Q&A with Christiaan van Hemert

bohemewarbler

This no-nonsense Q&A with Christiaan van Hemert video regarding rhythm guitar playing in the Gypsy Jazz style is worth watching. He affirms a lot of things I've always believed and practiced in my own rhythm playing, especially about the use of the metronome, and he has Stochelo's Rosenberg's back on this. At Samois, I saw a lot of Christiaan performing (usually on violin) with Denis Chang.

Jazzaferri

Metronome is so important

Scoredog

Really great video...not sure at super fast tempo I would use my arm on 2+4, everything else seems spot on. If others use their arm on 2+4 at blazing tempos I'd like to know.

The comment about maybe the most important thing...."playing soft" seems to be the thing most lost on fledging rhythm players and it is sooooo important. I have been discouraged a number of times with rhythm players with uncontrolled volume.

Jazzaferri

I don't use my arm at anyThing other than a ballad. All wrist. Too much chance of an RSI using arm.

Hemert

Well, in super fast tempos you will start using less and less arm because the movements will get smaller and smaller.

My violin technique is mostly rooted in the Auer school (that's Heifetz and Milstein to name a few) and there's a simple rule: large movemens require large muscles. So I only focus on moving my arm when bowing.

The RSI point is a valid one but this can be prevented by not locking any joints. This is a big part of my philosophy on instrument technique (which is based off my violin technique): don't lock any joints and NEVER use any tension for anything (this is why you shouldn't spend hours a day on vibrato practice, cause it's kind of an exception). So move your arm but keep your wrist and fingers relaxed. They will thus move but due to you moving your arm.

I can - and literally have - play/played 8 hours a day every day without any pain for years and years. It is THE reason why I've managed to learn 7 instruments to a performer's level.

My goal is 1000 hours of practice per year. I need about 6000 to reach the "very good performer" level and about 2000 more to reach the "astonishing wizard" level.

I now exclusively practice guitar for about 4 to 6 hours a day and I'm currently at 4000 hours (having started learning guitar in the summer of 2011). There was a year where I also had to add 3 hours a day of fiddle to reach my intended 7000 hours of gypsy-jazz-fiddle-practice so that meant 6/7 hours a day of playing but never any pain. So keep all your joints relaxed and you'll avoid injury!

Jazzaferri

Yeah but you are a young buck and in your prime, I am old and know lots of guys who had to have surgery or even quit playing by their 50's because their technique. The violin player in the band I am in is classically trained.

Btw, I got the chance today to watch the whole of your Q A video and in the learning context you put it in, you have done an excellent job of providing insights for beginning to intermediate level players.

You might think of adding a rule of thumb ... If you can't clearly hear all what the soloist is playing, play more quietly and if in a jam you can't go any quieter, stop playing. Soloists and the audience will love you for it.

In concertand big band we try and drum that into most trumpet players who seem to start at FF and go up to FFFF. How can you tell a good trumpet player? They can play a pp Concert high C in tune.

I struggle to get beyond 2 hours practice a day right now. My hat is off to you.

Chiefbigeasy

Thank you, Christiaan, for this insightful and detailed reintroduction to rhythm playing. I really enjoy this level of detail and attention to the underlying technique of what often seems to be a rudimentary function: rhythm playing.

I've played in several bands and with numerous musicians in one-on-one and multiple member situations. The best music happened when players were aware of their dynamics. This is always meant knowing how to play at different volumes as needed while still maintaining proper time. In one band, I even developed an exercise to direct the band to get louder and softer in increments without changing time or losing tone.

I can't wait to see your video about picking. I have been a member of the Academy in the past and have enjoyed studying Stochelo's versions of the classic tunes, and I have used is picking style as my guide . I have been waiting for this kind of detailed information you were now presenting. You could well lure me back into the fold!

bbell

Thanks to Christian for producing this video and to Bohemewarbler for posting it. I'm now subscribed to Christian's you tube channel.
As a beginner to GJ, I find Christian's wisdom about keeping things simple in the beginning and then adding the more complicated motions once you've established a strong foundation spot on.

bohemewarbler

Here are two videos that I think support the dos and don’ts that Christiaan makes in his basic mini-rhythm lesson.

In Fapy Lafertin’s and Paulus Schaeffer’s performance “Je suis seul ce soir” (a slow tempo tune) we can see that there is more arm movement (generated more from the elbow joint than at the wrist) on beats 2 and 4. I think this adds weight/gravity to the pick and affects the sound of the rhythm playing. In other words, it produces a different string attack than if the action were generated from the wrist alone. We can see this motion in each of the players. We can also see that when Paulus is using the tremolo, which is the fastest attack one can create through a strumming motion, it’s all wrist. Like Christiaan stated in his reply, the faster the motion, the less arm movement. In Adrien Moignard’s rhythm demonstration with Monor Swing (in a moderate tempo), we can see that he is generating most of the movement from the elbow and the wrist action follows from that. While the wrist is not locked, it’s not “loosy-goosy” either. I think this demonstration is instructive because Adrien is applying the key points that Cristiaan makes in his basic mini rhythm lesson: keeping a solid tempo and making it swing without being loud, applying a degree of muting on the 2 and 4 (which will vary in degree among players), and keeping the playing fairly strait, using embellishments as embellishments rather than becoming a part of the rhythm, while also avoiding playing long chords in between the short chords (holding an extra beat at every chord change) on every chord change. We can see Adrien using embellishments and will hold on a chord an extra beat at some chord changes, but only when it makes sense dynamically to the tune. Adrien also uses the upstroke and chromatic shifts here sparingly, more as an embellishment rather than being a part of the rhythm.

In St. Louis, we have a GJ jam that meets twice a month, so I see these things that Christiaan points out play out regularly, especially when new players join the jam. So I appreciate that Christiann has released this Q/A video on basic rhythm technique.

Christiann also clearly points out that there is more than one style of playing rhythm, but I think much of what he says holds true no matter what style one prefers. The more rhythm styles one can play, so much the better as it allows more flexibility. Adrien Moignard explains and demonstrates this in his www.dc-musicschool.com video. That's worth checking out too!

bohemewarbler

I also wanted to point out that Paulus Schaeffer is performing on a Saga Gitane model in the video. For you newbies, the message is that one doesn't have to be performing on an expensive guitar to get a great sound. I saw a lot of players at Samois using Gitanes for example.

hammy

Thanks for the insightful instruction Christiaan!