Andy Chase

Another good example of the internet falling short: Go to the Mandolin Cafe message board and search for the phrase left hand position. You’ll find lots of very informative and helpful posts, but you won’t be a whole lot wiser for reading them.

I’ve thinking (and [writing][1]) a lot over the last year or so about being in a band. I was fortunate enough to find a laid back, informal bunch of musicians to play with at the now-cancelled Black Sheep session; I had a lot of fun and improved my playing by leaps and bounds when I was attending regularly.

Apart from being adrift again for much of the summer, my one reliable musical outlet was taken away when the Black Sheep Deli abruptly cancelled the weekly old time session that had been held there every Thursday for a number of years. I wasn’t there on the night in question, but apparently several regulars showed up and were told unceremoniously that they couldn’t play there any more.

It’s been a hectic second half of the summer and between heat-waves, a bit of travel, and general stress I’ve managed not to play as much music as I did the first half… all it took was missing 2 or 3 sessions in a row at The Black Sheep and I’m treading water again. It’s really remarkable how much more I want to practice and learn new tunes if I feel like I can show it off at the following week’s session - or at least have the self-satisfaction of being able to keep up with the chord changes at speed.