PHIL’S STRING BAND BACKUP GUITAR NOTEBOOK Phil Williams,
[email protected] Effective, practical backup techniques for oldtime fiddle, bluegrass, square, and other dance playing on the acoustic guitar. Introduction Good backup - this is what every lead player seeks. If you can play in time and change chords in the right places, you always will be welcome in a jam session or on the stage. If you can go beyond that and add styling that complements the lead player or singer and lets them do their best, your presence at the jam or on the stage will be requested. This notebook will show you techniques to play good backup for traditional string band music. Whether you are providing accompaniment to just a single fiddler or singer, or playing in an old time, bluegrass, country, or folk band, or playing for square, contra, old time, or modern ballroom dances, this notebook will show you some tricks to add to your repertoire and help you be an effective backup guitarist. Never regard guitar backup as a dull, boring pursuit. When you learn to understand the infinite possibilities available to you as a backup player, and the techniques available to bring the music you are playing to life, control the listener’s emotions, and drive dancers and singers to new heights of performance, as well as make the lead players sound better than they ever thought possible, you will understand that backup playing on the guitar, as on any instrument, involves more musical knowledge and thought than playing lead, and, when playing with good lead players and singers, opens your mind to extremely satisfying and exciting musical dimensions.