I am a blind musician, although this is a fairly new challenge for me. I have had some vision issues on and off for most of my life, but the total blindness experience is only in the last few years. Before then, I found ways to function quite normally. Well, I still function more or less normally, but with careful attention to where I am and what Im doing.
I am primarily a lead guitar player, but I play other instruments and also sing. For most of my life, I've played with other musicians whether in bands or other musical settings. With the pandemic, vitually all gigs have been canceled and I've turned to my home studio instead.
Recording by myself poses a new challenge for me. I have not found an accessible computer-based recording solution, and so use what is essentially an analog mixer with an integrated digital recorder. How I got this far is very much due to John Henke, another SoundClick musician. John and I played in bands and recorded together years ago.
Anyway, my ability to digitally edit is very limited. Generally, I lay down one rhythm track that I may or may not keep. Then Ill build tracks on top of that. Each track is really a live performance. If I screw up, I start over. Thus, my recordings are far from perfect, but I also hope they capture some element of live performance. It takes patience to work this way, but all blind people learn patience!
Recording my music has created my own personal island. Due to the pandemic, I miss gigging and working with other musicians, but home recording has allowed me to explore my own songwriting and I take some pride in the recordings Ive created, even with their many flaws.
In addition to posting my music here, I also work with another musician to provide the music for the online services of a Unitarian church. This has been an interesting experience.
Feel free to contact me with any questions or comments about my music.
I am also an author and have published three novels:
- Skeleton Train
- Winter Lake
- The Morning Door
These novels form a series telling the story of Jason Audley, a more or less misfit young man trying to find his way. The setting is northwest Wisconsin, and these quirky adventure stories are in the tradition of Huck Finn. If you would like to know more, please visit my author page on Facebook at Craig J. Hansen - Author.
The books are available on Booklocker.com (an independent online bookseller), Amazon or your local independent bookstore.
