Blues Saxophone
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Saxophone Handmade Coffee Mug (10cm x 8cm)
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Blue Saxophone Porcelain Mug
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Blues Man Plays On The Streets - This Time It's Paris, France
This romantic city of the Eiffel Tower, Moulin Rouge and the Notre Dame Cathedral is home to a wonderfully diverse gathering of humanity struggling to live and breathe in this great city.
Lets Play Guitar On The Underground
The Paris subway is the most dense system on the globe, and some of the statistics are impressive. For example, there are more than 300 stopping points and in the whole of Paris there is nowhere further than four hundred metres from a station! The conglomeration has additionally been a traditional haven for the 'street performer'. As I'm one those fabulous people, I thought I'd check it out.
How's It Work?
One would guess that you just find a spot and start to play - not all all! That romantic idea has long gone. The whole thing is organized nowadays and all hopefuls need to take an audition (yes - a proper one!) with the street music performance people at RATP, the folks that operate the metro.
And hear this - every year, the best of the Paris metro buskers are recorded in a professional studio and a CD is released for general sale to the public - things have changed a lot! As you might think, the style of the music varies a lot,going from tin whistle blowers to string sections. Several famous French stars were discovered playing here.
Of course, you must adhere to a few rules, like 'no amplifiers', 'no CD sales', and a few other things. I couldn't wait to bend some of those, I'm afraid to tell you. But as we will see, in reality nothing ever works out how you want it to ...
Time For The Big Audition - Gulp!
I hopped on a train, guitar case in my hand (sounds like a classic blues song, don't you think?) in the Southern part of France and a few hours later I was perched on a stool in a small room in the Metro offices, patiently waiting for the audition to commence. I'd decided that I would play 4 of my very best and sing my heart out - 'must get this license, must get this license' was my unspoken prayer. It represented the door to riches beyond my wildest dreams (and they could get pretty wild.)
It seemed obvious that, I thought, my skills would be assessed by a very experienced team of pros. This could be tricky. I tuned my instrument and waited, almost nervously. A man entered, turned on a camcorder and said "Hello - play something." After that he sat down and appeared to read a magazine! Unphased, I launched into a very loud rendition of Love In Vain by Robert Johnson, at which he looked a bit surprised. After asking me if I could only play blues, or could I play anything remotely modern, to which I said no, he informed me that the audition was at an end and I would receive a letter from them soon. Short and sweet indeed.
I caught the subway to Montmartre, had a meal with my mother-in-law who lives close by, and caught the train back down south. Strangely enough, a week after that I got an letter of acceptance and planned my first day performing in the city of Paris.
I Love Paris In The Springtime, When It Glistens...
Sorry to let you down, my friends, but I found that the metro was - a bit of a let down. Well, that's not quite true. It just wasn't what I hoping for, that's all. I got there one freezing morning and dived into the nearest station to secure a spot. That was my first error. There are so many performers, so you need to turn up very early to make sure you have a prime location. In fact, like real estate, it's all about location, location, location.
Mind you, I saw some excellent performers while I was searching, a complete range of musical activity from blues music to African drums. In one station crossover tunnel (these are often big!) I stumbled upon half a Russian orchestra, complete with a dancer. It was suddenly obvious, the rules laid down by the authorities didn't mean much underground. About 75% of all performers use amplifiers and often sell CDs. I can appreciate why this is, in my own area, CD sales account for half of my income from street playing.
A A Story Of Success - Sax Always Sells
Strangely enough, the people making most money are the ones that didn't bother getting a permit, and don't even play in the tunnels. Let me tell you how they work. These people often have a sax, or some kind of horn, or an accordion (of course) and play for the passengers that use the carriages. I went with one of these guys on one of his journeys and we talked a while, as we were soul brothers, you could say.
He took a train for five stops, playing jazz saxophone over a backing tape. I thought he was really competent at what he did and people liked him, which is no small feat in any city. He would the repeat the journey in the other direction for 8 hours each day.
It was very pleasant to go back into the world above and daylight again, thinking that the life of a musical troglodyte is not calling. The remainder of the day was spent looking around some other corners of this wonderful city, and banging out a tune or two in some nice places above ground.
About the Author
Jim is a professional blues player operating out of France. Play the blues
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Tags: blues, blues saxophone, blues saxophone artists, blues saxophone licks, blues saxophone players, blues saxophone songs, improvisation, jazz, music, saxophone