What’s a Mt. Rushmore Painting got to do with Guitar?
Many years ago, I was playing a piece of music with a friend, and he asked me:
“Is that really how you want to play that note?”
Puzzled, I replied with a confused look on my face, “Which note?” He proceeded to play the note on his guitar, and I realized at that moment that I could certainly put more effort into my interpretation of the music. Although it was a piece I had just memorized rather quickly, I decided to rethink my approach to learning and playing music. Into the abyss I went.
So, what’s a Mt. Rushmore painting got to do with guitar? The same thing that coloring books have to do with guitar! I’m talking about artistic expression. As a guitarist, I can decide what artistic devices I want to use, such as color, dynamics, rubato, and so on.
I’m an artist as much as I am a guitarist. My personal interpretation of a piece of art depends on making a conscious effort to create something special and unique. Of course, I must consider the composer’s expression markings, as they are usually well placed. As I thought about this more, I came up with a few analogies to explain creative expression.
The first: Years ago, when I taught at the Ye Olde Guitar Shoppe, the owner Paul Wilson had set up a table where students could wait for their lessons. There were books to read, magazines, and coloring books to give the students something to do while they waited for their lesson.
I watched one of the children color a page in one of the coloring books, and later that day I perused through the book, checking out some of the pages. Some of the pages hadn’t been colored yet, but many others had been transformed into beautiful pages of vibrant art.
While I looked through this book, I thought to myself that it was like how I see a piece of music without any expression markings. It’s not a blank piece of canvas, just a sketch. Sure, the notes are on the page, but as an artist, I have the opportunity to add distinct colors to the music and develop an interpretation to bring a piece of music to life, just as a young child might add color to an otherwise bland and empty sketch book.
The next analogy: Imagine yourself in an art class at a university near Mt. Rushmore. The professor assigns you the task of painting the monument as your final grade, due by the end of the semester. The professor shows you his own painting, explaining that many years ago, his teacher gave him the same task, and it has become a tradition for the class.
What if at the end of the semester, everyone’s painting looked exactly like the professor’s painting? This would seem to indicate that the class was not participating in any personal artistic expression. The professor would not have taught the students anything other than how to copy a painting perfectly, a skill no true artist would ever need.
If I were the instructor, I would expect that the students would approach their painting with their own unique perspective. Naturally, their personalities should shine through in their interpretation. Some students may choose to paint in the mornings, some late afternoon, producing different shadows in their works. Others may choose to paint closer or farther away, to the left or right. I would be the student to climb a tree at the crack of dawn to paint through the morning hours.
Regardless of their artistic choices, the subject will remain Mt. Rushmore, but with a unique interpretation like no other. Just like a piece of music, it will remain the same composition when it is played, but with the individual choices of the guitarist, it is much more interesting to listen to than a simple emulation of another guitarist’s work.
Finally, imagine you are a connoisseur of spaghetti—odd, but possible. When you order a dish of spaghetti from a restaurant, you should expect a dish with some form of noodles, tomato sauce, and meat.
Although there may be variations between restaurants, such as the type of noodle, the viscosity of the sauce, or the number of meatballs, it will always be a dish of spaghetti. The definition of spaghetti leaves a lot of wiggle room: each chef is free to make their spaghetti how they see most fit, but no matter how much they may change it, it must always remain spaghetti.
The page of music in front of the guitarist is like that definition, they’ve been guided by the composer, but they have been given the freedom to make interpretations that are unique to their own playing style.
When you play a piece of music, you must put yourself in the listener’s seat, remembering that you should, “Be your number one fan, but your worse critic.”
Inevitably, another artist may critique your interpretations, just as a spaghetti connoisseur may dislike a particular dish. Although it may sound funny to some, remember that when Paganini was young, many from the audience laughed at his amazing technique, but he became one of the greatest innovators on violin, a true world class virtuoso!
Here’s a brief article on expression, containing some things to consider when interpreting a piece of music.
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I look forward to hearing from you!
Contributing Editor: Will Golay
