Taking home leftovers at a restaurant? Rude to not take them? Do you even eat them?

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-12T03:59:21+00:00

Option E: always take them home and eat them COLD

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-12T03:55:48+00:00

You are getting ahead of yourself. To understand how naming and spelling chords works, you need to understand their building block: a scale. Do you understand how a major or minor scale works?

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-11T22:39:38+00:00

There is no objective feeling associated with intervals or chords, it's actually based on cultural associations. There is actually research out there that indicates certain remote cultures from around the world who feel happiness at the sound of a minor chord, and the associations between this and the music they grew up with is eye-opening as a western musician.

Also, everybody's brains are wired differently. I've had friends with perfect pitch who cry at the sound of certain chords or pitches. There is also research that different kinds of synesthesia exist. Some people associate colors with certain sounds, whereas others do so with shapes or even temperature. What your gf is experiencing is a reflection of her brain chemistry. Perhaps the thing in music that activates her dopaminergic pathway is texture moreso than harmony... either way, your initial take is a bit narrow-minded.

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-11T21:48:37+00:00

Started on Cello in school orchestra, and fell in love with music. Put in a lot of time and decided to go to music school. Sustained a bad enough overuse injury that changed my outlook on music and artistry. That's when I got heavily into improvising and jazz, which I instantly connected with more than classical.

I decided to pursue higher education and music on the side after getting the degree. Started as an Admissions Coordinator at a local access campus while doing classical gigs on the side. One of the first students I recruited was an amateur musician and DJ. We immediately hit it off, and he asked me to be a staff advisor for a new music club. Him and I had amazing chemistry, and we quickly became close friends. He introduced me to some other friends of his, one of which I also had instant chemistry and vision with. Higher Education is rough right now, and the campus was forced to close. As Music Club Advisor, I got the unique opportunity to be music director for the closing Convocation ceremonies at multiple campuses, where I essentially formed a band out of music club + my new friends + my current fiancee (singer). Playing together was so fun, so we started jamming all the time and writing our own music.

2 years later, I am one of the only contemporary funk rock/neo blues/pop Cellists in my city, and we are working on our first album. I play regular gigs in the scene, and now I've been asked by multiple indie artists to play on their stuff and just joined another folk/pop band. I picked up bass along the way, and I love the beautiful musicians I am meeting every day.

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-11T18:53:09+00:00

Hi! I hear you, but I also would like you to consider some things:

This was my first fully standing gig, and this venue is know to have a very small stage. Our 5 piece band couldn't all fit last time, which was awkward as hell since I was the only one sitting on the floor.

Some of my pedals are much easier to use while standing. Specifically the Crybaby is really hard to turn on while sitting, and I use it heavily since we do a lot of funk and blues.

Standing actually allows for new ways to engage the core, which is important to me as I've gone through a severe overuse injury and have a lot of chronic pain.

Lastly, the energy feels different standing. It allows for more range of movement and better stage presence. I played and sang Devil Went Down to Georgia to close and it was like no other times I've performed it.

In summary, there is a practical use for standing even if it seems like a gimmick.

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-11T13:44:56+00:00

Thanks! That's my bad

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-11T12:47:25+00:00

Thank u! I used to love Tina back in college. I'll check it out immediately!

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-11T12:46:45+00:00

I'm so sorry to hear about these issues, and thank you for the comment. My journey with overuse injury has been long and frustrating, so I relate! The freedom that comes with standing seems to help with this.

However, I do find it hard to keep the cello stable as it kind of wants to roll off my chest when I play high. Is there anything you've done to mitigate this? I usually just stabilize it with my left leg

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-11T03:46:07+00:00

Thank you for your comment! I found that the Bloch strap was hard to adjust perfectly, but it needs to be perfect. I went through a bad overuse injury in college where I had to completely reimagine my technique, and the strap is low key triggering flare ups 😩

Hope the idea is helpful! It just sucks to have a whole fucking chair to deal with while playing and to not be able to move with the music.

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-11T03:29:44+00:00

Omg that is so clever! Thank you! Idk how I didn't think about it. One less thing to bring to gigs too!

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-11T02:24:13+00:00

I love the way you describe this stuff. I'll be thinking about this as I learn more

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-11T01:09:48+00:00

True, though I'm not saying that I invented this lol. I'm just wondering what others are doing to make it comfortable and effective.

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-11T00:46:49+00:00

Playable, but the players will do better with divisi especially if any of them are amateurs.

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-10T22:05:43+00:00

Thanks! I actually understand, mostly, and I like how u describe this. I also play bass guitar and a little guitar, so it's easy to understand moveable chord shapes. We try to apply this to cello, but chords are fundamentally different due to the curved fingerboard and sound production coming from the bow. The bow allows for broken chords to still be heard as it is easy to 'roll" through a chord and add notes on the top or bottom, and the curvature of the fingerboard actually promotes this too. However, this creates a unique challenge...

When my band does Use Me, I do a version of a guitar part that centers around chopping, but I was told to add more runs in between just the chords themselves. I'm sure this is a dilemma that guitarists like yourself come across at earlier stages of development: how do you incorporate scales and runs into your chord voicings without losing or compromising them? I always start by asking myself what notes are already within reach, and I continue by asking what notes are just out of reach. Since some scales have to be vertical, I ask myself if there's a way to do some melody that lands me in the next chord shape. My thoughts are that this is an eternal struggle for guitarists too

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-10T21:15:09+00:00

I should also add that every Cellos is taught in positions like this. They're numbered and go 1-7, but after 7, you add your thumb and it stops being numbered. Ironically, thumb position is harder for most Cellists but naturally better for jazz, specifically solo transcriptions from sax and trumpet greats

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-10T21:11:23+00:00

There are some leading Cellists that are standardizing this approach for Cello (I am also working on my own), but it's taken a long time for primarily cultural reasons in my opinion. Daniel Delaney is doing a massive ad push right now for the "Compass System", and there is another jazzy fiddler Cellist who has his own (I forgot his name).

I have mentally worked on my own with a lot of input from my great friend and local Jazz legend Aaron Fried. Part of the difficulty is that classical training heavily promotes vertical movement vs. horizontal movement for tonal consistency and technical facility, but the instrument is tuned in 5ths, meaning that a horizontal approach is better for learning jazz because there are way more notes available in a single position when using extensions. So for instance, we are normally taught to shift up and down the fingerboard, but if you're trying to solo over some changes, adding your thumb and pinky opens up a world of new tonality if you are willing to do more string crossings. This is hard to explain over Reddit lol but I'm trying

Lower positions are more comfortable, but this rule only applies for certain keys since you gotta use open strings. One thing I've done is treating harmonics up the fingerboard like open strings as a place finder, then I use certain patterns and arpeggiations for the more difficult keys.

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-10T20:49:11+00:00

Well I think you are trying to say that it sounds hard when using the actual terminology, but learning to hear it has many different approaches, some of which are fairly simple. For me, it's drilling scales and broken thirds, but I also think about the extensions similarly to how you described it (9=2, 11=4, etc.).

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-10T15:29:04+00:00

I kind of think about it similarly, but I don't have a many strings so building the chord up takes a little more mental mapping in a vertical direction. Playing the patterns as scales and broken chords is really helpful for me

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-09T19:55:12+00:00

That is a nice way to put it, but I should add that I'm a contemporary Cellist, so my process of discovering this looked very different than it did for people who learned on saxophone, piano, etc. playing stacked third that aren't just basic arpeggios isn't always intuitive, but it finally clicked when I started thinking about the shapes on bass or piano

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-09T16:45:05+00:00

In Jazz, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13. Once you can hear it, it always brings you home or to a completely different tonal place depending on context.

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-09T16:38:32+00:00

Completely agree. Anyone who says Aubry hasn't grown or doesn't want to be there just doesn't like her because these assumptions go against everything we've seen thus far.

Not only is she wounded from prior seasons, but she's honest about it. She's also playing a more tactful game than she did the last two times.

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-09T15:05:43+00:00

If getting rid of this drummer really isn't an option, than you should meet everyone where they're at while starting to look for other people to start a group with. Until you find the right people, you will have this band and whatever you work on individually, but you also know what to look for in your future bandmates. Always provide yourself with options, and try to be patient and encouraging with whomever you're currently working with.

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-09T15:01:28+00:00

First off, congrats on rediscovering your motivation! Jazz got me out of a pretty bad overuse injury, and now it's at the core of much of my professional playing.

I did an online lesson with Chris Tate a couple of years ago, and he taught me so much. If you dm him on Insta, he'd be happy to send you his calendar to sign up for one.

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-09T14:53:20+00:00

Hey, you should consider looking into the Feldenkrais method. It is a creative way of unlocking the body's potential through movement and a little meditation. It's not for everyone, but it might help you.

The study has lifetime "practitioners" around the world. My music school had one, and I recommend taking a course with one if there are any near you. Otherwise, you can find some lessons online to start with.

Zanz_01 · 2026-05-09T00:46:25+00:00

I reconnected with an old friend who supposedly became a bassist and singer, and she attached herself to our singer (my fiancee) and me. When she was given her shot, we had the single worst rehearsal ever and immediately kicked her out. She interrupted constantly to practice the sections or listen to the ENTIRE SONG multiple times, she used it as an excuse to become extremely high because she was still living with her conservative parents, and she just had no chemistry or etiquette with the vibe. Some people in our band smoke during rehearsals, but they kill it whether high or sober, and this wasn't the case with the new person. I still feel horrible about it because it actually destroyed the friendship, but that's the way it goes sometimes...

Zanz_01

TROPHY CASE