 nickname Swoppy (1961)
I come from Amsterdam(the netherlands) am a parttime dad/tramdriver, with a passion for music and people.
I sing as long as I can remember, play the bluesharp(since 1969) do some percussion (started as drummerboy in the local drumband 1973), & play some acoustic guitar to accompagny myself (since 1977).
My biggest examples have been: Lou Reed in his early days in the Velvet underground for their fun, lightness and simplicity, Jerry Garcia, especialy in his later days with david Grisman, for his layed back way of singing & Bob Marley for the vibrato in his singing.
What I do, I learned mostly by watching others play, trial & error & buying or copying chord/lyrics books. I play from: chords, and by ear. I can read scores (with pain), but I hardly ever do.
I play usualy alone. I have tried with bands, but I found other members usualy either over-ambitious, or they didn't take the music serious enough for my taste.
Because I've mainly used the guitar to accompagny my own vocals and bluesharp , I never reach a very high level of skill. Strumming chords is basically what I do.
Making additional tracks, to music made by others is a real challenge for me; I have listen to a piece that I want to add to, for hours, before I can add something. For that reason, I have never even tried to join into a real live jam-session. I admire musician that can just jump in, as soon as they hear some music or a chord progression.
Another reason to play alone, is that I can not play the same song the same way twice, people, that I've I tried to work with in the past, got really frustrated by that.
I do play/sing covers & traditionals often, but I also write and play originals lately, I start to find joy in improvising, but that is still very new to me. When I write music/songs I am usualy on my own, just strumming around, when some progression suddenly sticks out. Often when I work a little more on that same progression, thoughts and feelings come up. I found that when I play my (simple by definition) chordprogressions in a good tempo, like an engine that runs stationairy, I get in a state of mind where words and/or melody often come easily to me.
For me most important in a song is: The words I think, or no, that should be the message, I think that all diciplines (chords, melody, harmony, rhythm, the rifs, the lyrics) as well as all instruments should work together, to get the message across.
The word "playing" means to me: to follow my curiosity and joy. focusing on "here and now", and on: with what-, or who-ever I play with. I am not so much focussed on results.
My goals in music are:
to use music as a way to express myself
to communicate with others and connect with them.
When I listen to other musician, I like to think that I know that artist just a little better as a person, after I heared the music, so when I play, or record, I keep that in mind.
Nowadays I listen mainly the works submitted in the acoustic guitar room project, my time is just filled with that.
What I used to listen to was: 60's & 70's music (protest songs, folk, pop, rock and folklore music). I like the dawg-music that David Grisman playes on his mandoline (especialy the albums with the late jerry garcia) dwgnet, but actualy it is easier to say that the only kind of music that I don't like, is music made to score with, music that tells me nomore about the maker, than that he/she saw a good buck.
What more should you know from me? After a few months being in p2p fileshare program Soulseek and especialy in a chatroom, named 'acoustic guitar, in august 2003 I came up with the idea of exchanging our own recordings and make additional tracks to each others music. the acoustic guitar room project
the AGRP was born.
Before that time, I wrote about 1 original every 5 years, since then, I recorded about 3 pieces each month, some of them finnished songes, others basic ideas, or additional tracks for music made by roomies. I listen to music diferenly now and am open to much more styles an genres than ever before. Not only do I feel more connected to myself and to the roomies, The whole world seems a bit smaller now.
Greetings from Amsterdam, my friends & possible new friends
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Sistadahlia
My early childhood experience with music was exclusively with classical and church music on the piano, violin, and organ. I was taught to read music, but could also improvise on the piano. My adult music-making experience has consisted mostly of singing folk songs informally with my friends while we sat on the floor around a wine bottle. Sometimes I played a little mandolin , autoharp, or very limited guitar as we sang.. Only since being in the acoustic guitar room in slsk for the last two years did I begin to play, sing, or record any original music, and I have only made a very few songs so far on my own. My main active (vs. “passive” – listening) connection with music these days has been dancing, especially salsa rueda (a Cuban couples circle dance to salsa music).
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