Ruben Diaz Flamenco Guitar

The Certainty of Uncertainty
(or) To have Uncertainty as the only one Certainty…(part two)

Certainty number 3 is about who I am…,
or

What come’s first?...

Am I a musician ?...
or
Am I a guitar player ?...

The evident thing is that playing guitar should be with the goal of making music. (which transcends any specific instrumentalist orientation)
The instrument should be taken as a vehicle or mean intended to allow us to transport ourselves and reach certain destinations or dimensions…that we can create trough any instrument we play, being therefore transported to the realms of music.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4804204383642032902&hl=es
and in min:1:00 Allan Holsworth says that the guitar is just a tool, and that he is first a musician, and then after a player etc.

Generally It’s very common to adhere to a misconception trough the gross mistake of believing that we will be better musicians by exclusively focusing in “our” instrument and or style ( like guitar trumpet, piano etc.) and by assuming with blind faith that this is the way it is…,until in the best of cases, one is able to admit his mistake and then try to rectify it (if it would present an obstacle in the attainment of his goal).
But what I am nurturing better?...
I know so many of my guitar students who just listen to guitar players…(and perhaps not even all kinds of guitar players, like electric guitar players, including other styles, for example, some fanatic & narrow minded people in the name of “classic musicians” and “classical guitar players” -I am also a classical guitar player but I disagree with them-,they criticize and despised any style that is not classic, and… we will not talk about what the word classic really means in that context... or in other words… classic for WHO?...etc, but lets at least momentarily jump over those “biter” arguments and unavoidable questions that ANY and ALL serious an intelligent guitar practitioner and/or aspirant musician & composer will have to regard and master, that is mandatory…, in order to be a real musician and not a plastic repetition of notes created by someone else… To support this view, I will quote the following video which is the first part of a fantastic documentary about Keith Jarret, there he says everything you need to know and learn about creation as opposed to playing things on a partita etc. Keith Jarrett - The Art Of Improvisation Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZHfRjvpPxQ
One day Paco said to me that we should not play the guitar with the fingers but with the brain -that if we have one-... and then, we should forget about the brain and just play with the heart…)So, this colleges can only think in a guitar context, some of them they play guitar very good and that’s even worse then, because they generally take this success in playing as the “confirmation” that they are ok, and that they are achieving something valuable in music with they poor virtuosity…, one characteristic trait of this people is that, they never take the time to listen or try to understand other instruments or styles, they are too narrow minded for that, and unfortunately they are happy with they blindness which some ignorants take for “unconditional love for the guitar/or their particular instrument”…and what not…

I)
and here Chick Corea about what he learned from Miles, etc: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_eMynKjD3mw

II)
We already know that the great composer Chick Corea got inspired and influence from Paco De Lucia as well
Chick Corea's work specially created for Paco,
“Touchstone Suite” “Ceremony” (Tientos/Tangos)
from “Touchstone” album 1982 (Track 1) Part 2
http://www.rdiaz.org/rdvideo41.html
III)
Here in min:2:49
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAVYrOdUqWw
Gill Evans say that miles created his own sound from others and blending that to HIS taste.

IV)
and that Allan Holsworth accomplished amazing innovations on the guitar by trying to approache the guitar as a Saxophone etc.
min:0:11 http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4804204383642032902&hl=es
and in min:1:00 he says that the guitar is just a tool etc.

V)
Here in minute 3:10 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZHfRjvpPxQ

Keith Jarret says that even music does not comes from music, what to speak of any particular instrument!

VI)
when Miles Davis went to a concert of flamenco dance (compañia de Roberto Iglesias) Here in min:5:58 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwiU6gmFpEI
next day he started the project of recording Sketches Of Spain in this record is the very first record of authentic Flamenco Jazz fusion, and it inspired and guide even Paco’s works as an arranger and as a composer to learn more about this in detail please visit: http://www.rdiaz.org/rdpacoart2.html

………………………………………………………………….

All this shows and illustrates how important it is to listen to other instruments and styles.

Some friend taught me this that: “Be careful that what you write does not offend anybody or cause problems... The safest approach is to remove all useful information.”

Therefore
I want to clarify that my only interest in writing this articles is to correct and instruct mainly my own personal students, including as well, any musician and/or guitar player that thinks he or she can learn something about guitar or music & composition from me.(not the ones that are just pretending to follow me or Paco, and are just making a show)what I am teaching here is what Paco taught me long time ago and, I am still learning from and trough this concepts, and valuable advises every hour that I play. So this is about personal conviction…you know that I follow Paco’s line,I am used to my ways, I am old dog, and, old dogs does not learn new tricks…hence I don’t need to convince anyone about Paco’s views and Ideas, in the case you don’t agree with me or with him, I respect that, neither I am interested in arguing…arguing is for people that have doubts, and I don’t have, so forgive my straightforwardness and lets continue with the exposition as it is ,I just wanted to make a “disclaim” in order to avoid eventual misunderstandings.

To exemplify how we do not learn stuff but through it, I will tell you as an example that: generally people don't derive any benefit by playing Paco's stuff because of the wrong approach to Him. First we should know what we or, better, I specifically want to achieve by studying or practicing the Paco De Lucia falsetas(small melodically parts). I often correct some of my students whom I see wandering without any specific goal in mind while emulating, or trying to play different falsetas endlessly arriving nowhere. To illustrate and considering worthy for aspiring candidates to play guitar(on any style) as best as you can, as well as to factually explore all of your potential through Paco's teachings, I feel inspired to share this treasure of advices that Paco himself gave me long time ago:

One day I said to Paco that:
"people say that actually there is no meaning in trying to play your stuff because no one person can play like you ,and that it is better to try to do "original" stuff rather than trying to play Paco’s music. He laugh a lot of my ignorant remark and, then, he became very grave and serious and said that really speaking those were a complete nonsense arguments and he said that this is said just to justify laziness; then I asked that what would be the proper approach to his repertory ?, and he answered that:

“THE IMPORTANT THING IS TO FIRST GO THROUGH THE FIRE OF TRYING TO REALLY ASSIMILATE AND UNDERSTAND MY(Paco’s music)MUSIC, NOT SUPERFICIALLY, BUT HOLISTICALLY AND THOROUGHLY, CONSIDERING ALL ASPECTS LIKE HISTORICAL PERIOD WE ARE LIVING IN ETC.
NAMELY:
TO KNOW WHAT IS MANUEL DE FALLA'S CONTRIBUTION ,ETC, AS FAR AS THE EVOLUTION OF THE SPANISH MUSIC IS CONCERNED, AND TO ALSO KNOW THE CONTEXT OF HIS (Paco's)CONTRIBUTIONS IN CO-RELATION TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF OTHER "foreign elements" WHICH HE BROUGHT TO THE FLAMENCO GUITAR DESPITE THE BIG OPPOSITION THAT THE RETROGRADE TRADITIONALS as he called them PRESENTED TO HIM AND HAVING THUS PAID THE HIGH PRICE OF BEING DESPISED AND LABELED AS NOT PURE FLAMENCO ETC. HE SAID HE HAS TO DECLARE WAR TO THESE FELLOWS WHO STILL TODAY DON'T AGREE WITH HIS IDEAS ETC.”
I then said that could you please elaborate more on this and then he answered that:
“THIS MEANS THE JAZZ SCALES AND AESTHETIC APPROACHES THAT THIS FUSSION OF ELEMENTS CAN BRING ABOUT HARMONICALLY ETC. TO THE FLAMENCO MUSIC WHICH RESULT IN THE ACTUAL EVOLUTION AND INNOVATION HE BROUGHT TO THE HISTORY OF THE GUITAR AND, NOT ONLY OF THE GUITAR BUT RATHER TO THE HISTORY OF MUSIC AND COMPOSITION OF FUSION MUSIC, IN THIS PLANET, then he said that:
WHEN YOU CAN DIGEST AND ASSIMILATE ALL THIS THINGS WHOLEHEARTEDLY ,THEN AND ONLY THEN , YOU WILL UNDERSTAND MY MUSIC AND ONLY THEN MAYBE…IF YOU ARE LUCKY ENOUGH, YOU WILL FIND YOUR OWN VOICE IN THE GUITAR THROUGH ME, BEING NURTURED BY MY CONTRIBUTION AS A MEDIUM TO DISCOVER WHO YOU ARE ..”

From that day on I realized how wrong I was, and why obviously the robotic learning does not work at all. Actually, it is worst than not having an iota of knowledge, because one can start believing that one knows when actually one doesn't. So, I decided that from that day on, I will do my best 100% effort to understand and accomplish what Paco said that day to me…and I would like to inspire you all, with this priceless knowledge and teachings of Paco De Lucia.

(to be continued…)

Ruben Diaz Flamenco Guitar

Friday, October 30, 2009

The Certainty of Uncertainty (or) To have Uncertainty as the only one Certainty…(part two)

Thursday, October 29, 2009

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Flamenco guitar lesson Toronto (remates 1)

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