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Speed… an End or a Mean? by Igor Saavedra
Meet Igor Saavedra –
It’s incredibly interesting how two persons who are studying and putting into practice the same topics, at the same time, might be experiencing something that is completely different.
Musicians and bassists that have a tendency to play faster than the average or faster than most of their colleagues have frequently been criticized. One of the reasons for this is that these “fast runs,” most of the time, have the tendency to sound out of musical context and can be technically deficient… in other words, the musicians that have this tendency are usually trying to say more than what they are able to say properly. But watch out, because this is not always the case!
I think that this expressive manifestation (playing fast), should not be discussed lightly, but rather should be subject to at least one simple, accurate and objective analysis. For me, the first thing is to be able to clearly differentiate the two kinds of subjects that are often interested in playing fast. In this article I’m proposing two classifications as follows: The “Pure Sprinter” and the “Fast Musician”.
1 – The Pure Sprinter
This is the one who likes speed “per se”, that means, this guy doesn’t really care too much if he gets this adrenalin rush from speeding on a bike, car, skateboard, plane, playing on his PSP, or who knows… maybe playing a musical instrument.
In my opinion there are two types of Pure Sprinters who play music.
a) The Self Assumed Pure Sprinter:
This guy enjoys the vertigo of speed, but he understands that this fact doesn’t necessarily mean he’s a good musician; He really doesn’t care too much about music, he enjoys the speed experience and that is it. He might be also pursuing some commercial purposes… remember the rock bands of the 80’s?
b) The Self Fooled Pure Sprinter:
This is the one who doesn’t necessarily enjoy too much the vertigo of playing music fast, though he swears that this fact in itself transforms him, as if by magic, into a superlative musician. He thinks that his musicianship is directionally proportional to the speed he is able to achieve. This is the worse situation in my opinion, because this guy thinks that he is a real musician, but he is not.
2 – The Fast Musician
This is the one who likes music in the first place, indistinctly from the way he chooses to express it. Speed is just one of these ways, so for him speed is a mean to enhance the musical discourse, but will never be an end to itself.
In my opinion there are also two types of Fast Musicians.
a) The Decontextualized Fast Musician:
This is the one who, even though will never put the speed as an end to itself, on the other hand will not hesitate to push the throttle if his guts ask him for that. He will not worry too much if this action will be suitable for the musical context or not. In other words, this guy likes to play music “fast”.
b) The Contextualized Fast Musician:
This is the one who, apart from the fact of being able to understand the speed as a mean, while having the technical ability and the necessary knowledge, also knows when is the proper moment to play fast, always putting the needs of the musical context over his personal needs.
I hope these lines will serve for you to recognize which of these four guys you are listening to in any moment, and with just a little attention it will be crystal clear after a couple of minutes. Needless to say, they all have the merit of at least having spent many hours and years developing a skill, but this ability will have many nuances in terms of real value and consistency.
In my opinion, the most significant and prominent of all these subjects will always be “The Contextualized Fast Musician”, because he has the necessary characteristics to be able to locate speed at the proper place, just as a mean, for which he must have the necessary abilities if the situation and the musical context requires to deliver. This “Contextualized Fast Musician” eventually earns his right to get rid of this denomination, and be called simply, “The Complete Musician” (With the understanding that he is also meeting all the other features required).
There is nothing wrong with developing speed skills in music, the problem arises when it aims to be an end in itself and not a mean that will further enable the performer to play music fast without any problem if he wants, because his physical speed limits (muscular and neuronal) and his musical knowledge are far above what is required.
So what for?
I think that I’ve expressed my opinion very clearly on this article putting the speed as a mean and not as an end, but there’s a little exception to this “rule.” What’s the point in playing fast? Well, speed is a part of life as slowness is… life is like Ying and Yang and all the opposites are always communicating and harmonizing, and obviously both are always necessary, so that means playing fast is also necessary.
Playing slow ballads is cool and I love it, but for some reason people assume that a musician that has the tendency to play slow or mid-speed music has to be more “musical” than a musician that has the tendency to play fast. In my opinion, this is just a construction made up by the sum of opinions of many people through the years that have not had the luck of having heard good “fast” music or musicians, or maybe by frustrated musicians that have not even being able to achieve a valid aspect of the music spectrum which is to play fast, so to be able to transmit effectively human feelings and experiences like anxiety, hesitation, dizziness and many more.
As I said, a Complete Musician also has to be able to transmit this feelings effectively, as long as they are able to achieve a fast harmonic mental process and obviously to achieve the technique needed to transmit those ideas on the instrument.
All of us know that being able to play slow eventually helps to be able to play fast, but you don’t have to forget that being able to play fast also helps to play slow. How is that?
Let’s say the legal limit on the highway is 90 miles per hour. A good example is the feeling you get while driving a Ferrari Enzo at 90 miles per hour (The car is capable of going at 220 miles per hour). Compare that feeling to the one you will get driving a Ford Escort (nothing against that car) at the same 90 miles per hour. (This car is able to go at a maximum speed of 110 miles per hour)
Suppose both situations are within the legal speed limit… so both situations are “legal”, so nobody is going faster than he should. While you are driving the Ferrari your maximum speed is way above so the car is completely “relaxed” and is not being forced at all in any way; Needless to say that what is happening to the Ford Escort is quite the opposite.
We might choose to try and achieve that Ferrari feeling while also being a respectful driver, driving at 45 miles an hour when we are on the city, at 90 miles per hour when we are on the Highway, and if we are in Germany driving at the Autobahn where there’s no speed limit we will just love to drive whatever speed we want and enjoy the ride. With this I’m trying to express that we should always be considering the musical context we are in, so to be able to decide if we are going to play fast or not.
For the musician, the audience is able to feel very easily if you are close to burning your engine, because your face and your gestures, and mostly the music you are playing will always show what’s happening with you. We don’t want to transmit uncomfortableness to our audience, so if we are going to have to play fast we want them to feel that adrenalin rush without suffering. If we want them to experience pain, suffering or something like that, we must use a “voluntary” musical tool.
When studying music I always tried to practice taking into consideration that I wanted to be “musical” in the first place. In terms of technique I wanted to achieve the maximum efficiency and the maximum relaxation possible also while trying to get the best sound I could… that was my trip. What happened eventually was that without even noticing I was able to play sixteenth note lines over 300 bpm on my bass. I have never played at that speed in any musical context because I haven’t found the musical reasons to do that, but I can tell you that just knowing and “feeling” the potentially achievable speed has helped me to play at the usual fast speeds without suffering at all (physically and emotionally), and I think that all this happens for the reasons I’ve mentioned throughout this article.
Finally, is up to you… all I’ve said here is just my opinion about “The speed issue in music”, and is based on my personal experience. I suggested taking the speed as a mean and not as an end, but I’ve also mentioned what I consider just the only case in which speed might be and end in itself, but always relating it to the musical context.
Let me know what you think!
See you guys on my next article…
Gear News
New Gear: Esopus Guitars Launches New Acoustic/Electric Bass
Esopus Guitars Launches New Acoustic/Electric Bass…
Esopus Guitars is proud to announce the new “Tailwater” bass guitar, from legendary bass luthier Stuart Spector. This 32” scale bass is handcrafted by Stuart using the only finest woods and components at the Esopus Guitar workshop located near Woodstock NY in the Catskill Mountains.
From its fully carved spruce top (the top is carved on both its exterior and interior surfaces) with a thumb rest that is elegantly carved into the top, to its custom-made Fishman piezo pickup and super hard Carnauba wax finish, every detail of the Tailwater is part of creating the ultimate playing experience.
The Tailwater bass features a fully chambered spruce over alder body (15.5″ lower body bout width, 2.25″ body thickness measuring from the peak of the carved top) that delivers a super comfortable tonal tool for all your low-end needs.
Each Tailwater bass is hand-signed and numbered on the back of the peghead by Stuart Spector. A very limited number of Tailwater basses are handcrafted each year at the Esopus workshop.
“I am proud to present the Tailwater bass, a bass that I have spent the last three years perfecting. The Tailwater is a culmination of all of my 45 years of experience, knowledge, and passion for bass guitar crafting. I am so eager to hear what fellow musicians create with this exciting new instrument.” -Stuart Spector
Direct Pricing : $4995.00 plus options.
For more information about Esopus Guitars and Stuart Spector’s handcrafted instruments, visit www.EsopusGuitars.com.
Bass Videos
Tour Touch Base (Bass) with Ian Allison
Ian Allison Bassist extreme…
Most recently Ian has spent the last seven years touring nationally as part of Eric Hutchinson and The Believers, sharing stages with acts like Kelly Clarkson, Pentatonix, Rachel Platten, Matt Nathanson, Phillip Phillips, and Cory Wong playing venues such as Radio City Music Hall, The Staples Center and The Xcel Center in St. Paul, MN.
I had a chance to meet up with him at the Sellersville Theater in Eastern Pennsylvania to catch up on everything bass. Visit online at ianmartinallison.com/
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This Week’s Top 10 Basses on Instagram
Check out our top 10 favorite basses on Instagram this week…
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Features
Interview With Audic Empire Bassist James Tobias
Checking in with Bergantino Artist James Tobias
James Tobias, Bassist for psychedelic, Reggae-Rock titans Audic Empire shares his history as a musician and how he came to find Bergantino…
Interview by Holly Bergantino
James Tobias, a multi-talented musician and jack-of-all-trades shares his story of coming up as a musician in Texas, his journey with his band Audic Empire, and his approach to life and music. With a busy tour schedule each year, we were fortunate to catch up with him while he was out and about touring the US.
Where were you born and raised?
I was born in Dallas, Texas and lived in the Dallas area most of my life with the exception of 1 year in Colorado. I moved to the Austin area at age 18.
What makes the bass so special to you particularly, and how did you gravitate to it?
I honestly started playing bass because we needed a bass player and I was the one with access to a bass amp and bass. I played rhythm guitar and sang up until I met Ronnie, who I would later start “Audic Empire” with. He also played rhythm guitar and sang and we didn’t know any bass players, so we had to figure something out. I still write most of my songs on guitar, but I’ve grown to love playing the bass.
How did you learn to play, James?
I took guitar lessons growing up and spent a lot of time just learning tabs or playing by ear and kicked around as a frontman in a handful of bands playing at the local coffee shops or rec centers. Once I transitioned to bass, I really just tried to apply what I knew about guitar and stumbled through it till it sounded right. I’m still learning every time I pick it up, honestly.
You are also a songwriter, recording engineer, and a fantastic singer, did you get formal training for this?
Thank you, that means a lot! I had a couple of voice lessons when I was in my early teens, but didn’t really like the instructor. I did however take a few lessons recently through ACC that I enjoyed and think really helped my technique (Shout out to Adam Roberts!) I was not a naturally gifted singer, which is a nice way of saying I was pretty awful, but I just kept at it.
As far as recording and producing, I just watched a lot of YouTube videos and asked people who know more than me when I had a question. Whenever I feel like I’m not progressing, I just pull up tracks from a couple of years ago, cringe, and feel better about where I’m at but I’ve got a long way to go. Fortunately, we’ve got some amazing producers I can pass everything over to once I get the songs as close to finalized as I can.
Describe your playing style(s), tone, strengths and/or areas that can be improved on the bass.
I honestly don’t know what my style would be considered. We’ve got so many styles that we play and fuse together that I just try to do what works song by song. I don’t have too many tricks in the bag and just keep it simple and focus on what’s going to sound good in the overall mix. I think my strength lies in thinking about the song as a whole and what each instrument is doing, so I can compliment everything else that’s going on. What could be improved is absolutely everything, but that’s the great thing about music (and kind of anything really).
Who were your influencers in terms of other musicians earlier on or now that have made a difference and inspired you?
My dad exposed me to a lot of music early. I was playing a toy guitar while watching a VHS of Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble live at SXSW on repeat at 4 years old saying I wanted to “do that” when I grew up. I was the only kid in daycare that had his own CDs that weren’t kid’s songs. I was listening to Led Zeppelin, Hendrix, and The Doors when I could barely talk. I would make up songs and sing them into my Panasonic slimline tape recorder and take it to my preschool to show my friends. As I got older went through a bunch of music phases. Metal, grunge, rock, punk, hip hop, reggae, ska, etc. Whatever I heard that I connected to I’d dive in and learn as much as I could about it. I was always in bands and I think I kept picking up different styles along the way and kept combining my different elements and I think that’s evident in Audic’s diverse sound.
Tell me about Audic Empire and your new release Take Over! Can you share some of the highlights you and the band are most proud of?
Takeover was an interesting one. I basically built that song on keyboard and drum loops and wrote and tracked all my vocals in one long session in my bedroom studio kind of in a stream-of-consciousness type of approach. I kind of thought nothing would come of it and I’d toss it out, but we slowly went back and tracked over everything with instruments and made it our own sound. I got it as far as I could with production and handed it off to Chad Wrong to work his magic and really bring it to life. Once I got Snow Owl Media involved and we started brainstorming about a music video, it quickly turned into a considerably larger production than anything we’ve done before and it was such a cool experience. I’m really excited about the final product, especially considering I initially thought it was a throwaway track.
Describe the music style of Audic Empire for us.
It’s all over the place… we advertise it as “blues, rock, reggae.” Blues because of our lead guitarist, Travis Brown’s playing style, rock because I think at the heart we’re a rock band, and reggae because we flavor everything with a little (or a lot) of reggae or ska.
How did you find Bergantino Audio Systems?
Well, my Ampeg SVT7 caught fire at a show… We were playing Stubbs in Austin and everyone kept saying they smelled something burning, and I looked back in time to see my head, perched on top of its 8×10 cab, begin billowing smoke. We had a tour coming up, so I started researching and pricing everything to try and find a new amp. I was also fronting a metal band at the time, and my bass player’s dad was a big-time country bass player and said he had this really high-end bass amp just sitting in a closet he’d sell me. I was apprehensive since I really didn’t know much about it and “just a little 4×10” probably wasn’t going to cut it compared to my previous setup. He said I could come over and give it a test drive, but he said he knew I was going to buy it. He was right. I immediately fell in love. I couldn’t believe the power it put out compared to this heavy head and cumbersome cab I had been breaking my back hauling all over the country and up countless staircases.
Tell us about your experience with the forte D amp and the AE 410 Speaker cabinet.
It’s been a game-changer in every sense. It’s lightweight and compact. Amazing tone. And LOUD. It’s just a fantastic amp. Not to mention the customer service being top-notch! You’ll be hard-pressed to find another product that, if you have an issue, you can get in touch with the owner, himself. How cool is that?
Tell us about some of your favorite basses.
I was always broke and usually working part-time delivering pizzas, so I just played what I could get my hands on. I went through a few pawn shop basses, swapped in new pickups, and fought with the action on them constantly. I played them through an Ampeg be115 combo amp. All the electronics in it had fried at some point, so I gutted it out and turned it into a cab that I powered with a rusted-up little head I bought off someone for a hundred bucks. My gear was often DIY’d and held together by electrical tape and usually had a few coats of spray paint to attempt to hide the wear and tear. I never really fell in love with any piece of gear I had till I had a supporter of our band give me an Ibanez Premium Series SDGR. I absolutely love that bass and still travel with it. I’ve since gotten another Ibanez Premium Series, but went with the 5-string BTB. It’s a fantastic-sounding bass, my only complaint is it’s pretty heavy.
Love your new video Take Over! Let us know what you’re currently working on (studio, tour, side projects, etc.)
Thank you!! We’ve got a LOT of stuff we’re working on right now actually. Having 2 writers in the band means we never have a shortage of material. It’s more about getting everything tracked and ready for release and all that goes into that. We just got through filming videos for 2 new unreleased tracks with Snow Owl Media, who did the videos for both Love Hate and Pain and Takeover. Both of these songs have surprise features which I’m really excited about since these will be the first singles since our last album we have other artists on. We’ve also got a lot of shows coming up and I’ve also just launched my solo project as well. The debut single, “Raisin’ Hell” is available now everywhere. You can go here to find all the links distrokid.com/hyperfollow/jamestobias/raisin-hell
What else do you do besides music?
For work, I own a handyman service here in Austin doing a lot of drywall, painting, etc. I have a lot of hobbies and side hustles as well. I make custom guitar straps and other leather work. I do a lot of artwork and have done most of our merch designs and a lot of our cover art. I’m really into (and borderline obsessed) with health, fitness, and sober living. I have a hard time sitting still, but fortunately, there’s always a lot to do when you’re self-employed and running a band!
Follow James Tobias:
jamestobiasmusic.com
Facebook.com/james.tobias1
Instagram.com/ru4badfish2
TikTok.com/@jamestobiasmusic
audicempire.com
Bass CDs
New Album: Avery Sharpe, I Am My Neighbors Keeper
Avery Sharpe and his Double Quartet to release, I Am My Neighbors Keeper
A new recording will be released on JKNM Records by internationally renowned bassist/composer Avery Sharpe, “I Am My Neighbors Keeper” is scheduled for release in June 2024.
Sharpe has composed a new work that highlights our commitment to one another. Avery initiated the project as a response to the political and racial division that has grown over the past seven years in the country. “The U.S political climate has drastically changed in the past 40-plus years, especially during the last seven of those years. In this age of greed, which Sharpe refers to as “IGM,” I Got Mine, basic human compassion has been eroded. Racial, economic and social strides are being turned back.
“We have food insecurity, the unhoused, pandemics, school shootings, domestic violence, and an opioid problem, just to name some. There is a need to remind people that each of us is here on this planet for a very short period of time. It doesn’t matter if one has a religious approach or a secular approach, it all comes down to concern and compassion for each other. Through these compositions and recordings, Avery’s mission as an artist is to remind us that we all are interconnected and that ‘We Are Our Neighbor’s Keeper.’ When we help to uplift one, we uplift everyone,” Sharpe said.
Each movement in the piece describes the values we should strive for to help one another for this multi-media (video slide show during performance) and multi-discipline performance.
Many of Sharpe’s projects and recordings have been about “standing on the shoulders of ancestors, heroes and sheroes.” Among his recordings and projects, include “Running Man” (celebrating the athlete Jesse Owens), “Ain’t I A Woman” (about Sojourner Truth), and his most recent project “400: An African American Musical Portrait” (marking the 400 years from 1619 to 2019).
Avery Sharpe has recorded and performed with many jazz greats from Dizzy Gillespie to Yusef Lateef. He had an illustrious run of 20 plus years with the legendary Jazz pianist McCoy Tyner, of which he recorded more than 25 records with Mr. Tyner and performed countless worldwide concerts.
Visit online at averysharpe.com/
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Tour Touch Base (Bass) with Ian Allison
Interview With Audic Empire Bassist James Tobias
New Album: Avery Sharpe, I Am My Neighbors Keeper
