It just occurred to me this week that I haven’t said anything at all about music anywhere in this blog. And I suspect that people who know me in real life will find that a bit odd. Music has always been a very important part of my life, ever since I was given a guitar for my sixteenth birthday. Actually it was more like a wooden box with cheese wire strings – so painful to play. But I’ve just kept on playing, discovering new instruments and, above all, making music. You might say that I discovered myself in the music I played. And performing was always exciting and a source of real joy.
People’s Cap
In 2015, together with fellow multi-instrumentalist Phil Lane, I formed the duo “People’s Cap”. Until my stroke in 2017 we performed together regularly, mostly in the Brussels area. We wrote a lot of songs and instrumentals, and we prided ourselves on always playing the largest number of instruments at each event, no matter how many songs we were allowed to perform. If we only played three songs, we often had six instruments with us… That kept it varied for us (and hopefully the audience). But I’m not sure all the technicians were very happy about it!
Of course, the lack of music in this blog is due to the emphasis I’ve put on the visual impairment I suffered because of my stroke. And that has undoubtedly been the most difficult challenge for me. And it remains so, otherwise I wouldn’t be writing this blog. But it definitely wasn’t the only challenge I faced.
Will I ever play music again?
When I had the stroke, it left my left arm paralysed. At first it just hung there, next to my body. Fortunately I saw a lot of improvement during the first few weeks, and gradually I was able to do more and more with it. I still have very little feeling in my left upper arm, shoulder and neck. It did return to my forearm and hand though, except for the little and ring fingers, which still give me trouble. My left hand is slightly weaker and less responsive than its right counterpart. It can be a little stiff and sore at times, too.
When I returned home from rehab, Phil and I began working out the best way to continue our musical partnership. To begin with, I started looking for instruments that I could play with one hand. That led me quickly to melodica and accordion, two instruments I already owned but had never played with People’s Cap. I have been playing the accordion for a long time, however, and my first melodica dates from my teenage years, so I knew them well. The accordion is most definitely a two-handed instrument, though, and in terms of coordination a very difficult one too. But needs must, and you can absolutely play it one-handed if you have no choice!
I reworked some of our old instrumentals, so that I was now playing them on accordion. We found that it gave them a very distinct sound that we liked. And so that became our first short set. And how good did that feel!
Guitar!
But what I wanted most of all was to get back to playing the guitar. Guitar was my first instrument, and also the one I played the best. My first great love, you might say.
I started very simply. Phil came up with a lyric that I really liked, and suggested that I write a melody for it. So that’s what I did. I based the new melody on an alternative guitar tuning, which meant I barely had to use my left hand. And I was off! I still knew instinctively how and where to put my fingers, though at first they didn’t want to cooperate at all. One of my children put it really well: I looked like someone who knew how to play guitar very well in theory, but had never done it in real life! And that’s how contradictory it felt. But little by little it began to come back. First with short bursts of effort and long breaks. But over time I could play a little longer, until eventually People’s Cap really was back again.
The comeback
And last Sunday we gave our first real concert since the beginning of 2017. For an hour we played at a small festival in Ghent in front of a great audience. It wasn’t flawless, but then, we never have been! We’ve always preferred to play on the edge, somewhere between what we know we can do and what we’d like to be able to do.
And what about the road I have travelled in recent years?
Well, it’s not over yet. At least, I hope not! And, if I’m honest, there are some instruments that haven’t come back at all. Recorder and piano among others, they seem to be a step too far. And as for the basses on the accordion… But really, I’m so grateful for what I’ve already been able to accomplish that I’ve learned to be at peace with that.
Most of the time, at least!
You can find People’s Cap on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/peoples.cap
You can hear us on Soundcloud:
And there are a few songs on YouTube:
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