Close Your Eyes...

We've all been there before, where we are able to feel the music we are playing and just feel what happens next. For a lot of us we all try to find certain object in the room to focus on, and a lot of stare intently at the fretbosrd throughout our whole practice session (performance.) But its an amazing feeling when you can just close your eyes and let the muic guide you. Although precision is very important, dso you guys tenbd to let the sounds guide you, without the hassel of constantly looking down on your fret board? I love to move around on stage, (although its been a while) but every now and then we find our sweet spot n stage where we are 100 percent in tone with the music, and precision is all in our mind...

Playing guitar is a wonderful break from everydays confusion, I don't know what Ide do without those much needed practice sessions when everyone goes home at night, and when all of the lights go out, (except for the candles, you've gotta love candles.) When I'm up on stage, and for most people, its safe to say that we're a bit too paranoid to close our eyes through the entire set, especially if where just sitting down. Its hard to please ourselves, and sometimes we make it even harder to please others. Ive watch STevie Ray Vaughan on stsge, and its amazing how he can just cut loose for those solos with his eyes shut, and he hardy ever misses a note. Thats what its all bout, when you can physically and mentally feel the music. I know it takes years before any of us can get to this tage, and sometimes it never really become a reality, but its something to antisipate...

-Joseph

I play live about twice a week and to be honest...I'm very selfish! Yeah I'll play through the song, but all I care about are my 10 to 20 seconds to shine when my solo comes up for each song! I really like what you said about pleasing yourself with your own music. We guitar players tend to be so hard on ourselves. I'm to the point where I can improv a solo and impress the crowd (not tooting my horn...keep reading!) But that's because the crowd just wants to hear music and dance AND they've never heard you play, so any halfway decent solo will sound good to them. What really makes me feel good is when I can impress my bandmates (they're the guys who listen to my solos over and over...so if I can do something new to impress them, that's where satisfaction comes from.)

During rehearsel i jump around and make fun try to play in the dark etc. But on stage I'm static, not extremely nervous but i think sometimes a little overconcentrated. During singing I can close my eyes but not when I'm playing guitar. After the show everybody is enthousiastic, but only after a few days and hearing back the show i can see the show in perspective and looking forward to the other.
For me it's very good to record it all and hear myself again so I can hear myself playing not so bad as if I thought I did. Sometimes I get a little tired of myself for being to critical.
It's all experience and time I guess.

Reasons to watch Hendrix at WWoodstock concert number 4023: when he just seems to be the music, and it comes out through his guitar. He doesn't need to see the neck with his eyes, he knows it like his own body, like his own mind.
I sometimes close my eyes while playing, but I tend to keep them open while I am singing. I always am tempted to close my eyes, but I often find that audiences connect well with bands that are speaking directly to them. I try to make eye contact sometimes, though it is harder on the nerves, it makes the performance more intimate and personal, less staged.

Ive always been fascinated by Hendrix's approach to music, on how he just relyed on his overall instincts once he got up on stage, intead of eye balling the fretboard all night worrying about mistakes. But yes I agree that although its tempting to just close your eyes on stage, it does have a way of working on your nerves. It take a lot of practice to feel comfortable with your overall capabilities on stage, at home, and around others. But still, I love to just sit back when I'm practicing at home and let the music guide me. I always have a running tape recorder here and there, I love the feeling when you can just sit back and play, without worrying about the results until the nextday. A lot of us try and force creativity, but some nights we just have that power thats dying to come out, where we just need enough confidence to let it all out..

-Joseph

I find I don't get nervous on stage just energized and ready to rock. I just try to find the most interested person in the audience and sing to her. I don't concentrate on the men in the audience because I don't pitch for that team. And I usually find that if your music can get through to just 1 person that the whole show was worth it. And you carry that pride with you for the rest of your life. I think that's why Hendrix overplayed so much to get through to just 1 person. If people think his overplaying was a lot of hot air than they didn't deserve to go to that concert.