Improv. jazz is amazing (ever give it some thought?)... stuff that simply rolls off and is instantly felt by other musicians that lend to the complete spur of the moment for what comes off as sound. That form of music can not be accomplished without total control of what an instrument can do, with you calling the instantanious shots at any given moment as a musician in complete control of your instrument. No beginning horn player can replicate this form of sound... just as no beginning accordion can hear a dose of sound and instantly get that result without the dues of long yrs of aquaintence with such an instrument. Yet, there is that faction of musician within French music (dynamic players) that is so exacting with an accordion that they can regurgitate instantly what they hear.. and ... emulate any style of playing that speaks to specific individuals (some of the masters as it was once played).

Is it feel? Is it the ear?
I think it is both. It is the sweeping consuming effect of what you hear and how you feel about what you hear that determines how you play and lay it out for what others will interpret... some perhaps call it some type of baptisim of sound, or immersion of all things associated with what it represents... what ever it is called, it is part of that "Cross Road" that says: I am either gonna latch on to this thing and nail it if it takes eons.. or, it is gonna kick my U know what, and remind me that I am not where I think I am with what I want out of all this stuff.

Feel or ear??? That is a smidgon of the PSY of this music and instrument that everyone must personally assess for themselves as part of the personal cross roads thing.

Selling your soul to U know who is optional... unless you are looking to finance a new Falcon and it may be a requirement (just joking).

Nonc D

I have been playing and learning music by ear for years on numerious instuments. I find instructions books, tapes and CDs, usful for are the filler notes and techniques.

The most obvious for the Cajun accordion would be the use of octives. I probably would have spend months or years trying to figure them out if Dirk had not shown them on his video.

My personal preferance for banjo and dulcimer music are tabs, for the fiddle, sheet music. But for any instrument, my first chioce would be video CDs or tapes.

That is what works for me, you mileage may vary.