[DOC] Structures for Architects by Bryan J.B. Gauld in Arts-Photography

Review

55 of 56 people found the following review helpful. Wow! A profoundly insightful and useful bookBy John PalmerIm a long time guitar player -- 41 years -- and a long time systems analyst -- almost as long.I set out to end my guitar music illiteracy about 5 years ago. This was the result of trying to play jazz; feeling ashamed at how poor I was at dealing with the music and working with some very patient bandmates who are literate.So; I began a journey through the myriad of guitar chord dictionaries and; especially; books that claim to have discovered THE secret to all guitar chord playing knowledge.Unfortunately; because Im a systems analyst; I get splinters in my mind when I read books that dont get to the essence of what they are trying to say. (Or worse; have an essence that is just bogus.) Most of the many books on chords for guitar suffer from these problems.On the other hand Jazz Guitar Voicings is crystal clear about a profoundly fundamental idea: arrangers have standard ways of arranging the notes in a chord (i.e. voicings); low to high. One of them -- Drop 2 -- is the key to playing chord scales and melodies in a way that doesnt induce hand cramps. That is; people like me (Tal Farlow or Lenny Breau I am not) can can play these chords.These skills are essential for playing jazz; soul; funk; bossa nova and even a surprising number of rock tunes. In fact the only styles of guitar music I can think of where you probably couldnt use these ideas are 3 or 4 chord folk music and metal. (If you are into those styles; this is probably not the book for you.)Any of you who are Wes Montgomery fans (and if youre into jazz guitar; youd almost have to be a Wes Montgomery fan) know of his single note; octaves then chords solo structure. When he gets to the chords; much of what hes doing is in Drop 2.It may take me years to absorb all that Randy Vincent has put into this book. There are so many great ideas; examples and scales to master. But this is one book where I know that the time invested will pay off enormously.8 of 8 people found the following review helpful. At long last;..By RWJAfter playing guitar for thirty years; I finally have a book that brings the logic of chord progressions and the logic of the fretboard together. Thank you Randy Vincent!This is probably not a book for beginners. Indeed; Im not sure that I would have been ready to absorb it early in my playing life. I think it takes some time; for most of us; to be able to define our musical directions; and a bit more to recognize that a particular batch of instructional materials is the right batch to move us toward our desired musical destination most quickly.So if you have wanted insights into the abilities of some guitarists to chord almost seamlessly up and down the fretboard; and if youve also wondered why the chords they use almost always seem to be the perfect choices; and if you are ready to challenge yourself musically; this is the book for you.The chord progressions are logically developed and presented as they relate explicitly to the scales from which they are drawn. If I could add one thing to the presentation; it would be naming the chords in the progressions. The musical staff notation is accompanied by the chord diagrams; but unless the reader takes the time to identify the chords by name; he or she will be building useful patterns that could be so much more so if their components were explicitly named. Maybe Mr. Vincent will add that to the next edition.Despite this minor point; this is easily the best and most useful book Ive found in twenty years.7 of 8 people found the following review helpful. Some Slapdash Parts Make for a Difficult ReadBy Scott MillerThe book has a lot of good information; but its put together in a very haphazard way. For example; you would think a book on Drop 2 would start by telling you what Drop 2 is; but instead it starts out with several examples of what Drop 2 sounds like (which is pointless if you dont know what youre listening for); a couple of asides about other types of voicings and the Bebop major scale; before finally getting to the definition of Drop 2 buried at the end of a paragraph several pages in. Without a logical flow of ideas; it can make for confusing reading and virtually forces you to read through the chapters multiple times before moving on. Yes; reading things multiple times is good practice -- to make sure you got all the information. Having to re-read something just to understand it is the very definition of poor writing.Ive also found errors in the printed music. Sometimes the tablature; standard notation and chord names dont match up (and no indication of which one is correct); which can make it virtually impossible to tell what youre supposed to be gleaning from the example. Actually; you may find yourself wondering what youre supposed to get from the examples anyway; as the author often does not say -- he just makes a statement followed by a musical example and then he moves on. Jazz for Dummies this aint.I must say; the further you get into the book the more focused it gets; and these issues become fewer. You will find a lot of great insights on Drop 2; Bebop and other aspects of jazz harmony as you work through it. But overall this book needs a thorough look from an editor before I can recommend it.