by Jonathan Collyer

Created on: January 16, 2007   Last Updated: May 08, 2007

The guitar is an extraordinarily beautiful and versatile instrument which suffers from one major flaw.

Everyone plays guitar.

In a culture which values individuality in which there are so many wonderful instruments to play, pick up a bass or banjo, a fiddle or a ukulele. When trying to put together a band, the need for anything but guitarists becomes apparent. How many bands have three guitarists and nothing else?

A good friend of mine realized the glut of guitarists and decided to convert to the stand up bass. He went from sitting in his room practicing by himself to being invited (practically begged)to play with 3 or more talented gigging bands.

When considering a musical path, take note of what instruments and styles fit in well with other musicians. One of the most talented musicians I have known was a drummer. Only his drum kit consisted of a pedal that played a suitcase and a row of different size coffee cans slung over his shoulders. His volume was appropriate for playing acoustic and he could arrive somewhere, open his suitcase and turn an ordinary jam into a ripping performance.

Again, take note of what fits in well with other musicians. Picking up a guitar and belting out your favorite Sublime song may very well leave little or no room for accompaniment. Usually, if a room full of people aren't singing along, they don't really want to listen to you. There is a time and a place for all of the attention to be put on the solo artist, but usually the best music leaves a space for listeners to feel like the music belongs to them.

Learning only one instrument is a great way to stunt your growth. I've met guitar players who asked me, "Do banjos have chords?" Yes, banjos have chords. Any instrument that can play more than one note at a time has chords... When you learn to play a piece on the guitar and then learn it on the bass, the violin and ukulele (ukulele's rip) the music is learned rather than just the finger position. Different instruments open up new approaches, styles and ideas. It's quite cool when you can alternately play the guitar like a bass or a banjo.

There is no sound quite so muddy as 4 or 6 guitars all playing a 2 hour version of Stairway to Heaven. Eeek! What a Sound Mound! It doesn't matter if you are strumming or playing leed, there is no definition to any of the sound. The timber is all the same and the range is identical. It takes a talented bunch to play a song like that on the same instrument and know how to accentuated the open spaces in each others music. Imagine instead a bass, a guitar, a snare drum, a tenor ukulele, a fiddle and a flute playing the same piece. There is so much more space for each musician to fit! And each instrument has a unique role to play...

Just as every person has a unique role to play in life, every musician has a role to play in music. I encourage the beginning musician, sure... play guitar, but don't just play guitar.

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