Why Choose the Saxophone?

So some of you might ask why, of all instruments do people choose the saxophone? Of course, they are cool but starter instruments like piano, guitar, clarinet and even violin come as many people's choices. Not me, like many other characteristics I always chose something different in every aspect of growing up.

I liked what wasn't obvious and people ask why I chose the sax I have the pleasure of telling them, 'to be honest, it was like the sax found me'. 

When I was 11 years old, I didn't have many friends and was used to entertaining myself. No one else in my family was musical (at all) but my interest in playing instruments came from loneliness. The music department at school was where I hid and didn't feel awkward like I did in a group of kids who were all fighting for the 'cool' kid's attention.

I looked up on in the music department one day and saw a glistening, gold straight instrument on an 'which instrument would you choose?' poster. It was the sight of a soprano saxophone and I fell in love with it there and then! I asked how I play such a beautiful instrument and the teacher advised learning alto saxophone first. So, the following week I was off on my venture to learn the sax and become good enough to play the soprano.

Five years later when I was 16 years old, for Christmas my family bought me a soprano sax! I had never owned an instrument before so this was a massive deal after using the school's for ages. The emotion was that I didn't deserve it having gone through some issues at school but the support and faith my family gave me (having not really heard me perform much, I was very timid about my playing) is eternally appreciated.

I just love telling this story! If you're thinking of choosing an instrument, let the instrument choose you but yeah, sax rules!

:) 

Escapism and You

Hello readers!

I hope you're all having a good autumn so far - it's my favourite time of the year with that autumn-leave smell in the air (could be damp if you're UK based...), leaves falling off the trees and the whole town paints a colour pallet of red & brown. 

I've decided to blog about Escapism. It's a theme that runs through most of my songs and something I find myself yearning for regularly. Whether it's the fast-pace lifestyle, living in London, modern life or the over stimulation of social media and entertainment. It's something I try to analyse and see if we can change by having a healthy approach to entertainment.

Escapism is generally a term used to describe those who look for distraction and relief from their harsh realities or current state of mind. In particular the most common technique to escape is through entertainment and engaging in fantasy which helps this 'relief'.

The question is, how do we escape when reality gets too harsh? My way is to write lyrics, play the sax, dream of a deserted island surrounded by nature and by drowning myself in satirical movies for a day here and there. We all need to find a healthy escape route and remind ourselves that the entertainment industry is merely a money-making, mind compelling and drama overloaded source for our escapism. 

Life is becoming so demanding and this constant need to check social media just takes valuable time away from our daily life and stops us looking around us. Gone are the days where technology was a nuisance, it's now a necessity. The key is to find a healthy way of escaping by getting back in touch with what's natural - going to the park, sitting still, enjoying someone else's genuine company and learning how to relax without stimulating your mind - this is all becoming a life skill!

Apparently, watching  TV or a film whilst being stationary is the same as if you were walking around doing things around the house because your mind is still ticking and absorbing images on the screen then using it as your 'escape route'.

I believe technology will get boring and we won't rely on it forever, we are just in the prime and 'honeymoon' period of learning how these new inventions work. We are after all, still guinea pigs in this technological era!

Choose your escape route wisely :)

Yas & Ro Performance, 28th August 2015

So last Friday, 28th August, was a real night of history and progression for myself and as a duo with Rowan Slater; a fantastic guitarist originally from Lincoln but like me has moved to London to pursue a career performing live.

We had been practicing for over a month, once a week building up to our gig for Music Showcase UK held at Bar fm, Shepherd's Bush. It was our first performance entertaining the crowd for just 10 minutes, but a memorable, effective short and sweet set. I have learnt over the years it's not the quantity of songs, it's the quality. At our point we are only new as a duo, so we didn't want to overload the pressure :D

The gig couldn't have gone better! The host and crowd were really warm and seemed to really enjoy the sax, vocals & guitar we had to show them. We began with a lil' jazzy jam to warm up with, then we went into 'How We Fly'. I wrote this song about escapism (following the theme of my blog) when I was 19, first starting uni and pretty much started singing. The song provides me with comfort on stage, as it's familiar, catchy and comfortable for me to sing vocally with room to throw some sax to throw in there!

The last song we performed was 'Soul in My Shoes'. This was a great song to end on with its' major chords in the chorus, reggae beat verses, topped with some sax & guitar to end the story. 

Me and Ro connected musically and picked up on each other's cue's to end the jams we went on so that I wouldn't go blue in the face playing the sax! We realised we had something special, musically and that we definitely wanted to pursue the duo going forward to perform originals and classic jazz tracks. 

Hopefully we'll book another gig soon and report back soon :) 

www.theyasminnatasha.com

#JazzyMondays: Cantaloupe Island by Herbie Hancock

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHZ4ejtmdtw

So it's Monday, I have decided to uplift you with a bit of a Jazz interpretation of 'Cantaloupe Island' if you're up for it - stay with me folks!

This well-written, simplistic yet effective piece of music was written by the renown and modern Herbie Hancock, who is music fans and musicians' 'hero' as a keyboardist, pianist, composer, bandleader & generally awesome dude in the music industry.

See, Jazz can be fun! We aren't all classically trained, in fact most Jazz musicians hear the melody and make it up as we go along which in music terms is called Improvising. I do this a lot; having a short attention span, never having much time off to practice and being pretty terrible at the theory side to music. I learnt to improvise everywhere and anywhere I went to most genres of music including Top 40 dance tracks to hip-hop, to jazz and blues...

You can hear an example of me improvising with alto sax towards the end of 'Cantaloupe Island' via the link above! Hope you enjoy the track.

Speak soon x

#JazzyMondays

Bullying: You're Not Alone

I have decided to blog about something non-music related: bullying. 

It happens every day, in every situation but it starts at school and even at home. I have a decade's experience being severely bullied at school. No reason was ever given to me as to why I was, but I see similar traits in children who I know are being bullied at school. To be honest, the answer doesn't matter. 

I wish I had more guts to deal with the problems to stop the pain it was causing not only me, but my family. The school did nothing and my family felt powerless. My mum told me it would pass and my dad told me to physically fight back. Words helped, but putting them in to practice wasn't easy.  

Time was the only cure. But, I wish I had someone to go through it with to make the pain easier and time fly quicker. Kids are mean, just as adults are. They slapped me, called me names, told me I was better off dead, and I couldn't go to the school loos without being hounded by girls in my cubicle. 

I believe my naivety got me through it. If I was wiser, I might have ended it all. But my family were my rock - keeping my innocent and sheltering me from the wildness of the world and cruel it can continue to be.

I want to be there for others being bullied right now. I want to tell those of you who are going through this terrible motion that it will be OK. Create distractions, go to that happy place where it goes quiet and find ways to express yourself so that it's out and anger isn't kept inside. 

The bullies become the pitied, they come from problems at home and have reasons for being the way they are, as do you. Try to find a way to help them despite them taking it out on you. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer for at the end of the day, sometimes the feared are themselves fearful; they're hiding behind a mask and disguised as a villain.

My old bullies are low down in the world and I have gone on to better things; I want to share news with you that it DOES get better. The 'dark decade' taught me to be strong, creative and who I am today.

Making music is my cure. Find yours. Contact me if you need someone to talk to as well.

Visit: www.theyasminnatasha.com for details.

Don't go through it alone, because you're not alone!

x-x-x

http://www.nationalbullyinghelpline.co.uk/ | http://www.bullying.co.uk/

#MondayMotivation

Don't hide behind masks, fans or whatever else you hide behind. Yes Monday's here and you might be counting down the days until the weekend but no matter how you feel in your job or daily routine, I'm hoping my advice below will help :)

I have done literally s**t, fun and labouring jobs - you name it. I may only be 25 but I worked since I was 14 years old which meant that my mum's friends were willing to help me earn some work ethic and pocket money...which weren't always going to be glamourous. I cleaned nightclubs, worked in ASDA, Topshop, coffee shops and so many more places; constantly being humorously (looking back now) patronised and undermined. Getting up 4am in most jobs was tiresome, but I soon learnt how to get by knowing that you have to do some things in life you just don't want to do.

Step 1: go to bed, wipe the slate clean.
Step 2: wake up with the mindset that it's a new day; anything's possible.
Step 3: get excited about what style of clothes, makeup, hair you'll coordinate - for men, perhaps who you'll meet, and yes, what'll you'll wear to make yourself feel and look presentable that day (no matter what job, it never hurts to look smart).
Step 4: set small goals for yourself and I mean, pretty small and achievable in a week or even in a day depending on the nature of your work.

Organisation and preparation is key for a calm mind - it allows your mind time to breathe, not feel rushed and able to take your time doing the things you actually enjoy. So get organised if you're not already, and give your mind more time for you. 

#HappyMonday

Monday Night & Presenting'The Jam' feat. Rowan Slater

So as you do on a Monday night after the day job, I decided to invite Rowan Slater (LMC Records) down for a jam! We recorded some ideas for original songs, actually read some jazz music which led to us unwinding with a good old fashioned jazz-style jam. I am actually a diverse saxophonist performing a variety of styles - anything from pop to jazz to even drum n bass. But nothing quite unwinds a saxophonist more than a damn good jam. Enjoy and please take the time to share, every view is appreciated beyond your belief! 

#StaySaxxy

Introducing: Yasmin Natasha

After becoming tech savvy in the year of 2015 I decided to share my thoughts with you lovely people (I know, a little late…) but just in time! I am a London based saxophonist, singer-songwriter and young working professional. Like most 25 year-olds, I am pretty darn lost but going along with the natural flow of working, coming home then waiting for the weekend. Although I am trying a new mentality to help my hectic lifestyle. I want to be healthier, slimmer, more awake and be happy. You’re going to help and in return, I am going to help you. I love hearing from people so please do comment/message me if you have any advice too.

I will share with you my habits, weaknesses, strengths and much more as a saxophonist trying to make it in the biz. Something a little different ey? Much to look forward to. Over and out in the meantime, speak soon and #staysaxxy.