Of course there are jillions of music blogs out there!  Music is such an enormous part of life.  Every time we turn on the television, watch a movie, flip on the radio, enter a store…Each and every day day, music somehow enters our lives.

At Bass-ically Speaking, I don’t blog much about music.  I blog about musicianship, primarily the lighter side of what it takes to make music.

There aren’t a lot of blogs in my niche.  I see where a lot of musicians have started blogs, then abandoned them.  Maybe because musicians are too busy making music to blog about making music?  Maybe it’s hard to blog about something that simply must be heard to appreciate?  Maybe (and I truly believe this) so many of them are just way too serious?   And blogs by mom musicians are very scarce indeed!  Who has time to be a mom, a blogger AND a musician?

So, why bother?

As children, so many of us receive music instruction of some sort.  And a dream is born of the possibility that we will master an instrument – a skill that can grow with us throughout our lives, enriching us as we enrich others through the very personal expression that can only be experienced through making music.

Somewhere along the way, many (most?) young musicians abandon that dream as the reality of what it really takes to play well hits us.  All that practice, practice, practice!  It’s lonely.  And boring.  And it never ends!  Nobody knows all there is to know about music – it truly is endless!    Therefore, a decision must be made; countless hours of study and practice versus all the other activities and opportunities life offers.  “Other” often wins out.

Oh, to have a dime for every time I’ve heard an adult lament not pursuing their music!   Career, marriage, children, responsibilities enter the scene.  “I play  . . . ” is sadly replace by “I used to play . . .”

Been there, done that, got the band merch to prove it!

I studied piano from age five to age nineteen.  As a teenager, I taught myself the basics of guitar and studied classical guitar in college.  Along the way, I did due diligence in garage band hell, continuing on with various bands after college as I pursued a nursing career.  Then came love, then came marriage, then came a couple of baby carriages and I did what most folks do – abandoned my instrument.

But I never lost the love of making music nor the desire to play. I piddled around with my guitar, jamming with friends when I could, but never seriously enough to suit me.   When the kids were old enough to make their own sandwiches and Dad was ready to give me up for a few hours each week, I gradually answered the call of my muse and eased back into playing in bands.  Bass players are always in demand, so settling on the electric bass as my instrument of choice guaranteed me a spot somewhere – I just couldn’t figure out where.

So, I pulled together a band of women with the same life situation as my own;  homemakers who put down instruments for college, careers, then husbands and kids.  We started rehearsing together one each week while the kids were at school and gradually began playing for women’s events;  lunches, baby showers, banquets and so forth.  I was also invited to play in a church praise band and, later, in a mixed gender classic rock band.   So, in just over a year, I found myself going from no band to three bands!  It was a little crazy, but the demands of each group were light enough that I was still able to care for my family as I honed my skills and enjoyed making music once again.

Since then, I also started blogging.  Although my blog was a mixed bag of personal experience, I often blogged about my music and my bands and so forth.  That got a little crazy and, after two years, I sort of let the blog flounder for a while, posting sporadically and watching my readership diminish.

We are never alone in our life situations.  There is always someone out there with the same struggles we face, the same goals and dreams, the same circumstances and desires.  When I began blogging regularly again, musicianship became my main focus.   I discovered many of my readers had also studied music in their earlier years, trading their instruments in for other adult responsibilities as life encroached.  And they shared my longing to again make music.   This encouraged me to encourage them.  Pick up your instruments!  Play.  Set aside twenty or thirty minutes each day to express your heart through that enormous part of life that we want to be in but have allowed life to force us out of!  Just jam!

That is the passion I now share in my blog, Bass-ically Speaking.  I know what it is to listen to a song and want to be a part of it.  I know how hard it is to take time out from chores and errands to pick up my bass and run a few boring scales.  I know the loneliness of practice, practice, practice.  I know what it’s like to juggle an instrument and a laundry basket while simultaneously  figuring out what’s for dinner and stopping the kids from killing each other.

I also know the joy of finally nailing a difficult riff.  And the fun of rehearsing with other musicians to tighten up a song.  The thrill that comes from playing for an appreciative audience and seeing them experience the delight from hearing and dancing to their favorite tunes.  The sheer pleasure of being inside of the music once again is so worth it!

It is a lot of hard work. And sometimes, quite frustrating.  I try to be honest about those things in my blog..  The challenges involved in putting together a press kit, working around busy schedules, booking gigs, selecting the songs to learn and play, dealing with artistic personalities and egos. . . All the things that make and can break up bands.  I make every effort to learn from the experiences of others.  I’ve interviewed other female musicians and musician moms, professional and amateur, at Bass-ically Speaking.  Their insights and experiences have been an incredible inspiration to me and my readers. And I share my own experiences, both good and bad.

I also write for parents of young musicians.  Both of my kids are in music lessons.   From tips on choosing instruments, to advice on encouraging kids to practice, to helping find fun projects like rock camps, interviews with music instructors…anything I can do to help parents nurture their young musicians is, in my mind, blogworthy.

I also have quite a contingent of non-musical readers.  Most music lovers have no clue what goes on behind the scenes to make a song happen.  I blog about my bands, my challenges, my gigs, my equipment, online resources I use. . . Music fans often comment at Bass-ically Speaking as they get a backstage look at what goes into musicianship.

I’m honored to be recognized as Band Geek in the Dottie Awards.  Sticking with my music rather than giving in to the “I used to play  . . . ” probably makes me one of the few musician moms out there blogging today.  I’d love to find more musician moms’  blogs.  If any of your readers know if any, I’d love to have a couple of links to click.  Just like many of your readers, I often need others to learn from as well some encouragement to stick with it and to keep on rocking!

Bass-ically Speaking, of course.

Carol