Ex Roy Ayers, pianista vincitore di Mobo. Pop, Funk, Jazz, Blues, Classica, RnB

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

  My earliest memories include a passion for singing my own, made-up melodies on long car journeys, and an obsession with cars. Ironically, I suffered with travel sickness as a child, so that, coupled with my incessant singing probably made those journeys fairly arduous for my parents.
  I tried the guitar when I was about 7 as my father moonlighted as a blues musician in the evenings. But my hands were too small to be able to do much. Bizarrely, we took possession of an old church pump organ about this time. I have no recollection of how that came about. It had two pedals that you pumped alternately and if you played a big chord you had to pedal furiously to get enough air in the thing. My mother started teaching me the essentials and I learnt from a tutor book. That instrument was a hard instrument to love and it didn't leave Cornwall with us when we moved, praise the lord. But it was the start of my passion for the piano, or keyboard at least.

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

  I could pick four that I listen to like that regularly:
  Prince, Joe Sample and the Crusaders, The Yellowjackets and Pharrell Williams.
  A couple of years ago I discovered the music of Lewis Taylor and listened to his first two albums relentlessly. I like to play Jazz and Latin, but my listening tastes are way more eclectic.

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

  Well, I guess the most difficult would be the development of tone and touch on an acoustic piano. To be able to play with an almost infinite range of dynamics, to be able to make even the brightest and harshest instrument sound warm and mellow, to be able to bring out internal voices in the arrangement with complete clarity. This is a course I am still giving myself when I get time.
  
  Riveting? Well I think being able to play and understand chord progressions, to be able to find the exact chords to your favourite tune or to be able to take a youtube clip and work it out with ease, this is an intensely rewarding and riveting journey.

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

  I would choose piano, without question. Although in some ways it is an easy instrument to get to grips with. It has an easy to learn visual interface. Also, there is no initial technique to master - such as embouchure with a reed instrument or bowing and pitching with a stringed instrument. Of course, as I mentioned in the previous question, to develop the ability to play with touch and tone, a full range of legato and staccato etc, this takes time and dedication, but one can get up and running fairly quickly with the right instruction and clear objectives.
  
  The reason I think it the most complicated is because the piano has such a range of possibilities, styles, techniques. So to truly master it, one needs first to decide what aspects one wishes to master. It is impossible to master all of them. Most of the greatest concert pianist would flounder if put into a Jazz ensemble and visa versa.
  
  One of the things I really encourage in my students, particularly adults who have limited time to devote to playing, is to zero in on just what it is you would most like to able to do on the piano.

• What are your keys to success?

  I will choose 'success' as related to mastering an instrument. Success in one's field contains too many variables and chance encounters to quantify in a meaningful way. (in my view)
  
  Achievable goals would be one of my top tips. Setting oneself realistic targets and working hard to meet them.
  
  I teach mostly adults and their biggest constraint is usually time.
  So it is essential to have an achievable set of goals. Narrow down the field of study and focus on the style of music and techniques that are most important to you.
  
  Also, a realistic practice schedule. Aspiring to an hour a day or every other day is a bold ambition, but futile if it is almost impossible due to day-to-day constraints. Fifteen minutes, every other day may be achievable and much can be accomplished with a planned and strategic approach.
  
  A systematic approach to practice.
  I use a timer when I practice. sometimes I may do 15 minutes of technical exercises before I work on anything else. This is timed and the exercises tracked on a spreadsheet.
  
  A clear distinction between practice time and playing time.
  
  Practice needs to be focussed. The objectives need to be clear.
  It is intense and demanding. For this reason I believe it best to do this in short bursts, again, for me, I stick to 15 minute blocks.
  But our main goal is to be able to play the instrument and enjoy the experience. I recommend a one third / two thirds split between playing and practice, with the bulk of the time being playing.

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

  Prince would be number one. Since this is hypothetical I assume that the boundaries of space and time do not apply! Although an incredibly driven individual, I am sure he was a good laugh. The cheekiness in his lyrics suggest humour and irreverence, two essential qualities in my view. Of course it would be great to jam with him too. Maybe Sheila E on drums too.
  
  George Duke. One of my favourite pianists and composers. Another one sadly no longer with us.
  A friend of mine met him in Tokyo in a lift. He said he seemed quite shy. With George I would probably want to focus more on his tips for soloing and developing such an incredible technique.
  But I reckon he would be good company too.
  
  Keith Richards. Probably a cliché but what the hell. Thankfully still with us at the moment. I love his playing and the stories would be incredible. If I had played a different instrument it would have been guitar, for sure. Wouldn't particularly want to jam with Keith as the piano doesn't really work with that kind of blues, not the way I play anyway.

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

  I used to play with Roy Ayers. Not trying to name drop, but it is integral to the story.
  
  After his huge success in the 70's Roy enjoyed a renaissance in the UK during the early 90s Acid Jazz boom and beyond. We used to play 3 straight weeks at Ronnie Scotts, 6 nights a week, every night packed to rafters.
  
  I haven't been there in years, so I don't know what it is like now, but back then there was a tatty little bar downstairs with fake wood tongue and groove panelling and photos of musicians playing at the club on the walls. We would do two sets and a support band of British Jazz stalwarts would play during the interval.
  
  We were all downstairs in the bar with the punters, many of whom had 'had a few ales' to quote the film 'Withnail and I'
  At the time there was a great band playing in the interval lead by one of the most famous British Sax players of the time, whose name I won't mention.
  
  This guy -let's call him Dave - came up to Roy and slurred that he thought Roy was 'brilliant mate. Loved it'. Then he asked Roy what he thought about the Sax player now playing upstairs. Being British, 'Dave' was justifiably proud of how good he was.
  
  Roy said that he kinda sounded like Coltrane. "YEAH!" exclaimed Dave. "Amazin' init?" Roy continued " Well, Coltrane's already done that, so unless he feels he can do Coltrane, better than Coltrane, what's the point of it?" This left Dave rather bemused, not being the response he had anticipated at all. "Yeah…But he sounds like Coltrane?" muttered Dave disconsonantly.
  
  The moral of the story is obvious and, while it may be a cliche, it is worth remembering that only you, can play like you. So be yourself.

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

  In music as in everything else, I am still learning. I know the challenges I face and the problems I had with music education methods when I was young. Everyone has their own set of goals and their own way of learning. I see my job as a teacher as identifying the goals and individual ways of learning that are unique to each student and devising the optimum curriculum to get them where they want to be in the quickest and most engaging way possible.
  
  As a musician I try to use all the tools applicable to each individual student - The score, Theory, Harmony, Aural recognition, Shape, Muscle memory. Everyone has their own balance. Some prefer plenty of theory, some prefer virtually none. Some read or wish to read music, others have no desire to do so whatsoever. I work with each person individually to establish which balance, which collection of these tools is most suitable for them.