I’ve heard and read many artists state that some of the best performances that they have given were ones that can’t even remember. By this, I mean they give into the music/performance and go into a sort of trance, I guess you can say. I’ve seen this in many guitarists that I admire from Eddie Van Halen to Bruce Cockburn and the result is usually a performance that strikes awe in my heart. I say to myself, “how can I play like that?”
Let the music take control:
I’ll be honest, this is something that I still struggle with. Two reasons: 1. I want to remember my performance so I actively think about it while playing. This hinders me because then my mind isn’t doing what it’s supposed to do; play the guitar. The outcome is that I will either have a brain freeze and forget a passage or my playing because sloppy. Either way, it’s a performance that I would rather forget rather than remember. 2. I want it to be perfect so I over think and critique myself as I play. Same result as above.
Play For Yourself:
Why is it that when we practice, we are at our best? If I had a dollar for every time I said, “why can’t I play this now? I was nailing it in practice…” The reason is that when practicing, I’m playing for myself and no one else. It’s just the three of us: Me, my guitar and the music. Throw a crowd in there and the nerves kick in and all of a sudden the piece is harder than expected. Why can’t we play for ourselves when we are in front of people? For me, it’s that I don’t want to come across rude or narcissistic and I fear that the audience is judging me harshly. But these notions are all conjecture and speculation that I have put out there with no real proof that it is true. I’m hindering my ability to play to my full potential.
Let the Music/Life Guide You:
A dear friend of mine Robin Easton (blog here), recently wrote a post suggesting that we should trust our hearts and trust life to teach us in life. This can be applied to our playing as well. Trust our experience, our training and our hearts when we play. Play for yourself and let your heart and music guide you into a great performance. Note, that doesn’t mean that every note will be perfect,it might even be a bit sloppy but some of the best performances that I have ever witnessed weren’t technically great but the passion; the emotion was there. The musician let go and let the music guide him/her into something that I felt privileged to watch. This I suggest to you sounds scary to even me because this requires an act of faith and to embrace the unknown and dare I say relinquishing control. But the idea of control is a myth because we can’t control things like if the PA goes out or if a crying baby is in the audience, etc… Giving in and letting go of the control is probably the biggest act of control that you will do.
Like that old cliche’ I’ve heard over the years: “Play like no one is listening.”
So everyone keeps asking me how the Guitar Contest went. In a nutshell, it was mixed. I did everything exactly the way I wanted to. I made some contacts, met some stars, I turned in a performance that the crowd got into, and I distributed over 600 copies of my CD to guitar fans. The one bad part was that while the judges all agreed that I had the chops (“I’d have to practice for 100 years to get those kind of chops” – Earl Slick) , they weren’t quite ready for the intensity. Their critiques sounded like something my parents would have said (which I’m actually OK with, rock and roll ain’t for the parents).
So needless to say I didn’t win the contest. But I accomplished what I set out to do and made a splash. To quote the editor of Guitar Player Magazine – “Yours will be the most watched video from the contest once we post them on Youtube.”
Here’s a video my wife shot of my performance.
For the record -
Judges:
Earl Slick (David Bowie guitarist)
Jennifer Batten (Michael Jackson guitarist)
Elliot Easton (The Cars guitarist)
Steve Lukather (Toto guitarist)
Greg Hampton (producer, Alice Cooper, Lita Ford)
Host:
Brendon Small (Creator of Adult Swim’s Metalocalypse and Home Movies)
Prizes:
A bunch of gear and a magazine profile, no contracts or studio time
Below is a press release that I received from my good friend and Guitar Musings contributor, Hercules Castro. Hercules entered into the Guitar Player Superstar Competition and was selected as one of the top 10 finalists. You will find all the information below and if you are in the Bay Area and like great guitar, you should check this show out. I just wish I could go.
Congrats Herc and Good Luck!!!!
For Immediate Release
Hercules Castro of Colorado Springs Named a Finalist in International Guitar Competition Guitar Player’s Guitar Superstar Competition Centerpiece of Guitar Player Live! Weekend Celebration September 11-13
Brendon Small to Host Competition; Judges Include Jennifer Batten (Michael Jackson’s guitarist), Elliot Easton, Greg Hampton, and Steve Lukather
San Bruno, CA (August 11, 2009) — Now in its fifth year, Guitar Player’s Guitar Superstar competition will be the centerpiece of Guitar Player LIVE!, a 3-day celebration of guitars, music, and gear presented by the Livermore Valley Performing Arts Center in Livermore, California, east of San Francisco, on Saturday, September 12, 2009.
Ten finalists have been selected from among hundreds of entries to battle for the international title of “Guitar Superstar.” Across the globe, hundreds of “unknown” guitarists of all ages and styles answered the call to post their best performances at sonicbids.com. Ten finalists were chosen to perform onstage in front of a live audience and a panel of world-famous guitar stars that includes Elliot Easton (The Cars), Jennifer Batten (guitarist for Michael Jackson, Jeff Beck), Steve Lukather (Toto), and Greg Hampton, (producer of Alice Cooper, Ronnie Wood, Lita Ford). Host of this year’s big event is Brendon Small, (co-creator of Adult’s Swim’s Metalocalypse animated series).
The celebrity judges will evaluate each original performance, and rate each contestant on technique, creativity, charisma, and overall vibe, and, at the end of the night, the 2009 Guitar Player’s Guitar Superstar will be crowned, along with two runner-ups.
Guitar Player’s Guitar Superstar Competition 2009
Jim Fuselli, rock critic of the Wall Street Journal wrote about last year’s competition: “…I admired the contestants. With their reputations on the line in front of Mr. Satriani, Mr. Vai and the other judges, they performed with conviction.”,
Vicki Genfan, the reigning Guitar Superstar, will perform at the competition before handing over her crown, and will also play on Sunday, September 13 at 3 pm along with Laurence Juber and Jennifer Batten.
“It’s a dream to launch a weekend-long celebration of guitar with Guitar Player LIVE! and our fifth Guitar Superstar event,” says Guitar Player Editor in Chief Michael Molenda. “If you’re a guitar zealot, it’s like some 6-string Woodstock—total badass madness, from Friday night’s opening Shrapnel Records concern starring Richie Kotzen, Michael Lee Firkins, and Chris Duarte, to bands rockin’ hard all along the Livermore plaza, to Guitar Superstar on Saturday, to Sunday’s Triple Threat Guitar show with GPGS 08 champ Vicki Genfan, Jennifer Batten, and Laurence Juber.”
The ten finalists, representing a wide range of guitar styles ranging from rock to country are: Dave Benzinger, Brodie Cumming , Brian Davidson, Hercules Castro, Danny Jones, Steve Langemo, Steve Senes, Krisz Simonfalvi, Doug Towle, and Jeff Zampillo. The contestants will perform with the GPGS house band Thud Factor, music directed by Bass Player Editor Jonathan Herrera.
All ten contestants receive an all-expenses paid trip to the San Francisco Bay Area. The winner, First Runner-Up and Second Runner-Up of the event will receive custom trophies and complete gear packages. The champion will receive a feature article in Guitar Player magazine and prizes from event sponsors—including Harman International–Digitech, Mesa Boogie, Taylor Guitars, D’Addario, Planet Waves, GBase, Line 6, Sennheiser, Washburn, Randall and Gallien Kruger.
The competition takes place Saturday, September 12, 2009, 8:00 p.m. at the Bankhead Theater, Livermore Valley Performing Arts Center, 2400 First Street, Livermore, California. Admission $23.00. Tickets can be ordered online at www.bankheadtheater.org or call 925-373-6800.
Guitar Player’s Guitar Superstar Competition 2009
About the 3-day Festival:
Guitar Player LIVE! includes concerts at the Bankhead Theater and free performances by well-known regional bands and exhibitor endorsees on four outdoor stages. Another highlight will be an exhibition of Bill Owens’ photographs commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Altamont Raceway Free Concert. To cap off the festival evenings, several local taverns and restaurants will also host local band performances, and the Vine Cinema will feature a special run of classic and cult guitar films.
Shrapnel Records Guitar Night Friday, September 11 at 8 p.m.
Guitar Player’s Guitar Superstar Competition Finals Saturday, September 12 at 8 p.m.
Triple Threat Guitar – Featuring Laurence Juber, Jennifer Batten, Vicki Genfan Sunday, September 13 at 3 p.m.
For packages, call the box office at 925-373-6800.
About Guitar Player magazine:
The Music Player Network of publications for musicians performing and producing music includes Guitar Player, Bass Player, Keyboard, and EQ magazines and related websites, TV, enews and events. For more information please visit www.musicplayer.com. Music Player Network is a division of NewBay Media, LLC.
Last Thursday (3.19.09), I had the pleasure of attending the Dougie MacLean concert at the Colfax Events Center in Denver. In case you didn’t know, Dougie is a Scottish singer/songwriter that has written wonderful songs like “Caledonia” and “The Gael” from the movie, “Last of the Mohicans.”
The Concert:
Dougie’s performance was a pleasure to witness. He performed songs like “Singing Land,” “She Will Find Me” and “Caledonia, to name a few. He also performed a new piece that he recently finished, new enough to have the lyrics taped to the side of his guitar. Inspired by the loss of some friends the past year, this song (he didn’t give the name), was touching and made me fondly think of loved ones I have lost. I hope he includes this on his next release, so I can find out what the name is.
As Dougie said, this wasn’t a concert where you sit, cross your arms and just listen. He wanted us to be a part of the evening as well. Dougie engaged the audience; sometimes making us laugh and many times, having us sing along with the chorus. He wasn’t shy about letting us know when we were off beat or out of tune. It was all in good fun though. It was fun, we became part of the concert and this was the beauty of his performance.
After the show, Dougie stuck around, signed my CD I just bought and chatted with us for a quite a few minutes. I have to admit, I was in awe being in the presence of one of my songwriting heroes so I didn’t say much but just took it in. It was a please to listen to him sing an then chat for a few minutes and If you ever get a chance to see him in concert, buy a ticket and go. You will not be sorry.
PS – Gear:
Dougie only played one guitar; his signature model made by Moon Guitars. Simple and beautiful. I didn’t see any effects. It was just him and the music; perfect!
I asked in my last post if the statement, “This is acoustic music in your face”, was a warning or a prediction. Still not sure which one it was but CD 2 was in my face and Tommy got a little bit of help from Bob Littell on Harmonica.
Highlights:
The mix: I know I said this in the last post but it’s so good and really makes the CD’s an experience to listen to.
Working Man’s Blues: Good old fashioned blues with Littell on the harmonica. They played off each other well and had a nice little jam going at one point. I’m not a huge fan of the harmonica but this was truly impressive.
Morning Aire: Beautiful song. I don’t know if there is more I can say.
Initiation: Tommy Does a long version of this where he’s really working the delay but in the end there’s a point where you could tell he just releases and lets the music take over. “Primal Guitar” as Michael Hedges used to say.
Questions: Last track on the CD and all I would write down in my notes was, “Wow!”
Any “lowlights?” For me, I would say too much harmonica. The first four tracks felt like they were Tommy featuring Littell. There was great guitar in those tracks but the harmonica seemed to butt in like a third wheel at times. My thoughts were, “I bought this CD for Tommy Emmanuel, not the harmonica.” As I said before, I’m not the biggest fan of the instrument. Great playing and I have a great respect for Littell’s playing but it was too much for me.
Final Thought:
Once again, if you don’t have it get it! If you are still wondering and waiting, get it anyway. You won’t be disappointed. Can’t wait for the DVD!
