Setbacks lead to new directions

On Halloween, I cut my left index finger while working in a kitchen. Part of my fingertip got cut off, right where I have to fret the guitar. It's now been one month and I am still in a bandage.  Sounds like a setback, right? and, it is. But it also led me in a new direction. I'll tell you about it. 

There's a great guitarist and musician, Harvey Reid who is considered a pioneer in his work in using partial capos for guitar. A partial capo depresses 3 or more strings which enables one to get a unique sound from the guitar that resembles an open tuning. There's a whole website devoted to this topic right here at Partial Capo.Com.  I've explored various partial capo environments and it's not only fun but can lead to some new sounds. 

A few weeks ago, I delved into Harvey's Liberty Guitar tuning which uses a small change in tuning along with a partial capo. The result is that I am able to play a fair amount of music but instrumental and chords with just two fingers. That means I can still play music for my nursing home patients (virtually). 

I spent the morning writing down the tab notation for a few Christmas tunes. It is like working a puzzle, having to rethink the fretboard as I map out the melody and harmony. It is a lot of fun! 

Being injured need not be a bad thing. Of course, I would rather I was not injured. But what I have always seen is that setbacks always lead me to new directions if I look for the opportunities that come. 

If you play the guitar, I encourage you to find out about this method of guitar playing. The other thing it is good for is if you play with other guitarists, you can play the Liberty tuning chords which is a higher voicing than in standard 1st position chords. It sounds nice together. 

So, that's what I have been up to the last month. I am looking forward to Christmas and sharing holiday music and cheer. I am looking forward to complete healing of my finger. You will be hearing all about that too! 

Take good care and stay safe!