Innovations for Acoustic Guitar

I'd like to share with you my approach to music -- to writing, arranging, and ways to come up with new ideas and techniques. You may find many of these concepts can be apply to your own playing and writing. There are some that can help your guitar playing sound smoother, or crisper, or bouncier, or funnier, depending on what you're going for, and many techniques are much easier than they may seem at first. Listen with open ears. Borrow approaches from other players in other styles, different instruments, sounds around you, and pretty soon you'll be looking for new ways to get across your ideas. I'd love to hear what you come up with! I'll start by walking you through the inspirations behind several of my arrangements and compositions, and the techniques used in them. Video 2 takes you to "Arioso," a piece that has changed a lot since I first started composing it. As I say in the intro, the process of composing and developing the theme is much inspired by J.S. Bach, and the overall idea of the piece is an effort to capture in music the essence of unconditional love. You can think of it as a love song to your guitar.

I've found a great way to get inspired when writing a new tune. If I can find a song or instrumental that really grabs me in some way, and think, "What are the things about it that make it so cool?" I can often find a way to use those ideas in my own music, without using the actual notes. It really works. Look at your favorite tune from all different angles. Is it the rhythm, the accents, the way the chords lead into each other, the shapes of the melodies, the way one note or chord is held out or bunches of notes grouped together, or the way the phrases build or fade? It can be any of a number of things. Sometimes you can write a tune in a completely different style using melodic or rhythmic concepts from your favorite pieces, and it's bound to be interesting. The main theme of "Arioso" came from listening to one of Bach's arias. I heard the melody returning time and time again to the same note, and used that idea. Check out how it develops here. Video 2 works through the new part of "Arioso." When writing a version for guitar and cello, I changed to the minor key so that the cello could really saw away and have space to be emotional. Then I got to like the change so added this part to the solo guitar version. It is included in Mel Bay's collection Anthology of New Classic Guitar Solos and with the cello in New Classics for Guitar and Cello or "Theme for Two Friends." The original version is in the book Muriel Anderson Hometown Live, published by Zen-On, Japan. Anyway, choose your version, and there are recordings and sheet music of the other versions on www.murielanderson.com. So it changes a little over time - yup, it was written about love.

I've found a great way to get inspired when writing a new tune. If I can find a song or instrumental that really grabs me in some way, and think, "What are the things about it that make it so cool?" I can often find a way to use those ideas in my own music, without using the actual notes. It really works. Look at your favorite tune from all different angles. Is it the rhythm, the accents, the way the chords lead into each other, the shapes of the melodies, the way one note or chord is held out or bunches of notes grouped together, or the way the phrases build or fade? It can be any of a number of things. Sometimes you can write a tune in a completely different style using melodic or rhythmic concepts from your favorite pieces, and it's bound to be interesting. The main theme of "Arioso" came from listening to one of Bach's arias. I heard the melody returning time and time again to the same note, and used that idea. Check out how it develops here. Video 2 works through the new part of "Arioso." When writing a version for guitar and cello, I changed to the minor key so that the cello could really saw away and have space to be emotional. Then I got to like the change so added this part to the solo guitar version. It is included in Mel Bay's collection Anthology of New Classic Guitar Solos and with the cello in New Classics for Guitar and Cello or "Theme for Two Friends." The original version is in the book Muriel Anderson Hometown Live, published by Zen-On, Japan. Anyway, choose your version, and there are recordings and sheet music of the other versions on www.murielanderson.com. So it changes a little over time - yup, it was written about love.

This is a very important chapter - working on phrasing and connecting the notes. These are ideas you can apply to add emotion and develop your own personality in the way you bring out the melody. Sometimes it helps to finger the notes in a different way with the left hand to allow one note to ring out over the next, or to slur into the next, or to allow a finger to slide, connecting one note to the next. Listen to which notes want to connect and which ones want to be detached. Then find a way to make it so! You're not limited by only one place to play a note on the guitar - we have choices! Sometimes it means stretching for one note while holding down the last one instead of letting go of one chord shape to move on to another chord shape. Here are five biggies when it comes to playing expressively:
1. Timing - the ability to play exactly in rhythm or leaning to the front or to the back of the beat, holding an expressive note a little longer, pushing or pulling a phrase. Where you place the notes in time is perhaps most important.
2. Tone - Work on getting the best sound out of your instrument on every note you play, and vary the tone to provide interest.
3. Dynamics - that means always changing the volume!
4. Connect or detach notes - listen to how they connect and when they should be detached.
5. Listen to everything you play - be an active listener, enjoy and shape the music as you play it. Video 2 brings us to an instrumental I wrote in honor of Mr. Chester B. (Chet) Atkins. I tried to incorporate licks in a style that Chet might have played (even if he didn't). I had fun writing this one.

This is a very important chapter - working on phrasing and connecting the notes. These are ideas you can apply to add emotion and develop your own personality in the way you bring out the melody. Sometimes it helps to finger the notes in a different way with the left hand to allow one note to ring out over the next, or to slur into the next, or to allow a finger to slide, connecting one note to the next. Listen to which notes want to connect and which ones want to be detached. Then find a way to make it so! You're not limited by only one place to play a note on the guitar - we have choices! Sometimes it means stretching for one note while holding down the last one instead of letting go of one chord shape to move on to another chord shape. Here are five biggies when it comes to playing expressively:
1. Timing - the ability to play exactly in rhythm or leaning to the front or to the back of the beat, holding an expressive note a little longer, pushing or pulling a phrase. Where you place the notes in time is perhaps most important.
2. Tone - Work on getting the best sound out of your instrument on every note you play, and vary the tone to provide interest.
3. Dynamics - that means always changing the volume!
4. Connect or detach notes - listen to how they connect and when they should be detached.
5. Listen to everything you play - be an active listener, enjoy and shape the music as you play it. Video 2 brings us to an instrumental I wrote in honor of Mr. Chester B. (Chet) Atkins. I tried to incorporate licks in a style that Chet might have played (even if he didn't). I had fun writing this one.

I'll describe my way of getting a crisp alternating bass sound for the tune "Mr Chester," using a right hand technique that is actually derived more from Leo Kottke than from Chet. Having said that, it's also cool to play this tune with the traditional Chet Atkins / Merle Travis muffled bass, anchoring the palm of the hand near the bridge. You may want to use a thumb pick if you play it this way. In either case, don't be afraid to use the weight of your arm to get a nice solid bass sound, either with a thumb pick or without. For a really driving bass in the style of Merle Travis, check out Thom Bresh's playing sometime. Whenever possible, keep the right hand in a standard position by playing the first string with the ring finger, second string with the middle finger, third string with the index finger, and the thumb gets the three bass strings. I'll work through the whole tune here.