Martin Miller: answer fusion questions on ask.fm

Your alternate picking technique is unfathomable. How did you develop such control and speed? (I saw your alternating picking on Petrucci's Glass Prison Arpeggios) and I can't even play it sweep picking.
I was pretty obsessed with it in my teen years. Paul Gilbert "Intense Rock II" definitely made a huge impact on cleaning my technique up and putting the quality of tone (of the picking motion, not the gear) first. Not even the actual exercises, which I never bothered learning, but just hearing Paul play with such a dry, unforgiving tone made me realize that even at ridiculous tempos his two hands were still at perfect sync. Before that I thought fast picking was all about spastically wanking away with your right hand while cranking up the gain on the amp.


Also I kept a log with some quick recordings, bpm numbers, all that nerdy stuff to keep me motivated :)

The intervallic thing that seems to become my specialty (arpeggios, bebop lines, etc.) kind of developed by itself after having a solid technical foundation to base it upon. In my college years I was playing all kinds of music from all kinds of instruments. Also my scalar picking chops were pretty much useless anywhere I played, so when I tried to make use of my technique I had to adapt musically and play more melodic, musical lines fast, which usually involve a load of string crossing.

Hi martin! as I can get those licks Bebop? when guitar will influences?

I'd prefer to teach you the fundamentals of Bebop music as opposed to a couple of licks. If you're just interested you best take them where they came from: the most influential players and their recordings.

if I got Skype lessons with you, would you be able to teach me jazz guitar from the basics upwards? i'm struggling to find a teacher where I live, but I have been trying teaching myself some stuff, also what is that Ibanez guitar you have in some videos?


Yes I could totally do that. I have a very methodical approach to teaching jazz based concepts. It's actually very satisfying for a teacher to be able to teach someone a certain topic from the ground up, so there's no clash of approaches happening. Be sure to get in touch through my website http://www.martinmillerguitar.com!


That guitar was an AT-300 and has by now been sold and replaced by a Suhr Pro S1.


I'd just like to say first off, you're a f***ing amazing guitarist. And now my question! I am looking to do my grade 8 guitar soonish, have you got any tips for applying some more interesting modes and intervallic ideas to lead guitar playing?

It is not nearly about learning or applying a certain scale as people think. It's what you make out of them. To be honest I think that's because some might expect you to show them a bit of a cheap trick that immediately transforms anything they play into something interesting and exciting.

Two things to keep in mind:

1. Usually the chord or accompaniment dictates the mode, not the soloist.

2. A great player will sound great using the "stock" modes and scales, while a less educated player will sound bland using even the most exotic of scales.

You said that you think in terms of intervals most of the time. How did you work on this?

Here's an answer I gave before that might be helpful:

"Yes, I do think about the intervals almost all the time, in some cases I'll think about the key center more but usually I try to follow every chord as it goes by. Let's say we were going to play Autumn Leaves in Bbmaj/Gmin and I were to play an Eb over each chord, here's what my brain would tell me upon doing it:

• Cmin7: b3 (playing Eb over Cmin)
• F7: b7 (playing Eb over F7, simile)
• Bbmaj7: 4
• Ebmaj7: 1
• Am7b5: b5
• D7: b9
• Gm7: b6

Of course I don't always spell these things out loudly in my head, especially at higher tempos. After a while it becomes like recognizing colors, you don't have to think about whether something is red or green anymore."

1) Is there any particular track/solo that will help me further develop my hybrid picking. 2) Please do a video on how you play the opening lick! to this video ITS KILLS EVERYTIME!!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uGsfQyYJfGM Thank you from Ireland! \m/

You might wanna have a look at this, different notes but identical concept:

Fusion Licks Guitar Lesson #7: two Hybrid Picking Ideas by Martin Miller


As for your first question, if your music requires hybrid picking your technique will eventually catch up. Keep your nails in proper condition, learn to play some polyphonic arrangements, transcribe your favourite licks, always make sure that quality of tone has the highest priority in your hybrid ideas, rest is going to happen over time.

Asl Martin more fusion questions: http://ask.fm/MartinMillerGuitar