Well, here it is. Tonight I will play a sold out Carnegie Hall with one of my bands Our Native Daughters. OND is a collective of four incredible singers Rhiannon Giddens (my main gig), Amethyst Kiah, Allison Russell and Leyla Macallah. We did a rushed album a few years ago, a quick tour and then the pandemic hit. We had a brief rehearsal yesterday adding four new songs and trying to remember what we used to play for the rest. I’m not particularly proud this morning, I busked in Union Square in the 50 degree cold just a few days ago, but it does feel like a milestone of some sort. What it does make me think of is all the little steps that go into making a career as a double bassist. Of course the endless task of practice and self-evaluation. But also all the sacrifices and compromises one makes, while holding onto their integrity, to find and keep work in this business. It’s a long road, it’s often not what we thought it would be. But it’s an amazing journey and the life experiences are unparalleled. Tomorrow I’ll fly to Charlotte to play a trio with Rhiannon in front of the symphony. Then next week I’ll be busking in Thompson Square park on the Lower East Side in Manhattan, weather permitting. It’s really all the same, and it’s all an amazing privilege.
