Maybe this is amazing to me because:
A.) I love music but have never ever been able to play a note on any instrument.
B.) He's my son and I'm prejudiced.
C.) He's cuter than a bug's ear.
Yes, I'm talking about Evan. That kid is a musical.....musician! Let's start from the beginning, shall we? He's 13 and has been playing the saxaphone since he was 8. Yes, 8. I was a little skeptical about buying him a $2,000 instrument since I didn't really know if he'd stick with it but he has. And actually he has 2 now. And I don't mean Mary Had A Little Lamb, kinda playing. This kid plays shiat like classical, jazz and pretty much any Beatles song you'd like.
Ocharina - around 8 he asked for one and it came with a song book. He quickly mastered all the songs and then went on to start playing popular songs with it by ear.
Keyboard - Unfuckingbelievable. We have a big one now that he plays all the time and it's always by ear. That kid can play songs without a lesson on this or without music. He can also play it with music. How is this possible? He says he pays attention in band when the teacher is talking to the kid playing the keyboard. He pays attention? Him? This is a kid who forgets to turn in his completed homework half the time.
But here's the latest. Last week he decided he wanted to play the guitar. We have a couple and he starts strumming the acoustic guitar for a while, practices some chords and announces his fingers hurt. Okay...a couple of days later he's playing a song on the guitar. Day after that he's fricking playing up a storm and is playing a bunch of songs I recognize because they are the ones Jack Black played in School of Rock. Evan asks me the name of one of them.
"How can you play it if you don't know the name of it? How did you look it up on your ipad?"
"Oh, I didn't look it up. I just figured it out from memory."
Yet every note was perfect. How crazy is that? Frigging genius!
Play smart and by ear!
Josie
Sometimes It Is Just The Small Things ...
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Okay -- so I will readily admit that I am a cheap guy. I did not come from
a wealthy family and had some really tight times financially when I went
throug...
5 hours ago
16 comments:
I could never do that well. I could scratch by and practice and play but not really by ear. That is a great thing to have. Sounds like he's going to be a musician. Even if he doesn't do it for a living...it's the greatest hobby ever...
That's just awesome, Josie. You have quite the musical prodigy there. Congrats.
Question. You may have discussed this before, but obviously I haven't read all of your old posts. Does your 13 year son know abot this blog? Just wondering since you are so, you know, uninhibited here.
Pokah Dave, yes according to him he's going to be a musician. so long as he gets a college degree that's fine by me. i must say i prefer listening to keyboard and guitar practice over the uber loud sax.
Rob, oh he knows about it all right. he also knows its an adult blog and he's not allowed to read it. he pretty much abides by that, since he knows I can tell if he's read it. Also, Im not supposed to write embarrassing shiat about him, so I've been working on that.
VJ - it is a great thing to have something your passionate about. Especially, to know it at 13. Good for Evan!
No, that really is amazing, even if it isn't your kid. To have that gift is something that he'll be able to take with him throughout his life. He can be "that guy" (in a good way) who can sit down at a piano when he goes to a party and get some music going - pretty cool!
Music is very mathematically based and even though he probably doesn't realize it it sounds like he's got a great sense for the "math" of music - that can really help with figuring things out by ear. Of course, you know what other recreational activity is heavily math based ...
Sounds like it's more than just a proud mother.
TY Cranky and Glenn! Yeah I know what else is mathematical...he has noooo interest in THAT. By 13 I was kicking ass at poker.
ty mojo
Once again I am envious of a kid. I tooled around with a guitar for about a year trying to just learn to play one song, any song. Right now the guitar sits on a shelf. I still dream of getting a guitar teacher and playing it in front of people.
Time to set up a web cam, set up your paypal donoation site and have all your blog readers pony up $5 bucks as you take advantage of your child's talents.
Have him play his various instruments love over the web cam, and an extra donation for requests.
Yes, I think this is a great idea and I'm all for child exploitation anways.
Since it was my idea, I'll only accept 25% of the proceeds.
you can keep 25% yourself Josie - the other 50% goes to future instruments and his college tuition.
My son is also a musician. When I bought him his first guitar, a friend of mine who is a musician advised that I might as well buy him a bag of pot and bottle of wine as well and get it over with. Not that you have anything to worry about...
Encourage him at every step. And blow his mind with a Vandermark 5 CD.
Bastin! What would a vandermark 5 cd be exactly?
Sounds like he might have perfect pitch. Disclaimer: I'm far from an expert on the subject.
Playing by ear is an inherent gift. I am a professional musician and I can do it after many, many years of practice and study. If he can do it inately that is something special.
Get him lessons on whichever instrument interests him the most (I vote piano or guitar since you can easily compose songs and sing along to those). I'd also encourage him to take music theory classes if they're available when he gets to high school. The solid understanding of theory coupled with his apparent intuitive musical ability means the sky's the limit.
Ken Vandermark is a sax player. Won the MacArthur Foundation Grant (a big thing) ten years ago. His music lies on the boundaries. You can find him on YouTube. Maybe have Evan listen before buying a CD, and if it's too much for him, steer him back to John Coltraine.
JT88Keys has it right.
ty guys! Evan will def want to check him out. ty ty ty
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