You Don't Know Unless You...

...ask. Be inquisitive. Always be curious to find out the how and why. These are things that were instilled upon me when I was in school to be a scientist (marine biologist). That is, of course, until I decided late in my sophomore year of college to study music instead.

Now, I find myself falling back to that analytical mode of thought in regards to figuring out what my next move should be with my music career. Up until now, I have done well for myself in regards to figuring out my goals and then moving towards them. Every 2 or 3 years I have come up with new goals and game plans, while also evaluating my current status at the time and then what tactics had worked or failed up until that point.

So far, I have accomplished every goal I had set for myself in previous planning sessions, except for performing at the Inter Media Arts Center (IMAC) in Huntington, New York. That goal will never happen now with both the closing of the IMAC and the death of Michael Rothbard, the patron of the arts that ran the concert hall. But, based upon the ground work I have managed to lay down in 2009, the large number of bookings I already have for 2010, and the types of contacts I've been recently having access to, I feel as though I'm in a very delicate point where my decisions will weigh much more heavily on the future than they ever have up until now.

There was a blog I posted back in October that I think was the genesis of my thinking at this very moment. The thoughts I had in that blog dealt with whether or not I had been looking enough into the careers of past and current jazz musicians, as well as my own, to see if there is anything I'm doing wrong or could do better to try and boast myself up to the next tier in the jazz scene and the music scene in general. My answer has come back to me that I am in deed doing something wrong. I'm not seeking enough advice from my peers or from certain contacts I have access to within the industry. These are the folks who can help me figure out what I need to do to get to where I want to be, based on where my career stands now.

I will not mention names, but there have been other artists that I've performed with that were, or currently are, in a similar "critical phase" of their career where making certain decisions could mean elevating their careers or just maintaining the status-quo. I can remember thinking to myself that they needed to seek some advice, or at least listen to the advice that they were given by their peers and qualified people who understood where their careers were at. Now, I'm thinking that I should heed those thoughts I had.

One of the important things that we (those artists and myself) all have in common is that we are all used to having to do absolutely everything ourselves and find it difficult to give up control or even delegate tasks to others. The thing I DO NOT want to have in common is career stagnation. This isn't necessarily a knock against those artists or where they are in their careers now or then. I'm simply stating that they all could probably have advanced much faster and further if they had seeked advice rather than try to figure it all out themselves.

So, in sum, I believe that one of the major mistakes I'm making is not seeking enough help or advice. I work so hard at what I do that sometimes it becomes very easy to make incorrect judgements or come up with the wrong game plan because of a distorted view of a situation. Forget not seeing the forest for the trees. If you have your nose buried too close to the ground, you won't even see the trees for the grass.

As for what my next move should be, I guess I won't know for sure until I ask some trusted and knowledgeable contacts that I have for their advice and thoughts.

New Limited Edition CD

You may remember that, a couple of months ago, I mentioned that I had recorded some tracks with blues/jazz artist Gail Storm. Well, we are finally releasing those tracks in the form of a limited edition CD!

Gail and I originally were recording the songs so that we could construct a demo that could be used to get us more duet gigs. However, things were sounding so good that we decided to move beyond just having it as a demo.

Because this isn't an "official" album release, we thought we'd make it special by not only making a limited quantity available, but by also autographing and hand packaging the CDs. I designed the cover artwork and both Gail and I put our autographs on the actual CD itself.

"Duets" features Gail and I performing selections by Nora Jones, Duke Ellington, George Gershwin, and other well loved performers and composers. If you'd like to obtain a copy or listen to samples of the tracks, just visit the following link:

Gail Storm & Shenole Latimer Limited Edition CD - "Duets"

Fan Feedback Paving the Way!

Those close to me know that I'm always tinkering with stuff and trying to come up with new things to do. Lately, I've been trying to come up with some new things for all of the wonderful people who take the time to read my blog rantings, come to my performances, and purchase my music...you know...I'm talking about you fan folks out there!

As usual, I have been paying close attention to the feedback I get from my email newsletters, comments made to me in person, so on and so forth. And let me tell you, there have been some really good ideas thrown at me. In fact, I liked them so much that I'm actually going to incorporate ALL of them!

Here are just three of the suggestions and things you can expect to see implemented within the first few weeks of 2010:

• Create a Tool Bar - I'm currently testing out my very own tool bar that my fans can download and attach to their web browser. The "Shenole Latimer Tool Bar" will have feeds for my news updates, performance calendar/alerts, google powered search engine, and some other goodies. The information is brought to the tool bar in real time. So, as soon as I post a performance or a news item, you will receive the information on the tool bar, without cluttering up your email inbox.
  



• Provide RSS Feeds - Both the tool bar and RSS feed ideas were ones suggested to me as an alternative option for fans who may want to keep up with what I'm doing, but not be on my email list because they already receive so much email from other sources. Or, because they don't always have time to visit my website, blog, facebook, myspace, etc.
  
  An RSS feed, for those who don't know, is just a way to subscribe to and receive content that you like to read, without needing to spend the time visiting those particular websites that they come from. Instead, the RSS feed (stands for Real Simple Syndication) sends you any new postings.
  



• Interactive Map on My Website - This is a fun one! Someone had commented to me that they thought it would be cool if I had a map showing where all of my appearances are so that fans can get a sense of all the different places I travel to.
  
  So, I have set about marking off all of my 2010 performances and appearances on a dedicated google map that will be posting on the events page of my website in the beginning of January, 2010. The map will be interactive in that you can zoom in and out on any location, click on a marker to find out a little bit about that particular appearance, and even get directions directly to any location that you select.
  
  I think I will have it on satellite view so that you can have fun seeing what each location actually looks like.

In addition to implementing these ideas and suggestions, I would also like to perform a number of tweaks on my website. Mostly, these tweaks have to do with the inconsistency with how my website appears on different web browsers. In other words, people who use AOL see it differently than the people who use Internet Explorer older than 7.0, who in turn see it differently than the people who use Firefox, and so on.

Things are simply not as easy when it comes to website design as they were even just 2 or 3 years ago. With the introduction of all the new web browser releases designed to take advantage of the potential of Web 2.0, it's becoming much more difficult (or at least I'm finding it that way) to come up with "universally accepted" website designs.

Well, time to bring this blog post to a close. Thanks for all of your feedback and suggestions. Keep them coming!

Important Changes for My Email List

As of December, 2009, because of the wonderful feedback I consistantly get from the incredible fans that I have on my email list, I will be changing the way I send out my email blasts. There will be 2 types of emails that fans will receive from me in the future:

• My monthly "Email Blast" that will stay in a newsletter format that lets fans know what is new with me in general.


• An email called "Shenole Appearing Near You" that will go out to fans who live within a 2 mile radius from the zip code of where I'll be performing or making an appearance (10 mile radius for special events such as big concerts).
  

However, in order for this new system to work, I need to ask a favor of fans who are either on the email list now, or plan to sign up in the future. It's important for everyone to supply me with their zip code and their first name, along with their email address. You can very easily do that by visiting the following link:

http://shenole.fanbridge.com/



I'm hoping that I'm not causing an inconvenience to my fans. The good news is that, by fans doing this little 10 - 20 second chore, I'll be able to better serve everyone and save my valuable fans from getting performance notifications for any of my appearances that will not be in their immediate area.

Those Who Don't Know Their History...

There's a saying that I know we all have heard before. It states that, "those who don't know their history are doomed to repeat it". I think that's something that we can all agree on...it's a very logical statement.

Now, here's something that may not seem so logical. There are people who believe in a "universal collective consciousness" that helps to guide our actions in a way that is perhaps more subliminal than obvious. Take from that what you will.

So what am I getting at? Damned if I know! But, I have been experiencing something very interesting in the past few weeks, and that is this reoccurring theme of "those who don't know their history are doomed to repeat it". It's been everywhere...TV shows, people's actions, books I've read, the news, you name it! But, where I really took notice and felt a strong reaction to it was during a program on PBS that I was watching about Marvin Gaye. And, here's the weird thing. I have absolutely no recollection of what was said in that program, and yet I felt a VERY strong connection to whatever it was that was said. Someone go figure that one out!

And then, just yesterday, I was listening to a podcast that I had downloaded a couple of weeks ago but hadn't had a chance to listen to. And then something was said that hit me real hard again. Without going into details about the subject matter or what have you, it was basically said that all of these young people, or "new guard", were entering into a scene and working harder than they needed to, because they were taking the same routes that had already been travelled in the past by their predecessors, which had already been proven to be unsuccessful. But, because they hadn't done the research needed to know their history, their concern for the "here and now" was causing them to make the same old mistakes.

That's when I had an epiphany of sorts.

Have I done enough research concerning musicians (jazz musicians in particular) to keep from making some of the same mistakes that have doomed them to either fail, or not ultimately reach a sustainable level in their career? In other words, are there any mistakes that I'm repeating because I have over looked them from just being too focused on the present and future? And, let me get a little weird here, is the "universal collective consciousness" trying to tell me something?

Well, my mother always did teach me to listen to my "inner voice", so I have decided to take a real close look at my overall career strategy to see what flaws there may be, what evidence I'm not taking a close enough look at, and whether or not I'm not heeding any reoccurring themes regarding tactics that just aren't working or showing results. I'm also going to take a look at some artists that I may have personally known, or read about, to see if there are any similarities between what they did to cause them to fail and what I'm currently doing in my overall strategy.

Once I've taken adequate time to look over and absorb the information that I come across, I'll try to remember to post my findings in a sort of "Part II" to this post.

Time for New Wheels?

When I was younger, I HATED big cars. I thought they were clunky, awkward, and just plain ugly. When SUVs came onto the market, I didn't like them too much either. But, at least they seemed more "logical" to me.

These days, I find myself actually wanting either a big car, SUV, or...gasp...a van! The simple fact of the matter is that my wife and I need the room. Even though we only have one kid, it just amazes me how much stuff we end up bringing with us on an outing. Then there's what I do for a living and the equipment I have to haul around.

It's funny, because I'm a saxophonist. In theory, all I should ever really need to bring to a gig is my sax, sax stand, a mic, and a mic stand. And, it's even arguable if I need to bring the mic and mic stand. But, the problem is that I'm also a band leader and that changes the game all together!

So anyway, there is a third factor that figures into my wanting to get a bigger vehicle for the family and for my gigging purposes. I just can't move and fit into small cars the way I used to. My knees have been giving me problems since around my late twenties. And, now it's getting more and more difficult for me to have to get down into a small car and stuff my 6'3" frame into cars that are really designed for people up to 6'. Trust me, those 3 extra inches REALLY make a difference!

I guess when Renee and I can finally hack our way through this financial jungle-like entanglement that we're in, our first order of business will be to get a hold of some wheels that will fit our needs better. It will be nice to actually be able to see out of my back window when I have to bring extra gear to a gig. Not to mention, it sure will be a good thing when we won't have to worry about what to sacrifice bringing during a family outing. But, the nicest thing for me will be the ability to drive for more than 20 minutes without my knees feeling like someone is hitting them with a hammer!

Future Plans

We are in October, and though it may seem like 2010 is still a few months away, experience has taught me that a few months can seem like a few days when you've been very busy. Fortunately, I can say that I've been very busy...so I guess that means that New Years Eve must be next week!

Anyway, I've already begun planning for 2010. Even this early on, it looks to be THE busiest year for me yet! That's saying a lot after the year I've had in 2009. I already have more gigs booked in the first quarter of next year than I actually performed during the first 4 1/2 months of this year. And, that's without having received any sideman gigs yet or a gig or two that I have been fortunate to have in the past couple of years that I can usually count on having.

Then there's the tour I'm planning for myself!

I'm in the middle of booking out a "lecture" tour for myself, where I'll be giving my presentation entitled "What's All That Jazz About?", which is the program that I have enjoyed a lot of success with in the library systems of the NY, NJ, and CT tri-state region. But now, after 6 years or so of circulating withing the same library systems, I've all but run out of libraries to give the presentation to. In fact, I've had up to 5 repeat appearances at a number of libraries over the past 6 years!

People tell me that I should do it in the schools, and I agree. But the thing is that with the amount of time it takes to just book the libraries, it's a more than daunting task to add schools to that. One thing is for certain. If I do want to have longevity with my career, I will eventually have to start courting a younger fan base. The truth of the matter is that I'm at least a generation younger than the overwhelming majority of my fans. And, in some cases, I'm 2 generations behind! This basically means, without trying to sound grim, that I will likely out live most of my fans unless I start getting some young people interested in what I do. I'll probably start that phase in 2011.

Went on a tangent there!

Getting back to the tour, I'll be on the road for 2 weeks and plan to hit stops from NJ down to Jacksonville, Florida. I've already got something like 7 bookings, and would like to add another 10 or more before the end of this month. The magic number is 16 to make this all worth while. But 18 or even 20 would be the icing, AND the cherry, AND the ice cream on the cake!

On another front, I've been giving a lot of thought towards releasing my second CD sometime next year...most likely in the Fall. I just need some spare time so I can get back to writing some new tunes! Time is a resource that I seem to have even less of than money, and money is REAL TIGHT these days! But, it has been 3 years at this point since my debut release and I'm starting to get questions from people about my next one...which is a good thing! It shows me that there is interest and a point for me to record another one.

Then there is my desire to do another big concert event on Long Island. It's been 2 years since my last one. I was suppose to have a September, 2008 appearance at the Patchogue Theatre for the Performing Arts, but the show had to be cancelled when my two corporate sponsors backed out. This ended up being a warning sign of sorts, because just 3 weeks later there was the big announcement all over the news about the "sudden" and drastic drop in our economy. I quoted the word "sudden" because the warnings signs had apparently been there for years, but many decided to ignore them.

In short, 2010 looks to be an incredibly busy year for me, and potentially my career best to date. Hopefully, all of the hard work I've been putting in these past couple of years will finally start rewarding my pockets a little more. With a family to support, I need all of my efforts to bare fruit and not be empty trips from the orchard. Fortunately for me, I've had a pretty clear game plan from the start and I haven't had many empty trips at all. I guess that's why I've lasted this long and have been seeing an increase in demand for me and what I have to offer, rather than a decrease.

Keeping Busy

I have to start this post by saying that I am definitely blessed! And yes, I don't mean fortunate, I mean blessed...blessed that I'm such a hard worker at what I do that I have miraculously managed to stay incredibly busy, even with this downturn of the economy. That's not to say my wife and I are on easy street, but we certainly could be much worse off than we are.

One thing that I haven't shared too much on this blog is the fact that my wife was laid off of her job back in January of this year. When that happened, we lost about 47% of our household income literally overnight! As it were, we already were living with pretty tight belts, but her lay-off hurt.

One reason it was such a terrible hit for us was because we were still trying to recover from her last layoff, which had taken place about 16 months prior. That one stretched our resources and this one pretty much killed everything else off.

Another reason that it really hit us hard was because both layoffs were completely unexpected...no warning what so ever! I have to jump in by saying that maybe there are a few things, being self employed, that I don't have readily available to me, but I have NEVER been laid off or fired. And, I ALWAYS know the state of my business and can foresee months down the road if I may encounter a problem that I may have to find a way around or prepare for.

So, anyway, the third reason that this particular layoff has been more challenging is because now we have an extra mouth to feed! By the way, that is actually part of the "blessed" feeling I have!

But getting back to the first thing I wrote in the blog posting, which was feeling blessed that I'm such a hard worker at what I do, I know of so many other musicians who aren't working anywhere near as much as I am. I have really managed to put my bookings into afterburner this year, and next year is already looking to be even more busy.

I have really worked hard at getting my name out there, marketing myself, cultivating new relationships, and so on. Yes, I have new bags under my eyes, but the pay off has been a busier performance schedule than I have ever had at any point of my 10 or 12 years as a full time musician. In fact I can actually remember a time when I used to wish I was this active. Back then, I can remember having the number of gigs in a span of 4 months that I now have in just 1 month's time.

What that means is, though I have not entirely made up the 47% of income that our household lost when my wife got laid off, we have managed to stay in this house for a longer span of time than either some of my friends or even some members of my family had thought we'd be able to achieve.

So why am I making my wife's and my financial woes so public? Well, it boils down to one simple thing. INSPIRATION!

I'm aware of other musicians and artists who read my blog and follow me online in other formats. I've been made aware; via emails, chatroom comments, Facebook messages, and so on, that I'm looked up to by some others in the arts community because I am one of the few full time artists that can say that they are a homeowner and lives some semblance of a "normal" life, (wife, kid, etc.). I have been told by some artist friends that if I can't pull out of this, they don't know what hope that they have for their own futures because I work so hard.

Well, that is exactly my point. I work so hard because I know that there is hope as long as I work so hard. I'm not, and never have been, one who waits for that hope to arrive. My motto has ALWAYS, from day 1, been "if you can't FIND a gig, then MAKE a gig"!

So, I say to my fellow artists who may read this blog, that if I can last for 9 months plugging up holes in a ship that's far from shore, with two other people depending on me and all of the responsibilities that come with trying to support a family by just my income as a full time musician, then YOU should be able to do likewise or even better if you are a musician or artist that doesn't have anybody depending on you, or any home ownership responsibilities.

These times are the ones that will let us know if we REALLY want to try and make a living at what we do. These are the times that will show if we REALLY have what it takes to make it in such a competitive and saturated field.

Don't give up and don't lay down....just work hard and KEEP BUSY!!!!!

Concerts: Why Bother!

Ever since this past May, when I performed with singer/songwriter Jack Lacitra at the Boulton Center for the Performing Arts in Bay Shore, NY, I've had the bug in my ear about self producing another concert for my jazz quartet. At this point it has been nearly 2 years since I have done that!

If I were to only consider the amount of time it takes to put a concert together, or the amount of money that is needed up front to rent the venue, get the insurance, and otherwise set the wheels in motion, my attitude would be "who needs it". However, there are benefits to self producing concerts and it has always fit into my long term plans and goals.

Since day one, I have known that the only way to ever really get to the sorts of performances that I can really make a good living off of was to be taken on by one or more booking agents. That meant several things:

• I had to STOP performing with my quartet in restaurants or other venues where we would not be the focus (NO MORE BACKGROUND MUSIC!!!!).
• I had to sharpen my ability to interact with my audience and provide them with an EXPERIENCE and not just good music.
• I had to increase my fan base and my reach.
• I needed to find some way to prove my worth to booking agents so that they wouldn't feel that signing me on would be too much of a risk to make it worth their while.

In regards to the last thing I listed (proving my worth), I figured that money talks. So, the best way I could prove my worth is to show the ticket sales receipts and the other proof that people are willing to pay to see me in a concert setting. Well, at this juncture I have proven this several times over...so where are the booking agents? Unfortunately for me, part of the problem is the genre of music that I have chosen to specialize in...jazz.

Since jazz accounts for such a small percentage of the concert going public, the only jazz musicians that the booking agents are interested in are the ones who are already big names, who already have booking agents...there's no interest in emerging artists that are showing they can draw a ticket buying audience.

If it wasn't for the fact that self producing concerts take up so much time, energy, and financial resources up front, I'd say "SCREW THE BOOKING AGENTS" because I have always done pretty well with my concerts, financially. I'm not driving a luxury car, but I have certainly managed to make it at least worth my while to pursue such a coarse of action. I also see that it is a viable way to go.

However, time is no longer on my side. At only 36 years old, I'm already starting to feel some of the wear and tear of being a full time musician for nearly 15 years and burning the candle from both ends, combined with being a new father, trying to look after my now aging parents, and always looking for ways to try and be available more for my wife. The past year or two I have been feeling tired constantly.

Doing this for a living has proven to be exhausting work, and it has only been my drive to: A) prove all of the people WRONG that told me or continue to tell me that this can't be done for a living, and B) to be successful in general at whatever I do, that has kept me going. That and the broom I have hidden behind me to prop me up and make it look like I'm still standing up.

Despite my venting, I remain convinced that doing more self produced concerts, where I can continue to prove that people (from different regions) are willing to buy tickets to see me and my group perform, is probably the best path to follow. The problem or challenge is to find a way that doesn't leave me so exhausted during the process of putting the events together and promoting them, that I'm too tired to actually perform in the first place.

Practice Log - 8/17/09 | Part I

Warm Up:

1. harmonics on alto sax with tuner + metronome @ 60bpm
   10 min
2. long tone exercise on alto sax with tuner + metronome @ 60bpm
   5 min
3. harmonics on soprano sax with tuner + metronome @ 60 bpm
   10 min
4. long tone exercise on soprano sax with tuner + metronome @ 60bpm
   5 min

Practice Log - 8/16/09 | Part II

I didn't get to work on technical stuff today. But, one thing I did get to work on is "ear training" of sorts and general musicianship.

Today I had a duet performance with blues/jazz artist Gail Storm. We played 3 sets together, with the overwhelming majority of the tunes being ones that neither her nor I have ever done before. It was a great exercise in listening and making sure to do what's needed, musical, and appropriate for each tune specifically, and the gig in general. The tunes that we did that I had zero familiarity with encompassed about 2 hours worth of material.

So, even though I don't normally consider a gig as a practice session, I will consider this one to be a practice session simply because it was really a good work out for my ears, understanding of music harmony and theory, and general musicianship.

Practice Log - 8/16/09 | Part I

I have realized that I've been rather naughty by not posting my practice routine in a bit. No excuses other than I've been too lazy to bring my laptop down to my practice room with me and then bring it back upstairs to my home office and internet connection.

So anyway, here's what I've done for this morning:

Warm Up:

1. harmonics on alto sax with tuner + metronome @ 60bpm
   10 min
2. long tone exercise on alto sax with tuner + metronome @ 60bpm
   5 min
3. harmonics on soprano sax with tuner + metronome @ 60 bpm
   10 min
4. long tone exercise on soprano sax with tuner + metronome @ 60bpm
   5 min

Getting Together In Style!

It may only be once a year, but when I get together with a couple of my cousins and my uncle, we do it in style!

I've mentioned several times in the past that I come from a musical family...actually, the arts in general run strong in my family. Well, above this paragraph you see a photo (courtesy of a fan named Lynda Maniscalco) of my family band known as "The Latimer Experience", which is made up of (from left to right): My cousin Andre Latimer, my uncle Isham Latimer, my other cousin Emile Latimer, my two friends Glenn Palermo and Bill Titus on bass and guitar respectively, and of course me.

Yesterday we completed the last of two performances that I had booked for us this year. It's always such a kick for me to see how the audience reacts to what we have to offer, which is essentially 2 sets of purely improvisational music based on African and Latin drum rhythms, and perhaps 1 or 2 jazz standards thrown into the mix. What a great time we had! There is only one negative thing.

We had always wanted to get a good recording done of us while we are all still around and able to play. This is particularly important to me as the youngest member of "The Latimer Experience", because my cousin Emile is approaching his mid 70's and is starting to experience problems and pain with his hands. So, I had brought my digital recorder with the hopes that we might actually be able to create a live CD. We were in top form! However, the recorder didn't catch the performance! I forgot a stand for it and had to tape it to a column. Unfortunately, I taped it too tight and accidentally press the "stop recording button", which turned the device off. Talk about disappointments! I was disgusted when I saw no data on my memory card.

At any rate, hopefully we will be able to all get together again next year. And this time, they'll be no slip ups!

Catching Lightning in a Bottle

For the past year and a half, I have had the pleasure of being a regular part of the line-up for blues and jazz performer Gail Storm. Whether it's with her heavy hitting quartet with monster blues guitarist Joe Vicino, or a more intimate setting with just the two of us performing for a smaller crowd, I have enjoyed EVERY minute of my time on stage with her.

During our time together we have noticed a few things.

1. We have become very locked in to each other's playing styles
2. People seem to really enjoy not only the music we play, but our interactions on stage
3. Every single performance that we have done, particularly when we have the full band together, has reached our audiences in a very positive way...very much like what I see happens with my own quartet!

With those things in mind, about 2 months ago, we decided to record a 6 song CD together that we would make available for fans during our performances together. Well, we have completed the CD and I have to say that I really think we caught lightning in a bottle on this one! We simply did some of the songs that were favorites of her fans, but were also very strong songs for us. There's no cover design yet, or anything like that. In fact, we might not even professionally mass produce it, but I really think that people will enjoy it...hopefully as much as we enjoyed recording it!

One for the Road

For the past 4 years, I have enjoyed an extremely talented and well aquainted line up with my jazz quartet. People know my group to consist of Kenny MacKenzie on piano, Thomson Kneeland on bass, and Kyle Struve on drums. But now all of that is going to change.

Today will be a very special performance that I have to do because it will be the last one with Kenny MacKenzie being part of the quartet. In just a few days, Kenny will be moving to Florida. This was very sad news for me as I have always thought of Kenny as an indespensible incredient in the make up of the quartet...whether it be in terms of our sound, the band's chemistry, or what have you. There's no doubt in my mind that Kenny is the most musically gifted piano player I've ever had a chance to play with. His playing really reaches listeners. Not to mention, he is an incredible composer and just simply a real nice guy!

I won't be saying goodbye to Kenny though because we will still be in touch via Facebook, email, and we have even talked about possibly doing some gigs together in Florida. And then, there is my plan to fly Kenny up to do my next CD with me and the rest of the guys.

Thomson Kneeland, the bassist for my quartet, has given me a few players that I can contact to take over the piano duties. I am familiar with almost all of them and they are all great players. But somehow I don't think it will be quite the same with Kenny not on the bandstand with us. In any case, the show must go on, and I'm feeling too much momentum lately to stop now!

So, I guess that's it for this post. I'm excited about the gig today and will be sure to enjoy every minute of it. HERE'S TO KENNY MACKENZIE and one for the road!

The African Challenge

I'm excited about a new project that I've been asked to perform in. This project consists of African music and the group will be a quartet with a guitarist (bandleader), bassist, drummer, and of course myself on saxophones.

The music, though simple in concept, has proven to be rather challenging for me because it is so different than what I'm used to playing, or even how I'm used to conceptualizing music. That having been said, I like that it is challenging me because that is how we get better at doing things. There isn't a way to rise to a challenge if we haven't had one placed before us!

Right now we are in rehearsals, but the band leader plans on having us do several "small" performances as a tune-up for a big concert performance at the Boulton Center for the Performing Arts in Bay Shore, New York. That will be followed up by a master class and performance at Amherst College in Massachusetts sometime in February of 2010.

The chemistry within the group is very good...no egos, which is always a good thing! I really think that this will prove to be both an interesting and rewarding experience. And, at the very least, it should help me be able to better perform with my cousin Emile Latimer (percussionist), who's playing style is that of West Africa.

Just one question remains in my mind though. What is the bandleader going to call the band?

My Next CD

I've been starting to get questions from people asking me when I plan to put out my next CD effort.

Good question!

I've been thinking that myself, actually. In the back of my mind I had the idea of hitting the studio this Fall and trying to put out the release by next Summer. That is still a possibility, but what is more likely is getting into the studio during the early part of 2010 for a Fall release.

There are several factors that have held me from releasing a new album over the past couple of years. One thing has been my schedule. I have had such a dense schedule the past couple of years (thank goodness) that I simply haven't had the proper time to plan anything out, or to write new music for that matter. The second factor, and perhaps the most significant, is that I became a father last Summer. Anybody who is a parent knows that you can't get a whole lot of work done when you have a baby around.

All that in mind, there are a few reasons present as to why I can't start on the album right away (this Fall). Probably the biggest reason is MONEY.

Even though I'm signed to a record label (Tierra Records of Dortmund, Germany), I still have costs to have to cover from out of my own pocket. Simply put, the label I'm signed to is a small independent label and their budget isn't such that they can simply throw me 15 or 20 thousand dollars to do an album and properly promote it. Most of their help comes on the distribution end and in helping me with sales overseas.

Another hurdle, which is somewhat related to money, is the fact that I need to write some more songs. How does this relate to money? Well, on my first album I have several cover tunes (jazz standards) that I recorded to help give listeners some tunes that they may be familiar with so that purchasing my album wouldn't be such a risk for them.

What many listeners don't realize is that by doing so I had to pay a good amount of money in licensing to be allowed to record and sell those cover songs...nearly $2,000 extra on top of the other costs involved with recording and manufacturing the CD. Bare in mind, that I was discovered by Tierra Records AFTER I had already completed the album. So, all of the expenses were completely out of my own pocket.

My next album will be all original compositions to both help me get MY voice out, and to help me cut costs.

I have been stirring some song ideas around, but I'm taking my time. I really want this to be put together right and for the songs to be right for what I think my next move should be musically. At the same time, I realize that it's been awhile since I put out my debut album and I don't want it to be too much longer before the next one is released.

So, with that I think I will end this post. But, one thing is certain. I would definitely like to have a new album out by sometime in 2010.

Online Communities

I've been keeping pretty busy lately and haven't been able to get away to leave a post in a spell. My initial, unspoken goal of putting up a blog post at least 3 or 4 times a week has evaporated! The fact of the matter is that there are just so many lines of communication that I have open, it's getting tough to keep track of all of them.

As of this moment, in addition to trying to keep this blog up to date, I'm also trying to keep my website current, I have a monthly email blast to construct on an ongoing basis, and I'm on all of the "big 3" social networking sites: Facebook, Twitter, and Myspace. Not to mention I have a Youtube account that is painfully neglected. Most of my attempts to stay on top of all of these different sights are thwarted by my normal, day to day activities of being a dad, trying to keep our house from falling on top of us (or just plain trying keep the house at all!), so on and so on.

One thing I have to say about all these social networking sites is that they have been great in getting me in contact with friends and relatives who I have not seen in a very long time. In fact, an old childhood friend of mine recently contacted me who I don't believe I've seen since perhaps 2nd or 3rd grade! I also get to talk to a few of my close friends that I don't get to see in person very much because of my performance schedule, or our respective family lives.

My venturing into the social networking scene was somewhat calculated. I first joined Myspace a couple of years ago as a marketing experiment. I learned a few things from that experience, but mostly that it is an over saturated media to try and get your voice heard as a musician. It seems that everybody and their grandmother is trying to promote their band on Myspace, making the whole experience a little overbearing.

Facebook was my next move. Oddly enough, I didn't join because I wanted to market myself. My first objective was to find a lost family member that I had evidence showing that he may be a Facebook member. My second objective, and less important to me at the time, was to try and find a booking agent that I had been told about.

The result was that the person who I thought was a long lost family member wasn't who I thought he was (the search continues), and the booking agent turned out to not actually be a member of Facebook. However, the booking agent's name was very similar to the name of an old friend and former girlfriend of mine and caused her name to come up in the search results. It lead me to the discovery of someone I had not seen in something like 15 years or so. In fact, my wife and I just recently had dinner with her and her husband. We all had a great time and she and my wife really hit it off!

So anyway, I guess online communities are cool and all because you can keep in touch with people that you may not be able to keep in touch with through other more "traditional" means, but it sure is a handful juggling your attention between them!

I'm Feeling That Itch Again!

After being the sideman for a few other groups who had big concert productions this year, and having the opportunity to play a couple of gigs with my own guys, I must say that I think I'm starting to get "the itch".

It's not the sort of itch that can be cured by using any kind of lotion. The only way to get rid of this itch is to put together a concert production for my quartet and monitor the ticket sales.

The last major concert production I had for my quartet was in 2007. I had the opportunity to put together a production at a 1,200 seat concert hall known as the Patchogue Theatre in 2008, but that fell through because of a lack of sponsors and the start of the economic down turn. Since that time, I've had my quartet in some high quality performances, but it's just not the same as having a box office dedicated to the sale of tickets to concert goers who want to see you as the headliner for a real live concert hall.

One thing I have to keep in mind though is timing. There are a bunch of factors that I must consider before setting the wheels in motion, and one of them is the fact that I would really like to have a new product (ie. album) available by that time because my debut album is now almost 3 years old and there's nothing new to offer my fans and listeners. I think I will have to concentrate on that first. But then, that means that I need to start writing some songs! I haven't written any new songs in 4 years!

As for which venue I will pick, it probably makes more sense during these tough economic times to go smaller with the concert venue. The expense of the Patchogue Theatre, even with them offering me a break, was high in comparison to the amount I could probably expect from ticket sales from concert attendance. I would prefer to go with a venue that seats any where between 150 - 300 seats, because I'm confident that I could fill that many seats...at least here on Long Island. The best candidate is the Boulton Center, which is a venue I'm already familiar with from having performed there as a sideman for "Jack's Waterfall" 3 or 4 times. Also, the people who run that concert hall are familiar with me and have already shown an interest in having my quartet there.

I'll have to sit down and figure all this out, but I really need to scratch this itch!

The Latimer Legacy

I come from a family that has strong ties to the arts. Aside from my cousins who have performed and recorded with some major names in music, and of course me carrying that musical torch, there is also my uncle who is a painter, and my aunt who was an acrobat and dancer in her younger days.

And now I wonder, with my 10 month old daughter constantly around me and my musician and artist friends, will Alyssa have some kind of involvement in the arts as well?

The picture that you can see over in the above right hand corner is of me and Alyssa relaxing on a couch that was backstage at the Boulton Center for the Performing Arts in Bay Shore, New York. This was a couple of hours before I had to go onstage with "Jack's Waterfall", which is a band that I love to perform with when they need to have me in their line-up.

At this point I've had Alyssa backstage with me on a few occasions and she has even been present for some of my live performances and educational lectures. She knows it's me onstage too because she reaches her arms out at me and yells for me so I can come over and pick her up. Laughter and smiles come out from the audience and it makes me wonder what is going to become of her with all this public attention and adoration.

There are so many similarities between the two of us that it's almost scary. For example, I often mention on my blog how I always am on the go or am on some kind of schedule. Alyssa seems to need constant activity and to see new things as well. And, she already has a good sense of schedule because she seems to understand that her favorite TV programs come on at a certain time, and God forbid if we aren't near the television at THAT time! Also, it looks as though, just like me, she will skip the crawling phase all together and go straight to walking. Then there is the little fact that we both share the same birthday...though I guess it's more HER birthday now!

So anyway, I guess I need to wait about 20 or 30 years to see what she will end up doing with herself. I really don't care whether she gets involved with the arts or not, as long as she can at least develop a healthy appreciation for them. As for me, lately I've been wondering what my legacy or the Latimer legacy will be. I'm the youngest Latimer male left in my family, with the next one in line being at least 15 years my senior. Hopefully, the Latimer name will mean things like hard workers, trust worthy, dependable, serious, intelligent, and imaginative. And, hopefully, that will be a legacy that Alyssa finds herself both inheriting and continuing.

Self Evaluation

Now that the tour is over with the Gail Storm Blues Band, I really need to concentrate on salvaging the practice routine I have tried to embark upon but have failed miserably at keeping consistent.

Thus far, I haven't achieved a single thing. Not a good admission considering that I'm a full time musician, and I am keeping my practice log in a public domain. But, if anything, I think it helps to illustrate the point that musicians lead very busy lives and the stereotype of partying all day and night can basically be thrown out of the window. The past couple of months have been so busy for me with gigs, prep for the tour I just came home from, household responsibilities, fatherhood, trying to book gigs for my quartet, learning music for other artists' projects, and what have you, that practice time to improve my diminished skills has been difficult if not nearly impossible to find.

So, in any case, I will jump back onto the wagon and try again...starting TODAY!

Swing Back Home

What a trip/tour! The gigs I had down here with the Gail Storm Band was nothing short of killin'! Without fail, we brought down the house in every venue we have played at, and every last owner wants us back...and soon!

The past year with Gail has shown me that if anything, we have all the ingredients of being a very successful group because we apparently have that "something" that touches people. That is a rare thing for a band to have, and I don't think it's entirely the music in our case. I believe that "something" is the chemistry between us and how much fun we have playing together. It's something that everybody comments on.

So anyway, this will be a very short blog because we (my wife Renee and I) are only minutes away from needing to check out of this hotel before we get charged extra. We had a lot of fun down here. The south certainly swings! But now it's time to swing back home and hit the groove of our normal day to day situation. But one thing I know is that we'll be back!

On The Road

I have forgotten how tiring it can be doing gigs on the road. The past few days I have been on the road with the Gail Storm Blues Band down in the south. My wife Renee was able to join me and we have turned it into a working vacation of sorts.

Right this moment I'm in our hotel room in Hendersonville, North Carolina getting ready for the gig the band has in Asheville. This area is gorgeous, as it's in the Blue Ridge Mountains! Unfortunately, with scheduling the way it is, Renee and I haven't had any time at all to check out what's around.

We had an interesting gig last night at the Brown Street Club in Greenville, South Carolina. We definitely turned the place out! The owner had never hired a band from New York before and judging by how much he, his staff, and venue patrons were raving about us, there's no doubt that he'll be having us back when we swing down here again in about 6 months or so.

Gail hired a local drummer name Kris Hyatt to play with us because her regular drummer Bernice couldn't make it down here. Kris was great and definitely represented Greenville well...he handled all of Gail's weird cues like he had been playing with her for a few years!

The only negative thing is that I don't think it was cool that the Brown Street Club didn't take care of dinner for us. I felt that was rude considering that every other place in or out of the state of New York that we have ever played at gives us a meal, and also because: A) they had people driving Ferraris coming into the place and B) the place was packed!

Tonight we will be at Tessa's Jazz and Blues Club in Asheville, North Carolina. After how well we performed last night, I'm really looking forward to tonight's performance. Which reminds me, I have to get going so that I can get ready for this gig!

Sleeping Angel

It's real difficult trying to type with just one hand, but my other one is supporting a sleeping angel. My 9 month old daughter has decided that it"s nap time on daddy!

What a nice little moment!

I feel like telling her to get all the sleep she can, because us Latimers are ALWAYS on a schedule and ALWAYS on the run, and she'll wish that she could get some sleep when she's older. But for now, I think I'll just sit here alone with her, in silence, and just enjoy this moment.

Practice Log - 4/7/09 | Part II

This entry is for the practice session that I did on 4/7/09 late at night. I went straight to bed afterwards and so didn't get to make the entry then.


Vocabulary:

1. Bebop Pivot Points in all 12 keys. Pivots on 5 and 4 in cycle of 4ths with 2 beat - 1 beat - o beat rest in between keys. 8th notes and then 16th notes with metronome @ 100pbm
   15 min
2. worked on ii-V7-I's (all 12 keys) out of Aebersold volume 3. Did tritone substitutions and diminished relations over them as well.
   20 min

Improv:

1. Took a simple song with ii-V7-I's in it ("Ladybird" from Aebersold volume 36) and applied what I did during my practice time with ii-V7-I's earlier.
   40 min

Transcription:

1. started working on the head on alto sax solo on "Mel's Minor" by Dick Oats. Completed the head and the first chorus.
   1hr

Practice Log - 4/7/09 | Part I

This is, unfortunately, the first time I have actually had the time to practice in about a month. It took me this long to try and figure out a new daily schedule for myself because some things have shifted in my day to day operations.

Anyway, I'm praying that I have no further interuptions because I need to sharpen my playing back up and then exceed the level that I had achieved a few years ago.

Both my alto and soprano saxes are in terrible need of an overhaul. But, my soprano is in a little better shape, so I will use that to practice longtones and harmonics.

Warm Up:

1. harmonics on soprano sax with tuner + metronome @ 60 bpm
   10 min
2. longtone exercise from "Top Tones" book, with tuner + metronome @ 60bpm
   10 min
   

Technique:

1. Major scales in thirds (up, down, up-down, down-up variations) 6 keys ( C, F, Bb, Eb, Ab, Db). 16th notes with metronome @ 100bpm
   15 min
2. Bebop Pivot Points in all 12 keys. Pivots on 5 and 4 in cycle of 4ths with 2 beat - 1 beat - o beat rest in between keys. 8th notes and then 16th notes with metronome @ 100pbm
   15 min

"Crunch" Time

Well, here I am up early in the morning and this time it isn't because I have stayed up all night and didn't bother going to bed, which is usually the case. Today is the day I try to start doing something about this extra weight that I've been carrying around for the past 6 or 7 years.

Given how dense my daily schedule normally is, and the fact that I have a 9 month old daughter who has apparently inherited my restlessness, it has been next to impossible to try and figure out how to set aside some time to get any exercise in. After nearly 2 months of trying, I have finally figured it out.

Currently, I weigh about 270 lbs. At 6'3" that is obviously too heavy for someone my height. The only good thing is that I actually don't look sloppy or even all THAT heavy (fat). I'm told by those around me that I look 15-20lbs lighter than my actual weight. I actually would agree with that.

In any case, my fantasy/ultimate goal would be to get in around my college weight when I had first started to lift weights and had gained 20lbs of muscle. At that time I was 205lbs. However, realistically I don't think my age, genetics, or my body will allow me to get down to that size ever again. My more "realistic" goal is to try and get down to somewhere between 210 - 215lbs. Again, trying to be realistic, I calculate that it will take at least a year to achieve that if I can average around 5lbs of weight lose a month.

My eating habits have been a bit better of late, but I still need to improve in this area as well. Fortunately, I have gotten used to whole wheat and rye bread from the last time I tried to loose some weight. I don't eat much in the way of deserts, so nothing here to cut. I do, however, have to watch what I drink - there is definitely too much soda and other sugar filled drinks in my diet.

I feel pretty motivate, but certainly have some reasons to do this:

• my mother is diabetic and it runs in my family
• I'm wearing pants with a size 42 waist and lately even those are starting to fit a little snug
• I have bad knees and maybe this will help alleviate some of the stress on them
• I want to be healthy so I can be around to see my daughter grow up
• I want to look good on stage

So, with all that said, it's time for me to get to work!

Lets Hear it for Claritin D12!

Yes, it's finally April! Yes, Spring is here! Yes, warm weather at last! Yes, thank goodness I can finally be joined with my allergies...not!

As a wind instrument player, it sure is frustrating to have to deal with allergies. It messes up absolutely everything: tone, breathing, projection, you name it!

When I was very young, I can remember my allergies were real bad and I learned to just sort of suffer through it. As I got older, a few things happened to help build my lungs up and make my allergies more tolerable. First, I started playing the sax. Then, when I was in 8th grade, I was recruited onto the track team.

My allergies didn't make those things easy at first, but I soon grew strong enough to be able to adapt and still perform well under even those debilitating conditions. Even now, my allergies can get so bad sometimes that I get winded just walking from my front door to my mailbox, which is a distance of only about 40 feet. However, there is one thing that is different for me now than it was when I was a kid...Claritin D12!

It's a wonder drug for me because now, not only can I play my instrument even when there is a lot of pollen out there, I can do other stuff I enjoy like (believe it or not) yard work, or just going to the park with my wife and my daughter. Jeez, did that just sound like a commercial or what! You hear that you folks at Claritin? I want my endorsement contract so that I can afford to go on tour! Yeah, lets hear it for Claritin D12!

Anyway, I just felt like writing all of that because, when I woke up this morning and I couldn't breathe, I immediately went for my Claritin and then felt inspired to write this little blog. Weird, I know, but isn't the point of the whole blog thing to let people in on your thoughts?

Musical Healing

I really don't think that most people realize what someone must go through to try and make a living as a musician. My guess is that most people think all we do is party and get up at 1PM the next day, etc.

Nothing could be farther from the truth...at least regarding us SERIOUS musicians.

But amidst all the stress, sacrifice, and long hours, every now and then there is that special gig that reminds you of why you do it all. Well, this past weekend I had the incredibly rare fortune of having 2..yes count them...2 very special gigs that were back to back and were nothing short of magical for me.

The first gig took place this past Friday night on march 27th, 2009. I performed in a concert with the great blues artist Gail Storm at the Dix Hills Performing Arts Center on Long Island, New York. What a concert that was! I always have fun playing with Gail, but this was on a whole other plain of reality!

The best part for me wasn't just how well we all played together and the fun the four of us had, but how so many people came up to me after the show and commented on how much they enjoyed our performance. That really made my night!

Then, the next night on Saturday, I had the pleasure of performing with rock n' soul artist Christina Gaudet at the Bitter End in New York City. Man, what a show!

Christina really pulled out all the stops and had her FULL 11 piece band. There is no question, based on the audience reaction and all the compliments I received afterwards that we rocked the house!

Those two gigs were something that I needed about now. Just a little reminder of why I go through all that I do. It's all about that incredible and inexplicable feeling that you get when a performance is beyond the norm and enters the realm of magical! It's receiving all the love, positive energy and adoration from an audience that is totally into you and what you're doing. And to think that I had the extreme fortune of experiencing that twice in one weekend! Usually, I think most of us musicians consider ourselves lucky if we experience that sort of thing even just once in a year!

Those two gigs were just what I REALLY needed about now...some musical healing!

What EVERY Musician Needs!

I'm actually about to leave my house to go to a rehearsal in Brooklyn, but I just wanted to take a second and put up a post about a little device that I think every single musician should have...a GPS unit.

I've had the TomTom One second edition (pictured on the left) for about 2 years now and I can't sing enough praises about it! It's been a very helpful tool for me and I honestly can't see how I've been doing as much traveling as I have been for gigs without it.

By no means is this going to be a review or an endorsement for TomTom products, or whatever, but I do think that any serious musician who is on the road a lot should really consider having a GPS unit as important as having their instrument for the gig.

As a "gadget guy" I had been wanting a GPS for a longtime, but thought they were too pricey and really didn't want to spend the money on one since I could always just print up directions from yahoo or google maps.

Then something happened to change my mind.

I was on my way to a gig deep in upstate New York. I was just getting through a confusing section of the highway when I came across the part in my printed up directions that said, "turn onto local road"...we've all seen that one! The only problem was it was a really weird exit, traffic was bad with people driving fast, and there was no obvious indicator as to which turn was the correct one off of the exit because there was a succession of 3 or 4 turns and none of them had street signs or names!

I had no time to think and in the middle of trying to reread the directions I nearly got into an accident. That pretty much sealed the deal for me. I began to think back to the times that I had encountered a similar problem. Realizing that buying a GPS unit would be cheaper than dealing with medical bills, I went to Staples the very next day and picked up my TomTom One.

It's been great! In over 2 years of VERY heavy usage, I can count only 6 or 7 times that it was either wrong or couldn't supply me with the exact address. But in all those cases, it still got me to within 5 minutes of where I was suppose to be. I always take a print out of the venue's address, phone number, and contact person anyway so that I can adjust if there is a problem with the directions from the GPS.

So anyway, that's my little rant about having a GPS. And like I said, it's what EVERY musician needs!

I have a new respect for some of the great studio musicians out there - the cats who are involved with several projects and manages to kick butt in ALL OF THEM!

In short order, I have rehearsals with the Gail Storm Blues Band with all kinds of material to learn for a concert next week, rehearsals with the other sax player and then the full ensemble of the "rock and soul" artist Christina Guadet, material I need to have together for a private function, and then there's always the material in my quartet that I really need to work on. I'm still haunted by the mental lasp I had when we last performed "Always", one of my own compositions, and I forgot how to play the B section!

The fact of the matter is that it's a blessing to be this busy. There are plenty of cats out there that wish they had some extra things going on, so I'm certainly grateful.

Gail Storm's stuff is great and very musical - lots of dynamics, lots of using your ears, and not to mention playing with her, Joe Vicino the guitarist, and Bernice the drummer is a blast beyond a blast. We'll be performing at the Dix Hills Performing Arts Center next week and I know we will bring the house down!

Christina Guadet's material is very fun to play and I have to be careful because my part is arranged and there is another sax player as well. Him and I need to be well in sinc with things because there are some timely hits and parts that don't repeat themselves too much. In short, it's a lot to have to memorize. We'll be at The Bitter End in Manhattan next week, a day after Gail's gig.

What I love about this is that I can try and achieve my goal of being able to play in any genre of music that I'm asked to play in, and sound like I belong in that genre and yet can still sound like it's me.

Michael Brecker was my hero when it came to that. He could play in any genre of music and sound like he belonged to it, but you could still tell it was Michael Brecker's playing from a mile away!

I think the endeavor of any musician should be to understand the "language" of the genre of music that he or she is asked or hired to perform in, but to still find a way to let their personality shine through.

This is a tough challenge to be sure, but one that I know I'm looking forward to meeting in my two gigs next week!

Coming Up for Air

Man, I have been busy beyond believe of late! It's getting increasingly difficult to actually function because of how dense my schedule has become and how much I'm trying to juggle.

I have to admit that I'm feeling both mentally and physically drained. Much of my hustle has been in trying to get more gigs to compensate for the loss of my wife's job. But I've also been busy with trying to help my wife start her own business, which is causing me to take away from running my own. And then there's my website - I've been trying to get the redesign done since this past November, but I just can't get any time to myself.

And of course, in the backdrop of all of this are my attempts to get a more regular practice routine in and my campaign to loose some weight.

I don't think I'd mind being this busy if I had more money coming in to show for it, but that isn't the case.

Probably what I need at this point is a vacation so I can come up for some air!!!!

All in all, I think things will start to calm down some once I finish my website's redesign and my wife becomes more autonomous with her business. Since she is new to being self employed, she doesn't yet know how to market herself, etc.

Despite the fact that I have to spend a lot of time helping her out with her business that I should be spending on my own business, I'm glad that she is doing this. I have told her for years that the great thing about being self employed is that you can't fire yourself and you don't have to worry about coming in from your lunch break and suddenly being handed a pink slip because the company is "down-sizing" to save money!

In any case, I think I need to sit down and figure out a more rigid daily schedule so I can attempt to be more efficient (if that is even possible) and get more done with less.

Even When There's A Problem, There is No Problem

Yesterday I did a gig at a jazz festival that takes place in the vineyards of the east end of Long Island.

I got up very early in the morning to pack my car up with the sound system and other gear. I even had plenty of time to practice a bit before I left. Check out the entry on my practice log. Anyway, I left a little later than I wanted to, but still in time to set up the sound system and be able to start the hit in time. Things were going good until...

...at 1:00pm, basically an hour before we were to start the performance (I was still driving to the gig) the bass player called. He was a cat that I called as a sub because my usual guy couldn't make the gig. At first I thought he was calling me to tell me that he was there or something. That wasn't the case. He was calling to tell me that he couldn't make the gig because his car got towed.

Of course this was not what I needed to hear an hour before the gig and when I still had to be worried about things like putting the sound system together, impatient event coordinators, etc. I immediately got off the phone with him and called a bassist who I thought would be around and really the only guy that I knew who stood a reasonable chance of making it there in enough time so that we would only have a 10 or 15 min late start.

Long story short, the bassist arrived just as I was finishing the head of the first tune. The whole gig was off balance for me, though. I had to readjust the set list on the fly, I ended up needing to play some standards that I hadn't played in a long time. I try to tell myself that it shouldn't matter and that I need to just be professional, but when your mental game is thrown off it's tough to recover!

So what is the point of all this? I think that I need to work on the mental aspect of my playing as well. Something I've long known about, but now I have to do something about before I end up having a train wreck on a more important gig (though, my philosophy is that EVERY gig is important). My mental policy is now, "even when there's a problem, there is NO problem".

I need to learn to shut out snags and just move on. Actually, from the natural process of maturity and getting older, I am much better at it now than I was in my early to mid twenties. But now I think I should really work on it because in the end the only thing that should ever really matter is what comes out of the bell of my horn.

Practice Log - 3/6/09 | Part I

This entry is for the practice session I did late last night before I went to bed. The past few days I have been working on the tunes that I will have to perform later today.

Tunes:

1. Head and changes of "Surely" (an original composition by Kenny MacKenzie)
   used Band-in-a-Box and also went over changes on the piano
   1 hr
2. Head and changes of "Sing a Song of Song (by Kenny Garrett)
   used Band-in-a-Box and did comparison with Kenny Garrett's CD recording

Practice Log - 3/5/09 | Part II

This log entry is to make note of the practice session I had last night but forgot to note in this online practice log.


Tunes Continued:

1. Head and changes of "Hope" for a second time (one of my original tunes)
   10 min
2. Head and changes of "Ro" (an original tune by my friend Nick Russo)
   20 min

Misc:

1. Sight reading with metronome at 100 bpm
   10 min

A New Personal Goal

Right now, I'm sitting in my studio in between students and I just happened to look at myself in the mirror...holy cow...I have gained quite a bit of weight!

All the late night meals after gigs, general crappy eating and no exercise is definitely taking a toll on me. Gone are the days of my 6'3" 205lbs athletic frame from college, that's for sure.

It's looking to me like I'm going to have to add a little something to my list of to do and find some time to get a good exercise routine into my schedule. And, I'm going to have change the way I eat. I have really been eating like crap for about the last 10 months or so.

Realistically, I don't think my metabolism or my genetics will allow me to return to my college weight of 205lbs, but I do think that I can reach and look good at 215lbs - 220lbs. And even that will take a lot of work...probably a good full year's worth of hard work and sacrifice.

Well, no time like the present..right after I finish this Ginger Ale!

Just Kiddin'!

Practice Log - 3/5/09 | Part I

Warm Up:

1. harmonics on alto sax with tuner + metronome @ 60bpm
   10 min
2. long tone exercise on alto sax with tuner + metronome @ 60bpm
   5 min
3. harmonics on soprano sax with tuner + metronome @ 60 bpm
   10 min
4. long tone exercise on soprano sax with tuner + metronome @ 60bpm
   5 min

Technique:

1. Major scales in thirds (up, down, up-down, down-up variations)
   6 keys ( C, F, Bb, Eb, Ab, Db).
   16th notes with metronome @ 100bpm
   15 min
2. Bebop Pivot Points in all 12 keys
   Pivots on 5 and 4
   cycle of 4ths with 2 beat - 1 beat - o beat rest in between keys
   8th notes and then 16th notes with metronome @ 100pbm
   15 min

Tunes:

1. Head and changes of "Hope" (one of my original compositions)
   10 min
   

Self Analysis 3/4/09

Lately, I've noticed that I'm a little sloppy with my execution of certain things. Also, my sight reading has dropped quite a bit along with my endurance. Not to mention, my altissimo range seems a bit compromised.

I guess to put it another way, I'M A MESS! I recently told one of my students that I estimate that I'm only playing at about 65% of my previous peak level of roughly three and a half years ago, which pretty much coincides with when I bought my house. The past few years have seen the most erratic practice routine of my career and I have to reign it in now, before even more damage is done. Being a home owner, and now a father, takes up a lot of time, but I need to work out some time to practice on a more consistent basis again.

I think it's important to do a periodic self analysis like this.

At any rate, I've decided on starting a "Back to Basics" practice routine for myself. I will go over the things that are fundamental that I haven't touched in at least 7 years or so.

On the one hand I feel like I'm going backwards. But that's my ego talking. I know that in order to get back to the level I was at a couple of years ago, I need to get back to basics for a month or two - or how ever long it takes for me to get back to where I was at. From there I can then move on and try to surpass the level I feel I was at when I was at my previous peak.

My New Page

I've been working double and even triple time trying to get my new website completed. I've been working on it since around November of last year and it's still not done!

Actually, it's not even that the new design is all that complicated. I'm still trying to keep the design relatively simple and free of too much Flash media because I know that there is still a large number of my fans who have computers that are "older" and might not be able to handle some of the new things that you can do with websites. It's just that time has not been an ally of mine...particularly since becoming a father. Not to mention the amount of work I must put in on a daily basis to keep my performance schedule busy enough to pay the bills.

However, I may finally be able to launch the new website within a week. I wanted to have it done before my March 7th performance at Long Island Winterfest, but I think a more realistic target would be a launch by sometime early next week.

I've got the "Fan" section of my website about 95% complete, with only a few loose ends to tie up. There are some nice features that I think will cause visitors to want to come back for more, but I still have to start the design work for the sections that will be dedicated to presenters/booking agents, members of the press, and students. One cool feature I'm going to have in the "Student" section will be a link to my practice log, which is a part of my blog, so that students or curious musicians can see what it is that I find myself needing to practice and how I organize my practice time.

It's been a lot of hard work, but I think I will have a website that I can be proud of when it's all said and done.

Fun Over the Airwaves

I'm just returning from a radio interview I had for WLIU 88.3 FM out of Southampton, NY. It's the first radio interview I've done since this past August and it was sure fun! No doubt because of the liveliness of the hostess, Bonnie Grice, and the quick wit of the other guest...a good friend of mine and a true patron of jazz, Steve Bard.

I haven't spoken to either of them in nearly 2 years, but you would never know that from listening to the interview, which lasted for about 20 minutes and featured a couple of tracks from my CD Front and Center.

It was great to have a chance to crack a couple of jokes and talk about jazz with a couple of first class people who really care about the music.

The interview was scheduled by the organizers of an event I'm performing in called Long Island Winterfest. It's a great event because the people that come are true jazz fans and it helps out both us artists and the vineyards that the event is held in.

Anyway, the interview went very well and the 3 of us shared great chemistry. It certainly helped to put a better light on my day since I am now going on 36 hours with no sleep! I just could not sleep last night and I barely got 2 hours the night before...I'm exhausted! In fact, I think I'll be hitting the sack now and saving my practice time for when I'm a little more coherent.

My Own Voice

I just got finished watching most of a DVD one of my students let me borrow that featured the great alto saxophonist Phil Woods during a master class at NYU.

He said many things that gave me pause to wonder and that stuck in my head. One thing was a comment he made to some cats from a small jazz combo - typical quartet setting (sax, piano, bass, and drums). What he said reminded me of what I heard Miles Davis say in an interview once. Phil told the young cats that it sounded like they were playing straight ahead bebop and that they were playing it safe and not taking any chances.

One thing he said in particular grabbed me: "I don't want you to please me, I want you to upset me!" As simple as that may sound on the surface, that is actually real steep.

Here Phil Woods is, a bebop player from the old guard, and even HE is saying that the music (jazz) must move forward! He also made comments about finding your "voice". That's a little something a lot of the young cats I meet should pay heed to.

Only 7 or 8 years ago, I can remember being depressed because I didn't sound like Michael Brecker or have that "classic alto sax tone" like Cannonball or Bird. But then people like Todd Coolman, Dan Faulk, Don Braden, Vincent Herring, Dick Oats, and others told me that there was nothing wrong with my playing style or my tone. They got me to understand that the goal in jazz and indeed any art is to find YOUR OWN VOICE. In their view, I was fortunate because I had found it so early.

Now, by no means does that mean that I don't ever have to practice again, that I don't have anything left I need to work on, or that I'm already as good as I possibly can be...I'm a long way from that for my own taste! But I can at least be comfortable in knowing that I'm getting across to listeners as ME and not as someone I wish I could sound like.

Practice Log 3/1/09 | Part I

Warm Up:

1. harmonics on alto sax with tuner + metronome @ 60bpm
   10 min
2. long tone exercise on alto sax with tuner + metronome @ 60bpm
   5 min
3. harmonics on soprano sax with tuner + metronome @ 60 bpm
   10 min
4. long tone exercise on soprano sax with tuner + metronome @ 60bpm
   5 min