Playing with Passion

“To play without passion is inexcusable!” - Ludwig von Beethoven

I’ve been playing music since the late ‘70’s and it took a long time for me to learn this truth. In the beginning we all played with passion - we just loved it, but after years of playing you tend to become jaded - every song is just another song. The trick is to get the passion back - only then can you really start playing, and not just rely on your ability to get through.

Punk Rock epitomises the sentiment - the muso’s might not be, or sound, too clued up, but they put their heart and souls into every note. And this alone garners a strong reaction - whether positive or negative is immaterial. They play - people react.

Successful Blues players / singers play with passion - it’s all about emotion, and if they didn’t no one would be the least bit interested in their offerings. I’ve seen the exact opposite happen [regularly] on jam nights all over the place. Muso’s gather together at a designated place to jam together, and invariably each song becomes an over-extended live version of itself - blandly wandering along until someone puts a stop to it. Recently a drummer I know got so tired of playing one song for so long he eventually got off stage and left the band to their own devices.