My Musical Discourse

Friends in Distraction playing out on Court StreetPhoto Credit - Elizabeth

     

Walk around Court Street some weekend night, and chances are you’ll start to hear the strumming of guitars and singing in the distance. As you walk towards the sound you see a guy dancing around on the sidewalk, jumping off of benches all while singing songs he wrote while playing his black acoustic guitar. His name is Dan, and he’s the leader of the band Friends In Distraction. To the right of him would be Garrett, he sings and plays guitar in the band. In between the two of them, I’m sitting on a bench pounding on a djembe, playing stuff that should be on a drum-set on a single African hand drum. We’re just one of the many little groups that plays around on the street and in coffee shops and bars in Athens.

            When I arrived at Ohio University, I found a community of musicians that I never really thought would have existed. I also never would have thought I’d be a part of it, I thought I’d finished playing music once I’d gotten out of high school. This little community, the one that I’ve come to know at least, mostly hangs out at Donkey and Front Room Open Mics. It is this little network of people who play, but also people who come to watch and listen, which makes it really fun and interesting. This is how I came to meet my band-mates, and how I got into playing music nearly every weekend with them under the name Friends In Distraction.

A performance at the Union. Photo Credit: Cassie

            The thing that really interests me about this musical community is that there are a lot of students here at Ohio University who are great songwriters and performers. Not just that, but a lot of them want to collaborate and play with each other, or even just watch each other play just to hear new things. Playing music is a way to have fun with one another, because it is something that the players get to create with each other. Not just that, but then they get to share it with friends and 

others who come and watch, whether it is somewhere 

on 

A FID show at Donkey. Photo credit Abby

Court Street, an open mic performance or a full set at the Union.

            Being a part of this free form kind of musical community has been a great experience because it has taught me to be more comfortable with doing things in public I would have never considered even just a few months ago. It has also introduced me to a lot of really cool, open-minded people who are great communicators not just when they play music but outside of it too. They’re something that I aspire to, and something I want to share whenever I get to drum with one of them somewhere. This has been an experience that I absolutely love to be a part of, and hopefully I’ll see you out on the street sometime. It’ll be fun, because that’s the point of all of it really.