I just realised I haven't updated my blog for a few days already... *sigh* with good reason of course: Nothing to write about!!
If there's anything to say, it's this: I need a gig.. I'll say it loud and bold: I NEED A GIG!!!!!!!!!!
Really, man! I haven't had a decent good gig for weeks, now... ever since the Sean Ghazi gig. Well, other than the Backyard Pub gig with Greg's Biophonics, really. Even so, that gig is a "for fun" gig, really.. not much money, but really fun, and it's always enjoyable playing in Greg's ensembles! Ning's gig was probably okay too.. not bad, the pay.. but pretty straightforward la.. like an average day at work kinda thing.
I need a gig!
Well, all I've been really doing the past couple of weeks (other than the holiday trips) is pretty much practicing in my room (yeah, been spending most of my time in the practice room), and also training. However, I couldn't really keep up with the training plan:
1. Rain... bad scheduling.
2. Trying out the Chi Running technique, I can't do speedwork until I've got the technique together. And ease up on the distance, as well. This is due to my body getting used to the different effort. When I first starting trying it out, my heart rate spiked up a lot, about over 5% than my usual. Apparently it's normal, cos the body's just getting used to it.
I need a gig!
Anyhow, practicing in my room just involves me practicing my 3 saxophones, flute, and also some piano (I'm teaching myself to play some piano, with the help of some books). Learning solos, practicing scales.. blah blah blah...
Other than that, I also went to a club called Poppy Garden (located next to Wisma TA at Jln P. Ramlee), where some friends of mine were playing there every night 'cept Sundays. The purpose of going there was to jam with them... out of despair of not being able to have a gig and play as much as I wanted to! But jamming with these guys were pretty fun actually. Check out this up-and-coming guitarist, by the name of Isyam Swardy... killer jazz guitarists.. and also a rocker, too!
I need a gig!
Anyway, today I played with my band again, after a long 2 over months hiatus. It just seems that almost everyone is pretty busy with some other work, and the fact that the band didn't have a gig, meant that we didn't play together. We played at Subang Parade today, and this time around, we played jazzed-up Malay pop tunes and some Raya tunes. Best part: I didn't rehearse the shit at all, and I only got the charts when I arrived there, whereas the rest of the fellas have been playing the charts for the past week or so (they're playing there the last several weeks but with different soloists). So they brief-ed me on the arrangements before we started playing, so I have an idea of the song forms. The rest of it, I had to sight-read them, AND sight-TRANSPOSE them too (to non-music readers, this means the charts are written in concert or piano key, and I have to transpose them on the spot to my saxophone key). Anyway, I think we winged it pretty well, for no rehearsals! One of the best parts of the gig, I think my ideas during my improvisation segments came out pretty okay too, at least 80% of it. It also helped that I was playing with the group of guys I'm so used to playing with, and we sorta understand each other a lot, in terms of how we relate musically when we're playing! Yeah.. it was fun...
I need a gig!
Also, last night I went over to Alexis Bistro, Ampang to meet up with Alonso, and also to see his Latin Quartet play. As it turned out, I ended up playing 3/4's of the second set with him. You see, it was a very small group, with just Alonso on percussions, Eric Li on piano, Wan on bass, and the very HOT singer, Marcela Pinilla! So, for a latin group, it's a very, very small setup, for the latino's liking. So when I got to Alexis, drum extraordinaire John Thomas also came, and Alonso got both of us to jam with him for the second set! The sound of the band became much bigger with just the two of us added in! The songs were pretty okay, and I pretty much winged the whole thing, without rehearsals, too! You see, I actually had my horn with me 'cos I wanted to go to Poppy Garden at Jln P. Ramlee to jam with some friends who were playing there. In the end, I ended up playing the rest of the night with Alonso... which was equally as fun! We played some nice salsa, and latin grooves.. and even Guantanamera as an encore! Man, the joy of playing again.. WITH a real band... not some jazz play-alongs on CD!
I need a gig!
Anyway, HAPPPPPPYYYYYYYYYYY HALLLOOWWEEEEEEEEEAAHAHAHAHAMUAHAHAHAHAHAH (evil laugh) HAHAAEEENNNNNN!!!!
I need a gig!
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