Categories
Composition Film Scores Guitar Jazz & Improvisation Stuff to Buy

Martino Unstrung on Journeyman

Martino Unstrung (2008, Sixteen Films, dir. Ian Knox) – the Pat Martino documentary I had the unique privilege of scoring – is now distributed through Journeyman Pictures and available for rent, purchase on iTunes, GooglePlay, Vimeo as well as screening requests. A rare insight into a rare artist. https://www.journeyman.tv/film/6605
http://martinounstrungfilm.com

Pat Martino & Milton Mermikides (2007) during filming of Martino Unstrung (2008)

Categories
Guitar Jazz & Improvisation

MYMA Release

A quick, easy and fun collaboration with school friend, composer, keyboardist and drummer Stefan Melzak led to a release of Sixties Jazz Grooves with the great French label MYMA

Categories
Guitar Jazz & Improvisation Music

Pat Martino GT Tribute

It was a painful privilege to write this tribute to Pat Martino (1944-2021) who passed away on November 1 2021. Published in Guitar Techniques Magazine Issue 330

Categories
Guitar Lessons Jazz & Improvisation Publications

Holdsworth on the Radar

My article providing practical insights into the music and playing of the late, great Allan Holdsworth is now available for public free consumption on MusicRadar (including notation & audio). A teaser below.

Categories
Guitar Lessons Jazz & Improvisation Lectures & Presentations Rhythm

Art of Timing

Engaging directly with time-feel and micro-timing on the electric guitar with specific exercises and style studies. This is for many levels of player who wants to draw focus to the elements of groove which are often excluded, glossed over or mythologized in the learning process.

Art of Timing – for the development of Time-feel
Categories
Guitar Jazz & Improvisation Lectures & Presentations Live Electronics Music Technology Music Theory Research

Digital Self-Sabotage

A live video presentation at the fantastic 21st Century Guitar Conference “in” Lisbon, March 2021, hosted by the wonderful Amy Brandon and Rita Torres. ‘Digital Self-Sabotage’ explores we guitarists’ deep and twisted engagement with the fretboard, and how technology can expand and disrupt this bond for learning and insight.

Digital Self-Sabotage Lecture
Categories
Guitar Lessons Jazz & Improvisation Music Music Theory Publications Research Rhythm

Time-feel in Soundboard Scholar

Soundboard Scholar (No.6) features my paper. “Monitored Freedom: Swing Rhythm in the Jazz Arrangements of Roland Dyens” examines the time-feel in the performances and scores of Roland Dyens, in particular reference to his arrangement of Nuages – and Django’s performances of this piece. Working with the genius Jonathan Leathwood is always a privilege and joy, and I am very grateful that my illustration is used as the cover image to the journal. Available here.

Categories
Guitar Lessons Jazz & Improvisation Music Theory Press & Interviews Rhythm

The Deep Theory & Technique of Time-feel – The Guitar Hour Podcast

A pleasure to indulge in full-tilt nerdery about micro-timing with the annoyingly talented and annoyingly nice hosts of The Guitar Hour Podcast. \m/ \m/

Categories
Guitar Jazz & Improvisation Lectures & Presentations Music

Tuition Clinics at the UK Guitar Show 29-30 September 2018

 

Looking forward to joining the great team of Justin Sandercoe, Bridget, Jon Bishop, Steve Allsworth at the tuition clinics at the UK Guitar Show 29-30 September 2018 at the Olympia Exhibition Centre. I’ll be doing two fun sessions:

Uncaging Rhythm Guitar (29/9/18 1.30-2pm)

Jazz Guitar for Mortals (30/9/18 12.30-1pm)

Full details below

https://www.musicradar.com/news/justin-sandercoe-leads-uk-guitar-show-tuition-clinic-announcements
https://www.ukguitarshow.com/speakers/milton-mermikides

Categories
Jazz & Improvisation Music Theory Publications Research Writing

Music & Shape

Very satisfying to receive this series of books from OUP at long last. Very pretty looking academic books, if you can believe that. My chapter with Eugene looks quite cool including all those brain bending Coltrane Cubes, M-Space and improvisational fields.

Available here

 

Categories
Guitar Lessons Jazz & Improvisation Learning & Teaching Music Theory

4 Levels of the Blues

GT240

For Guitar Techniques Issue 240, I’ve penned a little thing about different approaches to playing over a simple blues progression. THIS WAS SUCH A CONFUSING THING FOR ME TO LEARN GROWING UP. Why? Because

1) There are several effective approaches, and humans being humans can only give advice on what they know. I received conflicting advice from different great players on what to do, leaving me befuddled.

2) Blues playing can be both very simple and intuitive, and hugely complex. Learning to use both intuitive flair and theoretical sophistical takes time (not that I’m done, far from it).

This article to which I owe much to Jason Sidwell for the underlying themes offers 4 different approaches to playing on a 12-bar, 3 chord progression. I found it very useful, I hope you might too.

Categories
Events Guitar Guitar Lessons Jazz & Improvisation

Classical and Jazz Guitar Course in Le Marche, Italy

Urbino2Molto excited to be running a Jazz guitar course (with Bridget running the parallel Classical guitar course) in the stunning Palazzo Mannocchi in the Marche region of Italy 15-22 August 2015 with Helicon Arts. Italian food and wine, terraces, gorgeous views, 2 swimming pools, all food and trips catered and lots and lots of extended chords, guide-tome lines and tasteful phrasing.

Classical and Jazz Guitar Course in Le Marche, Italy

Ascoli-Piceno1 Palazzo9 Petritoli1

 

Categories
Composition Data Sonification Jazz & Improvisation Music Theory Research

Changes Over Time

Here’s the theoretical section of my PhD Changes Over Time (2010)

Changes Over Time:Theory – Milton Mermikides by Milton Mermikides

And the practice portion:

Changes Over Time Practice Milton Mermikides by Milton Mermikides


 

Categories
Concerts & Gigs Guitar Jazz & Improvisation

Spiked

Out of nowhere (well somewhere obviously) I’ve been asked to step in the guitar shoes with The Spike Orchestra. I’ve not heard of these people before, but I’m glad I have a quick listen reveals a sophisticated, witty, complex and satisfying original blend of Naked City, cartoon composer Carl Stalling, Kenny Wheelery contemporary jazz, rock and something unnameable. My first concert with them will be Sept 13th 2013 at the Forge, Kingston and I can’t wait to get stuck into/get roasted by the spaghetti charts.

image

Categories
Film Scores Jazz & Improvisation Portfolio Stuff to Buy

Martino: Unstrung

Composition for Martino:Unstrung (Sixteen Films 2008) Full length documentary of the extraordinary life of jazz guitar legend Pat Martino.

“Perhaps the best documentary about a jazz musician ever made” – Victor L. Schermer All About Jazz – read full review and interviews here.

Categories
Guitar Guitar Lessons Jazz & Improvisation Learning & Teaching Publications Stuff to Buy

Jazz Guitar DVD released

Jazz Guitar Instructional DVD published by the good folk of Future Publishing

In their words…

From the makers of Guitar Techniques this magazine and DVD package is especially for guitarists that can play from lower to upper intermediate level. It’s for those that want to strike out on the path to jazz – or who simply fancy adding some cool jazz chords or some juicy jazzy licks to their current arsenal of chops.

  • To get you started, the most useful chords and scales you can use in jazz
  • Jazz rhythm styles; now you’ve learn some cool jazz chords, do some comping (accompaniment) with them!
  • Learn some great lead jazz guitar licks
  • Playalong tunes:
    • Bossa Nova – in the style of Antonio Carlos Jobim, Joao Gilberto and Charlie Byrd
    • Jazz-Blues – in the style of Barney Kessel, Kenny Burrell and Herb Ellis
    • Jazz-Funk – reminiscent of George Benson and Grant Green
    • Ballad – inspired by accompanists Joe Pass and Herb Ellis
    • Rhythm Changes – essential jazz progression first used by George Gershwin

Available here:

 

Categories
Jazz & Improvisation Lectures & Presentations Science

The Performing Brain

Here’s a video of the presentation at the British Library on March 12th 2012. In preparation for the lecture I was put in an MRI machine with a plastic fretboard (aka ruler) and improvised while UCL neuroscientist Dr. Joern Diedrichsen examined my brain’s working. For the event I performed to a video of my brain activity showing what bits lit up (technical) during improvisation.

On musical learning and Pat Martino.

And my brain on jazz.

Categories
Concert Works Electronic Works Jazz & Improvisation Music Technology

London Premiere of ‘The Escher Cafe’

Monday 23rd January 8pm, King’s Place. The fabulous Living Room In London Ensemble with Manu Delago of Björk fame, perform a great concert – including a London Premiere of new piece ‘The Escher Café’ blending classical, jazz and live electronics. http://www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on-book-tickets/music/manu-delago-living-room-in-london?tid=16

Categories
Guitar Guitar Lessons Jazz & Improvisation Learning & Teaching

Harmonic Literacy for the Guitar VI: Minor Challenge. iiø-Valt-i all over the shop.

Following on from the challenge in the last post – developing ii-V-I vocabulary all over the fingerboard –  the following study takes a similar approach for minor ii-V-i patterns, for example Dm7(b5) – G7alt – Cm7. This will greatly enhance useful vocabulary. Furthermore all of the G7alt material may be readily used in a major ii-V context, and as ever these ideas can be broken up, restructured, shuffled, edited, sequenced and recombined for further editing. As a child I preferred Lego and Meccano to Playmobile and ActionMan. This is because with Lego and Meccano’s smaller and endlessly interconnectable units far more was possible, and the creative imagination had far freer scope; and partly because my ActionMan had missing fingers and only one of his eagle eyes moved.

One should adopt a Lego approach here, but just make sure you put them away when you’re finished.

Minor ii-V-I lines CAGED

Categories
Concerts & Gigs Jazz & Improvisation

Gig! Fri 18/3/11 Union Chapel Swingle Singers & Urban Big Band. Tippett & Ellington.

This should be a great gig*. The awesome Swingle Singers with Urban Big Band. (I’ll be on guitar duties)

Come if you can. Come as you are. Come on Eileen. Come on, come on. Etc.

http://www.unionchapel.org.uk/events.php?gig=b6c16f5e-2434-479e-a7ab-50df22f5…

Thankyoutimes.

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