Today's Farmers' Market down in the park blocks was nothing short of normal. It was, all in all, a completely average day. Never got too hot in the shade, didn't get as crowded as I've seen it, and my take ended up being just about what I expected - not a whole lot more or less than it has been on Wednesdays. This is a little bit of a mixed thing for me. On the one hand, it's really nice to have this kind of predictable and easy to work with day. On the other hand, it also drives home the fact that not every day can be actionpacked and super exciting. Which is fine. I mean, I didn't really seriously expect every single day to be filled with larger-than-life events people. It would be cool, though.
I'm starting to see a lot of the same people at all of these different markets. More than that, they're starting to see me. There's the Street Roots guy, the Walmart Union Petition guy, cookie girl, and all of the people who regularly shop at the markets. It's starting to look like becoming a fixture, a known figure, is a definite possibility. And I really love that. To be honest, I thrive on the kind of attention that I'm getting when I play out on the street. I love to perform, it turns out, although I never really found the right forum for it until now. The kind of interaction I get with people out on the street is the perfect opportunity for me to perform, maybe get a little fancy and show off a bit, and then chat and work out that patter. Or just chat; it isn't like I have some kind of routine worked out.
Not to mention the cameras. I am, for whatever reason, a magnet for tourists and their cameras. I had a whole group of japanese tourists with cameras and video cameras come up to me today and just start taking picture after picture, walking around to get a better view. I was a little bit stunned at first, but then I started working the camera, getting a little fancy, getting into it. They ate it up, started taking more pictures. This is really unusual for me, because I'm almost always very camera shy in any kind of normal context. For some reason, playing and performing and showing off really opens me up, and I don't mind people taking pictures of me out on the street with my violin. I'm not even particularly vain or egotistical, either - there's just something about getting attention out on the street that keeps me going.
Working on adding a few more things to my stack of material that I've been playing. The most successful new thing (added today) is a kind of latin jazz dance number... pretty simple to work out, but you can go a little wild in parts and it sounds real good without needing to be totally polished. I'm trying to think of the name right now - it's a classic, I've heard it done by any number of folk (including the fantastic - and local - 3 Leg Torso). Oh well. In any case, it's working out real well. I need to add some more standards to my collection, and I really want to learn some more dance type stuff. I think a tango or two would be nice.
Tomorrow: First Thursday in the Pearl District
I'm starting to see a lot of the same people at all of these different markets. More than that, they're starting to see me. There's the Street Roots guy, the Walmart Union Petition guy, cookie girl, and all of the people who regularly shop at the markets. It's starting to look like becoming a fixture, a known figure, is a definite possibility. And I really love that. To be honest, I thrive on the kind of attention that I'm getting when I play out on the street. I love to perform, it turns out, although I never really found the right forum for it until now. The kind of interaction I get with people out on the street is the perfect opportunity for me to perform, maybe get a little fancy and show off a bit, and then chat and work out that patter. Or just chat; it isn't like I have some kind of routine worked out.
Not to mention the cameras. I am, for whatever reason, a magnet for tourists and their cameras. I had a whole group of japanese tourists with cameras and video cameras come up to me today and just start taking picture after picture, walking around to get a better view. I was a little bit stunned at first, but then I started working the camera, getting a little fancy, getting into it. They ate it up, started taking more pictures. This is really unusual for me, because I'm almost always very camera shy in any kind of normal context. For some reason, playing and performing and showing off really opens me up, and I don't mind people taking pictures of me out on the street with my violin. I'm not even particularly vain or egotistical, either - there's just something about getting attention out on the street that keeps me going.
Working on adding a few more things to my stack of material that I've been playing. The most successful new thing (added today) is a kind of latin jazz dance number... pretty simple to work out, but you can go a little wild in parts and it sounds real good without needing to be totally polished. I'm trying to think of the name right now - it's a classic, I've heard it done by any number of folk (including the fantastic - and local - 3 Leg Torso). Oh well. In any case, it's working out real well. I need to add some more standards to my collection, and I really want to learn some more dance type stuff. I think a tango or two would be nice.
Tomorrow: First Thursday in the Pearl District
posted by OverlappingElvis at 9:46 PM
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