turn that shit into gold

music is a crazy thing, being a musician even a bit crazier. play original music that not everyone is going to be into? play classics that everyone will enjoy? do something different with the classics and a few people enjoy what you've done while others cringe? get people to your show by trying to be an artist or merely a stylist (see anthony braxton "forces in motion")? push the future of art forward or settle into what's been successful all this time? get paid or not?

it's a personal thing - we all choose throughout spots in our life to do what is right for us at the time. leading a band requires (and reaps) different things than being a sideman, and levels of popularity and respect swoon with repertoire and instrumentation. i've had amazing experiences in front of 4 people and walked away owing money. i've played uninspired music and stuffed my pockets with cash. therein lies the rub...

so my original project "the 3x5" played monday at a popular club in downtown dsm. so many positives came out of this evening. john kz subbed the gig. he was phenomenal in his musicianship and preparation. he easily could have just blown through the tunes, but instead chose to rehearse beforehand and reveal that he had listened to and reviewed the charts for this original music gig (forever indebted to him for that). logan, the sound guy, really treated the music artistically instead of blasting our monitors with shoddy sound and acting without consideration. my friends came out to the gig-musicians supporting musicians! and with all this in my back pocket, the trio played these tunes with a renewed vengeance and passion that appeared to be well-received.

ah, so it didn't pay. yeah-that completely sucks. i don't plan to give this stuff away (and lord knows i'm up invested in it up to my eyeballs), but need to take a step back and find the abundant positives from this experience.