Active Melody

Who here :

Is a newly developed solo act

Who here uses a DAW / Looper   ?

I have a GNX4 Digitech DAW ,  love it . Since I got it I have been developing my solo act .

I use a midi capable guitar with a guitar synthesizer too /

Hurricane Ramon

Hey Hurricane, I don’t own a Looper but I’m kind of intrigued by them - especially at the thought of playing a live gig by myself with the ability to basically create my own jams on the fly and play along with myself (yes the word “along was strategically added) - it’s kind of like cloning yourself i suppose.  Since I don’t have any kind of solo act right now I don’t really have a need for one as I would just record something and play along with that if I needed to accomplish some jamming. 

If I remember correctly, isn’t the GNX4 like everything in one - effects processor, digital recorder, looper, drum machine, etc?  Does it really do all of those things and do them well?  How do you like playing with a midi guitar?  The ones that I’ve tried have a slight bit of latency that makes it hard for me to get my head around - almost like hearing an echo. 

Also, how’s your solo act going?  Are you singing as well, or just playing guitar instrumental stuff?  Please share.

Part 1 :

Hello Brian :

Thanks for taking time to read my post . I like your tutorials man , really tops and appreciate your efforts to add in a most positive contribution to society via these lessons you have made available to the public .

These days in my opinion really have more musicians ( both older and the younger ) embracing technology when it’s application truly adds in not only the textural aspect but the artistic quality too in a given artist’s presentation to the potential best fullest .

Your observation about ” playing yourself ” is something phenomenal that has come to the average pro level of accomplishment musician’s table . This was something only dreamed of , a wish upon a star thing . Yes being able to create on the ” fly ” is now where it’s at if you can improv and play on your feet wwwwwwwhichhhhhhhhhhhh most good musicians can , who are considered ” working or session ” players .

Can this puppy cut it ?

yes and know ........

Yes it loops and does it well , I can work with this .........

But .

If your at the level of realizing the dynamics of a song with more than one set beat and different time signatures & breaks so to speak in situation where you vamp a sections of a song and do your ” thing ” in making and personalizing a song’s arrangement , any a cover , or your own composition .

It has it’s limits

- how ever -

I should say that even with this ” discrediting ” of the GNX4 it is still a heavy weight kick @$$ piece of work to own . I love it in short .

This unit is as you put it :

” isn’t the GNX4 like everything in one - effects processor, digital recorder, looper, drum machine, etc?  “

Yes it is . The modeling of stomps - amps and cabinets are something that will keep a serious user busy a long long time . FXs are second to none they are clean or not depending on what your after .

Continued ...in part 2 .

Part 2 :

With a P . C . and ” Pro Tracks Plus “software it comes with you can record 4 channels at once hands free ,  that’s hip , 2 channels stand alone .

The demo shows ( I hear ) the use of multiple time signatures/beat patterns ,  so to do that you have to edit it in a P . C . and not have that option live :(
To be honest if your good at playing live to a crowd and can improvise live then it’s a no brainer , this type of gear was made for you . If your a sight reading only musician ( I read notation too ) maybe a ” step midi sequencer ”  is better suited to your abilities ...

Midi guitar -

Wow - your have to see it through these eyes that have traveled the long way home when it comes m to the guitar . 

I was into music while in my crib . Started harmonic at age 4 in 54 . Guitar 6 . Trumpet 8——

1962 no more guitar—- milk bottle glass embedded in my left chording hand and finger tips . 

I became a working musicians in 77 blowin harp in a country western band made out well over the years doing everything from rock-a-anything to standards and jazz on diatonic 10 holes ,  and went to : front man . In 1998 it all came together one day date fate wise .

The glass ( last of many over the 36 years - 3 months - 11 days - to be exact ) came out almost as fast as it got stuck in from my left ring finger and I’m off to the races again with guitar ..........

so ..... ( thanks for putting up with ) .......... 

When I started on guitar anew   thought long and hard as I developed my skills transferring my music theory from trumpet and piano to how to make a guitar play good and along the way I made sure I kept abreast of anything in technology on guitars from 1998 ti when I finally got one finely made and crafted “state of the ” art ” in electric guitars .

I had a lot of catching up to do to be able to go solo after first paying my dues as a side man and then a frontman singing as well as blowing ” Jump Blues ” and other genres .

I was interested in midi since I could play keys so when I saw an actual demonstration of a Roland Ready Strat that really pulled it off convincingly I knew there was something there to realize and learn from .

Further research lead me to Godin and I ended up with a LGXSA and it really helped me make another ”  quantum ” leap .

Tracking is smooth fast and for the most part deadly one target . Some have complained of the low HZs being a latency issue a quick fix is to program the low HZs onto the first two quicker triggering strings he heh heh . The Godin company says that ebony tracks best , I believe it must work since mine has performed well live . Rarely do I hear a ghost note pop off or a latency issue repeat itself chronically ,  but YMMV ?

Most latency and false ” ghost note occur when you make a string change from one gauge or brand . The recalibration of the string (s) is a solution I find that corrects any issues like that . In most case of complaints the issue was more than likely the player’s expertise since ” you make a mistake ” and ” midi is not forgiving ” like a distorted guitar can forgive heh heh . 

But

WHY MIDI AT ALL ?

Why not .... It’s got - beauty -  grace - power if you have those in your quiver ,

If your the person who has in their mind musical variations exploding constantly in you mind’s eye and ears then yes if your a guitar player get one most certainly ! 

The powers that be gave me a decent voice with some range . I like doing an ” eclectic ” presentation in my shows , any good song is fair game from :

Gershwin to Ellington - Robert Johnson to Hank Williams - Van Morrison to Muddy Waters - Louie Armstrong to Miles Davis -  The Beatles - Booker T - Moody Blues - Elton John - Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac - Tommy Emmanuel - Andres Segovia - Tuck Andress and more than I can think of.

To be able to sneak in Moody Blues ” Night’s In White Satin ” on a solo show and loop the guitar and then come in with the strings is a mind blower to do and see what it does to a group of people . To do a standard like ” Lady Is a Tramp ” gets applause from people and respect from peers .

I’m inspired guitar wise since my miracle . It happened in a time when technology and me were ready to play for today’s audience as well as those in the audience who have been ” there ” from my time and before and today’s ears too .

I’ve traveled a long ways musically and still my ” journey guitar ” after only 10 years has only begun . I am constantly seeking more input like yours for example here in this forum . The Steve Cropper lesson is great helped me it did .

Thanks Brian hope I did not bore you to tears .

Sincerely :

Hurricane Ramon

Wow thanks for the reply Ramon - you need your own blog!  Some very good information here though and now you’ve got me wanting to hear you on the harp - or even singing.  I’ve always wanted to play harmonica and I’ve picked it up with the intention of learning it probably 4 or 5 times.. but never seem to really get anywhere with it.  I can’t seem to bend the reeds correctly and no matter how many times I try it, it just always falls flat.  So if you’ve got any videos on YouTube or MP3s please share with us!

As for the one man band thing, are you playing gigs anywhere with your GNX4 / Midi guitar set up?  I keep toying with the idea of putting together a live / lounge act with pre-recorded jam tracks that I could play the lead / melody parts along with.  I saw a guy doing that in a restaurant while in Aruba once and thought it sounded so good… very laid back / casual sounding.  I’ve seen guys doing that in Nashville too - kind of perfect for someone that doesn’t necessarily want to bother with a full band.

I’m going to demo the GNX4 though the next time I hit my local music store, you’ve definitely got me interested in the possibilities with loopers.

Brian :

Thank you Brian I am glad you found my post interesting . I truly feel your video tutorials are great . I’m using them and enjoying the learning experience as I go .

Here’s one mp3 online at a fellow musician harp players web site . It is a song written and sung by the living Rock-A-Billy legend Chan Romero ,  I have been fortunate in developing a great musical relationship as well as a friendship with Chan :

http://www.harpinanawhinin.com/MP3s/patriotic_MP3s/america.mp3

Here’s 3 live youtube performances with :

LtoR :

Cesar Rosas of Los Lobos ,

Eric Burdon of The Animals and WAR

Mark Guerrero a local music star and fine person

Me

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgMUp0m_FlY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5d3Qs8EwcKE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1io2HaMBXM

All harp work is ” unplugged ” acoustic type .

I hope you like these .

Your input on making my own blog inspired me mebbbbbeeeee I do one heh heh heh .

Sincerely :

HR

Wow, now how in the world did you hook up with the likes of Eric Burdon and Cesar Rosas… that’s awesome!  You sound great too by the way.  Man I wish I could play the harp.

Brian :

Eric once did a concert here in Palm Springs southern California in the Coachella Valley in the late 60s ( where the recent Coachella Fest concert was held this past week end ) and Eric liked this area and returned and took up residence here in the area . I first met him while working in a

” high end “

audio service and repair business where Tascam , Revox . Ampex and other pro and semi pro gear was serviced . Eric needed some duplications made of stuff recorded with WAR and was refereed to where I worked since at any given time we had all kinds of top end stuff there repaired and so ............

That’s the first time we met and then many other times including when my wife did some framing of some of Eric’s art when she worked at Aaron Bros Art Supplies and Picture Framing here in the area and I met him while he gave my wife a personally autographed a double CD he had just released he recognized me and we spoke and my wife mentioned I was a musician to him and he smiled .

I was sitting in with all the major dudes and dudettes like Maria Muldaur at one of the discos that brought in live acts one night when Eric was doing his show there a person who used to come and see my acoustic blues- jazz - standards - country western -rock duet act smiled and said if I wanted to get up and jam with Eric and him . I did not realize it was :

” Brian Auger ”  from { Brian Auger And The Oblivion Express }

Long story short it didn’t pan out that time . Eric had a thing going and was on a roll non stop and well it didn’t happen . We would see each other at different mutual musician acquaintances homes and then the fellow in the video ” Mark Guerrero “( a friend and respected musician here from a family of famous performers ) called me to see if I was into helping out with a fund raiser for the children who survived the Oklahoma Federal Building tragedy . At this fund raiser many Vegas acts showed up as well as many Hollywood comedian acts as well as CW acts Johnny Lee ( Looking For Love In All The Wrong Places ) and Eric Burdon and Cesar Rosas .

We all knew each other or knew someone who new some one so to speak . We did a little rehearsal (well the guitars I just listened and found the key and the ” pocket ” if their grooves and laid back till show time .

I have been on stage here locally and throughout the USA with many wonderful artists . Spencer Davis - Ruth Brown - Jody Reynolds ( Endless Sleep 1956 I think ) Charlie Beale ( Louie Armstrong’s original piano man ) and many more .

The harps a mystery to be sure , hard to gauge where your at for a reference .

Here’s a reference since your into l-lV-Vb stuff .

If your in the key of

” A ” pic a ” D ” tuned harp

B a E
C a F
D a G
E a A
F a Bb
G a C  

When you play this way it’s called ” cross harp ” or ” second position ”

What you get is this phenomenon of the 1 chord and root being in the ” Draw ” position when inhaling on for example that ” D” tuned harp’s first three openings while your playing guitar in ” A ” . In the inhale on the D you get the triad of the -l- chord = ” A ” major . When you blow you get the lV = ” D ” chord triad major this applies across the board , 

Now find the common notes of these two chords it will be an ” A ” this is cool as a way to get a ” breather break ” while playing and it gives you a nice change of rhythm that sounds like you hit a different note but ya didn’t !

In the turn around to the Vb it’s only going to give you a two note type power chord if you seek a chordial rhythmic choice in how you handle your interpretation of a given arrangement .

Now ,this is only one of the many things you can do with the first three openings for the l and the lV , the Vb is a little trickier but as I said the is a way to go for it and sound great even if you end up playing a ” power type guitar chord ” . The D harp has in the first three openings in the 1-2-3 holes blowing the ” Ds” three note D-F#-A and drawing in air are E-A-C# . For the power chord of ” E ” you block holes 2 and 3 with your tongue and draw on the 1 hole and the 4 hole this will give you an ” E and a B ” note the 1st. and 5th of the Vb

Work on this as you play to any l-lV-Vb song in any key it’s like a movable chord only it’s applying to harps now . In these first 3 to 4 openings you can spend endless hours working on the many variations in hooks and riffs that are possible.

Chew on this a while it will all come together in time . I’m learning from you too

Sincerely :

HR

HR, very cool story of how you met up w/ Eric Burdon and it sounds like you have quite the list of connections that you’ve made through the years.  I’ve never got to sit and play with anyone famous - well, one time I got to pick for a few minutes with Dan Fogelberg at Gruhn Guitars in Nashville, but I was only around 18 and didn’t really know what I was doing. 

Also, thanks for the killer Harmonica advice!  I’ve never really seen it laid out like that.. explaining the relation to the I-IV-V stuff - that’s extremely helpful.  I think my problem with harp is that I tried to learn it the same way I learned guitar, by listening to other harp players (Lil Walter, Charlie Musselwhite, Sonny Boy.. etc) and 1) I could never figure out which key their harmonica was in, and 2) I couldn’t figure out if they were inhaling or exhaling.  So maybe I should take the approach of trying to learn how to play basic / simple melodies that I already know in my head.. and see where it goes.  You’ve inspired me to try and re-learn though so many thanks for that!

Brian :

Yep I have some mileage going for me with the people I have been fortunate to play music with and then gotten to know personally . Funny thing about meeting these people in that as in your case you never know when or where it will happen . I was lucky in many ways and then again you make your own luck too .

Glad you got an itch to try and jump on the saddle again harp wise . You nailed it when you said that maybe you should get started by playing things that have ” basic ” points of reference in songs you already know inside your mind . This is where you begin to get a handle on finding those elusive references that will eventually guide you to ” familiar ” territories .

Dig :

I spent 10 years each with Sonny Boy Williams ( both of them ) and also Little Walter - Big Walter Horten - Paul Butterfield - Charlie McCoy -Sonny Terry - Duford Bailey -and also Johnny & The Harmonicats and George Harmonica Smith - Magic Dick   and many more .

The chromatic studies were tough at first but like a piano there is a linear horizontal grid laid out that in time is self explanatory .

The diatonic 10 hole is one mysterious sucker in it’s lay out . There are 3 distinct area ” zones”  to master :

Zone 1 :

1st. 3 holes and the patterns with in are like the matrix of the guitar fretboard . Big difference is not being able to see where you are or going on the harp .  These three openings are not a complete scale but are complete chords . Very useful in the long run for bass lines and even lead lines too for you solos and when you ” take it home ” and nail a tight Blues ending lick at the turn around or end of a song .

Zone 2 :

Holes 4 through 7 are a complete scale , with in this area you get to get melodies going where you trade licks with guitar players although this can be done on any of the 3 different zones . This is the least mysterious and often neglected area and should be used a lot . The patterns are distinct like the cage system for guitar players . 

Zone 3 :

This is like going to the moon ‘s dark side in that once you get a handle on the 1st. zone’s patterns and their relation to the second Zone , you throw out these patterns when approaching this zone’s ( 3 )  breathing patterns ( yes you will need to understand that this is a crucial element ) because they will appear in time to be the exact opposite from the first zone’s , You will note a slight similarity of the pattern in zone 1 and 2 . They are not identical but as I mentioned they do have their similarities .

In each zone find the “common ground ” when relating to the melody first and then go from there . Use your guitar as you do this and you will see it all unfold in time .

As far as reed bend control goes you have an advantage in the guitar and it’s ability to bend notes and ” pre ” bent especially since this is in essence how the harp works . Find the common ground to note accuracy with your guitar’s forte as it relates to :

” blue notes ” .

With what you know already on guitar you have a great advantage use it . This will speed up your learning curve believe me

Note this :

Zones 2 & 3 utilize also a different type of ” bent ” note and it’s achieved by not drawing in but by blowing - they are called :

”  Over Blows ” :

I would not recommend you try this till you have mastered the draw bends first .

Bending reeds from air pressure is a quick way to make a reed’s metal weak leading to :

” metal fatigue ” .

This will detune it downward in pitch ( Hz ) . A reed can be re tuned back to pitch , buit that’s a study in and of itself to learn and master the :

” touch “

when it comes to filing off reed material from a reed tip to reduce it’s mass and in turn you increase it’s ability to vibrate faster again by removing some of the reeds mass . Don’t try this ! It took me10 years to develop the ” touch ” . 

Sincerely :

Hurricane Ramon