A Musical (ish) Interlude

My remarkable progress with Billy 3 could be about to hit a speed bump. Perhaps more honestly, it has hit a speed bump. It's not my fault. Well, okay it is, but I'm going to blame as many others as possible. You see, it's really my desk's fault. When I bought my desk I had to say farewell to my beloved Technics organ. There wasn't room for both and in a fit of uncustomary maturity I announced I needed a desk more.

I might have been wrong. I can't tell you how much I've missed that organ. True, it was old, the contacts on the bass pedals had to be periodically scraped clean with wire wool, and it had none of the modern niceties like touch sensitivity and infinite control over reverb and resonance, but it was a good friend. Added to which, its full rich sound covered a multitude of errors and musical ineptitude on my part. The old chap was a real trouper. So yes, it's very definitely the desk's fault. Or possibly the builder who made a house too small for a person to have both an organ and a desk. What was he thinking?

Anyway, back to the speed bump. My fingers have been itching lately. With the coming festive season I should be practising carols and Christmassy tunes, but the desk is woefully lacking in voice, bass, and rhythm, though it has to be said it has excellent timbre. (I do apologise, no more, I promise.) Anyway, the long and short of it is, I went out yesterday and bought myself an early Christmas present in the form of a Yamaha keyboard.

Now, I think one or two people may have been expecting an instant return to normal musical service. There was, I suspect, a degree of disappointment at my baffled stabbing of buttons and muttering over the manual, but it's rather more complicated than my old pal. I'll get there, but there's going to be a short intermission while I figure out how to turn the new beastie on. Working out voices may take another week or so. Figuring out how to control reverb, resonance, chorus, attack etc. may take a while longer. Give me a couple of years and I'll have it sorted.

Meanwhile, poor Billy is tapping his foot in the dark recesses of the Boldre Wood directory, awaiting the conclusion of his story with increasing frustration. Sorry Billy. But you see, it really isn't my fault.