Recording artist and composer teaching guitar, harmony and composition skills to make the guitar work for you!

Find out more about Edward

• When did you first develop a passion for music and your favorite instrument?

  I had a deep personal connection to music from an early age. My dad taught me how to use an iPod at age 4 where I first discovered a few of my favorite bands. ZZ top, the Pet Shop Boys, Guns 'N Roses all mark some of my early introductions to music. It was around age 7 that I chose the guitar to be my introduction to performing music. Since then, it has grown into being the thing that shapes my life more than anything!

• Is there a particular type of music or artist that you listen to on a loop without it driving you crazy?

  I am a DJ, so I'm constantly searching for new music, and my tastes go all over the place. As of late, the experimental guitarist Daniel Bachman, Prince, Georgian folk musician Hamlet Gonashvili, Estonian composer Arvo Pärt, Muslimgauze, experimental electronic composer Elysia Crampton/Chuquimamani Condori, Ne-Yo, Paul and Linda McCartney, new electronic musician Oklou, and all sorts of dance music that I hear at clubs near me in Brooklyn.

• Explain to us the most difficult or riveting course you could personally give to a student of music.

  Before embarking on the course, the student would need to have basic proficiency of one or more instruments and a comfortable understanding of western composition techniques, such as reading key-signatures, performing in various time signatures, and composing in different time signatures and keys, modes, and harmonic styles.
  The course would be intended to create as nuanced and in-depth of a view of music as possible, tracing the natural roots of music down to the physical phenomena that give us the perception of music that we have today, and push the student to question what music is at its most fundamental level. It would likely be categorized as a class on "Experimental" music, but the goal of the class would be to provide the student with enough information to come up with their theory as to how music has evolved throughout the ages. Hopefully, by the end of the class, the student would learn that whatever "experiment" occurs in music only reveals a previously existing, naturally occurring phenomenon. It would inspire questions regarding music connection to evolution, modernism, senses of community, and the current political landscape.
  The class would begin with a study of bird songs. The twelve-tone scale we use in Western music is based on a naturally occurring physical phenomenon, which the birds perceive as well, with some caveats. We'd analyze bird songs around the world and transpose them into western music notation on the students' instrument of choice as an exercise to show us how our conceptions of music are far more rigid than we may imagine. Next, we'd analyze a few styles of music that were popular in the 20th century, with the hopes of pulling as diverse of an array as possible.
  For American music, the students would study Mississippi Delta blues. Looking at the lyrics and musical concepts from musicians like Mississippi John Hurt, Robert Johnson, John Lee Hooker and more. Though the genre was based around the guitar and the voice, whatever instrument the student owned, we would push ourselves to analyze the blues with that instrument.
  Next, the student and I would study Holy Minimalism, a genre of classical music made popular by Arvo Pärt and Henryk Gorecki, which focuses on slow, rich harmonies sung by choirs and performed by symphony orchestras. It's an equally virtuosic and meditative genre, balancing explorations of aesthetic beauty with intellectual curiosity. The genre pushes musical boundaries without sacrificing a primary focus on beauty and emotional quality. Many "experimental" genres of the 20th century, like free-jazz, sought to forego standard conceptions of aesthetic beauty for the sake of intellectual inquiry. While this is a rich and wonderful form of musical study, I prefer the capability Holy Minimalism has to balance these two.
  To look at complex forms of rhythm, the students study the pieces from Paul Bowles recording Music of Morocco. Many of the recordings feature complex polyrhythms rarely heard in Western music and would push the student to explore a more nuanced view of rhythm. We'd attempt to transpose these rhythms into traditional western notation, as well as in a DAW, with the intention of showcasing some of the strengths and weaknesses of some of the contemporary forms of archiving that we have in music.
  We'd also discuss the ethics of archiving and the political ramifications of the genre title of "world" music. How does the archiving process affect the political status of the groups that this record captured? How does it contribute to the contemporary political landscape? This would be one of the more challenging and intense sections of the class, as political analysis is deeply personal, and offers legitimate, real-world repercussions. It would be necessary to treat every subject with delicacy and open-mindedness.
  Next, we'd look at a few "subcultures" that later received international acclaim. The British punk movement, Brazil's Baile Funk, and Outlaw Country are all region-specific, alternative musical genres that grew to achieve international fame. We'd analyze how the lyrical content reflects socio-economic status and the philosophy of the community surrounding each respective genre. Each style of music has its own distinctive musical style, and the students would attempt to replicate each style with one song, with the hopes of learning the nuances of the genre's musical vocabulary in an effort to better understand the genre's influential impact.
  
  At the end of the course, the students would reflect on how their personal relationship to music has evolved over the course of their life with a written essay and performance. For the performance, they would compose 15+ minutes of original music that would attempt to explore some of the questions that most intrigued them along the way throughout the class.

• What do you think is the most complicated instrument to master and why?

  I can only give a personal answer to this, as "difficulty" in music is incredibly subjective. For someone with perfect pitch, playing a microtonal instrument would be tremendously stressful, while singing in a choir and arranging harmonies would be very easy. For someone who was raised around Djembe drum circles, playing the poly-rhythms of some of the traditional Bambara music would be easier than someone who was raised around Country music with a banjo and vice versa for a West African person trying to learn the banjo.
  
  I would think that the bagpipes would be a difficult instrument to master, seeing as I have never played a breath-driven instrument, and some of the melodies bagpipes are meant to play are foreign to me and would thus require intensive ear-training to re-orient my sense of musicality.

• What are your keys to success?

  Curiosity: If a musician fails to maintain their curiosity for new means of expression, then they will become stagnant and lose inspiration to create new things. A great musician is always trying to find new answers to new questions.
  
  Discipline: All the talent in the world won't get you anywhere if you cannot commit to a routine. Music is a beautiful discipline that brings a tremendous amount of peace and comfort to a chaotic world. Taking time out of every day to commit to the study of music is not only something that will improve your musical capabilities by leaps and bounds, but it will equip you with a better sense of belonging, confidence, and appreciation for the music around you in life. While it may prove daunting and painful at first, the discipline of musical practice quickly becomes a place of comfort and security. Once the student learns the serenity and peace of mind that accompanies discipline, the enrichment that music brings to their life will be revealed in full force.
  
  Dancing - Music is a physical thing, and can inspire an immense amount of joy. Students should seek to remind themselves how their physical body connects to the sounds they hear around them. While not all music is meant to be "danced" to, students should always seek to maintain the connection between body and mind with their music. When musicians get too bogged down with complex ideas they are incapable of answering, it can smother the joy of music. Dancing is a fantastic way to reconnect with some of the most primal instincts that we have relating to music. Every musician needs to get out of their head every once and a while and remember that music ought to be fun!
  
  Community- a community that celebrates music is essential to the success of anyone attempting to deepen their relationship to music. Being around others who love the same encourages us to deepen and cherish that love. If outside pressures tell us that our love for music is wrong or ill-advised, it becomes difficult to maintain the passion and inspiration necessary for success.

• Name three musicians you dream of meeting in your favourite bar in the early hours of the morning. Explain why.

  Elysia Crampton/ Chuquimanani Condri- Elysia Crampton/ Chuquimamani Condori is an experimtnal electronic musician whose work archives Aymara culture and explores the relationship between ancient native cultures, queerness, and the cross-culture diaspora of contemporary day America. A quintessential artist of the 21st century, Condori's work showcases a profoundly deep and well-studied relationship with music that is pure and joyous. Her work elicits such intense emotions in me that I would love to be able to discuss with her. I also find the way she weaves music and historical preservation together in music. Much of her music features traditional Aymara musical motifs that have gone otherwise undocumented in the landscape of recorded music. Blending these motifs together with references to popular culture and contemporary dance music, her music seems to carry the force of many years behind it. It is timeless. I would love to ask her for some wisdom regarding maintaining such a deep and personal connection to music.
  
  Arvo Part- Arvo Pärt endured years of censorship from the USSR while composing in Estonia during the 70s, and persevered exile and material poverty because he believed so deeply in his work. His music is an expression of the commitment he has to his deep, Orthodox Christian faith. It is timeless, beautiful, and meditative and has offered an enormous amount of solace to me in the past. As he is now 90 years old, I would simply like to thank the man for the inspiration he has given me due to the commitment he has shown in his work.
  
  Prince- Though I'd have to resurrect him from the dead to do this, I would love to experience just an ounce of the joy that Prince got from music. A stellar example of how discipline enriches one's life, Prince embodied music and is one of the most well-actualized figures in pop music history. He developed an entirely individual musical style, dance style, and fashion sense and shared it all with immense joy and passion. I would love to get a little wisdom regarding maintaining discipline, how to embrace your "freakiest" sides, and of course, I would love to hit the dance floor with Prince for a few songs.

• Provide a valuable anecdote related to music or your days at music school.

  At Blackbird Academy, the first institution where I studied music, I was blessed to be taught by the late Mark Rubel. Rubel was a community hero and well-renowned audio engineer. His philosophy regarding audio recording is perhaps the greatest influence I have on my teaching. The engineer's job was, as Rubel put it, to "transfer the energy of the musician onto the recording as best as possible." Oftentimes, people judge records for "sounding good," based on whether or not the audio is clear, loud and the instruments are perceptible. Rubel beckoned us to develop a deeper relationship to music and recording than just a mere science. A symphony orchestra should never be recorded in the same way as a pop song intended for the radio. It was his mission to equip us students with the tools necessary to convey the message of every musical with the greatest fidelity.
  I came into the classroom wanting to learn how to make every instrument in my tracks sound big and loud, every drum punchy and pronounced. I left instead with a completely different idea of what makes a good recording, and thusly, a greater respect and interest in music as a whole. I left with a curiosity for genres I'd never considered being interested in, such as the blues and country. I left feeling more confident in my own capabilities as an engineer and, thus, far more creatively inspired.

• What are the little touches that make you a Superprof in music?

  Every student is different. I want to help every student develop their personal relationship to their instrument of choice best. I pride myself on taking an extensive amount of time to learn what it is that each student wants, and steering them in the right direction to achieve their goals, offering guidance and insight where neccessary, and encouragement when their are reluctant to pursue something that I feel confident will move them in the right direction. Above all, my goal is to deepen every student's relationship with music.
  
  I come from a multi-instrumental background with a focus on composition. The expressive capabilities of music are what interest me above all. This shapes the way I look at my instrument, as well as the goals and habits of every one of my students. It is my fundamental belief that no instrument is too broken, no student is too unskilled, no voice is too untrained, no feet are too slow to be able to express the heart and soul of its possessor.