本帖*后由 Stone654 于 2016-12-8 18:36 编辑
Andy McKee：勇往直前
Joe Coffey，翻译Stone654
摄影：Christine Porubsky
有些人专门制造乐器，有些人专精演奏，还有一些人像我们接下来要讨论的一样，就职于媒体旨在服务大众。我们也是这样，每个月更新一下。有些话题非常有必要在我们这些吉他发烧友中进行，这个月，我将给诸位介绍原声吉他大师Andy McKee。
McKee是当代吉他界举足轻重的演奏家之一。作为一名艺术家，他代表着变化和创新。从前以往，我们一直用唱片销量来衡量艺术家们的受欢迎程度，而这种成功与大公司的专业制作和精心营销是分不开的。McKee打破了这一传统， 他用相机和互联网创造了自己的标志。当今世界一个人是否有名气取决于Youtube点击量，而McKee的视频点击总数你根本想不到：总浏览量接近1亿。
但仔细想想，有着艺术天赋和绝佳创造力的他，这么多浏览量也并非空穴来风。谁没见过一个光头大胡子敲敲打打演奏出一首Drifting呢？（此视频目前有33，172，856浏览量）谁又能忘却第一次听到Toto那首Africa的再编曲是什么反应？在这个乐迷动动手指就可以分享链接的时代，McKee绝对印发了轰动效应。他的视频曾连续蝉联Youtube点击量前三。
尽管极具天赋，McKee投入吉他训练的时间也是惊人的。作为一名自学成才的演奏家，他同样通过教别人吉他来学习，即便现在一有时间还是会这么做。他在多个国际指弹比赛上都拿过奖，同过去他视为导师的演奏家们一同演奏，Andy McKee这个名字本身就有很大的份量。这从今年上半年Montreal爵士吉他音乐节上观众们的欢呼呐喊程度就可见一斑。
总的来说，乐迷们对于McKee的作品是十分拥趸的，但同样作为演奏者和吉他发烧友的我们有一些问题想要发问。下面这些问题由PG读者朋友们提出。
Q1:非常喜欢您的作品！您启发了我去寻找那些被传统演奏者忽视的敲击元素，但是我之前买的那把吉他用来点弦和敲击的效果不是很好，插电后压条和麦克不是太敏感就是太钝。对于那些想模仿您演奏风格的吉他爱好者来说，您有什么好设备推荐呢？——Chris Williams，来自纽约市
A1:你好Chris。这些年来我一直在用K&K公司的Pure Westen拾音系统，它是固定在面板下琴马处的三点接触式拾音器。它们产生的声音十分自然，适合敲击性的演奏方式。Yamaha也有类似的系统，叫ART，我将它与SRT系统混合使用。
Q2:你好Andy。我对竖琴吉他十分感兴趣，有没有经济一点的好牌子推荐呢？——Tony Burns,来自纽约州的Fredonia
A2:你好Tony。我推荐你去了解一下Holloway竖琴吉他。他们正努力研发物美价廉的高质量竖琴吉他。我试奏过一些，它们真的很棒。（请移步2010年夏季NAMM的视频演示，链接见原文）
Q3:竖琴吉他是如何成为你演奏的重要一环的呢？——Jeffery Meatyard，来自德克萨斯州的San Antonio
A3:你好Jeffrey。我第一次听到竖琴吉他的演奏是在Michael Hedges的Live on the Double Planet这张专辑中。其中有一首单曲叫做Because It’s There, 我非常看好这件乐器的演奏潜能，但不幸的是在Michael过世之前我没能有机会去听他的现场演奏。然而在2000年我认识了一个叫Stephen Bennett 的演奏家，他也演奏这种神奇的乐器。我们成为了好朋友，他觉得我有能力用它创造一些有意思的音乐，在2003年卖给了我其收藏中的一把。
Q4:我知道你是自学的，但是懂得很多理论知识。你都看些什么书或有什么参考资料呢？请透露一下吧！——Sherry M.，来自印第安纳州的Evansville
A4:你好Sherry。其实我从教别人吉他中学到了很多——这能让你脚踏实地。任何教你音阶，调式，五度圈以及和弦组成的书都可以。有一段时间我钻研和弦，沉迷于转位和替代的艺术。一些讲爵士乐的书真是不错，但别误解我的意思，我可不是专业的爵士演奏家。
Q5:作为一名创作型的演奏者，你真的给了我很大的启发。我很好奇谁以类似的方式影响了你？——Ryan Nusbickel, 来自密苏里州的St. Louis
A5:你好Ryan，感谢你问这个问题。我刚开始弹吉他的时候，花了很多年学习我喜爱的演奏家的曲目。一些人比如Michael Hedges, Eric Johnson以及Don Ross都是很好的榜样。几年前，我才停止学习其他演奏家的曲目，开始专心创作属于我自己的东西。但我没有停止欣赏其他演奏者的作品，包括年轻的一代——Antoine Dufour和Gareth Pearson。近年来我的灵感主要来源于我的家人，乐迷，以及一些我旅行过的地方。
Q6:你那把扇品琴（琴头有g字样）的低音很震撼。我猜是低音弦侧弦长更长的缘故。我就要买我的第一把扇品琴了，又没有什么适合它的调弦值得推荐？——John Turner, 来自德克萨斯州的Dallas
A6:你好John。我拥有的Greenfields吉他是很震撼的乐器。你说的那把G4.2是专门用来特调的琴型，尤其适合一些对吉他来说音高极低的调弦。我*喜欢的调弦是BGDGAD,CGDGBE和C G Eb F Bb D,试试看吧！
Q7:Andy，你的音乐很棒。是什么让你从电吉他过渡到原声吉他的演奏的呢？对我来说，契机是见闻了Tommy Emmanuel在Phoenix乐队的杰出表现。他启发了我很多，有没有这样一个人给你打开“开关”呢？——Kent Ironside，来自亚利桑那州的Apache Junction
A7:当然啦。对我来说是在16岁到堪萨斯州的Topeka去听Preston Reed的演奏会。我之前从没试过钢弦原声吉他的演奏，于是被他的特殊调弦和狂野技巧深深折服。我同样对将节奏，旋律以及和声结合在一起同时演奏这一理念十分着迷。
Q8:我喜欢你的演奏风格。For My Farther对我来说绝对是个震撼。你有这么多首吉他曲来表达如此丰富的情感，感谢你将如此天才的演出分享给我们。我的问题是：我该怎么开始练习点弦演奏和特殊调弦呢？——Charlie Yontz,来自佛罗里达州的Crawfordville
A8:多谢恭维。对于我来说，我*开始是对着Preston Reed的教学录像学习了一些原声吉他上的点弦技巧。在这之后，我试着听我喜欢的音乐来扒谱。我希望在2011年录成我自己的教学视频。对于特殊调弦来说，理解和弦的构成可以帮你找到新的调弦。我个人不是去花时间“掌握”不同的调弦，可以说我每一次都是用不同的调弦来创造新的东西。
Q9:你对Toto的Africa的改编版本十分地震撼，因为你是去模仿它的所有声部而不是单纯地演奏主旋律。你对将各声部结合起来的才能真是令人惊叹，你是怎样编出如此复杂的曲子的呢？——Jason Wolf, 来自加利福尼亚州的San Francisco
A9:你好Jason, 很高兴你对编曲的问题感兴趣。我是从乐曲初的鼓点着手的，*难的部分是搞定这部分鼓和键盘的不同节奏。我会弹一点钢琴，我想这对将两只手的不同节奏分开很有帮助。随后，我开始了更“动感”的思考：将人声部分用拨弦解决，和声部分替换成扫弦，效果很不错。找到正确的指法指型花了我一点时间，但功夫不负有心人。对于键盘的独奏段，我决定用右手点弦解决根音，左手击钩负责旋律来模仿Billy McLaughlin的演奏。
Q10:你在指弹界获得了成功，也同样在圈外拥有极高的知名度，这是很不寻常的。对于那些想走出指弹圈面向大众的演奏者来说你有什么建议？——Mike Thomson,来自北卡罗来纳州的Raleigh
A10:嗯。。。我只能说说我自己。我觉得这是我写曲子的风格的缘故，当我坐下来谱曲时，基本不会去考虑要如何超越其他演奏家的作品。每次我都是想与别人交流存在于我内心中的东西：感受，印象，激情，我想与世界分享这些。作为一名音乐人，这理应是你的目标。如果你也这么想并且身体力行，人们自然会欣赏你的作品。此外，上传你的录像也是极好的，哈哈。
原文：
Go Ahead and Ask: Andy McKee
Joe Coffey
October 20, 2010
Some of us make gear, some of us play it, and, in our case, some of us work at a media company that aims to keep everyone informed. That’s why we facilitate this discussion every month. There are certain conversations that need to take place just between us gearheads. This month, we wanted to connect you with acoustic virtuoso Andy McKee.
McKee is one of the most important guitarists to come along in a very long time. As an artist, he represents change and innovation. We used to gauge an artist’s popularity by album sales—which, of course, were often dependent on big-label backing for proper production and promotion in order to stand a chance. McKee made his mark with a video camera and an internet connection. The modern metric for gauging what the public is connecting with—YouTube views—is hard to comprehend when you consider McKee’s numbers: the total YouTube views for his videos are approaching 100 million.
But then again, when you consider his artistry and sheer originality, those numbers start to make sense. Who among us hasn’t seen a bearded and dome-shorn McKee slap-hammering that rhythmic tapestry of tones in his “Drifting” video? (33,172,856 views at press time). And who can’t remember their own reaction to first seeing McKee’s wonderfully arranged and skillfully played version of Toto’s “Africa”? In a world where awestruck music fans quickly copy and paste URLs to share music videos that impress them, McKee is a reallife digital sensation. His videos were the top three rated YouTube clips of all time at one point.
Though tremendously talented, McKee’s time spent woodshedding is just as prodigious. A dedicated student of the instrument who is largely self-taught, McKee learned a lot by teaching, too, and continues to do so when he can. He has won and placed high in numerous fingerstyle competitions around the world. He now plays alongside the world-class players he used to look up to as mentors. His name carries plenty of weight on its own, though, as I can attest after seeing him wow an appreciative crowd with a solo show at the Montreal Jazz Festival earlier this year.
Music fans in general embrace McKee’s work, but as guitarists and gearheads there is another zone of McKeedom we’re interested in exploring, obviously. The following questions were submitted by Premier Guitar readers/viewers via our website.
1. Love your stuff! You’ve inspired me to explore the percussive elements of guitars that most players are completely unaware of. Unfortunately, the guitars I bought before I started tapping and thwacking aren’t relaying those sounds effectively through amplification. The piezo and built-in mic in my current guitars are either way too sensitive or too sterile. What kind of electronics do you recommend for someone trying to explore your style of playing while plugged in? —Chris Williams, New York, New York
Hey Chris. I have been using the Pure Western pickup from K&K for several years now. It’s three contact pickups that are attached inside the guitar around the bridge area. They have a really natural sound and pick up the percussive guitar techniques very well. Yamaha also has a great system called the ART that is similar. I use that in conjunction with their SRT system in my Yamaha guitars.
2. Hi Andy. I’m curious about harp guitars and have been thinking about getting one. Are there any quality brands that won’t break the bank? —Tony Burns, Fredonia, New York
Hi Tony. I would recommend checking out Holloway Harp Guitars. They are working hard to get an affordable, high-quality harp guitar out there. I’ve played a couple and they are nice instruments! [Editor’s note: Check out our video demo from Summer NAMM 2010.]
3. What were the circumstances when you decided the harp guitar would be a big part of your artistry? —Jeffrey Meatyard, San Antonio, Texas
Hey Jeffrey. I first heard the harp guitar on a Michael Hedges album called Live on the Double Planet. He had a tune on there called “Because It’s There,” and I really loved the expanded range of the instrument. I never had the chance to see Michael perform before he passed away, unfortunately, but in 2000 I saw a musician named Stephen Bennett performing, and he also played harp guitar. We became good friends, and he thought I might be able to do some interesting music with the harp guitar. So in 2003 he sold me one of his.
4. I understand you’re self-taught but actually know your theory. What method books or systems did you use to learn? Please spill! —Sherry M., Evansville, Indiana
Hey Sherry. I actually learned a lot by teaching guitar lessons—it keeps you on your toes. Any book that teaches you about scales, modes, the circle of fifths, and chord construction should work fine. I was always really into chords and loved learning about inversions and substitutions, and there are some really good jazz books out there on that. Don’t get me wrong, though, I’m definitely not a proficient jazz player!
5. As a current player who’s doing innovative things, you inspire me. So I’m wondering who inspires you in a similar fashion? —Ryan Nusbickel, St. Louis, Missouri
Hey Ryan, thanks for your question. When I was getting into playing guitar, I spent a lot of years learning the tunes of some of my favorite musicians. Guys like Michael Hedges, Eric Johnson, and Don Ross. At some point several years ago, I just sort of stopped working on learning tunes from other players and started trying to write my own. I still listen to those guys, as well as some of the newer generation of players— guys like Antoine Dufour and Gareth Pearson. But my inspiration usually comes from other places these days, including my family, my fans, and places I get to travel to.
6. The bass tones from your fan-fretted guitar (the one with a “G” on the headstock”) are amazing. I assume this is because of the longer scale length on the bass side. I’m about to get my first fan-fret. Are there any particular tunings that seem to come alive with those guitars that you recommend I explore? —John Turner, Dallas, Texas
Hey John. The Greenfields I own are amazing instruments. The one you are talking about, a G4.2, is designed with the use of altered tunings in mind. It works particularly well with tunings that extend the lower range of the guitar. Some of my favorites would be B–G–D–G–A–D, C–G–D–G–B–E, and C–G–Eb–F–Bb–D. Try ’em out!
7. Andy, your music is awesome. What inspired you to go from playing electric guitar to acoustic? For me, it was a Tommy Emmanuel workshop in Phoenix. He inspired me so much. Was there a particular person or event that prompted your switch? —Kent Ironside, Apache Junction, Arizona
Yeah, Kent. For me, it was going to a Preston Reed workshop in Topeka, Kansas, when I was 16 years old. I had never checked out steel-string acoustic guitar music before and was blown away by his use of altered tunings and wild techniques. I was also really drawn to the idea of covering rhythm, melody, and harmony all at once.
8. I love your playing and your style. “For My Father” absolutely blows me away. You have so many songs that express so many emotions through your guitar(s). Thank you for sharing your talents with all of us. Here’s my question: How does one get started with tapping and alternative tunings? —Charlie Yontz, Crawfordville, Florida
Thanks for the kind words, Charlie. For me, I first picked up a Preston Reed instructional video and learned some of the techniques and ideas behind tapping on the acoustic guitar. After that, I tried learning some of my favorite tunes by ear from records. I hope to make an instructional video available of my own in 2011. For altered tunings, it helps to have a good understanding of chord construction to be able to come up with new tunings. I personally do not take the time to “master” different tunings. You could say that I use altered tunings to create a different palette to paint with each time I use a new one.
9. Your version of Toto’s “Africa” is mind-blowing to me because you chose to emulate the band’s familiar parts instead of just riffing off the themes. Your ability to give the melody lines that organic quality is amazing. How did you approach that song and figure out what you were going to do with it? —Jason Wolf, San Francisco, California
Hey Jason, glad you dig the arrangement. Well I started with that drumbeat at the beginning. The trickiest part was figuring out how to keep those dual rhythms going between the drums and the keyboard part in the intro. I play a bit of piano, and I think that helped a lot with being able to separate the two hands and rhythms there. After that, I thought that, dynamically, it made sense to fingerpick the verse sections and then really kick out the jams during the chorus by strumming. It took a bit of figuring out how to finger the harmonies and the chord structures there, but perseverance pays off! For the keyboard solo, I decided to use a Billy McLaughlin approach by tapping the root notes with the right hand and hammering-on/ pulling-off the solo lines with the left.
10. You’ve had success in major fingerstyle competitions but have also become popular outside of the fingerstyle community—that’s something that is more rare than it should be. What advice do you have for other fingerstyle players who’d like to break out of that talented-but-small pond? —Mike Thomson, Raleigh, North Carolina
Well Mike, I can only comment on my own success in this field, and I would like to think that it is because of the way I write music. When I sit down to compose or arrange a piece of music, the last thing that I am thinking about is how difficult or how impressive the tune will be to other guitarists. What I am trying to do every time is communicate something that is inside of me—a feeling, impression, or emotion—so that I can share it with the world. As a musician, that should always be your aim. If it is and you do it well, people can’t help but appreciate what you are doing. It also helps to put videos on YouTube. ;-)
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