by Thomas Altmann » Thu Jun 07, 2007 11:56 am
Hi Luis,
you're welcome. If I was encouraging you to stick to musical principles, whether incorporating speed and technical chops or not, this would be the greatest acknowledgement I could achieve for this little piece.
If you know the real - or original - masters in the history of our instrument, you might have discovered the sources of certain elements I use.
I'm afraid I don't have the speed and the chops you suppose me to have. Had it ever interested me enough, I am confident I would get somewhere with it. But I've always been searching for other qualities.
Also, if you were in a situation similar to mine, having to play the whole array of percussion instruments, including jazz drumset, with a big part of your heart reserved for batá and Lukumí music, including religious and theological involvement (in Ocha/Ifá), and when you have a wonderful wife or even a family, there is not a lot of time for practicing things you cannot really apply - if you want to stay healthy in your mind. It would be very hard for me to say goodbye to any of these activities in order to specialize on one or two; so I guess I have to live with a certain technical mediocrity to stay balanced as an artist/person. (In Europe, I can still afford this attitude, but things are changing slowly.)
All the best,
Thomas