Anyway, just a friendly reminder to make sure you remove all those tools from your gig back and check them in your luggage before you check in. And pray that the airlines don't lose your luggage.

Happy Tapping and Flying,
Greg
http://www.greghoward.com

PS, Apologies for the lateness of this issue. Due to my own "busy-ness" some folks didn't get their announcements out for gigs in time. This could always happen again so...I'd recommend that you also submit them to the Stick Events page on the Stick Enterprises website:

http://www.stick.com/events/calendar

Thanks,
Greg

Hi all,
I have 2 Q's the first is on the midi setup and does it work well or not? I had a couple of Zeta violins setup for midi with the Roland setup and they sucked big time. The tracking was terrible, the miss firing or non firing of notes was not at all acceptable. Are the Stick midi setups bulletproof or do they also suffer from the same woes?

Second Q is as I was playing yesterday I thought hmmmm, why not setup a Stick stringing, in just the opposite way, i.e., bass>melody side, melody side> to the bass side? It seems to me, at least in matched reciprocal that it would allow for better facilitation. Can this be done or if not why not and or what are the drawbacks of doing so that I might be missing?
Thanks,
Terry

--

Response from Greg:

Terry, there may be others more qualified to answer your questions, and I hope they'll chime in, but here's my 2 cents....

The Stick makes an excellent MIDI controller. The pitch is "right on" as soon as the notes is ringing off the fret.

Any of you MIDI users want to respond?

Regarding string configurations:
Emmett is by no means a "purist." He encourages people who really want to use other tunings to do so. He'll set up his instruments for custom tunings in any way that does not exceed the physical limitations of scale length, etc.

I'm assuming you still want top play the bass strings with the left hand and the melody strings with the right hand. So here's my opinion about your idea...

The sensation of reaching over a set of strings to play another set of strings is one of power and motion. Remember that with Stick technique (on whichever instrument you chose) you not only have to select the note but also articulate it.

More hand motion=more work by the large muscles and less by the fingers.

This expands your dynamic range and also can improve your sense of time. So the closer the strings are to the palm of your hand the less freedom of motion you have. Some people call the positioning you're talking about "uncrossed," I prefer the term "open-handed" to "uncrossed." Still, it's largely a matter of semantics.

There are several players who advocate using a "closed-handed" approach who make fine music, but the vast majority of players (and I'm talking 99%) seem happy to accept what 30 years of playing have bourne out. Emmett's tunings facilitate the method by allowing a more physically satisfying connection with the fretboard.

Timbrally, there are also reasons why Emmett's sytem works well. The most satisfying range of the bass strings is where they have a low diameter-to-length ratio. This is the part of the instrument closer to the nut. In the melody range, for me, the opposite is true. I love the sound of those strings around the 10th-17th fret. Remember that with a scale length of 34 or 36 inches, those thinner strings will start to sound more edgy as you get closer to the nut. Also, the wrist angles required to play the closer set of strings with the right hand near the nut would probably not be comfortable for extended periods of time.

Emmett's arrangement is ergonomically very comfortable and when the instrument is properly positioned resluts in less wrist bending than conventional guitar hand-positioning. Since the two hands usually operate in the same line of sight, this makes it easier to see what you're doing. Playing "uncrossed," (or "closed-handed"), your two hand are physically farther apart almost all of the time.

But if you want to try a different configuration, Emmett will make it for you.

Happy Tapping,
Greg

Dear Greg,

I am moving to New Orleans next month and would like to take some lessons in Stick-ing. Can you give me some/ a name I can get in touch with, preferably with their e-mail addresses?

Thank you for your effort,

Rashid M Janjua
Louisville, KY
--

Hi Rashid, I don't know any players there personally. How 'bout it? any Players in New Orleans? Good luck Rashid Happy Tapping and you're welcome,
Greg

For those of you who suffer from the glare of stage lights, or who play day gigs out in the sun, or who might just enjoy shedding a little light on The Stick in your own community, we now have our first supply of "Stick Ball Caps".

On the front of this navy blue cap is our embroidered gold logo with "Stick" lettering underlined by a slimmed down cartoon of the instrument shape. The headband is adjustable.

The caps are produced by Great Threads, owned by Glenn's cousin John Poorman who also patiently worked with me to co-design the combined logo image.

For details and photo, please visit http://www.stick.com/accessories/hats/

From the head coach's office, Emmett.

Virna, AndrŽ and I had a great time playing in the Bollate park amphitheater. Thanks to Andrea Tolin for posting these pics:

http://homepage.mac.com/tolo63/PhotoAlbum17.html

Look for a complete seminar report soon.

Many thanks to our friend Andrea Papini for arranging the concert. It was great to be able to play in a public space and expose so many people to the first taste of Stick music on such a lovely evening.

Happy Tapping,
Greg

Hi everyone,

Only one month before the second annual Stick Seminar at la Chapelle in Montreal and at this point in time there are still a good few places left, so to have an idea of how many will take part, I would like to ask this list if there are any who are planing to attend but have yet to register for the event? In addition, other than it being a great seminar with two incredibly remarkable instructors, I would like to count off the top ten reasons to attend this unique event;

#10- air conditioning at la Chapelle
#9- the only place you will see a Stickist at a Jazz Festival this year
#8- the world famous summer ambiance in Montreal
#7- this year is less expensive than last year
#6- all the great eateries close by
#5- Quebec microbrewery beer
#4- you can laugh at Steve Adelson jokes but don't laugh at Steve
#3- you can laugh at Greg Howard jokes and you can laugh at Greg
#2- I dont tell jokes I promise, I won't
and the #1 reason to attend the summer 2004 Montreal Stick seminar- Montreal has the most beautiful women in the world

So there you have it Folks all kidding aside, this year promises to be an great event and of course an opportunity to meet and have some good times with other Stickists from all over. Hope to see you in Montreal.

have a nice day,
Mitch Polgar

Nima & Merge's upcoming gigs:

Saturday June 19, 6-10pm. DTD, Anaheim California.

Thursday June 24, 6-10pm. DTD, Anaheim California.

Friday June 25, 6-10pm. DTD, Anaheim California.

Saturday June 26, 12pm. Riviera Village Summer Festival, Redondo Beach CA.

July 14-16, Veneto Jazz Festival, Venice Italy.

July 24-30, JOT Summer Festival, London UK.

Thursday August 5, 6pm. San Bernandino Performance Stage, California.

For more info, please visit http://mergemusic.com

Also, keep an eye out for our 2 new albums due in the next month "Live in London" and "Separate Worlds"

Hope to see you at the shows.
--
Nima Rezai
Nima & Merge
http://mergemusic.com
E mail: info@mergemusic.com
EPK: http://sonicbids.com/nimamerge
(562)537-0738
fax: (562)684-0184

Hi everyone
Just a note on gigs I have coming up in my quick seat of the pants tour through N. America. I'll be at:
23rd June ,Jazz Cellar- Vancouver, Canada -
http://www.cellarjazz.com/cal.php
July 1st- The Inn At Stone Ridge- Stone Ridge, 845.687.0736

I'll be in NY from the 30th- 2nd July if anyone is interested in a lesson or getting together.

regards
Jim

Just the usual. Monday, June 28, Miller's Charlottesville. 9:30?

http://www.greghoward.com/events/2406

Thanks for supporting live music,
Greg

Hi Greg and all,
I have a gear question, which may be a bit lengthy!
I play in a "good ole" Prog band, and at various times may be found playing Stick, SB8, "regular" bass guitar or an acoustic guitar. Oh yeah, I have Moog Taurus bass pedals too (I guess, imagine Mike Rutherfold as a Stick player...). To date I've just played through a dedicated bass amp (a Hartke) and a dedicated guitar combo (a Fender), and used a foot switch to switch between Stick melody and guitar. The bass pedals have been going through the same Hartke, which has 2 inputs. I generally don't go for the "blended" sounds, pretty much treating the two sides of the Stick as separate instruments. With me so far?

So, I think it's time for some gear upgrades and this is where some advice would come in handy. I think I have several options;

1. Just upgrade the separate bass and guitar amps. Not sure what I'd get but maybe an Ampeg for the bass side.
2. Get one of the Rane Stick preamps (they look nice!)...but then what? Would I need two power amps, or just one (stereo perhaps)? If so, would it work better with a "pure" transparent type power amp, or something like the SWR bass amp that is in your rig? Does that work OK too with the melody side? Presumably since the EQ's etc on the SWR are not paired (for stereo) you leave that all pretty flat and control the sound with the Rane?
And what about speakers? Keep them separate, or use one full range cab of some kind?
3. Some other combination? Maybe also retain the Hartke just for the bass pedals?

Lots of questions, but I guess the main theme is - if I'm typically playing with very different sounds and effects, does it work ok to run it all through a common signal path at the power amp and/or speaker stage?

Mick Peters
www.thirteenofeverything.com

--

Hi Mick,

The answer depends in part on what kind of pickup you have. If you have the ACTV-2, then you can plug it into just about any input impedance load and get a great sound. With the PASV-4, the input impedance will influence the tone, so...In the interest of finding an elegant solution I have a few questions and then will pose some answers and then proceed from ther...

Does your Hartke have an effects loop or "power amp input"?
If it does, then you could preamp the bass side of The Stick separately and use a simple mixer to blend all three bass signals together and feed them back into your amp. If you have the ACTV-2, you may not even need a preamp.

Do you like the sound of thing the way they are currently going through the guitar amp?

If yes, then you don't need to change anything here. If no, then I'd suggest getting a preamp/eq pedal for the melody side of The Stick, so you can have a different tone control setup for that from the guitar.

I use the preamp on my SWR for the bass side when I have it with me because the tone controls are more versatile than the Rane's 7-band graphic eq.

If you have a PASV-4, then you could use the Rane for The Stick, but you'd still need to mix things together, so that might not be the most elegant solution. I belive some manufacturers are building their little mixer boxes with instrument as well as line level inputs now, so that may be a solution, too.

Sorry to be so vague, I guess I need more information. But it seems like some kind of mixer will help you in a big way. Try to find one that at least has 3-band eq.

Anybody else?

Happy Tapping,
Greg

Copyright 2004 by Greg Howard, all rights reserved, except where noted. The opinions expressed by subscribers and contributors to this digest are not necessarily those of the publisher. Any business transactions arranged by readers of Sticknews are solely their responsibility, and not those of Greg Howard.

Stick and Chapman Stick are registered trademarks of Stick Enterprises, Inc., and are used in the title of this digest with permission.

end of Sticknews #254