Lax, Stockholm, and Two Smoking Buskers, Day 2.5

I took the weekend off busking due to it being the Midsommar holiday in Sweden - a gigantic festival where the Swedes dance around giant penis shaped poles (converted into crosses after Christianity, but the testicles are still prominent) singing songs about small frogs (Små Grodorna). That being the case no one was on the streets so I hung out with Cristophe and his coworkers in the nearby park. I'm rather behind on my posting so I think I'll leave the details out - basically we spent all day there and generally relaxed and talked and played twister and football (both kinds).

The smoke in the apartment after we returned destroyed me. I felt horrible just being in a room with it. Out of everyone, more than half smoked, and even inside there were constantly two sitting at the windowsill, unsuccessfully trying to blow the exhaust out into the cold neverdark night air (makes me think of a certain poem...). It confirmed for me that despite it being an agreeable set of days, that kind of social scene is not at all for me. Give me a dry, clear air gathering - potheads allowed - some musicians and nature.


Zebra by a nifty new building Cristophe and I passed on our long walk about Stockholm

Lax, Stockholm, and Two Smoking Buskers, Day 2

The busking today was absolute rubbish (6.23.10), mostly because I didn't feel quite right. Asthma, allergies, a failing voice... I realized also that I need to earn rather a lot more here if I'm to actually see Stockholm: busking takes a lot out of me and I spend a lot of time resting - and my guitar weighs a ton so it's a pain to lug about the city. Happily I found myself quite the geek paradise close to my pitch, a little further west down Västerlånggatan near an Apoteket. In the interim between pitches and after my second pitch I stayed at the Science Fiction Bokhandeln, a three story edifice of geekgasm, where I read a couple of books and a few graphic novels - I had all my things with me since I'd left Pontus' place and couldnt get to Cristophe's till later (both people I was couchsurfing with).

So a little interlude on Pontus. An absolutely incredible guy who's studying to become an opera singer. He sings the most beautiful french songs and is very gifted with languages and impressions. Should you hear his Johnny Cash or his Elvis with your eyes closed, you'd likely think it was a record. I stayed with him a couple nights with two Asian Australian (if that's the correct nomenclature) girls. I cooked some random stir fry one night, with too much sugar. But best of all the time I spent was the first night, when we went into the city to spend some time with the young handicapped man he takes out to the city for his job. We went to a bar near the Slussen T-bane, being frustrated often by the lack of wheelchair accessible places. Björn, the young man, is extremely intelligent and though his head lolls about and he hardly retains much control over his spastic motions manages to navigate and speak very clearly. In english, also! The time I spent with the both of them, despite the exorbitant 54 SEK price of the beer, really showed me Pontus' heart.

So the first pitch lasted about forty minutes before I decided to rest my voice. This time there were tons of people snapping photos of me, but hardly any tips. One aggravating man set up a videocamera on a tripod and filmed me for a good ten minutes before walking back the way he'd come. I think I got most of my earnings of the day from this one nice arabic man and his family. He stayed for a few songs, then dropped me 10 SEK for each photo he took with each family member (3). That was wonderful. One woman asked if I was headed to Norway and gave me 10 NOK when I answered in the affirmative. But aside from that - slim pickings. And really, I'm bloody tired of tourists. They gawk and point and laugh and I have to sing happy stuff for them. Feh.

Falling Slowly was again a hit, with one lady telling me I did it well, coming back when I got to the chorus and tipping me handsomely. I played Ue Wo Muite for a large group of Japanese tourists... who just smiled and half bowed at me. One passing Spanish couple looked into my case, noting "Un veinte..." and were surprised when I looked up and smiled at them, off guardedly saying "Hola!?" Traveling and playing alone is getting increasingly lonely, and I had a long conversation with Pontus about how frustrating it is that this way of living has nothing to do with talent. The street was full of horrid players - tooting idly on trumpets and saxophones, playing scales on violins, "soloing" on electric guitars by playing a pentatonic scale up and down to an amplified recording. These people can play all day. And they seem to do decently well.

What saved the day was the nice Australian busker I met just before I took the second pitch, again by the 7/11. I asked him when he'd finish and when I came back we sang a few songs together - Falling Slowly and I'm Yours. He gave me some nice tips on where I might play next: Drottninggattan, the nearby Square, and wished me luck. It's that kind of interaction and that kind of busker I wish was more prevalent.

Earnings: 125 SEK + 10 NOK + €3 + $1, 1.5 hours
Song of the Day: I'm Yours - Jason Mraz

Lax, Stockholm, and Two Smoking Buskers, Day 1

I stepped off the plane and headed straight for the city center, to the Old Town, Gamla Stan, on Västerlånggatan, that was a lot of apostrophes, to set up a pitch. After walking up and down the street a bit, I chose a nice spot across from a small garment/fur store, near a seven eleven. Id popped into this "Records in a Hurry" shop, where the owner happily told me - "What laws?" Today (6.22.10) I noticed more than ever that the vast majority of those who take an interest in me - be it a tip or a smile - are female. Four separate girls that I remember passed back and forth multiple times. They probably thought i didnt remember their faces, but since I endeavor to make eye contact as much as possible, naturally I did.

One asian girl in black (I would find out later that she works as a waitress on a side street very near) passed me 4 or 5 times, sheepishly tipping with a shy but wide smile on one of the later goes. A girl in green with frizzy hair wandered past three times, curiously each time in the middle of a song, and of the last two, one - middle eastern in appearance, wearing a light cardiga - sang along with an oh my god hes playing all my favorite songs expression the third time she passed, when I was starting Hallelujah.

It was also a day for Japanese tourist unfail. A pair of them passed as I paused for a sip and asked if I was Japanese. I demurred, but launched into Ue Wo Muite Arukou. They stood and listened the whole time, smiled, and gave me a note! The two of them tipped one order of magnitude over those twenty five or so in Helsinki. Nice. One of my earlier songs - Better Together, was really well received, at least in expression, and that buoyed me to maintain my energy. Falling Slowly again did very well, and those sustained me even through till the end, when a few middle aged guys stayed for a looong while without ever tipping.

But my favorite experience of the pitch was while I sang Scarborough Fair. Many took notice - I sang it slow and with feeling - and most people gave me something. One wonderful lady with two small children mouthed along for the entire song, then told her charges to stay watching me while she ducked into the seven eleven... so she could get coins to give me! Which she did after another song, beaming. I took advantage of the narrow streets good accoustics to sing my slower, quieter stuff - Fox in the Snow, Flightless Bird, American Mouth, Hey There Delilah - all well recieved. A great pitch filled with thumbs ups and smmiles and singing along, with not a single downer.

On another note, I wonder how the tips might have been if Sweden was on the Euro. Theres a lot of random psychology that contributes to tipping - for instance I think people are loath to give bills and tend to give the coin thats physically largest if they like you - which in Sweden is the 5 kroner, while the 10 kroner is tiny. And 20 kroner is a bill. Just a thought that if the Euro was the way, Id have made a killing.

Earnings: 236 SEK, 1.5 hours
Song of the Day: Scarborough Fair - Simon & Garfunkel

Buskitechture in Helsinki, Day 10

So today (6.21.10) was a day of breaking things. My dinky camera decided it had better things to do than work - I was planning on taking some shots of my pitches around the town this afternoon, but a no go. After this failure, I progressed on to a quest of changing my many coins into bills. I'd been able to once at the railway station, but they refused the second time I went and all the banks only allowed such transactions if you had an account with them (which, of course, I don't have - should I get one? should I get a phone? should I get a computer? hmm). Today went similarly. Rail station fail. Bank fail. R Kioski (convenience store) took my 1 and 2 euro coins. Gambling place only accepted coins given by the machines, even though they were the same, really. Finally I was able to change the coins at a currency exchange place for a charge of 60 cents.

There was quite an upshot of this, however. I ended up at Kamppi to change the money and when I exited (a different way than I entered as I try to do as often as possible) I passed an excellent young female busker. I gave her my remaining coins and had a brief chat - she's from Helsinki, sings many of her own songs, etc. I had another go with my camera downtown but as it failed again, I returned to her pitch, thinking I might have a go at it when she finished. Instead, I sat down nearby and listened to her sing for... maybe half an hour? She has a pretty voice, but one which didn't carry well, but the place she chose was perfect for it. She also boasted a harmonica which she wore Priscilla Ahn style. Her guitar was a glossy black and she strummed at it rather skillfully with pick - with a preference for I IV V progressions with the occasional III thrown in for good measure. Another young man sat on the steps of a small shop opposite her and together we clapped after each song - a trio of young men joined us fifteen minutes or so later.

She did passably well. I particularly enjoyed her cover of Coldplay's Fix You, it made me think of Maria and Dan. I noticed that all but one of her tippers were male. Many stopped to chat her up (I suppose like I'd done?). After half hour or so, she announced that it was time to take a break. She had this funny tactic where she squirreled the 2 and 1 euro coins away (2 of each, perhaps?). I took this to be a full break and so I told her I could swap off with her. We proceeded to have an awkward interaction where she explained that she just wanted one cigarette. She'd said earlier she wanted to hear me play, so I had her choose between Hey Ya, Sound of Silence and Hallelujah. She chose Sound of Silence, but by the third verse I could tell she was uncomfortable. So I packed up and bid her farewell and good luck.

I'd been meaning to have a go at the Kaisaniemi busking spot I'd heard so much about, so I headed there on the Metro (which has these wonderfully acceleration and deceleration sounds). At the far end of the station there's an exit to the street, glowing rather from the comparative darkness of the tunnel. This end of the station was sculpted from plaster like a cave - walls painted white with neanderthal-esque drawings in faded yellow and red. The illumination was an ubiquitous hellish flourescence. (When I sang the chorus of I Will Follow You Into the Dark, I nearly cracked up with the relevance and had to take an extra strummed chorus to recover).

In brief, it's a brilliant, brilliant pitch. The acoustics are phenomenal. As soon as I began singing the entire tunnel filled with it - so it was wonderful practice as I had instant feedback on my intonation, etc. The natural reverb made it so I didn't have to belt, which my voice probably was rather thankful for. I was able to sing my softer songs and those of lower pitch (when I get below a D3 I'm practically inaudible on the streets) and I felt relaxed enough to sing slowly there.

I started with Sufjan Stevens' To Be Alone With You as a prayer. Everything about the tunnel pitch was magical. Only one negative interaction - a group of kids who flung a beercap at me - versus every other passerby, who gave me a thumbs up, or smiled, or tipped me. The flow of traffic progressed sedately in ones and twos, sometimes I had the whole tunnel to myself. I took the African man's advice to heart again and really threw myself into my songs. The acoustics made my best songs, and my falsetto shine. When I sang Falling Slowly everyone who passed me tipped me at least a little, often doubling back when I hit the falsetto in the chorus.

One woman started crying when I began to play Let it Be, another girl mouthed along dreamily to Hallelujah. I had a brief dry spell when I sang more recent things like Yellow and Say, but as soon as I returned to the more recognizable ones I got tips and positive looks. One young man smiled broadly, saying "Good song," as I played Somewhere Over the Rainbow. Another one requested Paranoid - but I couldn't oblige. When I sang I'm Yours a pair of girls danced happily in do-si-dos all the way down the tunnel. And one old lady, talking on her cellphone loudly in Finnish, paused beside me and gave me a large bill for Here Comes the Sun. A few musicians passed and I nodded at them - one quartet who I'd seen near Esplanadi appreciated the Boxer.

It was an otherworldly pitch, marred only by the fact that I had no scenery to peruse except the wall a meter and a half before me. I couldn't stop smiling the whole time and happily, that was infectious, even for those passersby with the dourest expressions.

Earnings: €41 + 1 SEK, 1.5 hours
Song of the Day: Falling Slowly - Soundtrack of Once

Buskitechture in Helsinki, Day 9

My best day. I started off at Senaatintori after taking some time in the morning at Harri's flat to pray. I took the African man's (who I met at Iso Roobertinkatu) advice to heart and played from my heart and from enjoyment, not from a desire for money. I started with Jon Foreman's House of God Forever before running through my most polished, slower songs. And what a response. After the first few songs, one man came down from the steps to tip me and told me to stand nearer the steps, that I play very well and they'd like to hear better. Buoyed by this, I did, standing almost at the foot, where I could see everyone clearly.

Right when I'd started singing my first song at this closer location, a sports team I'd seen briefly at Iso Roobertinkatu passed by to take photos and hang out on the steps. They were a rowdy bunch, but harmless. A very very appreciative audience, clapping after each song as soon as they were done with their photos and staying for 4 or 5 songs. I played high energy pop ish things for them, like Relax, Take it Easy and such. At the beginning, during Hey Ya, one of them came down and told me they'd give me five euros to play the same song with my shirt off. I responded that it wasnt appropriate in that location. He upped it to six and then eight, taking his own shirt off and twirling it around his head as he stood next to me, but I kept turning him down and told him I wasn't that desperate, as kindly as I could manage. He smiled at me and returned to the group. They tipped me well when the left, anyways, I think they respected my self-respect and appreciated my music.

Not so long after they left, a group of well dressed churchgoers came down the steps, mostly young children with their parents. They sat on the far left of the steps before me when they saw me, clapping enthusiastically and smiling broadly. Throughout most of the rest of my time at this pitch, they were my biggest source of energy. Every now and then the children would get coins from their parents and drop them in my case.

Another group of church goers came down (the first was probably Sunday school) and they loved my music. One middle aged woman stuck around when I sang Ue Wo Muite Arukou, enraptured, to my surprise (she was definitely Finnish), very moved. She told me after she remembered it from the Sarajevo Olympic games, then asked if I knew the song Sayonara, which I didn't. Another woman, her friend, came by, and I started absentmindedly strumming Streets of London, which is also capo 4, while I told them about just having graduated, etc. The other woman picked up on the song in her expression. I asked her if she knew it and she smiled nostalgically. So, of course, I launched directly into it. They sang along occasionally (the chorus, mostly), and tipped me a second time before loading into their car.

Right before I left, an Asian couple from America (California from the accent) gave me a coin as I packed up, saying big fan and smiling broadly. Simply the best day out yet. Bright, warm (no hoodie), energetic, wonderful audience, and I know I sang near my best.

Harri and I left to see Janne and Sonia and their children Edwin and Olivia at their place in Arabia for the Brazil-Cote d'Ivoire match. Wonderful. Such a kind, warm couple, so welcoming and personable - showing me about the house and conversing with me easily and curiously. I couldn't have met better people. Another highlight of my stay, certainly.

Earnings: €33, 1.5 hours
Song of the Day: Streets of London - Ralph McTell

Buskitechture in Helsinki, Day 8.5

I took a break from busking today (6.19.10) to rest my voice and decided to wander about Suomenlinna. It was wonderful. The place itself was lovely, but it was the company mostly. I met a friendly girl also traveling by herself from Chile. She'd just quit her job and finished school and had decided to wander for a while also. It was her 4th month of traveling and her first stop in Europe after Asia and Russia. We started speaking in English but when she found out I was from Florida she said, "So you must know a little Spanish then?" I responded "Por supuesto, si quiere, podemos hablar en espanol, pero mi espanol es terrible porque no he practicado por muchos anos..." After which we spoke nothing but Spanish for the next 2 hours as we walked every path on the set of islands. I prefer to take the trails that split off from the cobblestone streets, so we wandered through beautiful grassy hills and by the rocky coast often. One area reminded me distinctly of Hobbitton in Lord of the Rings, which is only appropriate, as Finnish sounds to me like rather a lot like Elvish (Tolkein did base Elvish on Finnish after all). Our conversation ranged far and wide, from personal things like family to travel related things to music - hardly stopping the entire time. It was phenomenal and I felt very proud of myself for being able to converse the entire time in Spanish with only a few mishaps and pauses. We parted ways after returning to Helsinki, but not before exchanging emails - and she'll be arriving in Stockholm when I do, so I may well run into her again.


At Suomenlinna with Zebra, photo courtesy of Paula.


Hobbiton, Suomi.

I went to a couchsurfing party that evening with Harri. I brought my guitar. That night really gave me the confidence to busk again. Janina, Berita, Jari, and Soria were huge fans and buoyed me throughout. Around 2300 it got a little too rowdy for me, people getting drunk and me not, and shortly thereafter I took my leave. But it was a wonderful night and made me not want to leave Helsinki so soon. I'm starting to really like the peacefulness of life here and the people, too. If only the weather had been better while I was here...

Buskitechture in Helsinki, Day 8

This is my initiation into couchsurfing: and it's been simply wonderful. I have a very kind, gracious and generous host in Harri, who took me for a 10km walk about the city that is the highlight of my trip thus far. That saved my day, really, for I was exhausted.

I had to tote my heavy, badly designed (found it in a brown bin at Yale) backpack with me everywhere and that was very trying on my back. It was a horrid day, also, with many bad experiences with the passersby. In the morning I tried a pitch by Senaatintori, which was promising. Before I even began a set of three Finns asked to take a photo with me for an office scavenger hunt and tipped me, wishing me luck. But midway through my first song, a duo of young Finnish girls, one playing violin and the other some hybrid between a zither and a guitar, both singing shrilly rushed in to catch the tourists as they began to board back on the bus. That is precisely the kind of busking I do not respect - that feels like begging and not art, all too aggressive. The violinist couldn't hold a note and their "harmonies" felt to me more like a failed attempt at unison. Naturally, the tourists loved it.

I then set up by Stockmann and it was looking to be a great pitch. After a few songs, a very obnoxious African man sat nearby on the traffic dividers and started banging away at his drum, without asking for my permission or even communicating at all. He shouted random words like "Bang bang bang bang... give it to me" as he drummed a very simple rhythm. Adding insult to injury one set of youngsters loved it - banging on his drum with him and taking videos of it. I packed up, told the man to his face he was very rude - he ignored me - then tried by the railway station.

Just as I began, a cleaning truck decided to start up, passing back and forth in front of me many times, very loudly. Each time he'd pass he'd go around the bend as if he was done before doubling back. The crowd around the station was much dingier - smoking, drinking, pushing each other about. Quite unfriendly.

My final pitch (all these pitches being half an hour or less) was back in front of Stockmann which was now thankfully rid of the rude drummer. Across the street aways was a haughty violin player - I recognized the concerto he'd just finished playing (very well, mind you) and I walked over to offer my compliments. He flicked his eyes down at me, coldly, ignoring me, then started the same concerto, same movement over again. Very frustrating day.


Lake near Harri's place, passed on a fabulous 10km walk around the city.

Earnings: €9.20, 1.5 hours
Song of the Day: Say - John Mayer

Buskitechture in Helsinki, Day 7

I think I had my most enjoyable day today (6.17.10). I decided on setting out that I should try some new locations, rather than sticking to the Senaatintori and Stockmann. That being said, I did my first pitch at Senaatintori, where I only got tipped when I made rather a show of packing up. It was very cold (13 or 14) and overcast. A group Finns dressed to the nines stopped upon hearing me and decided to take some photos or something among themselves nearby. The eldest of them gave me a five euro note when I finished, trying to sing them appropriate music to whatever it was they were doing.

But once I decided to mix in some sightseeing the day went wonderfully. I wandered further into the old town and set up a pitch on Iso Roobertinkatu, a sparsely populated pedestrian street with eateries and businesses on the upper floors. I met an African guy who lives in Vantaa there and he happily encouraged me to set up further down, wishing me luck. He's an extremely skilled electric guitarist. When I finished I came back to chat with him and he spoke some very sage words - when he goes out, he doesnt care about the money. If the money comes that's a bonus, but for him he just enjoys playing and the opportunity to share his talent. He told me that when you start worrying about the money you dont enjoy yourself and neither do the passersby. So it's important to just be grateful for music.

I stayed at this pitch for just under an hour, singing slower and more relaxed, really enjoying the music and paying little attention to what I was getting. The workers in the offices across the way took notice and smiled at me, giving me thumbs up from the windows. One store owner came out and stood on the street to hear me as his business was quite slow. In general it was a bad day, weatherwise, as it was truly frigid - towards the end I could hardly feel my fingers - but I enjoyed the peace of the place. In the busy city center I often feel like I'm fighting the crowds. Here I could hear myself and I liked that a lot. I think that showed in the quality of my music. Those who tipped me did so earnestly. One woman pressed a one euro coin into my hand, tearing up with a heartfelt "God Bless You" just as I was leaving - that is all the tip I need for one day, really.


Zebra at the Orthodox Church between the Iso Roobertinkatu and the main pitches

I had another go on a sidestreet of Aleksanderinkatu and then visited the Rock Church. A Latvian choir was using the acoustics to perfection as they rehearsed - such incredible ears. They were singing very very tight harmonies, involving semi tones, and tuning themselves around a tuning fork. I'd love to play in there some day. Also a fabulous cellist. I forget where my last pitch was, but it was nothing particularly special.

Earnings: €19.14 + 5 SEK
Song of the Day: Let it Be - The Beatles

Buskitechture in Helsinki, Day 6

So of course location isnt everything. So is timing. In my first half hour in Senaatintori today (6.16.10) I got absolutely nothing. I stuck with it for another 45 minutes and fared much better. Well better than nothing, which is infinitely better, eh? A couple decided to take some photographs in the square and I sang them I Will Follow You Into the Dark. The day lightened as it progressed so that probably had something to do with my luck. Again it was mostly younger people who liked my playing and stopped to sit and listen. One teenage couple stayed the whole time, and told me "Good playing." They sang along to Mrs. Robinson and seemed very happy to hear and watch me.

Earnings: €10.20, 1.25 hours
Song of the Day: Mrs. Robinson - Simion & Garfunkel

Buskitechture in Helsinki, Day 5

A few notes on the other buskers here in Helsinki. Besides Cathal there's a man who walks down the street with a large music box, winding it as he goes. He's very polite and always stops winding the crank as he passes me. Today (6.15.10) I encountered a group from Chile - pan flutes and El Condor Pasa seem to have spread the world over. There's a Romanian duo of an accordionist and a saxophonist who play near the train station who are very talented - I usually give them a 50 cent coin as I pass them. They tend to play Summertime a bit overmuch, though. There's a solo saxophonist who slumps against a wall on Aleksanderinkatu. I talked to her today and she's actually a rather nice Russian lady - pity she's not very talented. She plays the opening notes of The Autumn Leaves over and over and over with insufficient breath support.

To the busking. It was a horrid day. Exactly the opposite of yesterday. The money was fine but the people... ugh. Something about the day felt hostile. Many people who passed were mean spirited. I split my time between Senaatintori and Aleksanderinkatu by Stockmann. There were many positive experiences, but somehow the deliberate maliciousness of a few overrode that in my heart.

Let's start with that so I dont end on it. Many younger gaggles took the opportunity to make fun of me. Most of the older ones kept their heads down and rushed on. A few couples enjoyed my music with their toddlers but never made eye contact and kept a distance - needless to say, no tip. The worst was the teenagers. One especially malicious (and probably drunk) group stared me down haughtily with beers in their hands. As they approached me one bent over my case and made as if to pour his beer into it. Thankfully he didnt, but he made it clear with his eyes that he might later. It took me a long long time to recover emotionally from that.

And the positive experience. I sang Hallelujah in Senaatintori and a Chinese lady earnestly pressed me a $5 bill. Emotional and happy before she ran off to her bus. All in all I'm going to have to learn to focus on those interactions and try to find a way to brush off those horrid ones.

Earnings: €17+$5, 3 hours
Song of the Day: Hallelujah - Leonard Cohen