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Acoustic
Band Workshop-Hattingen Nov 2003
The
workshop was held in the beautiful new attic studio of a lovely big house
in Hattingen where I lived for a while with friends Susanne and Mathias
before I moved to Mainz. Everyone on the workshop stayed over night in
the house which was cosy and fun. It helped us all to get close in a very
short time which of course helped the music. The food was simply delicious..Home
made Brazilian vegetarian meals provided by friends who run a restaurant
nearby and bio and organic breakfasts and lunches. The surrounding hills
and woods make this an ideal place to really relax and soon everyones
regular stressful working lives seemed far away.
This workshop was attended by eight women and the combination of instruments
was: bass, six acoustic guitars, fiddle, clarinet and lots of harmonicas.
We also used percussion and a big old bass drum with brushes and all of
us sang. We also had the use of a beautiful acoustic piano which lives
in the lounge.
Saturday
morning was spent sharing our musical hopes and fears and hanging
our wishes on the wishing line.
Then on with body and vocal warm ups and theatre games. I know some people
find the idea of games completely embarressing or tiresome but these were
very funny and broke the ice fast. The group body scultures of 'Spectacular
Cathederal' and 'Finale Murder scene in Shakespears lost play' were hilareous.
We sang group harmonies together and sang an African song which became
the workshop theme tune by the end.
After
lunch we began with a very groovy swing Blues piece. This was a good
taditional blues to start with which allowed us all to make improvised
solos. On with Reggae and into some classic Bob Marley songs. Seven acoustic
guitars playing the off beats and the fiddle and clarinet keeping the
riffs and solos going. Big Fun!
In the evning we jammed around various jazz and folk pieces which introduced
new chords and moods. It was difficult to stop playing but we eventually
all collapsed and went to bed.
Sunday..Body
stretching and vocal warm ups and some group singing before we began the
Celtic jigs and waltzes.
This was great with Caro on the fiddle playing the tunes while we all
thundered along on guitars and harmonicas. A storming session followed
by the most beautiful waltz tunes with pretty descending bass lines. This
was an intense morning. We finished with what I call a mini 'Power Sleep'.
A relaxation meditation which really gives you a massive dose of silence
and rest.
Hmm delicious.
After
lunch we worked on original compositions in small groups. Lots of
wierd and wonderful sounds coming out of rooms all over the house all
afternoon. A piece of Rilkes poetry was set to music, an original song
was finished and various improvised pieces evolved.
We had no time left to play the Klezmer music I had prepared but they
can be saved for next workshop.
By
four o'clock we were ready for the amazing impromtu show! An hour
of musical surprises with everything from hilarious cabaret to wild improvisations
and magic tricks!
After the feed back session which involved lots of love letters and magical
words we spent the last hour playing all big pieces we had learned together.
We performed these as a 'Concert for One' and invited Mathias to leave
his computer and come and be our audience. Almost all of our wishes on
the wishing line came true. Some like 'super massage' or 'coffee in bed
' got overlooked but it didn't seem to matter.
It
was a great weekend packed with learning new musical pieces, playing together
and relaxing.
Check out the Feedback comments on this workshop now (link to feedback
comments)
There
will be another Acoustic Band Workshop at the same magical place next
Spring 2004.
Look out for the dates on the timetable page in the future and book your
place early!
WORKSHOP WISHES!
From the perticipants
We wrote down these wishes and hung
them on the wishing line for the weekend.
We helped each other make them come true and almost all of them did!
NIK
Freude Spaß
Neue Ideen
Neue Musik und Llieder
Gemeinschaft
Kaffee am Bett
RITA
Peace
Enough sleep
To feel part of the group
Finding a balance between rest and work.
MARIA
Playing music with Rita again
Eating good food
Dancing
Walking in the woods
Laughing
SUSANNE
Musikalischer Kontakt
Kreative Stille
Vielleicht Inspiration für ein Lied,
daß ich in kopf habe!
KATRIN
Learning new things I havn't played before
I want it to groove!
To feel relaxed
Have a massage
To feel warm and cosy for the whole weekend
To be light and have fun!
To enjoy lovely food.
JAN
I hope we all relax, laugh, open up and listen well.
Hope everyone enjoys the music pieces I have prepared.
That we create a beautiful and original sound together.
Super massage! Dancing, hugs, having fun..
MANU
Spass haben
Tips zum Gitarre spielen
Wie kann ich Text und Musik schreiben
Zusammen mit dem Anderer Musizieren
Musikalisch weiter kommen
Gutes für mich in tun
CAROLINE
Entspannung
Wieder richtig hören
Anregende Gespräche
Singen (Tips dafür)
Frische Luft/ Natur
Gut Schlafen
Ehrliches Feedback
Rotwein
MARTINA
Neue Ideen/ Imputs
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