Problem: Glorifying Illiterate Guitarists
24/03/09 02:44 Filed in: Teaching Advice
I came across two things last week. The first, I was surfing through YouTube the other day and came across a video from Dave Navarro’s Spread TV. His special guest was George Lynch and, in this video, they both admit that they are not knowledgable musicians. George states (at 2:44 of the video), and I quote, “I have absolutely no musical knowledge… I couldn’t play a major scale if you put a gun to my head…” To which Dave responds, “Right, me neither…” Now, Lynch has a Guitar Dojo that provides instruction and guidance to aspiring guitarists as well as producing his own instructional videos.
And the second, I was reading the latest issue of Guitar Player (May 2009) and the Back Page feature was an interview with Nancy Wilson of Heart (from a December 1979 issue). Nancy Wilson is a self-taught player and the interviewer asked if she had regretted not taking formal lessons. Her response was no, because she felt that (playing the kind of music that she plays) it is most important to play by ear and that she knew of other people who were confined by their learning and couldn’t feel the music.
I do understand where both are coming from. On the one hand, no one can deny the contributions that both Lynch and Wilson have had on the guitar community let alone music in general. However, it is these contributions that have put them in a position of influence where one word from them and they would probably send scores of future musicians in search of music education. On the other hand, we wouldn’t want them to go against their beliefs and, in Wilson’s defense, she simply stated that it was not for her and that decision was contingent upon the music that she played. But Lynch has a responsibility as the owner of “The George Lynch Guitar Academy” to choose his words carefully. Maybe someone should ask them if they feel that they would benefit from being educated musically.
Some of you may be wondering, what’s it to you Ed?
My concern is that in teaching teens and tweens I’ve noticed how impressionable they are by the folks that they admire. In many cases it’s monkey see, monkey do. You notice it in how they express themselves: From the way they dress to the guitar that they play to the way that they carry themselves in general. In this era of signature guitars with signature amps and pedals it’s very easy to see who the young guitarists’ idols are. Also, with the availability of YouTube lessons and downloadable tabs, young fretburners are learning licks faster than ever before.
But don’t we want to see the guitar language grow? Today’s working musician is asked to be incredibly versatile with the ability to hear and feel the music as well as to communicate in an intelligent musical manner. Only guitarists and some bassists will understand that 5th string, 3rd fret is a C. Many guitarists are being disillusioned into thinking that playing faster and faster is the answer. And for some that may be okay, but for the aspiring musician who happens to play guitar a simple statement like “I can’t play a major scale if you put a gun to my head,” could lead to disappointment and time wasted.
At 3:00 of the Navarro/Lynch video Lynch jokes (about their lack of musical knowledge), “What are we doing in the business then when there’s people who know these things and we don’t?” And Navarro responds, “They lack the creativity and that’s the difference.” This statement also sums up Wilson’s point as well. But what they don’t know is that maybe by learning a little bit of information that they may challenge their creativity.
My point is that “Knowledge is Power.” A little bit of information can only create more options and those options are empowering. In addition, I also feel that we owe it to arm the future torchbearer with as much information as well as our experience so that they may further the development and evolution of the musical language that has given so much to so many.
In closing I would like to add that I’m a fan of the three guitarists mentioned in this post and am not looking to make a mockery out of their beliefs, if that is indeed what they are. I remember reading a Guitar Player interview (yes, I’ve been reading GP for my entire guitar playing life) and there was an interview with Adrian Smith and Dave Murray from Iron Maiden where they joked about not knowing scales. I felt uncool about knowing scales and music theory; that is, until I discovered Larry Carlton, Pat Metheny and Mike Stern, and understood their interviews that were probably in Guitar Player magazine too.
And the second, I was reading the latest issue of Guitar Player (May 2009) and the Back Page feature was an interview with Nancy Wilson of Heart (from a December 1979 issue). Nancy Wilson is a self-taught player and the interviewer asked if she had regretted not taking formal lessons. Her response was no, because she felt that (playing the kind of music that she plays) it is most important to play by ear and that she knew of other people who were confined by their learning and couldn’t feel the music.
I do understand where both are coming from. On the one hand, no one can deny the contributions that both Lynch and Wilson have had on the guitar community let alone music in general. However, it is these contributions that have put them in a position of influence where one word from them and they would probably send scores of future musicians in search of music education. On the other hand, we wouldn’t want them to go against their beliefs and, in Wilson’s defense, she simply stated that it was not for her and that decision was contingent upon the music that she played. But Lynch has a responsibility as the owner of “The George Lynch Guitar Academy” to choose his words carefully. Maybe someone should ask them if they feel that they would benefit from being educated musically.
Some of you may be wondering, what’s it to you Ed?
My concern is that in teaching teens and tweens I’ve noticed how impressionable they are by the folks that they admire. In many cases it’s monkey see, monkey do. You notice it in how they express themselves: From the way they dress to the guitar that they play to the way that they carry themselves in general. In this era of signature guitars with signature amps and pedals it’s very easy to see who the young guitarists’ idols are. Also, with the availability of YouTube lessons and downloadable tabs, young fretburners are learning licks faster than ever before.
But don’t we want to see the guitar language grow? Today’s working musician is asked to be incredibly versatile with the ability to hear and feel the music as well as to communicate in an intelligent musical manner. Only guitarists and some bassists will understand that 5th string, 3rd fret is a C. Many guitarists are being disillusioned into thinking that playing faster and faster is the answer. And for some that may be okay, but for the aspiring musician who happens to play guitar a simple statement like “I can’t play a major scale if you put a gun to my head,” could lead to disappointment and time wasted.
At 3:00 of the Navarro/Lynch video Lynch jokes (about their lack of musical knowledge), “What are we doing in the business then when there’s people who know these things and we don’t?” And Navarro responds, “They lack the creativity and that’s the difference.” This statement also sums up Wilson’s point as well. But what they don’t know is that maybe by learning a little bit of information that they may challenge their creativity.
My point is that “Knowledge is Power.” A little bit of information can only create more options and those options are empowering. In addition, I also feel that we owe it to arm the future torchbearer with as much information as well as our experience so that they may further the development and evolution of the musical language that has given so much to so many.
In closing I would like to add that I’m a fan of the three guitarists mentioned in this post and am not looking to make a mockery out of their beliefs, if that is indeed what they are. I remember reading a Guitar Player interview (yes, I’ve been reading GP for my entire guitar playing life) and there was an interview with Adrian Smith and Dave Murray from Iron Maiden where they joked about not knowing scales. I felt uncool about knowing scales and music theory; that is, until I discovered Larry Carlton, Pat Metheny and Mike Stern, and understood their interviews that were probably in Guitar Player magazine too.
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