disposition and I don't know what people would like from me. I prefer being a "side" musician, but I have to find work for myself to keep working. I miss the days of the bigger bands because there was more work for everyone. With singles and duos being the norm, a full-time musician has to retool just to stay in the market.

There has to be a way to save my industry, as musicians are prohibited from performing until there is a vaccine, which is likely a year away. In the meantime, I continue to offer lessons and I'm fortunate that some of my students have stayed with me through this. If you have ideas or feedback, let me know.

Be well-Sean.

Covid Reset

I'm focusing on learning my original tunes really well this month. You'd think I'd know them because I wrote them, but that's not the case! I'm developing an original set with guitar and voice.

Top of mind is good singing. I'm feeling better about my singing, but there is more to do.

My loop pedal has been put away. I feel the looper made me look gimmicky. Ironically, it was a very difficult thing to do. The concept was born as an economic strategy to utilize my guitar, voice, and woodwind skills without needing prerecorded tracks. But I feel it has failed, and I should move on. It may still be useful, as I will always have it. I put countless hours into developing the loop pedal act, so I hope I can use it some more.

I've begun writing charts of my songs so I can hire a great band when live performances return. Folks can support my career in various ways (financial and non-financial) through my website.

Seems like Covid-19 has inspired a big reset. Thanks for reading, and stay well.

New Role For Me

This afternoon, I hosted the grand opening of the new branch office of the musicians' union. I'm donating my office space to do this. The union local in my city, Peterborough 191, amalgamated with Kingston 518 in 1992. There hasn't really been a presence here since then.

Two board members drove up for from Kingston to help me greet local musicians. They brought brochures and other materials for the office, and answered questions and discussed issues with a few local musicians. Good hard discussion were had on career challenges musicians face. Going forward,  I will have help and backing of at least one knowledgeable veteran. Members from the local labour council attended so I was able to begin a relationship with those organizations. A young musician was in attendance as well which was encouraging.

After the event, I felt motivated knowing that I have real support in my new role as the Peterborough representative. I hope to make a difference in my community.

2020 So Far

The first six weeks of 2020 has been surprisingly active for me as a musician. In early January, I gave a one-hour solo concert at a retirement residence using my loop pedal. At the beginning of February, I was saxophonist in the back up band to a local pop choir. For Valentine's Day, I played classical guitar in a chicken restaurant.

The Valentine's Day work came up suddenly only a week before. I practiced very hard to gather material together to fill three hours. I repeated some stronger pieces in the third set since I figured the diners would be completely different. Now I have a list of material I can refine for the next opportunity.

I entered my latest unreleased single in a national songwriting contest. Once again, I didn't make it out of the first round. Disappointment has become the expected, so I've learned not to get emotionally invested in those kind of things. It didn't take a lot of effort or cost any money, but maybe a few people discovered what I do.

Three gigs in six weeks isn't exactly where I'd like to be, but it is better than most of 2019. I have a couple of Saturdays coming up in March with my looper shows. I've been busy on the home front too, looking after my mom's house and well-being.

This week, I picked up my grandfather's bassoon from the instrument repair shop. It is a Buffet Crampon and is about 100 years old. I inherited it only last summer. I never knew my grandfather; he died about eight years before I arrived. I wish the instrument came to me when I was younger, but it went to a non-musical side of the family. The repair technician told me he hasn't seen anything like this bassoon. The case was literally falling apart, but the restorer did a fabulous job repairing it with all the original handles and latches. The bassoon sat in a basement for 50 years. Fortunately, the case protected the instrument from damage. I'm going to learn to play it for fun. Instruments need to be played. I thought it would be fun to make a YouTube series of me learning to play it to document my progress. As a saxophonist, the bassoon feels completely alien to me. That will be the first challenge...figuring out how he wore it. In the photo, it looks like he's wearing a strap which I don't have.

It may a while before I get to the bassoon project. I want to start recording my next song, prepare for the March gigs, and do my taxes.

Another Crossroads

I feel like my career is once again at a crossroads. Every so many years, I make a major life decision when my wheels are spinning and my life is stagnating. In the past, it has meant returning to school, moving to a different community, or retooling.

My last effort was retooling in 2015. I quit my Toronto bands, as the travelling was taking its toll, and compensation was remaining the same as the cost of living increased. As a saxophonist, it is about 10 times harder to work than a rhythm player or vocalist. A trumpet player I know once said that horns are "the last to hire and the first to fire." Sums it up perfectly.

So, I created a solo act that combined my guitar, vocal, and woodwind skills into one thing using a piece of technology I bought. Four years later, it seems to be a wasted effort. I need a paid weekly gig to properly develop the act, but I soon learned that I'm not allowed to make mistakes. I practice my material hard, trying to memorize everything, but it's not the same as performing. I'm sure many musicians will agree with me. It doesn't help that I battle stage fright either. However, the more I perform, the more it becomes normalized, and the more confidence I have. Without a regular gig, this is impossible.

That brings me to my next challenge. I'm not good at talking to strangers. I’m not a salesman. I get nervous making a 30-second pitch, and people pick up on that. I mean, how can you entertain if you can't get your point across? Sometimes I just leave a card if the owner isn't in, but that never results in anything. I need help in this area, but can't find it. I want to be fair, offering a 10% commission on a booked gig. Every musician or band needs a team. I believe I have something to offer, but I can’t convince anyone to give me a real chance.

I'm disconnected from the local musical community. Perhaps it's my own fault. I have attended local events, but being an introvert, I end up sitting by myself. I've attended open stages, jazz jams, and blues jams to sit in, but it never results in decent paid work. I know where I stand: I'm not a great saxophonist, but I don't suck either. After a while, open stages feel like exploitation, especially when I see money go into a tip jar while I'm on stage, with the money going to the house band. After that happened a couple of times, I stopped attending. On top of my formal music education, I worked for cruise lines, toured with tribute bands, and played in community musical theatre pit orchestras. I would be happy playing in pit orchestras for my career, but I can't work for $30 per show.

I see some of my music friends doing really well while others are bowing out. I'm wondering if it's time for me to bow out too. However, I have so much invested that I can't see myself doing anything else. In my 20s in the early 90s, I tried getting a regular job but failed, perhaps because of the recession. I applied to a new Tim Horton franchise but there were 300 applicants. I think employers looked at my resume with a music degree and wrote me off. So, I decided to stick with music, especially when I saw my friends in other disciplines having difficulty finding work. Gen X had a hard time coming of age.

I have my teaching business, covering my expenses and giving me spending money. I live with my elderly mother, so I have a safe living environment, and I am grateful for that. However, I could not live on only my teaching income if I was on my own. I must have performance income to support myself along with my teaching practice. That has always been a constant.

Right now, I am focused on recording and releasing original songs that have been in my mind for over a decade. I can't afford pro engineers, so I've been learning to engineer myself. I released one song last month with little fanfare. Yet I'm working towards releasing another song before the end of the summer. My sound and style is different, which I’m finding to be more of a curse than a blessing. I'm hopeful that a small group of people will enjoy my work and support what I do. I want to go out and tour while I still can, while I'm in my prime. Otherwise, my life has been a great waste. I sit in a bar during happy hour while I write this, listening to cheerful talk, and wonder how others can be so “happy."