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Explore the Exotic Sounds of World Guitar
Posted by Michael Mueller on October 20, 2010 at 6:27 PM
It seems that guitar players are always looking for ways to expand their vocabularies, break out of ruts, and generally become better players. Often, these explorations involve looking to other instruments, such as the piano or saxophone, for chordal or phrasing ideas.
In his two excellent books, guitarist/author Greg Herriges takes another tack: looking to other stringed instruments, such as the Puerto Rican cuatro, the Indian sitar, the Greek bouzouki, or the African kora, among many others to create interesting new sounds and arrangements.
First up is his latest book, Guitar Explorer. Here, Herriges offers an in-depth exploration of world music and how to play the music and mimic the sounds of various other stringed/fretted instruments on the guitar.
In World Guitar, Herriges similarly provides lessons on existing guitar traditions from all over the world, including Asia, the Middle East, Africa, India, Brazil, and more.
Both books come with audio CDs with demos of all the exercises and song arrangements. ~ GuitarInstructor.com
Music Web Express 3000: Record Label and Music Spotlight, June 2010
One of America’s most innovative guitar-centric acoustic and instrumental music labels, Minnesota based New Folk have a number of rewarding album releases in their catalog... Fitting in perfectly with the eclectic New Folk musical vision is guitarist Greg Herriges, whose latest CD is entitled Telluric Currents. On the fourteen cut CD, Herriges is primarily center stage with his acoustic guitar while receiving select support from Lehto & Wright’s John Wright (bass, guitar), Troy Berg (exotic percussion) and Indian vocals on three cuts from singer Pooja Goswami. With his album title described as natural electrical currents flowing beneath the earth’s surface, Herriges combines a number of musical currents—from Asia and the Middle East infused within the context of his North American roots—into one cohesive musical trip-tik that covers a vast array of World Beat and folk-jazz influences. With the exception of the three vocals featuring Ms. Goswami, Telluric Currents is an exotic foray into the land of instrumental music, where boundaries are meaningless and anything and everything is possible.
The Mindful Bard
(The Voice Magazine, Canada)
Greg Herriges, Telluric Currents
Books, Music, and Film to Wake Up Your Muse and Help You Change the World
Wanda Waterman - St. Louis
Volume 17, Issue 25, 2009-06-26
Poet Who Stands at the Place Where the Streams of Vibration Converge
"Imagine all things/ As an expression / Of universal / Imagination / Sending out a true smile / To
the ones who'll see it / Throwing out a true kiss / Hoping you receive it"
Greg Herriges, from "True Smile," Telluric Currents
Inside the liner notes of this CD is a world map of
telluric currents, the natural electrical currents flowing
beneath the earth's surface. They appear to meander in wide,
unimpeded arcs beneath oceans and land masses. For Greg
Herriges, telluric currents with their movements and
convergences symbolize the linking of disparate musical
traditions, which, brought under Herriges' sensitive artistic
direction, turn out to be not quite so dissimilar after all.
In the haunting "Kap Khun," the Indian classical
songstress Pooja Goswami delivers a Hindi love song with a
non-occidental melody line, sung over a Western key (played on
guitar), and yet the two musical lines resolve together in a
chord that is achingly beautiful.
"True Smile," a song George
Harrison would have been proud to have written, is a deeply
meaningful idea expressed in words you'd never imagine being
able to make into a song.
"Pipeline" is a vintage surfer tune
played by an acoustic guitar master, complete with harmonics,
vamps, tremolos, and rapid runs.
Greg Herriges is a musical syncretist. An ethnomusicologist who has lived most of his life
in Minnesota, he's fished his musical inspiration from Bollywood
movies, Japan, Persia, India, Turkey, and surfer rock. He's
managed to surround himself with excellent musicians of many
cultures and I'm guessing that it's not only his artistic
prowess but also his obvious respect for their traditions that
has made collaboration with him so desirable.
Fact is, the
best musicians and composers are gifted with an empathy that
peers into other cultures and allows them to recognize
themselves in them. Those who develop this empathy can aspire to
create a work as enchanting as Telluric Currents.
Telluric Currents manifests seven of The Mindful Bard's criteria for
music well worth a listen: 1) it is authentic, original, and
delightful; 2) it makes me want to be a better artist; 3) it
gives me tools which help me be a better artist; 4) it inspires
an awareness of the sanctity of creation; 5) it is about
attainment of the true self; 6) it provides respite from a sick
and cruel world, a respite enabling me to renew myself for a
return to mindful artistic endeavour; and 7) it stimulates my mind.
Minneapolis Star Tribune / Vita.MN [18 January 2009]:
Guitar renegade Greg Herriges' new CD "Telluric
Currents" offers folk fusion at its best — a mix of the
traditional and the rockin,' the familiar and the exotic. The
14-track CD is like a passport in a jewel case, with stamps for
Japan ("Hina Matsuri"), Turkey ("Uskudar"), India ("Sabir Khan
Song") and Iran ("The Sugar in the Milk"), not to mention a
1960's surfin' safari to the West Coast ("Pipeline"). Herriges
always comes off as native maestro, never slumming dilettante.
His technique on both guitar and bouzouki is formidable, his
feel for diverse cultures exemplary. Both on CD and in person,
Herriges gets great support from "ethno
percussionist" Troy Berg,
singer (and U of M visiting prof) Pooja Goswami, and Indian
tabla ace Dr. A. Pavan, along with bassist John Wright, whose
prog-folk instrumental band, Lehto & Wright, opens this CD release party. (Tom Surowicz)
FolkWorld (Germany):
"It Plays Me" is the first solo output of the Minneapolis multi instrumentalist Greg Herriges. On this CD he shows he is a specialist on several types of string instruments which form the main ingredient in his music. It Plays Me surprised me a lot. He cooperates with some fine musician[s] from all around the world including Gao Hong on pipa, a Chinese lute kind of instrument, Pavan Allalaghatta on tabla, Troy Berg on several kinds of percussion, John Wright on bass and Jesse Sheenan on tabla. His music is full of influences from the orient, but also from Celtic areas of this world. I love the tune Invisible Fireworks, which contains some fabulous crossover world music of the highest quality. In this tune pipa player Gao Hong plays a big role, and it can't be a coincident that in the other song that I like most, Dragon song, [she] is also playing a big role. But not only these two songs, also the eleven other tunes show a gifted musician who is able to bring the best sounds from several cultures into one type of intriguing music.
RAMBLES, a cultural arts magazine (U.K.) [1 July 2006]:
It Plays Me is an album of amazing sounds. Some will have a familiar tone while
others betray origins and inspiration from different cultures.
The common thread is excellent performance and style.
Greg Herriges opens the album with a very short
piece called "Thread" on the slide guitar. One of my
favourite pieces is up next, boasting the wonderful title of
"Invisible Fireworks." It features the usual guitar
but has me intrigued with instruments like the pipa and jing.
Instrumental albums are notoriously difficult to
review. Without getting very technical, the reviewer cannot put
across the sounds and styles on offer, not that I could do that
in any case. I am not a musician. I am a listener and lover of
good music and songs, and on this album Herriges delivers.
The CD may not produce a range of hits.
Sadly, it may not even get the highly deserved airplay because
of the general shortsighted attitude of radio stations. What it
will do is mesmerize anyone who gives it a fair hearing. ...if
you like good music well played and you like to stretch your
imagination and repertoire you will be rewarded.
By Nicky Rossiter, Rambles.NET
Greg Herriges - Telluric Currents
..really well composed and produced progressive
ethno-acoustic-world-folk. Like 4 or 5 awesome songs, with these
incredible riffs. "Rama B Good" "Uskudar" "Sabir Khan Song" and the closer
"I Hear"
are maybe my early fave's. Interesting hearing them recorded
like this, after hearing them for a number of years live with
him and his extremely talented ensemble. This is a cd for any
Prog fan whose into ethnic and acoustic stuff (California Guitar Trio?)
~All Media Reviews
Raw Technique
February 2, 2008 wildfruitfolkmusic.com
Let me tell you that now I have seen music performed that was so
old, it seemed extruded from the ground, yet it was as new as
the beak of a baby bird that is pecking through a shell.
Luckily I saw Greg Herriges and Telluric Currents
perform at Mabel Tainter Theater last night. These guys are kind
of in a category all their own. If someone excels at Celtic, we
may call them a "musician's musician," someone who
could sit in with any Celtic group. But what do you call someone
who can sit down and play within so many cultures, time
signatures, styles, and scales? A "musician's musician's
musician," perhaps?
Anyway enough of my musing
but they were just outrageously talented, they have this amazing
classical Hindu singer, and if you get a chance to see them or
buy their new CD which comes out in April, then by gosh, what
are you waiting for?
I am thinking about technique as I am trying to improve my own musical performance... Two things
come to mind as I contemplate developing good technique in these
complex skills. The first one, from Greg's show last night, is
to relax. I guess I've never seen anyone play with a lighter
touch and somehow he plays at top speed and gets in the right
place at the right time yet has the time to keep such an open
and almost flourishing left hand, all with a smile on his face
that shows how much he loves playing his songs...
As I forge ahead trying to improve my own technique, I will remember
the gentle lesson taught by these exceptional musicians: that
life is meant to be enjoyed, even or especially when we are
doing something that is exceedingly
difficult.
"This guy is an acoustic virtuoso, in
the vein of Michael Hedges or Tim Reynolds, very eclectic and
very talented." ~The Current Forum
Phenomenal show... I
would encourage anybody who has the chance to see Greg, try and
do so, and especially in a setting like last evening. They did a
jam to close the show and an encore. Hearing some of the songs
like they are on the CD with the tablas and bass adds a lot.
Plus they performed songs off IT PLAYS ME that I don't recall
hearing Greg and Troy doing before due to lack of the tablas and
bass. ~MidwestProg (reviewing the It Plays Me CD release
concert)
Amazon.com reviews:
IT PLAYS ME ~ Greg Herriges [five stars]
I caught Herriges' acoustic set at the
Milwaukee Holiday Folk Fair last November (2005), where he
performed many of the tracks featured on "It Plays
Me." Although often drowned out by the impossibly
over-amplified Asian drum corps set up directly across the stage
from which he was performing (note to Holiday Folk Fair: What
were you thinking?!), Herriges' mastery on guitar (and
bouzouki) was nonetheless breathtaking. Herriges bills his
musical style as "Eclectic Acoustic Avant Chamber Rock with
an Eastern Pfolkadelic Aftertaste"; a description that one
could perhaps blow off as New Age marketing schlock. But
Herriges is no snake-oil salesman selling pseudo-Culture... his
is an artistry that seamlessly weaves contemporary, classical,
and world-music influences together with stellar craftsmanship,
erudition, reverence, and respect. One can hear-and feel-in
Herriges' songs his deep love of the music by which he's
inspired.
Although I saw Herriges perform solo, the album
features guest artists (playing tabla, pipa, and a host of other
interesting percussion instruments) whose likewise-stellar
contributions to Herriges' compositions are tasteful,
appropriate, and absolutely luminous. If you're looking for
something fresh, original, and authentically eclectic-THIS IS IT!!!
Excellent eclectic hard-to-put-a- label-on-it music August 29, 2005
An excellent CD with a steady eastern-tinged
flavor without being totally beholden to the sound. I often have
it on in the car and it works on me like yoga - both relaxing
and invigorating at the same time - perfect for mediating any
movement towards road-rage! For example, "Ashura" has
a great bouzouki-driven rhythm that always gets my foot tapping,
and the interplay with the percussion is wonderful. One of those
songs that builds up and then releases just perfectly. "Ashura"
is then followed by "Particles and
Waves" (an excellent display of Greg's hybrid
finger style
guitar talent) and the mystic "Ikona." By the end of
this series I always feel the urge to murmur "Namaste."
There are a wide range of instruments on display here, with
Greg playing both a Taylor guitar and a bouzouki, while
other artists play tabla and Chinese pipa. I live in
Minneapolis where this artist lives and plays and have been
catching his gigs for the last year or so. He and Troy Berg
(on assorted percussion instruments - his usual partner) are a great show. If you like
high-quality music that is hard to put into a category,
played by real musicians, this is for you. My only regret is
that some of Greg's other tunes that he plays at gigs are
not on this CD, but here's to looking forward to the next
CD!
Venue Comments:
What an amazing performance! Greg, come back anytime! You
made your guitar make sounds we never knew could be made!
Even our own musician had no idea! Greg Herriges was a force
to be reckoned with and we are so happy we were able to
experience his music!
— Crescent Community Club
Press for Earlier Work:
"This strumming acoustic rocker displays Herriges' talent for
pop-juiced hooks and earnest lyrics." ~Billboard [reviewing
the Greg Herriges song "Don't Turn Me Away"]
"Junkie' combines Wire arrangements with David Bowie-like
vocals. The breaks are great." ~College Music Journal
[reviewing the Us album]
"Maneuvers a
hollowbody like a Testarosa." ~Earwax
