Posted May 2, 2011 at 8:49 am | No comments
With the online guitar learning community exploding over the past decade, several names have risen to the top of the heap as the leaders in online guitar education. One of these players is Jimmy Bruno, and recently Jimmy has branched out on his own, after working with another company on a previous website, to launch a new site called the Jimmy Bruno Guitar Workshop. If the past is prologue to the future, then this site should be a great resource for guitarists of all levels and backgrounds that are looking to better themselves as players, and all at a very affordable price.
Posted in: Interviews, Jazz, Jazz Interviews
Posted April 25, 2011 at 8:24 am | No comments
Learning to play jazz guitar, especially Bebop jazz guitar, often seems like a daunting task to say the least. Many books exist on the subject, but many times these books just further to complicate the matter, providing pages and pages of theory and exercises without ever fully explaining how to take all of this information and turn it into an improvised solo. As well, it is often best to study one on one with an accomplished jazz guitarist to get the most out of one’s Bebop learning experience, but many of us don’t live in a city with such a performer and can’t travel to New York or Chicago to take a guitar lesson.
Posted in: Jazz, Jazz Reviews, Reviews
Posted April 24, 2011 at 9:56 am | 4 comments
Back in around 1999, I was studying jazz performance at Vanier College in Montreal. As any typical young player in the ‘90s, I was into the classic players such as Wes Montgomery, Pat Martino and Joe Pass, a few obscure guitarists like Lenny Breau and Ed Bickert and of course had spent my obligatory time with Pat Metheny’s catalogue. But then one day my teacher Nick Di Tomasso, who had incredible foresight, gave me a record and said, “If you think those guys can play, you need to check out this album, it’ll change your life.” That would be an understatement to say the least. The album was Dust by the New York based, virtuoso guitarist Ben Monder.
Posted in: Guitar Hero Interviews, Interviews, Jazz, Jazz Interviews
Posted April 21, 2011 at 10:20 am | No comments
It’s not easy growing up with a parent who is a famous name in their chosen field, especially if one decides to pursue a career in the same vein as their well-known mother or father. Often times it is hard, or even impossible, for one to step out from their parent’s shadows and make a name for themselves, no matter what career path they choose to pursue. While this is the case with many musicians, guitarist Marcel Powell is proving that one can carry on their parent’s legacy, while at the same time creating an entirely separate, and highly successful, career in their own right.
Posted in: Interviews, Jazz, Jazz Interviews
Posted April 18, 2011 at 12:47 pm | No comments
Moving between the Metal and Jazz worlds throughout his long and successful career, guitarist Alex Skolnick is one of the few musicians on today’s scene who can claim to have played Thrash Metal shows and appeared at the Rochester International Jazz Festival. After graduating from the New School in New York, where he studied jazz, Skolnick has been blazing a new trail with his music as he and his trio brings Metal, Rock and Jazz together in highly personal and effective combination. All of these influences can be heard on the band’s latest album, Veritas.
Posted in: Interviews, Jazz, Jazz Interviews
Posted April 18, 2011 at 7:41 am | No comments
Jazz is an art form that lives in the moment. Musical ideas are created on the spot, melodies swirl around complex harmonies and everything is kept together with a pulsing rhythm that ranges from bombastic to sultry and seductive. Because of Jazz’s ability to be absolutely spontaneous, many fans believe that live albums are the only way to properly capture the moment when a band comes together to breathe life into their tunes. But, live albums are also some of the hardest to capture because of the risk involved whenever a high level of improvisation is being injected into the music.
Posted in: Interviews, Jazz, Jazz Interviews
Posted April 1, 2011 at 8:41 am | No comments
When one thinks of Brazilian music, the soft sounds of Tom Jobim or Stan Getz usually spring to mind. Music that conjures up images of white-sand beaches, palm trees swaying in the breeze and long summer nights spent relaxing with friends. But, there are many sides to Brazilian music that don’t often receive the same level of attention outside of the musically bountiful country as Bossa Nova does.
Posted in: Interviews, Jazz, Jazz Interviews
Posted March 20, 2011 at 8:00 am | No comments
Jonathan Kriesberg is one of the more interesting voices in contemporary Jazz Guitar. His compositions are well structured and thoughtful and he manages to blend traditional musical form with modern harmonies and melodic concepts. Kriesberg has a solid and fluid technical ability that is a pleasure to listen to. His tone is somewhat Methenyesque, but definitely is still his own unique sound.
Posted in: Jazz, Jazz Reviews, Reviews
Posted March 19, 2011 at 8:00 am | 3 comments
Lou Volpe has an outstanding professional resume. He has appeared as a sideman with many great jazz and pop artists. A partial list includes Herbie Hancock, Chet Baker, Herbie Mann, Peggy Lee and the Manhattan Transfer. Volpe was a student of Sal Salvador and spent quite a bit of time in jam sessions with Les Paul.
Posted in: Jazz, Jazz Reviews, Reviews
Posted March 7, 2011 at 2:00 pm | No comments
Walter Kolosky the writer of Power, Passion and Beauty: The Story of the Legendary Mahavishnu Orchestra, brings us a listener’s guide that leads the reader through the different depths of John McLaughlin’s music. Kolosky’s Follow Your Heart – John McLaughlin Song By Song is written from the author’s subjective experience after listening to 42 of McLaughlin’s albums and analyzing each of the tunes.
Posted in: Jazz, Jazz Reviews, Reviews
