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DEALING WITH INFLUENCES
It's a great pleasure to
write again for Guitar Clinic. This time, I want to talk about how to deal
with musical influences and to share some objective tips of study.
Enjoy.
THE ESSENTIAL PART
I think essential for a
musician the following disposition to keep always getting better:
To serve the sound, to be here for adding up. In any situation, don’t worry
about with only you. Try to put this the best way on the musical situation,
thus you are going to get better day by day! Don’t wait just for your solo,
for example. Know how to comp, and do it like you would like
to be accompanied (this is like one of the main Christian principles,
isn’t it?). Think now, also, about these items:
- If you are a guitarist who only is influenced
by other guitarists, you're going to become a copy. A musician doesn’t
need to play others stuff to be recognized. Don’t be afraid of looking for
what you believe; there are some guys who just wanna play the licks which
other guys have already played for recognition, like these guys are saying :”
did you see? I also can play that!!!”. There are a lot of these guys over
there...don’t be just one more;
- To develop more as an improviser and (in consequence) composer, you have to
lose the fear of taking risks. I like this motto: “The Improviser is not
afraid of making mistakes, he makes the mistakes turns into music!”For this,
I think it has to be done an essential work which consists in: to know the
maximum of your instrument - to know chords, scales, arpeggios in all the
keys and regions of the neck. Things starts working right, and your fingers
starts to going more to the place you wish...; to to improve your sense of
timing; and to know more songs as you can.
- If the guy doesn't know how to improvise over a major chord
with major seventh in two different keys, he needs to start practicing
seriously, because it for sure is going to miss someday! The essential
part, on my sight, is not just to know how to play a “bend”
in tune and play a pentatonic...you have much more to study! After
conquering your essential solid part, the fluence starts showing up;
so starts the wonderful adventure about improvising;”Jump from
the airplane” and going straight to the unknown, having as “parachute”
your “essential part”. Or, in another words, to play relaxed
and really improvise.
TEMPORARY OBSESSION
There are sometimes that you start listening to a musician who you identify
yourself with and you try everything he plays. This is cool, if you know the
time for quitting. If not, you are going to be a fan, a clone. And this is
very sad. There are some guys who heard, for example, Pat Metheny for years
and today can not get free of his licks and choices. So, what happens? You
listen to the copy, and after two notes, you'll say “Who this guy wants to
deceive?”. So, how can we scape from this? I have two suggestions:
1) Listen to many of sound
styles. Get out of the "comfort zone" and make contact with
different sources, to open the mind;
2) To play always is the
answer: that makes your music flourish, leaving your influences in the
right places. Play as much as you can! This only brings benefits: when you
are feeling down, play! When you have a doubt, play! When you think the world
sucks, play!!! To play is the real thing!
KNOW HOW TO LISTEN TO
When I started to listen
to jazz and to get interested on harmony and different rhythms, I started
transcripting solos. I learned this by my ears and I used to play together
until sounds the same. Next, I used to write to pratice the writing and
musical reading. It was really worth in some time, to get to know how the
phrases from pianists ,sax players (among other instruments) were
formed/built. Today , I believe that the simple fact of listen to good music
paying attention, having fun, makes you get the spirit of the tune. Don’t
attach in just one element as “solo”, or “phrases”,or “tone”... listen to all
, the whole sound! To improvise is really to captivate all the moment mood
and to play what the song asks for. It is about hearing and to feel, try not
think as “I am going to play the x scale…”. To have discipline really to
listen to, you end, automatically, getting more attachment/compromise with
what you are playing. If you’re having trouble with the meaning of the
improvisation, the history that you are telling, two tips:
1) Think the solo can be
the continuation of the theme (remember of the term “theme and variations”);
2) Record your playing and
listen to it as it was other person playing, to see if you like it.
That helps a lot.
The music is the art to listen and to feel, is not the art of “I think so” or
of “concepts”.While other people lose their energy talking and talking, doing
“face of genious” talking about “concepts” and etc; you play and listen to
what you play, it is really more profitable.
MY INFLUENCES
Just to mention some musicians that shocked me and were influences in
different times of my life:
Jimi Hendrix, Black
Sabbath and Led Zeppelin: my brotherØ introduced me to and I
felt the pressure of this sounds when I was 8 years old. I remember up till
now of the impact;
Miles Davis: the prince of jazz!If you listen to any of his records, any period of his work, you will feel
the magic,the musical strength. And listen to musicians together with
him that are influences for generations (and others that are just
cool if your listen to them when they were playing with Miles);
Wayne Shorter: compositions from "another world"
and a freedom of playing which I will always be glad for the
opportunity of beeing able to hear and to feel;
John Coltrane: The struggle, the insistence in one Idea (as all the big improvisers) and
the wonderful virtuosity; after him the saxophone stopped!
Sonny Rollins: freedom, plural references and the most perfect time!
Tom Jobim,Cartola, Nelson Cavaquinho, João Donato, Gershwin: essence of melody,
simplicity which turmed this composers into immortal ones;
Heraldo do Monte and Arismar do Espírito Santo: always overcoming themselves... Inspiration!
I just mentioned some of them, of course (this is not a ranking or a stupid
list like “the 10 more…”). But I think that when I describe what was
important for me, I can awake in you some desire to listen to these artists,
finding out new different things and openning the mind.
After
all, the influence as inspiration is a good thing. Always is good to hear, to
search, to know. Know the others, but mainly try to know yourself - and
playing a lot!
Health, Peace and Music
for everyone!
Michel Leme
Email: michel@michelleme.com
Site: www.michelleme.com
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