A milestone day. Travis, John, Taylor, Sandra, myself are the new Seattle Circle, Inc. board, and we agreed today to accept responsibility for a new rented room to host our projects for the next year.
The room is in the 3rd story of brick church -- this room (along with the other amenities of the larger building) will suit our needs well for this next period. That is, assuming we can lose the ugly orange carpet, paint the aqua green walls, replace the flourscent ceiling lights, and clean the kitchen. But these are hardly barriers.
After another year of working in living rooms, we can thank SandraP that we now have a public place to work. I generally still think of this space as 'interim' -- but, actually, what in life is not interim?
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Decision by committee is a slow and tedious process.
There has recently been some debate about the name "Seattle Guitar Circle" within the extended Seattle community of guitarists. In 1996, after three years of working with an as-yet un-named, loosely affiliated group of people who had been on Guitar Craft courses, I named and registered a sole-proprietorship called 'Seattle Guitar Circle' to support the publicly-visible work of the growing community of guitarists in Seattle. In late 1995 and early 1996, I began using this name to describe the public performance and workshop projects by our local performance team. The name is still actively registered with the city and state as my sole-proprietorship.
Before 1995, various local groups of Guitar Craft students around the world had been using names like the New York Chapter of Crafty Guitarists, Project Two, the Berlin Guitar Ensemble, and the California Guitar Trio. Some were 'bands' and some were 'groups.' Some groups worked together to sponsor “New Standard Tuning” weekend workshops and courses and, in the 1990s, local "Application and Assimilation" projects began to spring up all over the globe -- these were small, local groups who came together to work with Guitar Craft principles in a local setting. However, until I adopted it in Seattle, the formal use of the phrase ‘Guitar Circle’ had never been uttered as a specific project description or come into common use to describe a local group.
In fact, when I first began using the the SGC name publicly and talking about "Guitar Circles", there was some tangible reluctance to using a phrase that included ‘Guitar Circle' because of amateur 'club-like' associations with things like 'sewing circles.' Nevertheless, the phrasse "Guitar Circle" and "regionX Guitar Circle" eventually began to be used to describe other local groups of practicing guitarists around the globe.
For me, one of my original purposes of forming an official, publicly recognized Seattle Guitar Circle was to establish an independent entity that could serve the local needs of guitarists and musicians (with or without direct Guitar Craft experience) in the Seattle area -- independence was important partially because I had been involved in the past in projects that had a 'central' management structure whose centralized (i.e. hierarchical) but ‘distant’ management had, at times, determined the parameters and constraints of operations that, at times, contradicted the local needs of the musicians/participants involved.
My clear intent in formalizing a Seattle Guitar Circle was to establish a local entity that is self-managing, self-sustaining, and free from inappropriate or disconnected control by any ‘external’ entity. Obviously, there is a fine line between identity and identification (in Work terms) -- however, in this case, the distinction is clear and recognized, and any supposed attachment to the SGC name or 'claim of ownership' is not intented to present a 'power struggle' -- my comments here are intended to provide one view of the discovery and evolution of this name that we may come to some better mutual understanding of its origin.
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Within Guitar Craft operations, there is a very clear hierarchy of instructors, and a strong leader at the top of what remains an organic process. In its ‘external’ form, my experience is that Guitar Craft is a school built on the principles and practices developed by its founder and participants: it is also a body of techniques, practices, and principles that are available to guide active students, apprentices, musicians, and artists in the acquisition of craft. In its ‘inner form,’ Guitar Craft is also a way of working in groups, and a path may lead to the establishment of a personal discipline or practice.
I have some measure of authority in these matters, not because I've been anointed, or graduated, or given a title or official role, but only because I have have 18+ years of experience in working as a student, apprentice, instructor, and manager of various Guitar Craft (and related) projects and processes. My personal practice and instruction work continues to evolve. I speak with my own voice, I give generously, I'm wide open to feedback and criticism, and offer only that with which I have some personal experience and authority. I trust this experience and authority in determining how and what to do.
Granted, over the years there have been bogo tours, massive missteps and mistakes and ups and downs and uncertainties and stresses and trainwrecks and complete failures along the way - too many to mention in one already too long diary entry. But this is generally the case if you examine all end to end processes (even those deemed in the end to be 'successes') in any detail.
There have also been many successes, connections, insights, and lives changed along the way. PaulO reminded me yesterday during rehearsal that we often only discuss or mention that which is (allegedly) bad or broken, without mentioning or acknowledging the overwhelming good that is underway in this work.
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Interestingly, although it has been mostly invisible, Guitar Craft (the esoteric school and body of practices and philosophies) has also always had a formal, registered business behind it that supported its operations in the commercial world.
For example, in 1985-6 Guitar Craft projects were supported by a business called Claymont Court Seminars (managed by via Truus VE, Vivian Engleberg and the Claymont Society for Continuous Education.) From 1986 through 1991, Guitar Craft business was conducted via Guitar Craft Services, a registered business which I founded and managed with Ralph Gorga and Debra (Gavalas) Kahan in West Virginia. Over four years Guitar Craft Services sponsored dozens of Guitar Craft courses around the world, manufacturered and sold cassettes, CDs, T-shirts, picks, stickers, posters, monographs, booked tours, and managed the commercial and business affairs of Robert Fripp and the League of Crafty Guitarists.
Since 1991, when Guitar Craft Services was officially split into “Guitar Craft Seminars” “Guitar Craft Merchandise” and “Guitar Craft Tours,” (at my recommendation) official Guitar Craft business has been managed by various other formalized business entities such as Possible Productions, Discipline Global Mobile, Inner Knot Records, and a number of other entities whose mission has been to support the business and commercial needs of Guitar Craft by hosting courses, sponsoring projects, booking tours, and financing the production and distribution of related merchandise.
In summary, most ongoing Arts projects are suppoted by an underlying business entity that enables the commercial operations required to participate in the world of commerce. From my seat (living constantly in both worlds) debating whether the art really needs the business (or vice versa) is like asking whether Water really needs both Hydrogen and Oxygen. Both serve a purpose, and one without the other is less that what they can be together.
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In Seattle, a small group of active participants have formed Seattle Circle, Inc. a non-profit corporation which was founded specifically to serve the business needs of the group of musicians working publicly in a flexible configuration known as the Seattle Guitar Circle.
The Seattle Guitar Circle itself is loosely modeled on the League of Crafty Guitarists, which is the primary public performance troupe of Guitar Craft. The LCG is also defined specifically as the extended community of guitarists who actively engaged in applying the practices and principles of Guitar Craft in their work and lives. There is no contradiction when the LCG performs on stage or when someone in LA or Mendoza calls themselves a member of the League of Crafty Guitarists. Membership in the LCG does not imply membership in every performance by the LCG.
Likewise, the Seattle Guitar Circle is both a specific live performance ensemble, and a community of guitarists who actively participate in Seattle workshops, performances, and activities. In the past, I have characterized the SGC as a ‘performance troupe’ – much like a theatre troupe whose cast varies from show to show, and project to project but whose identity remains consistent with the vision and mission of the entity that ‘hosts’ or sponsors each project or show.
Seattle Circle is a business. Seattle Guitar Circle is a music group. And yet, these two entities have different roles, goals and purposes, even though they are are often lumped together as if they were one thing in conversations or discussions.
Seattle Circle meets to facilitate its business operations and actualize its mission to provide facilities for adult music education in the Seattle community. Seattle Guitar Circle meets to actualize its mission to practice and perform music.
Both operate to support the other in their mutual aims, and neither is or should be slave to the other. Both require care, quality, and clarity in their mission, hierarchies, and operational roles.
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If you study the work and history of the ‘Seattle Guitar Circle’ over the past year and since its inception, there has actually been a very consistent theme in both operations and practice, even during the period when there was a group operating with an (allegedly) 'fixed' membership as the SGC Performance Team -- that is, the SGC team that recorded and released the first SGC CD. This group eventually decided to become a 'band' (with an 'exclusive' nature) and 'gave' the SGC name back to the larger, inclusive 'group' working within a more public and open forum.
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It has recently been suggested that the current SGC Performance Team (of which I am currently Musical Director) should abandon use of the SGC name and come up with a 'band' or 'project' name. After some consideration, I don't feel this is necessary or advisable. This group is, in fact, the Seattle Guitar Circle.
Regarding use of the SGC name, the following are some of my personal observations about that which defines the empirical and operational identity of the SGC:
Seattle Guitar Circle Principles of Operation and Use of Name
1. performance orientation: the primary goal is to work together to bring new music for large guitar ensemble(s) into the world; secondarily, goal is to bring original music to life from the hands and hearts of the local participants rather than focus on rehashing 'old favorites' from other teams and other times.
2. education orientation: we provide opportunities for performance-based music education for adults.
3. project-based: membership is 'project-based' -- specific members come and go based upon their interest in current 'themes' and availability; but those participating make a clear commitment to work together on specific practices for a specific period of time.
4. inclusive: there is open invitation to participate in projects; the only prerequisite is a commitment to work with quality and reliability, contributing what is necessary to achieve the project aim(s).
5. leadership meritocracy: experienced 'Music Directors' and/or project leaders determine the project scope, nature, and logistics; all participants are free to stand up and offer leadership, suggestions, ideas, or guidance as so inspired; however, we are all encouraged follow (or question) our leaders, or not, based upon the value of what they have to offer
6. local independent operation: while we acknowledge our individual histories with and relationships to Guitar Craft, we operate from our own initiative and serve our local needs;
7. internal purpose: we aspire to collaborate in intentional, directed group music Work --this is work with a capital "W"; our 'Work' is personal and group music practices that promote the unification of our hands, head and heart; the guitar is our instrument, group work is our methodology.
Perhaps these principles might be shared, digested, amended, and then more formally established as prerequisites for public use of the name Seattle Guitar Circle? Clearly, there is more discussion needed within the SGC community to further clarify these definitions.
Another simpler definition: the Seatte Guitar Circle is those who show up to participate in our projects.
As the founder, vision holder, and original namer of this group (and as the person who has initiated and/or managed and/or participated in almost every SGC-related project that has happened in Seattle since 1993, and GC for seven years before that) I have a clear passion for and investment in this project, its identity, and its direction.
I'm happy to hear alternative suggestions.
And I'd happily walk away from the whole thing tomorrow if I did not believe in the long term necessity of this work, and my role in it. Hopefully, some of this history (however apparently one-sided) will serve to provide some more clarity and context for our ongoing discussions, even where there is disagreement.
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