Beautiful, Invaluable Instruments

I think instruments are way past beautiful.

I have two acoustic guitars and a bass guitar hanging on my wall, and they are on par with any artistic choice I could make for interesting wall hangings, as far as I'm concerned. And to be clear, the instruments are nothing "special," other than that they are instruments, and I think there is inherent beauty there. My two guitars are nearly identical, basic acoustic guitars, though one is a 6-string and one is a 12-string. No fancy finish or pearl-inlay neck or fancy bridge or headstock. Just instruments. Just plain ol' instruments that have the potential of creating beauty of sight and sound if the right person pulls them off the wall (Not me. I'm a hack.). The bass guitar is a gorgeously plain 1978 Fender P bass that is a natural blond wood. No sunburst or sparkle or decal flames. Nope. Just three plain instruments next to each other that I just love looking at.

I used to have one of those entertainment centers (thank god I outgrew that). But in the space where the stereo was suppossed to go, I set up a shelf and put one of my classic snare drums on display, like in a museum. The drum was an early 1960's chrome over brass Ludwig, and I retired it just because I played a different drum at the time. But the drum was a gorgeous metal drum, and I thought it was so cool to have it on a shelf behind glass.

I've got other percussion knick knacks laying around...not too many, but enough that they're there. Some ironwood drumsticks from costa rica, some Vietnamese and Turkish percussion items that my friends brought me from their travels.

I would buy a mandolin or an accordion (either chromatic or button) in a heartbeat, just cause I think they'd be cool to have. If I bought them, I'd learn enough to noodle around on the instruments, but likely I'd own them as prized possessions. My artwork. I'd buy a banjo for the same reason. Or a ukelele.

I'd probably steer clear of orchestral strings or any brass or woodwinds. I just don't have an ability to play those at all. But the others I could do. There is still a piano floating out there in the ether that I might get my hands on, and I'd jump on that right away.

On a related note, I'm giving away a drumset this month to a friend of mine who has a 13-year-old son who wants to play. It's not that I'm a good guy or anything. It's that instruments...my instruments...carry far too much value to me to sell them to a friend. And if I sold them on ebay or something, yeah, the couple hundred bucks would be nice, but they would be so empty. Empty dollars.

My first drumset was free, as it was my father's hand-me-down. That drumset changed my life forever. How could I sell something to a friend whose son wants to play?

I'll either put instruments on the wall or I'll give 'em away. Instruments are far too valuable to be put away, not used, or one or the other. Instruments are made to be played and loved and cherished. Given away if possible.

Carry forth.