Scott Henderson Discussion

Alessandro_Iglesias · Joined: 03 Sep 2017 Posts: 53

Saw it on The Gear Page, and remembered me about Scott saying on Guitar Wank that when he is playing, he's a fourteen year old lad, having fun. I try to study using this mindset.

https://youtu.be/OnlE0jL8S-0

Alessandro_Iglesias · Joined: 03 Sep 2017 Posts: 53

Found it here:

https://www.thegearpage.net/board/index.php?threads/how-to-avoid-guitar-mastery.1877905/

Thanasis · Posted: Wed Nov 15, 2017 9:19 am Post subject:

The link doesn't work. But allow me to disagree, I personally think that in order to be anything you like, you need to have mastered something.
Once you have all the tools you need then it's just a matter of taste and choices.
But you need to practice so you can choose what to be and what not to be. And that takes a lot of time and effort. Time that some of us will never find, trying to do other shit for being able to afford a life, anywhere.
From a personal point of view I wish I had mastered everything I could when I had the time. I try every waking moment of my life to grab the guitar and learn everything I can and that is what keeps me going. I am not attacking you here, don't get me wrong. I hope it works for you.

manolopez · Joined: 12 Aug 2017 Posts: 15 Location: holland

I also disagree.

i think it is a good thing to say to beginners and intermediate players of any instrument not to be thinking in mastering something ,just to keep them going onward.

mastering something is not on anybody's mind that is a very good player they just love and have passion for music that is something very different...

so mastering without the love and passion is a useless goal .

Thanasis · Posted: Wed Nov 15, 2017 11:40 am Post subject:

Mastering is probably not the right word. It probably is for observers and not for the one who practises.
Example : Scott or Landau or Shorter or whoever is a master to me, is not to himself (guessing and probably right) and that is what moves people forward. Humble and very hard working.
If you consider yourself a master, you are Michael Angelo Batio therefore youre not one.

To me it is being a humble person with organised practice, hours spent on the instrument and personal taste. Nothing more, nothing less.
But I think it is a good idea to get to know things and learn and then decide what youre gonna play or not. And that needs mastering or whatever that word needs to be.
I am afraid I probably misunderstood the point of the topic , but I spend my recent days away from practice and that bothers me a lot, that is why I dared to share my view on the subject.

Sorry if I have annoyed or offended anyone.

manolopez · Joined: 12 Aug 2017 Posts: 15 Location: holland

am just saying great players do it for the great love of music/instrument, not because they want to be good or masters.

Red Suede · Joined: 12 Jul 2005 Posts: 56

Segovia once said he would need another few lifetimes before he even began to scratch the surface of guitar......

Thanasis · Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2017 12:00 am Post subject:

I guess the more you know the more you start realising that this is the case. But one lifetime is what we get in the end so we should take advantage of that. Squeeze every drop of it while we can. I should be squeezin the first run from "Time Lapse" in the intro, but I am exhausted. I'll do that tomorrow. Until then, I am wishing you all a good night from a rainy northern Greek city.

Alessandro_Iglesias · Joined: 03 Sep 2017 Posts: 53

I guess the You Tube link is maybe a little too discrete on the first post. Here it is:

https://youtu.be/OnlE0jL8S-0

Scott Henderson · The Man Joined: 20 May 2004 Posts: 2122

I have to chime in on this -

What the guy says sounds like bullshit even though he means well. We can do our best to learn our instrument and keep improving, and it's definitely not "a dark road". It's in fact a very fun road if we keep in mind that the road is what's important, not the destination. We can have a great time playing music as we strive to improve. Anyone who disagrees with that statement is not an artist.

Of course there are things we can finish like an album or a gig. Even though those things have endings, the process is more important than the product. The product wouldn't exist without the process, and usually if we enjoy the process, the product is better.

I read Kenny Werner's book "Effortless Mastery", and even though I think it's a great book, the whole "master" thing really annoys me. Am I a master? Yeah, if I compare myself to the dog. I'd rather think of myself as a good musician with room for improvement - I'm sure most good musicians feel the same. That doesn't mean I lack confidence, it just means I'm realistic and know my limitations. Being humble stops us from striving for perfection - an impossible, inhuman goal which always horribly lets us down when we don't achieve it. Better to relax and have fun, so we can be the most creative and play our best.

manolopez · Joined: 12 Aug 2017 Posts: 15 Location: holland

I also dislike the word master, i think it's all very relative

Scott Henderson · The Man Joined: 20 May 2004 Posts: 2122

The word masturbator seems to define my playing better. ha ha Very Happy

Red Suede · Joined: 12 Jul 2005 Posts: 56

Right on, Scott....

Thanasis · Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2017 11:27 pm Post subject:

Hahaha all I know is that if Jimmy Page's "Saturn sigil" symbol was a sound, it would be the guitar volume swells before the solo on Rituals.

manolopez · Joined: 12 Aug 2017 Posts: 15 Location: holland

masturbator haha

Salvador dali also thought of him self as the grand masturbator, any artist that thinks in those terms are the true masters of the universe.

Scott, maybe you can do a masterclass or a video on this subject ? Laughing