Guitar Circle New England 2000 Meeting Minutes
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Saturday 12/30 NE GC South Meeting Wallingford, Connecticut Marc Benigni, Alex Lahoski 9:00AM - 9:30AM: Silence. 9:30AM - 10:00AM: Coffee, etc. 10:00AM - 12:27PM: Warm up via first primary variation, pattern 4-3-1-2 ascending, 1-2-4-3 descending. Repertoire work including Asturias, Blockhead (with extensive polyrythym work), Eye of the Needle (with continued chord analysis for all voices), One of a Thousand Regrets, and Yamanashi Blues (partial.) 12:27PM - 12:30PM: Silence.
Saturday 12/23 NE GC South Meeting Wallingford, CT 9:00-9:30AM Silence. 9:30-9:45AM Coffee, etc. 9:45-12:00PM First primary warm up Circulation Extensive ear training including passing of intervals and identification as minor 2nd, major 2nd, minor 3rd, or major 3rd. Single note recognition within one octave of C major, single note recognition within two octaves of C major. Rythym work including vocalization of combinations of quarter and dotted quarter notes in four time. Repertoire work focusing on Asturias. Brief silence. (Alex departs.) 12:00-~12:30PM Repertoire work focusing on Eye of the Needle. End.. MB
Where: Glenn Hughes's house in Somerville, MA Who: Bill Banatt, Glenn Hughes 8pm Waiting for a third arrival, the piece "Aspiration" was suggested, which, in the duet version, involves the players trading bars of improvising and of playing the main theme. After this, we moved to attract silence. We explored this non-task for 15-20 minutes. Then, a clapping hoe-down. This went on for 20-30 minutes. We foot-tapped, thigh-slapped, and counted, when we could in 4 time. A right foot tap denoted an odd-numbered beat, a left tap an even beat. A right thigh slap denoted (each) downbeat, a left thigh slap the upbeat. We were unsuccessful at performing the exercise at the faster, more allegro tempo, and focused our energies at a slower tempo. The exercise is: tap and slap as above, arbitrarily pick ~2 beats, and count them with intention. Next, the second primary was addressed. This author observed some difficulty making each part do the work of that part, and no other. Work moved to the piece "Asturias". There is some question whether we have covered all the parts, and the plan is to consider consulting Curt Golden at the upcoming NJ NST Weekend.(www.seattlecircle.com) The meeting concluded with Bill's piece, which is nearly finished. The piece involves stretching in the left hand and rapid shifts in center of gravity of the right hand, making for tricky bits ahead for the NE Circle. ~10:20 I wonder who reads these minutes, and how others respond to what has been written. BB (wbanatt@yahoo.com)
Wallingford, Connecticut 10:30AM - 1:15PM (An unusual meeting due to a piano being tuned concurrently just flat of concert pitch in the next room. Times indeterminate owing to various interruptions.) -Extensive rythym work vocalizing combinations of quarter and dotted quarter notes in four time. -First primary warm-up. -Practice, listen to recordings of, and transcribe Eye of the Needle. Music theory discussion pertaining to chord structure (triads, 7th chords,) inversions and the naming of moveable chords. End result is a complete pass through Eye of the Needle with Nancy on bass. Acknowledged as "nearly recognizable" - good progress. -Brief silence. -End..
Where: David Kuznick's House in Arlington, MA Who: Bill Banatt, Glenn Hughes, Dan Keener, David Kuznick, Shawn Marquis 8pm The circle began with 15 minutes of silence. Shawn said that he sensed a presence during this silence. Glenn expressed an interest in working on repetoire and this was supported by the rest of the circle. Work began on "Asturias" with Bill leading the way. The circle then moved on to a piece of Bill's. 10 min. Break The two-note, off and on beat circulation which the group had worked on last week was revisited without guitars. A circulation of 2 beat thighclaps with the left hand then, right hand striking one after the other, was approached in an effort to generate energy before attempting the previous exercise again. This circulation was attempted multiple times at different rates of speed. The two-note circulation was approached again; this time with guitars in the C Major scale. The circle then moved onto a circulation in D minor. Discussion regarding schedule then followed. The circle will meet Monday, Dec. 18th at Glenn Hughes' house in Somerville MA. 10:20p SM
Where: Victor McSurely's Loft in Boston MA. Who: Bill Banatt, Marc Benigni, Glenn Hughes, Dan Keener, Alex Lahoski, Shawn Marquis, Victor McSurely, Dave Traver, Nancy Vaine, Douglas Wright Nominal starting time 10:30 AM. Several people were late. First attempt at actual starting time: 10:40 AM. The circle began by bringing attention to the left hand. More people showed up. Accommodations. Second attempt at actual starting time: 10:50 AM. (Editorial note: Being one of the people that showed up late, but in time for the first attempt at starting, I noticed in myself a sense of relief that others were more late than I. The thought then struck me that people being late is an unhealthy thing for the group as a whole, and the health of the group should be my primary interest, not how good or bad I look in relation to others. I believe that this sort of internal dynamic is also at play in myself in relation to practice. It seems that for a group to become strong, there needs to be a sense of non-static challenge that is met by each member formed in relation to their own starting point. GH) The circle began by bringing attention to the left hand. It was asked that attention be brought to what is being aware of the awareness of the left hand. A note was then chosen from any of the following notes, B/C sharp/D/E/F sharp and G. That note was then played. The circle was then divided into two semi-circles with one group circulating the C Pentatonic scale sequentially and, the other circulating the G Pentatonic scale. The two semi-circles then played their circulations in time with each other. The same notes were then circulated around as a full circle, then again, with the notes passing across the circle. Riffs were then introduced by Victor. Break Victor suggested that seeing the circle had been working together for three months now, it may be a good time to check-in with everyone regarding commitment and aim. An interest in approaching repertoire was expressed by a number of people. Thoughts were shared about balancing Guitar Craft with other priorities in one's life. Victor offered an approach that was advised to him in regards to daily practice. That approach is to promise to yourself that you will only practice for one minute but then, to practice an hour. It was determined from this discussion, that the group would begin work next month, on repertoire composed by members of the circle. Doug and Bill both offered pieces and Dave will try to have something ready for the next meeting. Work with rhythm then began. The circle stood and tapped out two measures of 4 beats; whole notes with the feet and 16th notes with our hands. The difference between 8th notes and dotted 8th notes was then brought to the group's attention with a number of different patterns. This was followed by a call and response exercise where Victor vocalized a pattern in the two bars of 4 with the group repeating the phrase in the next two bars. The circle then did work vocalizing the C Major scale. Discussion followed regarding schedule and it was decided that the next meeting would be held on January 6th at Victor's. The meeting then concluded. SM
Where: David Kuznick's house in Arlington. Who: Bill Banatt, Dan Keener, David Kuznick, Shawn Marquis 8pm The meeting began with 15 minutes of silence. A short discussion regarding daily sittings followed. Guitars were then introduced into the circle and tuned. Each player then chose a note and played that note. Work with circulations followed. The first circulation was of any note, the second was of any note in C Major. Work then began on the two note circulation exercise of an up and down beat in C Major. The circle was able to successfully circulate these two notes. Bill and Shawn then offered that perhaps it would be best for the players within the circle to bring their attention to what other folks were playing during this exercise. Shawn suggested that perhaps a third circulation of two measures of silence circulating in the opposite direction of the two notes would be worth trying. The circle had difficulty re-establishing the two note circulation so, the third circulation was not attempted. Guitars were taken out of the circle and the two-note circulation was worked on using hand and thigh claps. The downbeat was represented with a thigh clap and the upbeat with a hand clap. 10 min break. Laughter and smiles. Riffs were then introduced around the circle by Bill. Following the "riffing", Bill told a story of a circulation he witnessed involving Bert Lams. The group then circulated any note. Discussion regarding next week's schedule followed. The circle will meet at David's at 8pm on Monday the 11th of December. 10:05pm SM Saturday 12/02 NE GC South Meeting Wallingford, Connecticut 9:00AM to 9:45 AM Silence, intermittent Brief Silence. The following schedule is agreed to until further notice: 9:00AM to 9:30AM Silence. Late arrivals should feel free to let themselves in and join as quietly as possible. 9:30AM to 9:45AM Coffee, etc. 9:45AM to ~12:30PM Exercises with and without guitar as needed. ~12:30PM to 12:45PM Silence..
Where: David Kuznick's house in Arlington, MA Who: Bill Banatt, Glenn Hughes, Dan Keener, Shawn Marquis 8pm The meeting began with Glenn, Dan and Shawn in attendance. David was not able to work in the circle due to pain associated with a recent surgery he had underwent but, kindly offered his home as a meeting place. The circle sat in silence for approximately 12 minutes. Bill arrived and the circle re-established itself and sat in silence for 15 minutes. Guitars were then retrieved and tuned. Each person then chose any note and played that note. A circulation of any note in C Major followed. Shawn then asked for clarification on an exercise pertaining to vocalizing the notes in the C Major scale on the A string, that Dan had offered in the circle's last meeting. The Fourth Primary Exercise was then introduced to Bill. Talk then ensued regarding the experience levels and aims within the circle. Bill offered that he had attended two weekend courses and has been taking private lessons with Victor for a number of years. Bill's aim was to work in a group situation. Shawn offered that his aim was to continue the work that he had begun in the NJ Level One course and to prepare for the Level Two course in January. The circle then resumed guitar work with the ear training circulation in C. This exercise is explained in the minutes from this circle's previous meeting. Work then began on a circulation of 2 notes, one a downbeat, the other an upbeat. First, the circle approached it by vocalizing each person's notes. The exercise was then applied to the guitars with any note in C. Bill then offered the observation that during this stage of the exercise, the circle seemed to be bringing it's attention to the musicality of the circulation as opposed to hearing the whole of the rhythm. There was a sense of agreement with this observation and another attempt was made with this in mind. During this attempt, players occasionally dropped out to aid in bringing their attention to the other parts being played and how they related to their own. 10 minute break. Work with the dual circulation exercise resumed without instruments. Discussion then followed regarding next week's meeting which has been tentatively set for 8pm on Monday at David's house. SM
Silence. Rythym work in 2 bars of 4, and in 1 bar of 4, rotating randomly selected beats. Rythym work in 1 bar of 4 rotating down beats in both directions. Guitar warm-up via first primary variation, repeating each note 4, 3, 2, then 1x. Ear training including circulations with predetermined intervals. Repertoire: Eye of the Needle and One of a Thousand Regrets. Brief Silence. End. MB
(times and durations approximate) - 15 minutes silence. - Break. - Circulate the notes of the C Major scale, ascending and descending. Variations in 1, 2 and 3 octaves, with and without spoken note names, with and without singing. - Meeting closes at 12:45P. MB
Where: David Kuznick's House in Arlington, MA The meeting began with silence, this continued for 17 minutes. Guitars were then introduced into the circle. Each person chose a note and played it. Afterwards, Shawn asked to work on the Fourth Primary to help refresh his memory of the exercise. Work on the Fourth Primary led to the circle helping out Shawn understand the concept of the C Major scale. Once Shawn felt comfortable with C Major, last week's circulation exercise of playing the note from the scale that the previous person calls out, was re-visited. This was followed by a circulation of playing the note that the previous person had played, without looking. More pointers on learning scales were then offered, particularly pertaining to vocalizing the notes. Circulations in C Major ensued. David then excused himself for a bathroom break; while he was away, music erupted. David returned and joined in for a short while. Work of a more rhythmic nature was then addressed. Various accents were approached within a 4 beat measure. Thigh claps were then circulated. 7 min. break. The second half of our meeting addressed the right hand. The circle began with the Second Primary. The Second Primary was then played with the note on the one moving in the D/E/G/low G sequence. Observations were then shared regarding each person's experience with their right hand. The Second Primary with the variation was re-visited with the measure changing from 4 to 3 to 2 beats each cycle through the sequence. Discussion regarding schedule followed. It was decided that the circle would not meet next week due to the King Crimson performances in Boston (everyone in the circle will be attending) and also due to the holidays. The next meeting will be held on Nov. 27th at David's house. The meeting then concluded. SM
Silence. First and second primary work. Circulation or "volley" exercises, including variations with 4 or 8 beats followed by one concurrent harmony beat. Third primary work, ascending in C major, with and without spoken note names. MB
7:55 PM 9:05 9:20 GH
10:30am The meeting began with 25 minutes of silence. Guitars were brought into the circle and each member of the group chose a note from the d major scale and played it. Crosspicking parts in 4 in amin pentatonic were then assigned around the circle by Victor. The circle was then asked to add a beat to the line we were playing. It was observed that we sped up, and that this might be do to the fact that we didn't take the time to listen before made the change. Listening before introducing a change became a major theme for the day. The measure was then changed to 7 with the accents on 1 and 5. This transition was performed with an effort made to listen first. Afterwards, the guitars were placed into the middle of the circle and work began on fundamentals of rythm. The eight notes of two measures of 4 were tapped out with the hands while the feet alternated tapping out the whole notes. The hands then accented the two's and four's. Attention being given to the "call and response" of the feet and the accented hand. The circle was then asked to vocalize the "and 4" of the first measure. Then the and of 3 and then the and of 2 was added. 15 min. Break Victor introduced the Fourth Primary. The Fourth Primary was then played in 5 beats. During the fouth beat, the circle was instructed to release the fingers lightly above the string in the position last played; for the fifth beat, the fingers were moved to the next position in a position of readyness just behind the appropriate fret. We then turned our attention to circualation with the C major scale. After a couple of attempts attention was given to understanding the musical quality of the 7 notes inside the scale by singing each of the notes in relation to the tonic from both below and above. Notes were then assigned around the circle by Victor in two measures of 5. Once the notes were all assigned, a piece of music came to be. Money for missed practice was then collected by Secretary Hughes. This money will be used to pay for the circle's website and the remainder will be watched by Victor. The next full circle meeting is scheduled for December 9th. SM/VM
Where: Glenn Hughes' House in Somerville, MA Who: 4 people attended. Glenn Hughes, Dan Keener, Shawn Marquis, Dave Traver 8pm We began with 10 min of silence. Guitars were brought into the circle; we each chose a note and played it. Glenn then introduced a left-hand exercise that Victor had shown him: Index finger on the second fret of the third string. Middle finger on the third fret of the third string. The ring and pinky fingers begin on the fourth and fifth frets, respectively, of the second string. The pinky then moves to the fifth fret of the third string, followed by the ring finger moving to the fourth fret of the third string. This continues to the fourth and fifth strings but, alternating the leading finger each time the move is made to a new string. Glenn noted that it was recommended to him to fret close to the fret as opposed to in the middle of two frets. A variation of the First Primary was then introduced by Glenn. It is counted in six beats. The first four being the ascending four notes of the First Primary. On the fifth beat, the fingers remain at the same frets but, are lightly touching the string. The fingers then move to the next string for the sixth beat. It then repeats. Dan then introduced a left-hand exercise. The pinky and ring fingers remain in the one and four positions of the First Primary while the middle and ring fingers move across the fretboard in the same manner as the first left-hand exercise of the meeting. The group then moved to playing the variation of the Second Primary that was visited in the last two meetings. Circulations ensued, first with any note of our choosing, then with the allowance of quarter notes or triplets during our beats. The group then began work on circulating two notes in the same direction; one a "down" beat, the other an "up" beat. 10 minute break -w- chips and salsa, courtesy of Mr. Hughes. Glenn then introduced an improvisational exercise to the group. The group shifted into two pairs. The exercise is in 8 beat measures. The first eight beats, everyone plays each beat on the 7th fret of the 4th string. The next 8 beats, one group descends to notes of their choosing on each beat, while the other group ascends in the same fashion. Both groups then move their way back during the next 8 beats to finally arrive on the 7th fret again for 8 beats. David then introduced a section of a piece he has been working on. Discussion followed regarding scheduling next week's meeting. It has been tentatively planned to meet at David Kuznick's house at 8pm on November 6th. The meeting then concluded. SM
Location: Alex Lahoski's house, Manchester, CT. Attendees: Alex L., Marc B. We begin at 8:55 AM with silence for 15 minutes, followed by A440 tuning. We moved to 15 minutes of the Second Primary to help bring attention to our right hands. Then, a circulation as follows: C Major scale, play four notes each, then play a pair of notes in 5ths. The pattern is essentially 8 notes, followed by a chord. This was followed by work on the First Primary at 80 (1-2-3-4), then the same, but played 3 beats per click, as opposed to two. We conclude the first half's work with an exercise in counting in 4 while playing in 5 (similar exercise to last week's). Break: tasty pastries, tea and discussion with Lisa of Alexander teachers, and those that work with horses. (My first experience with Alexander work was while I was learning Dressage with my wife. It was odd the first time at the NST weekend to have the Alexander work without a horse under me...) Resume work with more exercises on counting. I'm progressing here, but slowly. The trick is not to learn where the 1 falls in the particular pattern I'm playing, but to know where it falls in general, regardless of what the pattern I'm playing. We finish the days work with work on repertoire, with some attention to the details of "Eye of the Needle" (particularly on the repeated notes in the intro, that they are played on two strings), "Asturias" (where to switch from the D section to the A section, the Fairy Fingers section and the transition out of it, the harmonies to the D section) and "Aspiration". We concluded our exercises with a few minutes of silence and finished at 12:00. No meeting planned for next week, due to the meeting of the Full Circle. AL
Where: David Kuznick's House in Arlington Silence emerged for 10 minutes. Guitars were brought into the circle; we each picked a note and played it. Then we moved on to a circulation of any note. The Second Primary was visited. Then a variation on the Second Primary was introduced by Glenn. David then showed us a bit of the "Asturias" bass line that he had picked up. Afterwards, Glenn brought in a part from "Eye of the Needle" that he had figured out. The group then began to work on rhythm exercises. We clapped out the 5 against 7 "THRAK" rhythm in pairs. We then circulated claps, first as fast as we could, then in 5, then in 7. We then tapped out sixteenth notes for a measure of 4 and each of us vocalized a beat from the measure. We repeated the same exercise but, in 5. 5 minute break. We visited the First Primary in a 2-3-4-1 sequence. Then we played it in pairs with one group playing 3-2-4-1 on the "down" beat and 2-3-1-4 on the "up" beat. We did the same exercise at a much quicker tempo with each group playing the 1-2-3-4 sequence. Glenn then suggested playing the variation on the Second Primary that we played earlier (D/A/E/A/G/A/E/A/D/A/lowG/A) but, first time through 3 8th notes on the A string, second time through 2 8th notes on the A string, 3rd time through 1 8th on the A. We returned to the section of "Eye of the Needle" that we were working on earlier. Discussion then ensued regarding our schedule for next week. SM Sunday 10/22 NE South Guitar Circle Meeting Morning sitting, followed by yummy pastry purchases, then a circle with the Connecticut contingent plus. Notes from the Circle: Attendees: Alex L., Marc B., Doug W. We started at 9:15 with silence until 9:30, followed by a discussion of the aim for this particular circle. We then proceeded with work on two elements of the First Primary, 1-2-3-4 ascending and descending 3 times, 4-3-2-1 ascending and descending 3 times, against a metronome set in the mid-60's. This was followed by practice of the Second Primary, D-A-A-A, for approximately 20 minutes. On a personal note, these exercises highlighted two particular weaknesses for me: wandering time and control of my left hand, particularly in the descending patterns (like 4-3-2-1) in positions below the 7th. I see an opportunity for my practice over the next two weeks. This brought us to 10:30 and time for a quick break, tea and tasty pastries. We resumed at just before 11:00 and began work on rhythm exercises. Doug outlined two exercises: - Take a standard beat in 3 (1-and-2-and-3-and), pick one of the beats to play a note. The exercise was varied by choosing 4 different notes and playing them as a cycle, and moving your selected note back one full beat every 4 measures (i.e. if you chose the "and" of the second beat, after four measures you would then play the "and" of the first beat, an so on.) - We played a pattern in 5 (shown below, it may have been slightly higher or lower on the neck), and counted 5 bars of 4. 2 |----11---9-| 3 |--9--------| 4 |8------8---| I had a great deal of difficulty with this exercise, and will probably make it a larger part of my practice over the next two weeks as well. -As a final exercise, we worked on some of the interval ear training exercised from the level 2, using minor second and major second intervals. We adjourned at 11:45, and made plans to reconvene on Saturday 10/28 at 9:00 AM, once again at my house. AL
Where: David Kuznick's House in Arlington, MA The meeting began shortly before 8pm with 20 minutes of silence. Guitars were then brought into the circle and each person chose a note and played that note. Circulatons followed, first in C then, with two note chords. Glenn then introduced a variation on the 2nd Primary Exercise which was shown to him by Victor. The group then moved to playing the 2nd Primary with an additional note of our choosing. Work of a more rhythmic nature then ensued. We tapped out the 16th notes of one bar of 4, while tapping our right foot on the one and three and the left foot on the two and four. We then vocalized the beat of our choosing from that measure of 4. The same exercise was repeated but, with a measure of 5. We then moved on to playing the 5 against 7 "THRAK" pattern. We first approached this exercise with guitars but, soon decided to clap out the beats instead. We then circulated in 7 with any note of our choosing, then circulated with the option of playing quarter notes. The group then took a five minute break. Circulations resumed with the option to play triplets. Discussion then began regarding scheduling the next meeting of the NEN Circle. It was decided that we would meet again at David's house on Monday, October 23rd at 8pm. The meeting then concluded. SM
Where: Victor McSurely's Loft in Boston, MA 13 people were in attendance 10:30am The full group convened 10-15 minutes later than scheduled due to late arrivals. Once the circle was established, we sat in silence for 12 minutes. During this moment of silence, a member of the circle departed. Work with guitars then ensued. We began by choosing any note in the scale of C Lydian Major and then, playing that note. Circulations followed. The first circulation was of any note of our choosing. The second circulation was of any chord, played in two measures of 6, with upbeats. The First Primary Exercise was visited in a 2-3-4-1 sequence, then the Second Primary Exercise. Riffs were then introduced around the circle by Victor. Victor asked us to share our aims for working in the circle and what level of commitment we can offer. It was determined that the GCNE would meet monthly at Victor's loft, a Boston Circle (comprised of a possible 4-6 people) could possibly meet weekly and, a Connecticut/NY Circle (3-6 people) could possibly meet weekly. Victor then offered a suggestion regarding payment. His suggestion was that we place a price value on our daily Guitar Craft work, for each day this work is not done, the monetary equivalent of days missed is submitted at the monthly meeting. Mark had an issue with this and wished to instead pay a flat fee per month. The group took a 5 minute break, with snacks courtesy of Le Chateaux McSurely. Victor spoke about how this circle might possibly work in smaller circles based on level of commitment, ability and scheduling. He emphasized that there would be no judgements made if this situtation occurs. Discussion regarding scheduling continued. We were then asked to retrieve our guitars, some folks departed at this time. Work began on the following exercise: 2 bars of 4, right foot taps on the 1 and left on the 3, the hands tap out all 16 beats. We were then asked to pick any one of those 16 beats and to vocalize it, then to vocalize what the person to the left of us was doing, likewise to the right. We then played those 16 beats on the A string and chose any beat from those 16 and played it on any other string. Our attention was brought to our left hands. The meeting then concluded. SM |