LOA-L10 Mark Heffington

A big congratulations to student Mark Heffington for completing all of the Levels within the Levels of Achievement Program! To view his LOA-L10 performance visit http://youtu.be/M5QaOvEXrGY

Here is his essay, "The Process."

Levels of Achievement.

When I first joined BluesHarmonica.com four years ago, I had been “messing around” with the harmonica for a few years, playing along with the Walters and the Sonny Boys on CDs, checking out internet sites for free lessons and tips, and just enjoying my semi-interactive relationship with the blues. I loved listening to and playing blues harp, but competently reproducing the sound and feel of it seemed completely out of reach.
When I discovered BluesHarmonica.com, I knew at once that David’s teaching method was exactly what I needed to get to the next level. It was obvious that he, unlike many teachers, had actively learned, from teaching so many students over so many years, how to teach in the most effective way. He assumed nothing and offered up everything, and did so in a direct and logical way that produced immediate results and a deeper understanding of what needed to be done and why.

There was so much information on the site, though, that I quickly became disoriented. Although the lessons were clearly labeled according to skill level, I approached it kind of like I was trying to get a college education by going to the library and reading the books that looked the most interesting, without the discipline of structured study. Like many students, I suspect, I was in a hurry to “get good,” and so I tended to over-reach, skipping lessons that seemed too basic, trying to get to the study songs that I thought sounded the coolest. Many of the things that David said quite clearly on videos went unappreciated by me because of my tendency to believe that I knew more than he assumed I did. This was a huge mistake, which I did not realize until two or three years into the process. It was then that, when I felt like I was “stuck” at a certain level, and didn’t know what to do next, I would go back and look at an earlier lesson that I had already completed (or one that I had skipped). This time I would hear him say things that rang so true that it was embarrassing to realize that I had not paid more attention in the first place. Sometimes they were just little tips, and sometimes they were building blocks, the importance of which I had just not appreciated at first. Several times I thought about just starting over, doing every single lesson in “order.” But I was afraid that this wasn’t the best use of my “practice time,” so I continued my somewhat haphazard course.

When David introduced the Levels of Achievement concept, it seemed like the perfect way to “start over,” but in a more streamlined way than just doing each individual lesson again. It was a way to refresh and reinforce the key concepts, as well as to see (by way of re-recording study songs) the progress (or lack thereof, in some cases) that I had made over time. I guess I need goals, if not deadlines, to actively progress sometimes. The LOA program set specific goals designed to give the student confidence to move on.

The first three levels went quickly. I already felt confident about most of the material in them, but it felt good to “march” though them one at a time, prompting me to work on basics that I had neglected, to fill in some gaps, and to focus on one thing at a time (As the professor says, “To concentrate on everything is to concentrate on nothing”).
Levels 4-6 really started to bring out my weaknesses. The music theory sections were especially valuable, because I began to realize that I really didn’t understand half of what I thought I understood the first time through. In level 5 I realized that I really needed to work on scales and movement. I still need to, but this made me see the importance of scales for creative improvising, and it is now in the front of my mind instead of the back.

Levels 7-9 were uphill all the way. I thought I knew how to bend pretty well, but the “Half-Steppin” study song kicked my butt. And the music theory lessons were much more meaningful to me at this point than they had been when I “zipped” through them the first time. These levels felt like a quantum leap from the previous three.
Then came level 10. The emphasis of this level is on composing and performing. It requires composing four instrumentals: one in first position, one in second position, one in third position, and solo instrumental. One of these tunes, a second position instrumental, had been completed stepwise over the course of levels 7-9, undergoing three revisions and three critiques by David. That was a long and painful process for me (and probably for him as well), and I was pretty sick of the tune by the time it was “finished.” But the process of writing it provided (theoretically, at least) the tools for writing the others. Still, composing is a process that does not come very naturally to me, and the composition of a solo tune, a first position instrumental, and the revision of a previously written third position tune, was a long and excruciating experience. My inner critic beats the hell out of me, and the end product (when I finally decide it’s time to proclaim an end to it) is never very satisfying to me. I always feel like I have over-thought it, and that I rejected all the best licks and ended up with worse ones! Every time I try to use a familiar lick, I feel like I’m cheating, and when I try to use a “new” lick, it doesn’t sound like what I love to hear. As David says, the reason so many licks are cliché, is that they sound good. But I love the idea of creating “new” music, and I plan to keep trying.
But composing is just part of level 10. Performance of all of the original tunes, in front of an audience, with either a backing track or other musicians, is also required. My performance experience has been limited to unsolicited playing in the presence of my unfortunate family, and to fellow harmonica students (SPAH, Hill Country Harmonica). But to get on stage in front of “normal” people, who expect to hear music of a quality fit for public performance, and to play harmonica instrumentals that I wrote myself? It seemed like way too much vulnerability to me. I really wondered if I would ever be able to do it. But, I had come this far, and I decided I had nothing to lose but my pride. I

approached a local blues guitarist who I had listened to, playing both as a solo act and with his band. I offered to pay him the fee he usually charged for guitar lessons, in return for his time and effort to learn the songs I had written, and to give me the chance to practice playing “live” in the comfort of my home, as opposed to playing with a jam track. He gladly agreed. I was glad I did it this way, because getting over the initial fear of playing in front of someone (him) was sort of like getting in the pool at the shallow end. He helped me to know when it was as “safe” as it would ever be for me to play onstage. But getting up the nerve to play onstage was still a quantum leap. And as you will be able to tell from the videos of my “debut, ” nervousness took its toll in places (lack of confidence kills bending and timing!).

I have learned a lot on BluesHarmonica.com. I have learned more than I ever dreamed there was to learn about technique, about blues, about music in general, and about learning itself! I am certain that without Professor Barrett’s approach, I would have long ago given up my dream to be a “respectable jammer.” He helped me learn perseverance in the face of frustration and pessimism, and has made me believe, to paraphrase him, that we are all capable of doing great things, accomplishing our goals-we just don’t know how long it will take, and we should just enjoy the journey. And that is what I am doing-and enjoying it more every day. LOA level 10 pushed me to perform to an audience, and as a result I am now performing regularly with a local blues band, and looking forward to a new phase of learning on the bandstand. I am also looking forward to teaching others who want to enter the addicting world of blues harmonica, and I believe that teaching will also make me a better player.
Here is what I have done right so far: I have persevered, thanks to the encouragement of David Barrett and the structure of BluesHarmonica.com

Here is what I have done wrong so far (and why I am not yet at a professional level): I have failed to follow some of David’s best advice, and I encourage you all to learn by my mistakes. I am referring here to “practicing for success” by learning vocabulary using chorus forms. Yes, he talks about it in pretty much every beginning and intermediate lesson, and he even holds our hands through it many times, playing each lick in each chorus form in order to ingrain the vocabulary outside the context of the songs in which it is found. I found it a little tedious and did not get the immediate gratification that I got from learning the song, so I gave the process short shrift. But now, at last, I see the value. I won’t repeat the reasoning behind it, as you can find it all over BluesHarmonica.com. I will just encourage everyone to make it, as David recommends, an integral part (20 minute out of each hour of practice) of your practice time. I intend to concentrate heavily on this practice over the next 6-12 months, to play “catch-up.”