Moving Right Along

Yesterday provided me with another opportunity to spend hours outdoors completely immersed in guitar practice. I set a goal to get Study in Bm memorized and although I fell a bit short of that intention, I did make considerable progress. I also spent some time with Falling Slowly and Star of County Down. My buddy the metronome joined me for practice and gave me the virtual smack on the knuckles whenever I strayed from the beat. I found a passage in Star...that I had been misinterpreting. So I focused on that area by repeating it numerous times in and out of context of the whole piece. I also worked on Anji again, ran through Dance and Study for Margot a few times along with Scarborough Fair, Accordion Bells, and Maison Blanche. Readers of this blog will have to accept that they will be hearing titles of tunes repeated on a regular basis. Such is the nature of trying to improve...not much chance of that happening without playing pieces over and over. I told RG the other day that I look forward to the time when I can just nail a tune without stuttering around and flubbling sections. He said to expect that to start happening in about 10 years. There comes a point when you have practiced something so many times that it actually becomes part of you. I get inklings of that sensation but they aren't sustainable yet. It is a zen thing that use to be a regular part of my karate training. With my physical limitations I have lost that connection during karate practice which has unfortunately been replaced with pain. I suppose I am somewhat "driven" by the need to experience zen and my music is now the path. As I review all the changes that have occurred in my lifetime, I am sometimes overwhelmed by how varied and rich my life has been thus far. Although I've always been drawn to the guitar, even as a youth, just 3 short years ago I would have never predicted that playing guitar would have become such a dominant part of my existence.