Chitarre 1987: Difference between revisions

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[[File:S-l1600.jpg|450px|right]]This story was originally published in the Italian guitar magazine Chitarre in September 1987.

[[File:S-l1600.jpg|450px|right]]This story was originally published in the Italian guitar magazine Chitarre in September 1987. The introduction to the article was not included in the source material, so the writer of this article is unknown.

~~__FORCETOC__~~

==English summary==

''In an interview with Allan Holdsworth, the renowned guitarist discusses his unconventional journey into music, influenced by saxophonists, and how collaborations with various bands shaped his unique style. Holdsworth emphasizes originality, emotional expression, and the pursuit of continuous improvement in his music, reflecting on his distinctive techniques and future aspirations.

'' ''[This summary was written by ChatGPT in 2023 based on the article text below.]''

==Original Italian version==

Line 82:

Line 85:

==English version==

''Thanks to Michele for the translation!

''Thanks to Michele for the translation!''

''

Chitarre 1987

Line 159:

Line 161:

Q: Now you need to practice tapping techniques, so you’ll finally be able to play Van Halen, right?

[And that’s the end of the chat since, in the meantime, this “guitarist that never laughs” slipped under the table laughing uncontrollably and cannot answer my questions any further]

==Chat GPT version==

Translated by ChatGPT in September 2023.

Q: It seems that your initial approach to the guitar was rather unusual; did you like the saxophone?

AH: Certainly! I first picked up a guitar (a very cheap one, about ten shillings...) out of curiosity; my interest gradually developed. I was already twenty years old, I believe.

Q: So, were your early influences primarily saxophonists then? Parker, Adderley, Coltrane?

AH: Yes. The guitarists I listened to the most were Django Reinhardt and especially Charlie Christian, mainly because of the sound. Generally, I don't like the sound of jazz guitar; it's "rubbery," muted, short.

Q: Sorry for the question, but... have you ever played "regular" music?

AH: Of course! I played in the usual pop music bands, even though I listened to a lot of jazz due to my father's passion, Sam, an excellent pianist. However, I didn't know how to play jazz.

Q: Then you began important collaborations: Soft Machine, Gong, Jean-Luc Ponty, UK; that's when you delved into rather complex musical constructions, unusual harmonic structures, odd time signatures, right?

AH: Exactly. And that kind of experience naturally influenced my phrasing. My music also has occasional odd time signatures here and there, but they are sporadic. In those projects, it was a fixed odd time signature.

Q: Have you ever felt somewhat exploited as a soloist?

AH: Don't get me started on that! Especially with groups like UK, my role was to play solos, and often I was asked to repeat them just like on the record, all the same, night after night... which for someone like me, always interested in experimentation, is torture.

Q: It seems that Eddie Van Halen claims you're number one on his list and that he can play what you do only if he pulls the guitar up towards his chest a bit when he plays...

AH: [Laughs] Yes, I've read something like that...

Q: [Chuckles] Why are you laughing?

AH: Well, Edward is a huge natural talent, innovative, he does incredible things with that guitar in rock. But if he has to play over two chords... let's say it's not his thing, you know (more laughter)...

Q: Your music sometimes seems too intellectual, scientific. Maybe because you're working on a completely new and unusual language, making it difficult to grasp. I've also noticed that you never really groove in the traditional sense. Is that a deliberate choice?

AH: Music, to me, is about emotions, not science. But I can't stand a drummer who just lays down the groove; I like those who play, like Chad Wackerman... he's fantastic, he doesn't stop even if you shoot at him. And he never misses a beat; in fact, if I mess up, I have to catch up with him because he won't slow down. He's like a sequencer, but ready for all sorts of variations. And Tony Williams, who completely draws me in when he plays, engulfs me, it's magical. The same happens to me with musicians like Keith Jarrett and Michael Brecker.

Q: Those very unique voicings you use... you mentioned that they come from your dislike for more orthodox traditional chords. What guides you in this exploration?

AH: It's a more pianistic kind of search with a lot more inventiveness. Here, I need the thickness of the second hand on a keyboard. And since I don't like picking, I tend to make all the notes sound together, using my fingers instead of a pick.

Q: Staying on the topic of technique, apart from a more classic vibrato, more rock-like [parallel to the string rather than to the fret], one of your most remarkable features is your extraordinary ease with legato, with an ascending movement that's normal (hammer-on), but a particular one for the descending (pull-off), right?

AH: Well, I don't like that "meow" sound caused by the lateral movement of the string during the finger's motion, so instead of adopting a lateral pulling motion, I lift and lower the fingers directly on the fretboard.

Q: Let's get to the part that will make our readers sit on the edge of their seats: your solos. What was your initial approach to achieve such unusual sounds?

AH: Originality, deliberately avoiding imitating anyone.

Q: Is that why you almost never hear you on a traditional rock-blues type of phrasing... But don't you use it even at home, relaxed on the couch?

AH: No, even there, I prefer to experiment.

Q: It seems you practice and study a lot. You work on scales, chords, and various exercises, but how do you come up with these strange fingerings?

AH: By experimenting with different note combinations. I try to make the notes sound in a certain way. Here's what I do: I try to play the same note on a different string every time it appears in a melodic line; the first A could be on the second string, the next one on the first, and the one after on the second again.

Q: Are you referring to alternative saxophone fingerings?

AH: Yes, false fingerings, where you get the same notes but with different sounds... it's almost like... I sound crazy... I am crazy [laughter]. As I was saying, what I really need is to stop for two years, now that I know what I want to know. I mean, maybe everyone knows what they want to know, but when you have to go out and play and don't really have time to work on the things you really want to delve into... I'll still be dissatisfied [lowers voice], I'm sure even after these hypothetical two years, I'll start again and feel like before. But you play different things, you can be at a different level, and... maybe it doesn't make any difference. Except that... the most important thing is that I would play better.

Q: Allan, what does it mean for you to play "better"? Where is the point where you are completely satisfied?

AH: There isn't one. I never will be. If you're satisfied, then that's the time to stop. There's never a moment when I think I can stop. There will be a time when your limbs move worse, your hands won't do what you want them to do, you won't remember anything...

Q: How do you see the current state of guitar playing? Where is the guitar headed?

AH: I never really think about the guitar. I know what I want to try to achieve with my music, the next step, the direction... how the music reaches you, how it's performed. I have very clear ideas about how all this could be.

Q: Let's say you take these two years, what will be the next move? Will you lock yourself at home and do what?

AH: Writing or... No, just exercises. On everything I'm terrible at. The same things I've always done, except instead of being on stage playing and trying to survive, I'd actually work on the things I need to study. No composition, just practice. If something were to come out of it, all the better. Hard work; it's like saying, "I'm too fat, I need to stop drinking beer, go on a diet, quit billiards, and take up cycling." That's what I feel I need, musically, so I can say, "Okay, I feel much better now."

Q: You need to practice tapping technique, so you can finally play like Van Halen, right? [End of the conversation as this 'guitarist who never laughs' has by now slipped under the table, laughing in a way that he can no longer articulate responses...]

[[Category:Press]] [[Category:Italian Press]]

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@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-[[File:S-l1600.jpg|450px|right]]This story was originally published in the Italian guitar magazine Chitarre in September 1987.
+[[File:S-l1600.jpg|450px|right]]This story was originally published in the Italian guitar magazine Chitarre in September 1987. The introduction to the article was not included in the source material, so the writer of this article is unknown.
-__FORCETOC__
+==English summary==
+''In an interview with Allan Holdsworth, the renowned guitarist discusses his unconventional journey into music, influenced by saxophonists, and how collaborations with various bands shaped his unique style. Holdsworth emphasizes originality, emotional expression, and the pursuit of continuous improvement in his music, reflecting on his distinctive techniques and future aspirations.
+'' ''[This summary was written by ChatGPT in 2023 based on the article text below.]''
 ==Original Italian version==
@@ Line 82: / Line 85: @@
 ==English version==
-''Thanks to Michele for the translation!
+''Thanks to Michele for the translation!''
-''
 Chitarre 1987
@@ Line 159: / Line 161: @@
 Q: Now you need to practice tapping techniques, so you’ll finally be able to play Van Halen, right?
 [And that’s the end of the chat since, in the meantime, this “guitarist that never laughs” slipped under the table laughing uncontrollably and cannot answer my questions any further]
+==Chat GPT version==
+Translated by ChatGPT in September 2023.
+Q: It seems that your initial approach to the guitar was rather unusual; did you like the saxophone?
+AH: Certainly! I first picked up a guitar (a very cheap one, about ten shillings...) out of curiosity; my interest gradually developed. I was already twenty years old, I believe.
+Q: So, were your early influences primarily saxophonists then? Parker, Adderley, Coltrane?
+AH: Yes. The guitarists I listened to the most were Django Reinhardt and especially Charlie Christian, mainly because of the sound. Generally, I don't like the sound of jazz guitar; it's "rubbery," muted, short.
+Q: Sorry for the question, but... have you ever played "regular" music?
+AH: Of course! I played in the usual pop music bands, even though I listened to a lot of jazz due to my father's passion, Sam, an excellent pianist. However, I didn't know how to play jazz.
+Q: Then you began important collaborations: Soft Machine, Gong, Jean-Luc Ponty, UK; that's when you delved into rather complex musical constructions, unusual harmonic structures, odd time signatures, right?
+AH: Exactly. And that kind of experience naturally influenced my phrasing. My music also has occasional odd time signatures here and there, but they are sporadic. In those projects, it was a fixed odd time signature.
+Q: Have you ever felt somewhat exploited as a soloist?
+AH: Don't get me started on that! Especially with groups like UK, my role was to play solos, and often I was asked to repeat them just like on the record, all the same, night after night... which for someone like me, always interested in experimentation, is torture.
+Q: It seems that Eddie Van Halen claims you're number one on his list and that he can play what you do only if he pulls the guitar up towards his chest a bit when he plays...
+AH: [Laughs] Yes, I've read something like that...
+Q: [Chuckles] Why are you laughing?
+AH: Well, Edward is a huge natural talent, innovative, he does incredible things with that guitar in rock. But if he has to play over two chords... let's say it's not his thing, you know (more laughter)...
+Q: Your music sometimes seems too intellectual, scientific. Maybe because you're working on a completely new and unusual language, making it difficult to grasp. I've also noticed that you never really groove in the traditional sense. Is that a deliberate choice?
+AH: Music, to me, is about emotions, not science. But I can't stand a drummer who just lays down the groove; I like those who play, like Chad Wackerman... he's fantastic, he doesn't stop even if you shoot at him. And he never misses a beat; in fact, if I mess up, I have to catch up with him because he won't slow down. He's like a sequencer, but ready for all sorts of variations. And Tony Williams, who completely draws me in when he plays, engulfs me, it's magical. The same happens to me with musicians like Keith Jarrett and Michael Brecker.
+Q: Those very unique voicings you use... you mentioned that they come from your dislike for more orthodox traditional chords. What guides you in this exploration?
+AH: It's a more pianistic kind of search with a lot more inventiveness. Here, I need the thickness of the second hand on a keyboard. And since I don't like picking, I tend to make all the notes sound together, using my fingers instead of a pick.
+Q: Staying on the topic of technique, apart from a more classic vibrato, more rock-like [parallel to the string rather than to the fret], one of your most remarkable features is your extraordinary ease with legato, with an ascending movement that's normal (hammer-on), but a particular one for the descending (pull-off), right?
+AH: Well, I don't like that "meow" sound caused by the lateral movement of the string during the finger's motion, so instead of adopting a lateral pulling motion, I lift and lower the fingers directly on the fretboard.
+Q: Let's get to the part that will make our readers sit on the edge of their seats: your solos. What was your initial approach to achieve such unusual sounds?
+AH: Originality, deliberately avoiding imitating anyone.
+Q: Is that why you almost never hear you on a traditional rock-blues type of phrasing... But don't you use it even at home, relaxed on the couch?
+AH: No, even there, I prefer to experiment.
+Q: It seems you practice and study a lot. You work on scales, chords, and various exercises, but how do you come up with these strange fingerings?
+AH: By experimenting with different note combinations. I try to make the notes sound in a certain way. Here's what I do: I try to play the same note on a different string every time it appears in a melodic line; the first A could be on the second string, the next one on the first, and the one after on the second again.
+Q: Are you referring to alternative saxophone fingerings?
+AH: Yes, false fingerings, where you get the same notes but with different sounds... it's almost like... I sound crazy... I am crazy [laughter]. As I was saying, what I really need is to stop for two years, now that I know what I want to know. I mean, maybe everyone knows what they want to know, but when you have to go out and play and don't really have time to work on the things you really want to delve into... I'll still be dissatisfied [lowers voice], I'm sure even after these hypothetical two years, I'll start again and feel like before. But you play different things, you can be at a different level, and... maybe it doesn't make any difference. Except that... the most important thing is that I would play better.
+Q: Allan, what does it mean for you to play "better"? Where is the point where you are completely satisfied?
+AH: There isn't one. I never will be. If you're satisfied, then that's the time to stop. There's never a moment when I think I can stop. There will be a time when your limbs move worse, your hands won't do what you want them to do, you won't remember anything...
+Q: How do you see the current state of guitar playing? Where is the guitar headed?
+AH: I never really think about the guitar. I know what I want to try to achieve with my music, the next step, the direction... how the music reaches you, how it's performed. I have very clear ideas about how all this could be.
+Q: Let's say you take these two years, what will be the next move? Will you lock yourself at home and do what?
+AH: Writing or... No, just exercises. On everything I'm terrible at. The same things I've always done, except instead of being on stage playing and trying to survive, I'd actually work on the things I need to study. No composition, just practice. If something were to come out of it, all the better. Hard work; it's like saying, "I'm too fat, I need to stop drinking beer, go on a diet, quit billiards, and take up cycling." That's what I feel I need, musically, so I can say, "Okay, I feel much better now."
+Q: You need to practice tapping technique, so you can finally play like Van Halen, right? [End of the conversation as this 'guitarist who never laughs' has by now slipped under the table, laughing in a way that he can no longer articulate responses...]
+[[Category:Press]] [[Category:Italian Press]]

Anonymous

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