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mandoJeremy
Dec-15-2003, 10:46pm
I was just watching the Woodsongs show of Thile and Sutton and I wanted to just comment on one thing. I have seen that others complain about Thile's movements on stage and how they were turned off by it. I have no problem with it because it is not for show, he only feels every note he hits. I have the same problem of musical spasms myself and we all know that Bush has felt his notes for years. Where is the problem with it?

jaizbones
Dec-15-2003, 11:31pm
What is the Woodsongs ......? Sounds worth checking out. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/coffee.gif

Coy Wylie
Dec-16-2003, 12:13am
Go here and see for yourself: http://www.woodsongs.com/showlist.asp

NickelCreeker
Dec-16-2003, 12:28am
Yeah I dont know what in the Heck is Some (I said "SOME"!) peoples problems with it. I don Have a Problem with it. I dunno though... people got mad at Elvis for the way he moved when he sang and stuff(but thats a whoole diferent salad). I rather think its Entertaining!! lol

Maybe It helps him play better....or yaah Hes really into the music...ok, He IS into the music.Does it offend People??...we may never knooow..

~CandyLu

deaner
Dec-16-2003, 8:30am
Personally I was turned off at first but when you watch him close you see that it does not seem to be an act so that helped me cope I guess. I think alot of people view the mando as mainly a bluegrass instument and when you watch the calssic bluegrass bands you see some great talent but as far jumping around on stage and such, that is not the norm. You see some great talent and picking but it seems allot of them are holding back their body abit. It seems to me that the music itself is rooted very deep in religion and alot of churches forbid fleshly movments and any appearance or "jamming" because it had a "worldly" look. That is just my take on it and right or wrong...It is my take. But I think when one does it as a "show" it becomes sickening. Can you imagine ole Bill Monroe getting on stage and going into one of his licks playing with his teeth and banging his head with the guitar player and doing a cat walk on stage http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif lol. But then even though /Chris can pick I myself think his music is outside of traditional grass but it is very enjoyable to listen to.

Christine W
Dec-16-2003, 8:48am
It's so funny I never understood why musicians make all the faces playing. Well now I understand I saw a reflection of myself playing I started to crack up I WAS MAKING ALL THOSE FACES and to boot my tongue was hanging out at times too. Pretty huh. I have come to the conclusion that it is involuntary when your into it your into it and your body responds naturally.

deanor, I have noticed this also with bluegrass musicians they do look like they are holding back. Except the violin player for pine mountain railroad he gives Thile a run for his money. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

jehannarc
Dec-16-2003, 10:19am
I haven't seen Thile live, and don't know the movements you are referencing. However, one of my favorite things is watching a fiddle player who is so into the music that they swagger and sway as if they and the fiddle are possessed by the devil. Makes me want to leap to my feet and dance along.

I think it's funny too that people would watch Thile play, and then walk away from it complaining about how he moved instead of focusing on how he actually played. Seems kind of nitpicky and negative to me. I'd certainly be willing to risk looking like an idiot on stage (if that is indeed even how he looks) to be able to play like that.

Christine W
Dec-16-2003, 10:27am
jehannarc "Seems kind of nitpicky and negative to me. I'd certainly be willing to risk looking like an idiot on stage (if that is indeed even how he looks) to be able to play like that"[ QUOTE]

Amen sista, my sentiments exactly.

fiddler59
Dec-16-2003, 10:37am
I think most people who bash Chris Thile about any aspect of his playing have one of two problems. They are either jealous or brain dead. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif

jehannarc
Dec-16-2003, 11:38am
I think you hit the nail on the head with the jealousy thing.

Steve L
Dec-16-2003, 11:48am
I'll probably get my head handed to me for saying this, but as someone who is not all that interested in bluegrass, Thile just looks and moves like a lot of contemporary musicians currently working. It's the folks who jump in and out of the pick up field of a single archaic looking microphone who appear odd to me. I enjoy good playing in any idiom and I guess I can respect trying to keep decorum and tradition going but compared to what goes on in rock and hip-hop, Thile's stage presence seems pretty tame.

fishdawg40
Dec-16-2003, 11:52am
I think most people who bash Chris Thile about any aspect of his playing have one of two problems. They are either jealous or brain dead. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif
That's not neccesarily true. #I can acknowledge he is a marvelous player, but his music,or Nickel Creek's, sounds like bluegrass was infested by "pop" music. It just sounds really "light". And about his movements. #That's fine and dandy but it looks really awkward to me. #I think because he's so tall and gangly...It's just one of those things where you see someone doing something and it just annoys you.

For the record, I'm not a traditionalist whatsoever.

Christine W
Dec-16-2003, 12:23pm
ahhh fishdawg, he isnt' tall he just looks tall next to Sara and Sean.
I just love the way he plays and personaly could care less what antics he does up on stage (well no biting the heads off bats and mutilating baby dolls and such) but you get my point.

Michael H Geimer
Dec-16-2003, 12:42pm
It think the blanket objection to musicians like Thile was summed up best in the movie Amadeus.

"Too many notes."

It seems there are listeners who consider complicated music to be inherently devoid of feeling ... and others who think the I-IV-V formula is too simple and devoid of creativity.

On Thile ... he clearly loves what he's doing, #and he plays it with incredible proficency. So, let him be himself ... even when that means it's 'pop'. ( It's sure better than the 'pop' Brintey & Co. put out! )

- Benigus

Darryl Wolfe
Dec-16-2003, 12:42pm
Why hasn't anyone mentioned Sam Bush's name on this thread yet..he invented the mando-gyro-swagger

mandoJeremy
Dec-16-2003, 12:56pm
Hey Darryl, check out the last sentence in my original post. Bush, by far, moves on stage more than Thile!

roland
Dec-16-2003, 1:25pm
I was amazed when I saw the video of Grisman and Garcia. David bounces back and forth like he needs a restroom break real bad. It was distracting to watch. So I did what I often do at live events when I really want to hear the music... i closed my eyes. Works wonders.

Dru Lee Parsec
Dec-16-2003, 1:29pm
The video file for the Chris Thile episode has had problems for months. But it seems that they have fixed it. If you folks can watch the video feed instead of just the 1 hour audio feed then it definatly worth it. The "after radio show concert" is a 15 minute improvisational jam between Chris and Bryon that is absolutly amazing!

Darryl Wolfe
Dec-16-2003, 1:30pm
mando...missed it..dgw

mandomiss
Dec-16-2003, 2:35pm
I personally see nothing wrong with getting into your music. When I really get into what I'm playing I might start rocking or, occasionally, "spaz out" a bit. Enough so that my fellow musicians start questioning my sanity, but not so much that they'll have me commited http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif . I actually think it's pretty cool that people like Sam Bush and Chris Thile can do all of that and still play the right notes.

No worries,
Marta

fishdawg40
Dec-16-2003, 5:19pm
ahhh fishdawg, he isnt' tall he just looks tall next to Sara and Sean.
Maybe, but regardless don't tell Chris what I said if I go to the Mandolin Symposium. # http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wow.gif

Christine W
Dec-16-2003, 5:22pm
fishdawg40,
No problem as long as you don't tell him I said he was short it's a deal

mad dawg
Dec-16-2003, 5:28pm
Nickel Creek is not Bluegrass!!! http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mad.gif

(ooops -- sorry, wrong thread http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif )

pickinpox
Dec-16-2003, 6:39pm
Ever see Irl Hees play bass?.......'nuff said.

Albert Whiting
Dec-16-2003, 6:58pm
i am amazed at how chris can jump around and never miss a note and play the most awesome stuff. if i jumped around i would fall and break my mandolin.

Peakbagr
Dec-16-2003, 9:22pm
I guess its all about where you come from musically.
This is what I see: often a bunch of guys with shiny, dark suits, "Gomer" string ties, white patent leather shoes and belts, all with huge white cowboy hats. It looks freakish and if I let it, would distract ME from the music 'cause it makes me feel the circus just came to town.
What is "normal" to one, is stange to another. Its all about closing your eyes and enjoying what you hear, not what you see.

f5joe
Dec-16-2003, 9:57pm
Bill used to get mad when I'd bounce around like Thile. I miss 'ole Bill a bunch. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif

Bradley
Dec-16-2003, 10:16pm
Quote (fiddler59 @ Dec. 16 2003,10:37)
I think most people who bash Chris Thile about any aspect of his playing have one of two problems. They are either jealous or brain dead.


Its just a matter of Taste....

nothing to do with braindead or jealous.My personal taste
would lead me to see Adam Steffey,McCoury,Compton,and about 10 others before CT....but again thats my taste.

Mando_Newb
Dec-16-2003, 10:32pm
I wish you hadn't linked me to that video. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/sad.gif

I'm not gonna have any time to practice guitar anymore...

TNVolunteerMando
Dec-16-2003, 11:07pm
I just think he is a killer player. I would think he was killer if I never saw him play in person so what he is doing while playing matters little to me. I just think he gets lost in the music. He is sort of like Steve Vai. Steve gets into it just like Chris does. Both are very emotional players. I know nobody questions his abilities and this isn't a flame or anything. I just enjoy seeing anyone getting off on their instrument. He has a real passion for his craft and it shows. Great musician and I think he will only get better with age.

jefflester
Feb-13-2004, 12:11am
The "after radio show concert" is a 15 minute improvisational jam between Chris and Bryon that is absolutly amazing!

And the recent Thile-Marshall show has been there for a few weeks now as well.

http://www.woodsongs.com/showlist.asp

The post show performance for this one is almost *80* minutes. Some incredible playing. I especially love the unnamed Bm song that starts the post show. I'm a little disappointed that there's no Harrison Crabfeathers, since that's my favorite of their repertoire.

I don't suppose anybody knows the actual dates of either the Thile-Sutton or Thile-Marshall Woodsongs shows? The Thile-Marshall is probably from Dec 2003.

I've converted both of these shows to VCD and watching them on a TV they are decent enough quality.

-Jeff

jlb
Feb-13-2004, 8:01am
I think some people are just not used to seeing that kind of stage presence from a serious acoustic musician.

Whatever works, says I. But if you look like you should be transplanted back to the eighties playing "Unskinny Bop" with Poison, I'm gonna be distracted (sorry, I guess that was a flame, but a sicnere one).

John Zimm
Feb-13-2004, 11:47am
I have Thile's instructional DVD, and I will admit that I have had some problems being jealous of his great talent. Now I realize that I am not nor will ever be Thile on the mandolin, and I love to watch him play. I can't say I am crazy for Nickel Creek, and his voice is very weak and unpleasant, but as far as mandolin goes he is one of the best and a lot of fun to watch.

-John.

2partinvention
Feb-20-2004, 10:59pm
I dont see why any one cares about how Chris moves on stage he is allowed to be different and not comply to what any one thinks of him or how he can and cannot move around .
Thats just me ............. dont mean to get too argumentative or anything though .

sunburst
Feb-21-2004, 12:50am
I saw Nickel Creek at Merlfest a few years ago. Chris was 13 I think and Sarah was 12.(how many years ago?)
Chris was excellent. He played like a very experienced musician and was obviously feeling what he played, BUT, he pretty much just stood at the mic and played in those days. This leads me to believe that some of his stage movements are learned.
The story goes that Elvis didn't realize he was moving around on stage until he saw himself on film. Once he found out, and found out that the girls liked it, he played it up.
I am a little distracted when watching Chris, but I don't let it bother me. I've actually met him briefly and he seems to be quite a nice guy and is undisputably a very talented musician. He's still young. He'll move around for a while.

mandoJeremy
Feb-21-2004, 1:26am
Bush is old and he still moves around, actually more than he did from those videos I have of him from the early eighties. I think it is just that you mature musically as you get older and instead of just playing tons of notes you make each note count and full of feeling. Do we, as humans, mature emotionally as we age? Isn't music mostly emotion if it is of the caliber that those guys play at? Did you cry at a funeral when you were six? Probably not because you just didn't understand. Is music the same now as it was for you the first five years you played? Again, probably not IF you understand.

WireBoy
Feb-21-2004, 3:31am
WOW ! # I've never heard of Woodsongs before. #(i live in the LA area - we don't get this kind of stuff on the radio) #What a great WWW site! #lots of great shows to choose from. #I've been watching the Thile/Marshall show for 2 hours now - its still got a 1/2 hour to go!!! #

Thanks for the heads up on this. #If you can't go to the symposium, this just might be a worthy substitute.

as for on stage antics? #I just think Thile is a very exuburent young man who plays with lots of passion and joy. #Marshall on the other hand looks soooooo relaxed and just having the best time.

Songbird
Feb-21-2004, 6:58am
I have Thile's instructional DVD, and I will admit that I have had some problems being jealous of his great talent.
That's one of the reasons I'm not sure I want to buy his earlier stuff...because it's gonna be such a confidence killer when I can't play stuff a 13 year old is playing!

levin4now
Feb-21-2004, 9:12am
.....
I just love the way he plays and personaly could care less what antics he does up on stage (well no biting the heads off bats and mutilating baby dolls and such) but you get my point.
...biting heads off bats?!

Now there's an idea! #Ozzy and Thile - LIVE @ Wembley. #I bet Thile could come up with some great stuff for Crazy Train. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif

mandodana
Feb-21-2004, 4:56pm
This discussion reminds me of when I played violin in the 7th grade and all the other kids were laughing at me behind me (I was 1st chair, btw) because I was swaying while I played. sniff, sniff, boo, hoo

I think I need to talk to a shrink http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/rock.gif

John Flynn
Feb-21-2004, 5:07pm
I have no problem with Thile's stage presence, I recognize his great technical virtuousity and as a "celebrity" he seems like a great guy and good role model. I just don't find most of the stuff he plays all that interesting musically. I will not go out of my way to listen to it.

I'd rather hear Bill Monroe "mess up" a lick than hear Chris Thile do it "right." I don't believe music is a contest and I don't believe that the guy who plays the most notes wins. I'd rather hear a tasty lick of just a few notes played just at the right spot, than hundreds of notes played by a technician with idol-worship charisma. Sorry, just MHO.