What inspiring advice do you have for jazz musicians?
The most important advice is to hang in there and keep playing music. It’s not only practice, practice, practice. Be yourself, be the best that you can be. Network. Be a nice person and have friends. Jazz now is a crowded field with less places to play and the market share of just 1.1 percent in the USA. I’ve seen many a musician take a day job and never return to music. The best thing to do is like Mark Cuban said, “Always live like a college student.” You need to have money saved for those many rainy days. If you hang in there like I did, you’ll be ok. Remember the joke, “To make a million dollars playing jazz is to start with two million!”
What lessons for aspiring jazz guitarists do you think are “musts” for the progression of the genre?
I think knowing the history of jazz and jazz guitarists. Every student should start from the beginning to the earliest jazz guitarists and study them all the way up to today. I feel that students jump right into more modern music or guitarists lose their groove or soul. Also compose your own music. This will give you an individual voice.
How did you manage to put your own stamp on classic songs without losing their integrity on your new album, “Standards and Other Songs?”
I took songs that I really loved to listen to, arranged them the way I heard them being played in the jazz genre, and tried to make them my own. Then I said to myself, “Just be yourself”. I used to always worry about what people, guitarists or critics would say about my playing. I used to be really insecure. Now, I know I can play the guitar, so I just don’t care anymore. I try to play the best I can always, also with the best feeling I can - even if it’s not my best day. I think this reaches my listeners because it’s genuine and not pretentious.
What does your current setup look like (guitar, amp, strings, picks, effects)?
It depends on the situation. I play mainly 7-string guitar now. I do still play and own 6-string guitars. For jazz, I use my Eastman AR810CE-7 Arch Top with Seymour Duncan Benedetto S7, Labella 800-7 JAZZ TAPES - BLACK NYLON 7-STRING 14-79, and I use Jim Dunlop teardrop shaped picks with my name printed on them. I use a medium pic for rhythm guitar and acoustic guitar and heavy picks for jazz guitar. I also use a Peterson StroboClip HD tuner.
The only effects I use for jazz is a Boss Fender Reverb Pedal. My main amp choice is tube amps, so I use the Bugera or Fender Hot Rod Deluxe.
My nylon string acoustic guitar is a Kremona Fiesta CW-7 Classical 7 String for Latin and Spanish influenced music.
For pop and rock, I use a PRS Custom 24 7-string with my pedal board that includes my favorite Seymour Duncan pedals, the Dirty Deed, Pickup Booster, Vapor Trail, PALLADIUM and Shape Shifter.
My steel string is an Ibanez AEL207E Steel 7-String Acoustic-Electric Guitar.
