RIP Julian Bream
One of my greatest and favourite guitar heroes passed away peacefully in his sleep yesterday aged 87 - Julian Bream CBE.
Moe mai ra e te Rangatira…(Sleep, oh chief)
Takoto mai, takoto mai, takoto mai…(Lie, lie, lie)
Haere ki runga i to waka rererangi…(Travel aboard your heavenly vessel)
Haere ki nga whetu kei runga i to po roa, to po nui, te po tapu…(Go to the many stars of the long night, the great night, the sacred night)
Haere, haere, haere…(Depart, depart, depart…)
Julian Bream was what I would like to call a ‘Musician’s musician’. He was everything that many of us aspire to be - a virtuoso; a gentleman and a scholar; an indefatigable tour de force in the guitar and lute world; a transcriptionist par excellence; and an all-round good chap.
I had the incredible privilege of seeing Julian perform in Napier in 1988 when I was in my first year at high school. Unfortunately, I was so new to the guitar that I had scarcely a clue as to who he was and what he was playing. I do remember that he played All in Twilight by the Japanese composer Toru Takemitsu (I believe it had been commissioned the year prior).
When I was undertaking my performance major in classical guitar at Victoria university in Wellington I would often pull out a vinyl recording of Julian Bream and listen to him playing the Concierto de Aranjuez by Joaquin Rodrigo. I had never heard anything so exquisite apart from Segovia playing J. S. Bach’s Chaconne. Even today rarely more than a few days go past without me listening to Julian playing a piece in his own way - the Julian Bream way.
To me the way Julian played was unique amongst all players. His thunderous pizzicato in the beginning stanza of Granados’ La Maya de Goya, or the sultry sul tasto in Turina’s Fandanguillo are truly unforgettable displays of his extraordinary depth of musical understanding. The tonal variations and his idiosyncratic approach to phrasing and interpretation, salient in a world so full of amazing players.
When I was a bit younger I was in camp Williams because I just couldn’t believe his technical command so I tended to model my playing to mimic John (falling way way short). However, as I have aged I have gone back to Julian and analysed many of his transcriptions and increased my admiration of his approach and sound. The ending of my performance of Serenata Espanola by Malats is totally JB. I listened to his performance several times and then transcribed it by ear. To my knowledge nobody ends that piece like Julian does.
I am happy and unimaginably thankful that JB left a massive lexicon of music for lute and guitar for us to enjoy through the coming years.
Please feel free to comment and share your experience with Julian and his music below.
Classical Guitar Virtuoso Profile: John Williams
John Williams surely ranks as one of the world's most admired and respected guitarists. With a career spanning 5 decades, numerous recordings, public performances, & masterclasses John Williams has surely left an indelible influence on guitarists of today.
Introduction
John Williams' name is synonymous with flawless technique, careful and controlled interpretation, and his tireless transcriptions of composers' works that were often overlooked by his most famous tutor - Andres Segovia. In addition to this he is also well-known for his dislike of the standard teaching method encouraging solo classical guitarists to aim for virtuosity and an expansive repertoire rather than overall musicianship, playing in ensembles, and improving tone quality.
Why I Like John Williams
Interestingly enough I can't recall when or where I was when I first heard John Williams play but I do seem to think it was when I bought his documentary 'The Seville Concert'. I remember being so excited after I purchased it. I couldn't wait to get the tape home and put it into my VHS (this was before DVDs and the internet). I put it in and I was absolutely memorised. One of my most poignant memories was wondering why he used his pinky and annular fingers together when doing rest strokes.
I basically wore that video out and now I can play virtually everything that is on that recording! Along with countless others I think what drew me to John Williams was his absolute technical mastery of the guitar. To me it seemed like there was nothing that he couldn't do. Flawless tremolo, perfect phrasing, no string scrapes, speed to burn and next-level stamina. That video influenced me enough that I learned Vals Op. 8, No. 3 by Augustin Barrios and used it on my first television appearance! The Prélude from the Suite in E major BWV 1006a also formed part of my LTCL examination with the Trinity College of London.
During that period I also bought the 'Together' & 'Together again' CDs that featured John Williams and my other favourite classical guitarist Julian Bream playing as a duo!
Another reason why I liked John Williams is that he seemed perfectly comfortable pointing out why he didn't like Andres Segovia's teaching pedagogy. After watching as many Segovia teaching classes on YouTube as I could and reading blogs and articles written about that particular subject it does seem that JW had a very strong case!
Conclusion
This is just a brief look at John Williams. I'll be writing more about his in subsequent articles. Until then...
Let your fingers fly!
Learning Classical Guitar
Classical guitar vs Acoustic guitar vs Electric guitar. Isn't it all just guitar? Yes & No. Read on...
Introduction
In this article I'd like to share my thoughts on learning classical guitar. Before I do I think it could be important to explain the term 'classical guitar' and how it differs from say 'electric guitar' or 'acoustic guitar'.
Fundamentally there are no differences! Guitar is guitar. They all have strings and they all need to be played using our fingers.
Acoustic vs Classical - what's the difference?
For me the primary difference is the type of music that is played on the instrument. Of course there will always be crossover pieces that can work on all 3 types of guitar but for the most part the music that has been written for classical guitar is written for the nylon string guitar.
As that type of guitar used gut strings before nylon strings came along has been around for around 200 years, any music that was written during that time could probably be considered 'classical guitar music'.
Therefore if you are learning classical guitar there is every chance that you will be playing music that was written a long time ago in Europe. Pieces by composers such as Mauro Giuliani, Francisco Tarrega, Fernando Sor, and Johann Sebastian Bach will be in your repertoire; you will be learning to use at least 4 fingers of your picking hand and you definitely won't be using a pick or plectrum.
Another big difference is the use of polyphony which simply means playing more than one note at a time in the form of a melody, supporting notes, & a baseline. The truth is that this style or playing can be found in both electric and acoustic guitar but rest assured that the original style developed on the nylon or classical guitar and was transferred across once those two types of guitar found popularity in the early part of the 20th century.
My reason for learning classical guitar was pretty simple - I loved being able to play an entire piece by myself without a band! I also found it intellectually rewarding and I just loved hearing that music played by the greats such as Julian Bream, John Williams, & Andres Segovia.
Beware because learning classical guitar is extremely addictive and often players from other genres will come to the classical guitar and fall in love with it and sometimes not return to their previous styles. It matters not for the joy is in the journey and unlocking all the wonderful possibilities that exist on this 'mini orchestra'.
If you are considering learning classical guitar I suggest finding a great teacher and getting yourself a couple of good foundational books. Online guitar lessons are another marvellous way of gaining knowledge and accelerating your progress. I teach by Skype so be sure to check out the 'Lessons' tab in the menu bar for more information.