I am really into my card magic, but as more people find out i am a magician, the more they expect, and the more i want to do. I want to be one of those magicians that can be in a place and grab an object or a few coins, a straw etc and do some pretty cool tricks. I know that Daniel Garcia has some great effects on his project dvds but does anyone know where i can learn impromptu style everyday object magic?
everyday objects help
- Thread starter DeckCheck
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Gregory Wilsons, "On the Spot" DVD is a great project all about impromptu tricks and strong ones as well. Check out Jay Sankeys the bending the real youtube channel and there's a few great impromptu tricks on there as well that might spark some ideas for you. Hope that helped.
You see, this is where you guys are missing out on how magic has worked for centuries. . .
The curious lad would find an old curmudgeon that did magic who in turn would teach the kid one or two tricks to seek just how well the lad would learn them, based on this the old guy would then give the boy a book and quite literally a homework assignment; if the lad came back and did a good job on that group the curmudgeon would move him on to the next and so forth.
These first lessons were ALWAYS on basic slight-of-hand, the stuff that most new comers skip now days in exchange for buying something really cool because it was on TV or all their friends on the forums are talking about it, etc. As they said in my day, you tend to put the cart in front of the horse rather than where it belongs.
I'm unfamiliar with most of the titles being bandied about here but I will tell you that the Jeff McBride video series on Manipulation is most excellent as are the Bill Tarr "Now You See It; Now You Don't" books. There are likewise some excellent videos available through Stevens Magic on Improvisation/Impromptu Magic and Bar Magic that you will find to be quite viable. . . but if you've yet to complete the manipulation material featured in the opening sections of the Mark Wilson Course you may want to put the brakes on a bit and LEARN THE BASICS.
Hey, I've become one of those old curmudgeons and when possible I'll do my best Dai Vernon impersonation and crack a few knuckles with my wand, telling you, you're doing it wrong. . . so stop it! Start doing it right. ;-)
The curious lad would find an old curmudgeon that did magic who in turn would teach the kid one or two tricks to seek just how well the lad would learn them, based on this the old guy would then give the boy a book and quite literally a homework assignment; if the lad came back and did a good job on that group the curmudgeon would move him on to the next and so forth.
These first lessons were ALWAYS on basic slight-of-hand, the stuff that most new comers skip now days in exchange for buying something really cool because it was on TV or all their friends on the forums are talking about it, etc. As they said in my day, you tend to put the cart in front of the horse rather than where it belongs.
I'm unfamiliar with most of the titles being bandied about here but I will tell you that the Jeff McBride video series on Manipulation is most excellent as are the Bill Tarr "Now You See It; Now You Don't" books. There are likewise some excellent videos available through Stevens Magic on Improvisation/Impromptu Magic and Bar Magic that you will find to be quite viable. . . but if you've yet to complete the manipulation material featured in the opening sections of the Mark Wilson Course you may want to put the brakes on a bit and LEARN THE BASICS.
Hey, I've become one of those old curmudgeons and when possible I'll do my best Dai Vernon impersonation and crack a few knuckles with my wand, telling you, you're doing it wrong. . . so stop it! Start doing it right. ;-)
Haha, Paul Harris and Greg Wilson are hardly 'really cool, seen it on tv, forum buzz' magicians. I mean yeah, they're generally respected on forums but that's because they tend to release good, strong, solid magic (And have been doing for years and years...).
I get where you're coming from Craig, but those of us who had the guiding influence of an old timer to teach us everything we needed to know, are outnumbered by those of us who don't even have a bricks and mortar shop in their town let alone anyone of positive magical influence. Hence forums, where we can ask for advice...
I get where you're coming from Craig, but those of us who had the guiding influence of an old timer to teach us everything we needed to know, are outnumbered by those of us who don't even have a bricks and mortar shop in their town let alone anyone of positive magical influence. Hence forums, where we can ask for advice...
My advice is to create a list of objects you normally come across, then start looking for effects to fit those objects.
Call Craig Crazy but he is correct in two aspects. I own the Now you See it, Now you Don't Books and they are phenomenal at teaching the basic sleight of hand. They are not expensive and have easy to follow drawings. Well worth purchasing.
As far as the student / mentor relationship...that is pretty much how things worked in the past and still continue to do so, although with the Internet and more materials available we have been given other options.
As far as the student / mentor relationship...that is pretty much how things worked in the past and still continue to do so, although with the Internet and more materials available we have been given other options.
All i'm saying is, i've been doing magic for nearly 15 years, and haven't had anything close to a 'in real life' mentor... I've had nudges in the right direction, sure, but I think the story about the old timer giving the kid magic homework is just a bit of an idyllic, idealist view on the learning process of the magician, and something that rarely actually happens. I just think a guy shouldn't be made to feel like he's learning 'incorrectly' just because he's asked for advice on a forum.
Chris, I hear what you are saying. I'm not saying that magicians cannot get "good / proficient" on their own. I'm just saying that Yes, some people have mentors and they do give "homework" to practice the 3-4 sleights or effects and come back next time to show the progress. This is exactly how I am working under my mentor. It is not as common as it used to be but has benefited me greatly. I actually take my camcorder and film the lessons as well. This is what has taken me to the next level above anyone else in my IBM ring.
And you are correct....nobody on here should feel as if they are learning incorrectly. Some members only have a few DVDs and work their butts off and others have thousands of dollars worth of materials and do nothing correct.
And you are correct....nobody on here should feel as if they are learning incorrectly. Some members only have a few DVDs and work their butts off and others have thousands of dollars worth of materials and do nothing correct.
I'd hate to burst your bubble but that's simply not so, there are many an old timer willing to teach and guide the problem is, there are a lot of young people that don't want to LISTEN or adhere to the encouraged DISCIPLINE. I know this first hand in that every "student" I've had on line that followed my guidance "won" when it comes to moving ahead in the craft and every individual that resisted has gone down in flames for a period of time only to wake-up one day and realize they should have listened... if only you could see the long list of apology/thank you eMails. . .
I'm betting you're one of the head strong type that don't do authority overly well.
There's always a logical reason as to why young people doing find a mentor and it's usually based on their personal attitudes though, when it comes to a physical relationship, distance and location can become a detour. My primary mentor lived a good 45 minute drive from me and yet I saw him nearly every weekend for 5 years. Even my "lesser" Mentors, the handful I knew from the Magic Castle as well as those I'd meet here and there for short periods of time during my travels; we always had ways of keeping in touch when I was in the region.
When it comes to "learning incorrectly"... you wouldn't have survived a day with Vernon. He had a nice hickory wand just for cracking knuckles when people kept screwing up on things, many of the old timers were known for their "hard knocks" methods but the result was always self-discipline and understanding followed by the student becoming "superior" to the rest. To me, the temporary hurt feeling is minor, compared to the embarrassment one will come to know for doing things sloppy & "wrong".
BTW. . . you don't have to necessarily follow the advice of your mentors, just weigh it and consider why they are being a jerk about something. I will lay money on the fact that you will come to understand them down the road as you mature in the craft. Vernon used to throw a fit on me for producing little bean bag Rats at the end of my cups & balls but I never stopped. I understand why he felt as he did in that such things really do limit the sort of clientèle you are going to have -- self-will gone riot tends to blind us of such things until it's too late. But there are other things and other ways to approach your work by, that includes the suggestions shared by our guides. That's actually the point to it all. . . learning from their experiences and "wisdom" rather than getting in our own way and repeating many of the painful mistakes they made at our age.
Finding a Mentor can and does happen even now, it's not that rare a deal for those that honestly want that kind of rapport with another human being. At any given time I have at least a half-dozen "kids" I'm working with and could have more given the requests I get. I know of other old timers who do have more than that and we each have our one or two "golden child" types from within said groups -- the one that we know will go further than the others.
Well, you have my number- I don't appreciate being spoken down to or patronised (Or having assumptions made about me) by people who somehow believe that their opinion is of higher value than mine, simply because they happen to be older/in a position of supposed authority. Do I fall into your definition of head strong?
At this point i'd like to ask the original poster of this thread if he has a magic society/bricks and mortar shop in his town?
I had a PDF on sale some time ago called Ideas Vol. 1 and it had a bunch of everyday magic and the creative process on developing them. I dont have it up anymore, but email me and I may just have a copy for you. 
J.
J.