Birthday Present to Myself

So this won't be what you have come to expect from this blog.  This is an unsolicited plug for a guy running a very nice eBay store who gave me exceptional service.

My birthday is today and I decided to order some cards for myself to say Happy Birthday.

Dave at 52 and Jokers has a nice selection. I decided to get myself some Wynns, Aladdins,

Eagle Back Bikes, and Various Texans designs.

 

52 and Jokers

Great prices. Best I could find on the net.  

My order shipped to the wrong address by mistake of miscomunication on both of our parts,

and he reshipped the order free of charge to my proper address. What a guy.

So there you have it.

If you are buying playing cards on the net, buy from Dave.  

You'll be treated right.

-Chris.

The Real Importance of Audience Involvement

In the past I am sure we all have heard that involving spectators is a great idea because it makes them more involved in the magic, and it becomes more interactive and personal.  This is true.  However, an often overlooked , also extremely important aspect is the fact that a spectator who is involved in anything procedural believes that procedure was fair.

For instance take the classic example where the second phase in an Ambitious Card Routine is where the spectator inserts the card in the deck.  There is no doubt in their mind (assuming your double lift is convincing, and that assumes a lot for some people) that the card is certainly in the middle.  After they insert the card, you should make every possible effort to display the fact there is no manipulation going on at all.  Hold the deck at two fingertips.  Then, give them the cards.  Then let them turn the card over.

That may sound like a standard procedure, but then why do I see even some of the most acclaimed magicians like Cyril messing up this sequence.  Take a look.  the particular moment in question is at about 3:20.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRoqpre7nnI

It is also worth noting that all around Cyril is a decent 

card handler, but I would for sure say there is a lot of 

room for improvement. A few things to note on this

part of his performance...  

1) He misdirects when he does his double lifts at time.  

He looks a spectator in the eye and talks to them while 

doing a slight. I will contend that whenever you have 

both hands on the deck in a non-covert action, you 

should be directing attention to it.

2) His doubles are different from his singles.

3) He spreads the cards for the spectator to insert 

the card back. While this might make the insertion 

easier, it requires him to have more time with both 

hands on the cards. This should be prevented by 

having the deck squared.

4) He does the reveal himself. As I said, whenever 

possible, the spectator should have this turnover.  

Which is also why I content that after the first phase 

in an ACR, the spectator should always have the 

turnover. This also limits me to a shorter ACR, 

which I think is also the best way to go in the first 

place.

All in all it is a massive neglect of audience 

participation that could have heightened that 

routine.

It's just something to think about when you are 

considering what sleights to use in your routines.

Moral of the story...

Clean handling is great but not handling is best.

The Notion of Non-Control

How often does a new DVD or book come out toting a great new control for a playing card?  Too often.  Many are terrible, some are brilliant, but even the brilliant just explain the mechanics and little more.  Critical pieces of thought are left out.  Here is one of them... Non-Control.

Non-Control is the idea that when a card is controlled, all apparent motion of the deck ends at the second the card is last seen separate from the deck.

Take for instance, the ever present and ingenious Marlo Tilt Control, or the Vernon Depth Illusion.  A card is seen to be pushed into the back end of the pack and left there.  That is it.  All too often I would see a performer do this control brilliantly, yet to see him square up the deck, or riffle the corner of the pack after the card is lost.  You and I know that nothing happens in that motion, but what would the spectator know..?  In their minds, you did something.  It is the fault of habit that one would square the pack or riffle the deck at the conclusion of the control.  And for habit, we loose the very essence of conviction that we achieved by using a great control.

Darwin Ortiz spoke of degrees of conviction in his wonderful text, Strong Magic, p. 52.

"One of the most important factors that will determine how strongly your magic registers with an audience is the degree of conviction you achieve in their minds."

This is too say that by riffling that corner or by squaring the deck, you are weakening your magic.  The minute we learn to avoid those habits, is the minute we begin to step foot on the path to perform card magic well. 

The amount of time wherein the performer has no hands or only one hand on the deck is directly correlated to the conviction he can achieve in that effect.  Think about it.  Lay audiences are happy to acknowledge the fact that by the simple fact that you are a magician, you have some kind of skillful hands.  

Go back to the old quote: "The hand is faster than the eye."  We attempt to limit this time to the fullest degree by allowing the spectator to shuffle, tabling the deck (the alternative to which in a stand up situation is dropping the deck hand to the side of the leg in neutral position), and most importantly by having a very good reason to bring the hands together.  Much has been said before about motivation.  But clearly it has been ignored.  What is the motivation for holding the cards with both hands when nothing should be happening??  I doubt I will ever receive an appropriate answer to that question.  Simply do not do it when you are not doing a move.  

After the right hand leaves the deck holding left hand because it is done inserting the card, it has no reason to go back.  Let it fall to neutral position or use it in gesture.

To relate this back to the notion of Non-Control, the essence of what I am saying is give yourself no room whatsoever where the spectator might think manipulation could occur, and the end result is the fact in the spectator's mind that the cards were not manipulated, they were Non-Controlled.

I would like to recommend a few very solid controls that follow along this thought of mind.  Some of these you might not be familiar with, and other I know you have learned, but cast them aside because that Jog Shuffle or Classic Pass was easier or for whatever reason.

• Marlo Tilt / Vernon Depth Illusion
• Le Paul's Bluff Pass
• Aaron Fisher's Nowhere Pass ( A continuation of the Bluff Principle) And Additional Handling
• Herman Spread Pass
• Top Change ( think about it, it cannot get much better )
• Side Steal  ( though be careful to fully motivate the return of the card ) 
• Oliver Macia's WOW Card Control

That list should be sufficient to find it's way into your working repertoire.

I will have a lot more to say about these controls individually in a few days.  Particularly the Side Steal.

I hope this gets you thinking.  I also know it will get a lot of you thinking I am overly critical.  Well that depends on your point of view of that phrase.  I simply believe I am critical to the point that I can get the absolute most out of my magic, and so should you be too.

First Blog

Hey guys.

If you've never met or heard of me, my name is Christopher McKelvey.  I'm a professional card magician.  My main interest is in close up, table hopping magic.  However, I also perform parlor and stage shows.

The reason for this blog is to raise awareness of what we as card magicians are actually doing.  

I have from time to time seen too many magicians insisting on using using the same control for every trick they do simply because it is the easiest.  The Jog Shuffle and Pass are great tools, but when they are used exclusively, they are not enough.  In fact, when used exclusively, they hurt your card magic.

With so many sleights available to the card magician, one can only afford to use each in its ideal context. Aaron Fisher - The Paper Engine: Tension, Focus, & Design in Card Magic. P. 51 p.2

What I intend to do in this blog is to, over time, compile a list of controls, color changes,  switches and other ruses used by the card magician.  I will point out their inherent flaws.  I will point out their inherent geniuses.  And ultimately, I will have at my disposal, and yours, a list of the best sleights to use to perform any action, in any circumstance.

Different sleights give different impressions to the spectator.   Consider the following.

A shift says the card is still right where you placed it.  Anyone with eyes could point out its relative location.  A skilled magician might even be able to get to it later. 

A jog shuffle says the card is somewhere in the deck.  It also says that the magician has had time to manipulate the card already.

A side steal to palm followed by a shuffle from the spectator creates the impression that nobody in the audience at this point knows where the selected card is.

Of the previous three examples, the third obviously leaves the best impression the card is lost in the deck.  Why do we as card magicians not use it more often?  I see passes and shuffles executed brilliantly all the time.  But hardly a decent palm followed by a (even more rare) decent replacement.

The answer is simply that we are lazy.  Shifts and shuffles are easy.  They require only that we practice the one move.  A Side Steal to palm is easy enough, but to hand the deck out and replace the card while the spectator is watching would require entirely too much... work, that most magicians are willing to put in.  God forbid we would also have to practice with spectators to gain the confidence required to pull off this bold move.

Well, there you have it.  That is the point of this blog.  I hope that if you are one of those here from the beginning with me, you will fully consider your card handling, and over the course of time become a changed magician.

Yours in Magic.

-Christopher McKelvey.