GRID Sessions @Grayston, Halifax - 2nd Report
I've done four Halifax sessions now. As a headline, it is going musically very well - the vibe is creative and positive :) Obviously, the venue quickly figure out/already know that there won't be any greatest hits or singalongs. Still it is hard to find an audience for this music and though player numbers are consistently good, I have been disappointed that we don't get more people watching and listening - sometimes no one at all. Other than the music being a bit 'strange', part of this I suspect, is the setup in the Grayston: It's a good room, but away from the main bar and entry involves going through a firmly closed door to 'see what is going on'. So, we don't get any casual grazers, the people who come into the session are those who are taking part.
Variation In Format - Though the core idea of the GRIDs is being used in a consistent manner and receiving positive feedback, how it is being applied isn't exactly the same in every session. The November session was done as a soundtrack with a film running, as well as the players working from their GRID sheets. It was apparent that some members of the group were attempting to respond to what was happening on the screen, but also (it was my experience) that there was enough of a task in improvising together, without adding the need to respond to the film. I'm keen to incorporate some movement into at least one of the sessions but haven't found the right person/people just yet!
A new inclusion in the last couple of sessions has been a period of not playing in the middle of a period of everybody playing. This works really well in refocusing everybody as well as resetting the volume. Into 2025, while sticking to the GRIDs approach, I'd like to experiment with more complex structures, with for example just a bass and drums playing, or just two voices on their own. This isn't currently possible as I never know exactly who is going to be there. I'm looking to find ways to make attendee numbers more predictable, so I can ready slightly more involved sheets and ultimately facilitate more interesting improvs.
It was obvious in the November session, where we had a percussionist, that that made a big difference to the group. Players who are used to more traditional band playing found that pleasing. I found as well as varying timbre, it nailed the rhythm down, which sometimes was useful and other times limited the music in some aspects. But I'll make yet further efforts to get at least one percussionist down to future sessions. My consistent aim is to allow things to develop organically but also to make sure that the music moves – it doesn't get stuck in a cul-de-sac of a long jam around the same theme.
Finally, I'll mention the talking: The players talking to each other as part of the session about what is being played. I had mixed feelings about this because when I ran sessions with Phil Morton in Preston I didn't like the talking - it was very competitive - generally people trying to outwit each other. Not at all where CBS comes from! Back in Halifax some players did though feedback that they would like to have a chance to discuss. So, In the December session I did introduce a roundtable where everybody spoke briefly about what they were finding interesting about the session. This actually worked really well, so I will come back to this again for future sessions.
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