During his solo Guitar Player Presents performance at SFJazz back in January, Julian Lage told an anecdote about the pressure he felt to speak entertainingly to the audience while he switched tunings.
As he retuned by ear in front of the sell-out crowd, Lage recounted a previous occasion when he’d thought he was dialed into his electronic tuner, only to look and find nothing but a triangle with an exclamation point in its screen. The episode, he explained, brought to mind a quip Leo Kottke made from the stage about using an electronic tuner: “Remember,” Kottke offered, “it’s only a suggestion.”
Having toured with the loquacious acoustic master this past year, Lage picked up plenty of advice about acoustic playing, which he was enthusiastic to share with us.
Be transcendent
“Leo’s the greatest, and a completely unique archetype of player,” Lage says. “He’s a storyteller; he’s a communicator. He happens to play the guitar like no one else, with one of the greatest grooves of all time, one of the most fascinating techniques, and one of the most soulful melodic and harmonic senses of anybody ever. But one of the beautiful things about Leo is one of the hardest things to do, which is to forget that you’re playing a guitar and just feel like you’re playing music. He embodies that transcendence.
“He uses his virtuosity toward the musical means of that transcendence. You can certainly stop and dwell on his playing, but it doesn’t seem like he wants you to do that. He wants you to feel the power of art and sound, and these are his tools.
“That’s been my assessment of him from a fan’s point of view for so long. And the shows we did were quite beautiful, because I’d play an hour, and then he’d play an hour. We didn’t play together at all. It was such a cool presentation. I don’t know why that separation was so important, but it did feel just like two offerings. It was such a celebration of the instrument without it being about our relationship. There was a stoicism like, ‘Here’s this thing – take it or leave it.’”
Be present
“Just playing solo music on the same night as Leo is daunting and humbling. We would talk about it at that run of shows, and we’ve kept in close touch. Something Leo expressed to me that was so helpful and continues to be a mantra of sorts is that – especially as a solo artist – if you’re okay with what’s going on, the audience is too; and if you’re not okay with it, then they’re not.
Be yourself. Trust in what you’ve got to do, and trust that’s enough
“That’s not to say you have to always be okay, but it’s important to remember that you’re setting the terms. You’re the one onstage. If you have to stop to tune, don’t ever feel embarrassed or that you’re holding up the show. Your presence is the whole thing. That kind of generosity of spirit is one of the things that’s so compelling about Leo.
“It’s helpful for me to remember we’re all taking part in this unusual ritual. There are a lot of things going on that don’t necessarily happen all the time, such as having a room full of people just quietly watching an acoustic guitar. That’s a rare and beautiful thing.
“So, he’s taught me a lot about how to simply enjoy that experience. You’re not letting anyone down. Be yourself. Trust in what you’ve got to do, and trust that’s enough. By the time you walk onstage you’ve done more than enough. And then the rest is play. That’s the rough architecture.”
Be universal
“The last thing I’d like to add about Leo is that it’s hard to say what genre he is, and yet he pulls from everything in the world. How do you do that without being kind of stuck in one area? He’s one of the most universal musicians I know. That’s a big guiding light for me.”
Kottke, for his part, appreciates Lage as well. When I texted him to say how fantastic Julian was in a solo acoustic setting, Leo replied, “Lage very much knocks off my socks.”
- Julian Lage's new album, Speak to Me, is available to stream or purchase now.
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