By SAMMY STEIN,
Scumbling is a process in art whereby the artist experiments with glaze or other medium. The reason I chose it as the name for this column was that it allows me to include many topics related to jazz. One of those is writing. Many people are put off writing about music because they either think they do not know enough, are scared of negative feedback from "experts" or are worried they will be unable to contact people or that those contacts will be elusive and aloof. But there are too few people writing about jazz, or writing well, and I would encourage more to do it.
Recently, things changed for me. My work contract finished, I had completed reviews and commissions and suddenly everything, from being manic, came to a stop. Not a slowdown but a sudden, grinding, full stop. This can be a problem because when I am not busy I think and my thoughts can lead me to dangerous places. I began to question why I write or who for. I write a fair amount. Most of the work is paid, some is not, but I do it because I enjoy what I write.
Music is such a broad subject that I cannot see how anyone can fail to find an area which suits them and a genre they feel happy in so, for me, it is like slipping into a second skin when I go to gigs and write reviews and articles.
However, lately a sneaking suspicion crept in that made me doubt the validity of what I do. I began to wonder if it really mattered. It is the answering of this question which led me to want to encourage and share with other writers—or those starting out—the overall message: don't stop. Writers are the voice of the people and music makers, and if we stop there will be no still small voice for musicians, especially those who are losing connections with their listeners.
We are their ears and eyes and, even if sometimes it feels like a long hill we climb, if we give up, everything can come tumbling down. Many musicians are surrounded by people who say all the right things. It benefits them to do this but sometimes, it does not benefit the players. A writer has the freedom to be honest, sometimes blunt and to sometimes offer a link back to the real world.
We are their ears and eyes and, even if sometimes it feels like a long hill we climb, if we give up, everything can come tumbling down. Many musicians are surrounded by people who say all the right things. It benefits them to do this but sometimes, it does not benefit the players. A writer has the freedom to be honest, sometimes blunt and to sometimes offer a link back to the real world.
We must not become arrogant. The pen is mightier than the sword is very true, but I learned a valuable lesson recently. It started with a musician who I had been in contact with and felt was becoming a friend giving me his number and saying if ever I was in his area to give him a call.
However, when I wrote the next piece and called him to check a couple of things I got a lady telling me that, "the number you have called is not recognized." Suddenly, the penny dropped. While I was writing about him, his music and views, I was useful. I was the voice he had lost because he had been out of the industry for a while. However, once I had "done my bit," I was not worth keeping in contact with so I needed to be put back in the background. I felt an idiot and angry also.
However, when I wrote the next piece and called him to check a couple of things I got a lady telling me that, "the number you have called is not recognized." Suddenly, the penny dropped. While I was writing about him, his music and views, I was useful. I was the voice he had lost because he had been out of the industry for a while. However, once I had "done my bit," I was not worth keeping in contact with so I needed to be put back in the background. I felt an idiot and angry also.
Read more on: http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=42811#.UE1CB0IlYhQ
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