CAN YOU HAVE TOO MUCH TECHNIQUE?

You often hear a player being derided for being too technical, and not soulful enough. I'd like to put my thoughts about this here. Many times I've been the person making this kind of complaint about one player or another-- I can picture a few musicians right now that I'd put in this camp (I won't mention any names-- I always get in trouble when I do that!)

WARNING-- STRAUB ANALOGY COMING UP

Playing music is like being able to walk. Your ability to put one leg in front of the other and get from point A to point B is your technique. Your brain decides where you will walk to-- point B, and how you will get there, is up to your brain. These are your musical ideas, and they include whatever you are feeling, or thinking about. Because I see it this way, I question the notion that a musician can have "too much technique." Blaming good technique for what a player chooses to play is like blaming your legs for the fact that you walked into a puddle.

Technique is the ability to execute the musical ideas in your brain. If you memorize a lot of patterns, and play them over and over until they are very fast, you will be able to play with fluidity. Most people are impressed by fluid playing, but the content of your ideas is important also. For much of my playing life, I have worked on my ideas more than on my technique. More recently I have concentrated more on technique, and I've also tried to integrate the two, with excellent results. The goal is to develop your ideas, and develop the technique to execute them. If you can play everything you have in your mind, then you don't need to work on your technique. If you only have two or three musical ideas to play, you should be working on developing more ideas. The best way to do this is by studying other musicians, looking for ideas you can steal from them.

I try to work up technique exercises that have interesting musical ideas. This way I am developing in both areas at once-- as you should also. Whenever possible, the exercises I post will be good for your technique and for your ideas.