Basically what I wrote here I'm trying to teach you and convey to you. Maybe I did not master it myself, but it is just opinions and perspectives and stuff, so that's great. Then the next sentence, he says, in fact, don't assume anything. And that's what I want to talk about today. Don't assume anything when you make an assumption, you are drawing conclusions from insufficient proofs, if you will.
Welcome to Jazz guitar lessons, where we help guitarists learn jazz faster, express themselves more fluently, and have fun along the way. My name is Marc, and if you're looking to learn jazz, form better practice habits, and especially if you enjoy a French accent, make sure to subscribe. So this is going to be a really short podcast as it's only a discussion, a spur of the moment inspiration I'm having here.
And I said, Oh my God, I really got to discuss this on the website. It's really meaningful in terms of learning music, playing music and life in general. I mean, when you go about your life and you deal with people and situations and jobs and families and stuff, you got to think about this stuff. So here's the there's a great book called The Advancing Guitarist by Mick Goodrick, which was published maybe in the eighties.
I think it's a great book. If you're a jazz guitarist, you've got to have it. If you want to learn about jazz guitar, got to have it's if you're a rock guitar player that wants to learn jazz, you got to have it. If you're a classical player that wants to have an interest in jazz. I mean, if you're a trumpet player, you got to buy it.
So just get the book, read it. I've read it many times over, and not only on the level of exercises and prescriptions, but it's just the type of information he provides is really relevant. So here's a line. Goodrich, somewhere around the beginning of the book, says when you read through those pages and try the exercises, don't assume that I know all this stuff or something like that.
Says basically what I wrote here, I'm trying to teach you and convey to you. Maybe I did not master it myself, but it's just opinions and perspectives and stuff, so that's great. Then the next sentence, he says, In fact, don't assume anything. And that's what I want to talk about today. Don't assume anything. When you make an assumption, you are drawing conclusions from and sufficient proofs, if you will.
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Let's say you're going to the bus stop every morning. When you go there, you only assume that the bus is going to come. Yes, there's a schedule and there's a driver. And yes, you take it every morning. But unless you have the proof that the bus is actually they're coming for you and you jump at the bus, then you're only assuming that the bus will come.
You know what I mean? Same thing when you get to what other people think of. Well, what this guy thought of my last solo. What did a crowd think of that solo when I went to that jam session or when I played for my friends? And what do you think that people think about you is only an assumption unless you actually ask everybody else individually.
Precisely. And even then it might be skewed. So I don't know. You go, you catch where I'm going with this, but it can be really dangerous. It's slippery because all of a sudden you think that and you make an assumption into a solid conclusion and then you adopt it and you believe it. Your mind says, Yeah, yeah. So I don't play good jazz solos.
That's it. So that's going to be really dangerous. So assuming stuff about what other people think of you is really dangerous, assuming that you need all the material to learn jazz guitar, for instance, you have all those books right now, have all those YouTube videos, got podcasts like this one, and you have websites and stuff and don't take fur for granted that you need to master everything in order to play it.
In fact, it'd be better if you said, You know what, I don't need this stuff. I don't need any of this huge pile of information. I'll just do my own thing. That's a really fair assumption. So, you know, just the same thing. You go to a jam session, don't take don't assume that you're not good enough or that you are too good for the guys on stage to play with.
Don't assume that people had a bad impression. You left a bad impression with your copy. Maybe there's a guy that looked at you and said, You know, we'll just give you a look. And in your mind, you went, Oh, I think he didn't like my copy. That saxophone player did not like the chords I played behind him, but maybe he looked at you just because you look there and that he really enjoyed your copy.
It's just an assumption. It's not a fair assumption. So let me conclude here with a few more thoughts. Only assume when you can actually say out loud. It is fair to assume that because once again, what an assumption is, it's only a conclusion that has not been verified. So you can say it is fair to assume that, let's say playing on giant steps, you need some scales to play on giant steps.
That's a fair assumption. I mean, Eric Dolphy or some free jazz guitar player won't need any scales, but it's a fair assumption to say that if you want to play in a certain style, a certain way, you need scale. That's a fair assumption. Saying I will never be able to solo on Giant Steps is not a fair assumption.
It's just it's just a negative belief that you are imposing. So. So watch out for that. In conclusion, don't assume anything. Don't assume something you don't have the support with except from your own thoughts, or that you decide that it's true and that's it. Because you could decide the negative part. The most thing that, oh my God, people don't like my solos.
Or you could decide the positive side, which is, you know, I'm a God and my solos are great and I'm the next Wes Montgomery. So either way, are good and say same thing for feedback. Don't assume the feedback is real. Let's say some. Some guy goes in you negative feedback. Superbad, you've been playing chords all over the map.
You're wrong. I hate your carping and I hate you. It's only perceived maybe you played beautifully, and even if it's feedback from someone else, even then should the negative feedback you should not let this get to you and you should not take it as if it's real, quote unquote. And even now, at this point, it's only fair to say ignore positive feedback.
Also. That's crazy. I know it sounds crazy, but ignore positive feedback because it messes with your mind because you think you're great, you think you're good, you think you know this shit. Then next time you walk on stage, you just fall flat on your face because you only assumed something. So that will be it for about just under 15 on jazz guitar lessons and that improve your jazz guitar playing with a real teacher.
And I will see you next time. Take care.
