Sunday, February 24, 2013

Secret Shadowed Geographies of the Triple-neck Steel Guitar.

February has been a good month for exploring the joys of playing triple-neck steel guitar, using all three necks-- in C6, A6, and E13 tunings.
The two pieces here could not be further apart in mood and style, yet were made using the same instrument,  recorded only days apart.
I have found it exciting to feel the harmonic possibilites of all three necks-- extended chords and lovely dissonances.
This first piece is an improvisation recorded in one pass, and then mixed and sound-smeared right away, to keep a unity of mood and intent:

This next is a straight-forward tribute to my favorite western swing steel player, Noel Boggs, who played with Bob Wills, Space Cooley, and others in the 40s and 50s: As you can hear, the steel guitar has many sounds and moods to express! -KMB

Sunday, February 17, 2013

Black River, White Pines, Winter 1974 : Improv. for Dobro and Nashville-tuned guitar.

This early-morning improv. for Dobro and Nashville-tuned acoustic guitar was made in one take. It stirred up the memory of a certain time and place, the story and mood that was there...