Quote:
Originally Posted by Shaky Osmond
I've been playing guitar for forty years. The last few decades, I've concentrated on mostly old blues and country music, singing and playing harmonica, while accompanying myself on acoustic guitar. The last few years, I've started doing a little music of other styles, including Tin Pan Alley, and jazz.
I'm fairly accomplished. But I never really acquired much repertoire of purely instrumental guitar music. Even if the guitar accompaniment was challenging, I usually gravitated to material that I sing. (E.g., I do covers of "Pony Blues" by Charley Patton, "How Long 'fore I Can Change My Clothes" by Booker White, and "I Can't Be Satisfied" by Muddy Waters. Also "Mood Indigo" by Ellington, and "Wave" by Jobim.) This was partly because I used to play out in bars a lot more, and most bar audiences prefer singing to instrumental music. It was also because I do enjoy singing, even though I've never really dreamed passionately of being a singer the way most accomplished singers do.
I'm realizing that at this point in my life, I would like to be able to play, say, two hours of instrumental solo guitar. I think it would be nice to play my guitar in a quiet venue, sitting in the background, instead of being the loud, blaring, life of the party. And I'm looking for advice on how to acquire such a repertoire over the next few years.
I would like to learn new playing styles in pursuit of this repertoire. Suggestions on this front are most welcome. I would love to be able to play classical style. But I think that would be quite a challenge for various reasons (I can't read, and I can only play with thumb, index and middle fingers).
As far as what I already know how to do: I can Travis-pick pretty well: I perform John Fahey's arrangement of "In Christ There Is No East or West" and his "Last Steam Engine Train" (the latter of which I combine with Blind Lemon Jefferson's "See That My Grave Is Kept Clean" - like I said, I can't keep my mouth shut on stage). I also can play Maybelle Carter style: In addition to a lot of the Carter Family, I have worked up Carter-scratch arrangements of other songs (Merle Travis' "Dark as a Dungeon" and Johnny Cash's "I Still Miss Someone").
I would be interested in suggestions of methods and arrangements in other playing styles (chord melody, etc.) that would be good to start with. Tips on collections of such arrangements (I've seen things like "Gershwin for Solo Guitar") are especially welcome.
TIA.
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I'm as seasoned as you are and one thing I've discovered is people prefer songs. When I owned a bar&grill I had a fellow play on his T5 many arrangements of his own astoundingly well and yet he didn't get the response people playing the usual favorite songs got. And, they didn't have a thimble full of his talent going on for themselves. Moreover, the patrons didn't care.
The only times I've seen instrumentalists get their due is at wine bars patronized by a more refined (aka
older) crowd. I played at one with a repertoire of personal arrangements of old 70's tunes and was well received. I was substituting for a friend who was a worldly talent so I was more than a bit apprehensive about filling his shoes. But, I didn't put anyone off their favorite beverages so I called it a success.
Otherwise, your own development as a player reaching a certain refinement and preference for the instrumental quality of music may be received by a smaller market than you might expect. People love their familiar songs and they want their entertainers to put some passion into them. Personally, I don't consider a burger and beer crowd my kinda audience anymore but that's where the money is.
02-27-2016, 10:24 AM
