Art of Solo Guitar - Part II

Jazz guitarist Paul Bollenback continues his Art of Solo Guitar series with a workshop on spontaneous solo performance — playing tunes you haven't worked out in advance, with solid time and a groove that dances. He opens with an unplanned performance of Polka Dots and Moonbeams, then breaks down the skills that make flying by the seat of your pants possible.

What's covered

• Keeping your own time — using a metronome as a checkpoint, not a crutch, and recording yourself to test whether your tempo holds from start to finish
• Foot-tapping and groove — making even simple quarter-note bass-and-chord playing feel like a dance
• Internalizing swing feel through exercises with quarter notes, eighth notes, and triplets
• The subtle difference between straight and swung eighth notes
• Staying in the pocket when fatigue or memory lapses threaten a performance
• Balancing spontaneity with worked-out material — with reference to players like Gene Bertoncini, Howard Alden, and George Benson, who do both

For intermediate to advanced players who want to move beyond prepared pieces and improvise full solo guitar performances with confidence. As Paul puts it, a little tempo drift won't kill you — beautiful communication with the listener matters more than machine-perfect time.