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From Dave Zimmerman
The Pick has a goal of creating opportunities for developing musicians to come together in collaborative environments. Though I started playing in bands around the age of 12 (there was no room for the Holy Ghost when we played our version of Howard Jones' "No One Is To Blame" at a middle school dance), it wasn't until I started learning bluegrass that I saw the real value of playing with other people. My formative experience went on to include rendering tortured adolescent originals straining under tons of "Lord of The Rings" references in high school and thumping the bass in a funk band where despite a college semester of house parties it was only recently that I realized that the often freestyled lyrics delivered by our harmonica-toting frontman included the admittedly catchy chorus "Silly bottom, silly bottom, yeah yeah!"
But believe it or not, things have gotten even better from there. In the summer of 2001, at the first year of the music camp preceeding the California Bluegrass Associations Father's Day Festival, I began the process of meeting people with whom I could have fun playing while we all developed as musicians. Before long, we had formed a band and started practicing and doing gigs around the Bay Area. The real strength of this band, made up of people very new to bluegrass, was that we had similar interests and were all learning at the same pace. The interdependence between the roles of bluegrass instruments required that we not only develop personally but as a group. When we got together, we discussed our goals as a band and worked together to create a sound that allowed us to achieve them. Since that time, we have been honored to have played hundreds of gigs around the Bay Area including the Great American Music Hall, the Freight & Salvage, the Noe Valley Ministry, and of course, a regular twice monthly show at Amnesia as well as higher profile appearances at the Strawberry Music Festival and the CBA Father's Day Festival. More important than that, we got a lot of free meals (read: beers) and had (and still have) a great time doing it.
In addition to some level of talent, making progress in a band requires the identification of what it is that each member as well as the band as a whole does best. From there, you can move forward with the integrated process of working through weak points and emphasizing strong ones. The challenge is doing this while making sure everyone's input is accepted and everyone is happy with their contribution. On the logistical side, negotiating the best approaches to live sound and mic technique, managing day to day operations including a web site and communication with band members, fans, and bookers, and putting forward a professional and engaging stage presence can be just as important. While hopefully bringing some talent as well, it is this directional and organizational component that I feel I can most effectively offer when working with an ensemble.
Bands and Accomplishments:
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