The Closer Look: Singing out one's Song.

I love this city. I love living in this city and I love writing about it. There is some sort of magic that blows through the streets and gets all up in people's business. This herd mentality of freedom of expression and creativity is at its most potent on Cuba Street. It expresses itself in many ways whether it’s street art or cleverly designed posters. Brave fashion decisions or the clever lines those charity dudes use to lure you in. There is creativity engrained in the people who spend their time on Cuba Street. So for this month, I decided to take a Closer Look at one of Cuba's most prominent creative sub-cultures: Buskers.

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The definition of a drummer is someone who hits drums. By this definition, the man who sets up his drum kit outside the Swan Lane carpark would be considered a drummer. His commitment to his ‘craft’ is admirable, a full-size drum kit is not the most portable instrument in the world. My admiration of this man stops there. He plays at least once a week so you would think he would have learned even just one ounce of rhythm. For three or four hours this guy just plays really loud short bursts of beats and chops. The moment you sense there might be a groove kicking in he stops and starts on a new ‘beat’. Listening for too long will drive a man insane. I know this firsthand as the Wellington Writers Studio is essentially above where he plays. What really puts me over the line as whilst he plays he wears these massive earmuffs. I bet these earmuffs massively reduce the amount of his own noise he can hear. If your music is so bad that you need earmuffs to get through your set, it might be a sign to not be playing it in public in the first place.

However bad the drummer man is, he will always be overshadowed by some of the most amazing and talented people who perform on Cuba Street. My favourite busker is Bruce, who sings and plays guitar to original songs he has written. The topics of his songs range from small-town New Zealand to wartime love. There are songs about deep loss, and others about great joy. I will quite often just sit around for an hour or so listening to Bruce as he plays. His guitar style is charming and enjoyable, whilst his voice is clear and warm. Over the time of sitting and listening, I have gotten to know Bruce both through his music and the conversation in between his songs. One thing I have noticed is that he never accepts money for his talents. He has told me that all he wants to do is to sing out his song, that’s an idea I can get behind. In my mind not only is Bruce one of my favourite buskers on Cuba St but he is one of my favourite musicians.

One day I caught the end of Bruce's set on a sunny afternoon, we got chatting as he was beginning to pack up. He asked me if I played as well, I told him I did and he handed me his guitar to play him something. As I strummed and plucked we talked more about different styles and sounds in a very relaxed manner. He asked me if I sing at all, I told him just around the house for fun. He encouraged me to sing him something so I did. He listened with kind ears and generous attention as I stumbled through the lyrics of ‘Tangled up in Blue’. Bruce was encouraging and asked me if I felt confident enough to sing in front of the microphone. His kind words and gentle nature were enough for me to give it a go. Bruce watched and strolled around giving me space as I made my Cuba street busking debut. I sang out my song sitting in the place of my friend as he watched in the position where I normally am listening, enjoying, and appreciating. I’m thankful for Bruce's kindness, in allowing the audience to become the performer. His grace and encouragement to my unrehearsed performance.

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Is the street a place for practice or performance? Before my busking debut, I would have probably answered the latter. I have however experienced a change of heart. No matter how frustrating and genuinely angry the drummer man makes me, I have to accept him. If we don't allow people like Drummer Man to perform, we would not have the privilege and honor of witnessing artists such as Bruce. But there are many others on both sides of the coin and many in between. So thank you to all the buskers (of varying quality) for making our city vibrant and alive. Continue to sing out your songs, and march to the beat of your own drum. We must as audience members be thankful for the life that any street performer brings to our city. Thank you.

Much love, be blessed,

Jesse.