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Robert Howard
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- Morrisville, NC
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Since I really began playing again in earnest back in September, I was surprised at how quickly my old skills came back. In mere days, the fingers were feeling good again, and I more or less could play like I used to, when I would hold forth at va...
Great post. I really enjoyed Kevin Spacey as Darin in the movie that came out some time ago.
Hey, no problem Lyle. Like I said, I have always sort of been drawn to the smaller little spaces on the internet, where maybe a group of something like 25-150 people participate as opposed to a huge forum where you are one tiny voice in a huge com...
Hi Robert and thanks for the post. These are definitely some great albums to be into. I also hear you about member inactivity. I can only account it to lots of players actually being busy with stuff...which I hope is the deal. I know for myself, I...
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- Relationship Status:
- Married
- About Me:
- I'm a jazz guitarist.. interrupted, and hopefully for the better. I starting learning guitar when I was 16, inspired by classic rock like Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin and AC/DC. I played jazz with a local big band as well as a small jazz combo called "Jazz For Sale" in the Northwest Ohio area. Loving music but not quite sure what to do, I went to Bowling Green State University to study with Chris Buzzelli.
I graduated in 2003 and was at that time an accomplished but still budding jazz guitarist. I played a lot of fusion then, in a band I formed called Paragon. I made an album with this band called "What Is Paragon?" and recorded a solo album called Zeitgeber, also in a jazz-rock style (this music is still available on CDBaby).
I also played quite a lot of straight ahead jazz, some of the best of which was in the Ben Wolkins trio with trumpet man Ben Wolkins (now a NYC cat) and bassist Jason Gahler (still a full time pro bassist in the NW Ohio area). I also played/recorded with the following players: Matt Baumann (Cincinatti area tenor saxophonist), Matt Schieferstein (NW Ohio area drummer), Elijah Vasquez (Cleveland area drummer), Chavar Dontae (now playing his own original music in LA), Ben Langlois (NW Ohio pianist), Josh Holmes (Michigan area pianist), and the BGSU faculty (Chris Buzzelli, Jeff Halsey, and Roger Schupp). I also had a brief stint at Wayne State University where I studied with guitarist Steve Carrier.
Despite building up a solid if not lucrative career, I was getting frustrated with the music scene. It was tough playing gigs in rock clubs and playing pretty solid music only to have people actually heckle you for it. I needed something else. So in 2007 I made a career change, and got a masters degree in Interactive Technology from The Guildhall at Southern Methodist University, and joined the video game industry as a designer. Now living in the Raleigh Durham area, my love for jazz guitar has been rekindled, and now I'm back at it. While I definitely would like to provide a little supplemental income for my family with my playing (hah!), I am much happier not having to worry as much about the financial end of the business.
My goal is to take all the knowledge I gained from my early 20's and refine it, to truly become an elite jazz guitarist. Not having the burden of trying to "make a living" with music, I now find myself in love with it again! I'm happy to be back on the journey; music is a gift from God!
- Website:
- http://www.robhoward.squarespace.com
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A new practicing routine
Since I really began playing again in earnest back in September, I was surprised at how quickly my old skills came back. In mere days, the fingers were feeling good again, and I more or less could play like I used to, when I would hold forth at various venues in NW Ohio, from Easy Street Cafe to Manhattan's in Toledo. I could "make a gig," as they say.
However, the goal here is not to simply reattain my old style with all of its warts and problems. The goal is of course to improve upon these fu… Continue
However, the goal here is not to simply reattain my old style with all of its warts and problems. The goal is of course to improve upon these fu… Continue
Posted on November 9, 2009 at 9:40am —
Influential Albums, pt II
Let's jump right back into talking about some albums that have been important to me as both a jazz performer and listener.
4. Michael Brecker (Pat Metheny on guitar): Time is of the Essence
The organ/guitar combination has always been one of my favorites (possibly because I haven't had the pleasure of actually participating in one of these yet), and here we find a sort of modern take on it that really works. The originals here really do capture at once the spirit of contemporary jazz and old s… Continue
4. Michael Brecker (Pat Metheny on guitar): Time is of the Essence
The organ/guitar combination has always been one of my favorites (possibly because I haven't had the pleasure of actually participating in one of these yet), and here we find a sort of modern take on it that really works. The originals here really do capture at once the spirit of contemporary jazz and old s… Continue
Posted on November 6, 2009 at 7:42pm —
Influential Albums
I've noticed that while the jazz guitar life network has plenty of members that there doesn't seem to be tons of activity, and I find myself spamming the news stream with lots of stuff. Oh well. I don't mind being in small little cubbie holes on the internet. Sometimes a small group of good folks is better than countless millions anyway.
So I thought I would blog about some of my favorite jazz guitar albums and how they've influenced me and why. I won't have time to do this in one post so this… Continue
So I thought I would blog about some of my favorite jazz guitar albums and how they've influenced me and why. I won't have time to do this in one post so this… Continue
Posted on November 5, 2009 at 7:30pm — 2 Comments
Getting to know the Raleigh, NC Jazz Scene
Last weekend was my first chance to get out and about in downtown Raleigh since I moved here (being married with a little girl means that I have to have good reasons to go out without them!).
As is usually the case in places that are not NYC, LA or even Chicago, San Francisco or Austin, the scene is kind of hard to find. Day one of the weekend saw me and my friend (fabulous NW Ohio double bassist Jason Gahler) going to Amra's, a "jazz venue" cigar bar. Well, the band was very good (and the ciga… Continue
As is usually the case in places that are not NYC, LA or even Chicago, San Francisco or Austin, the scene is kind of hard to find. Day one of the weekend saw me and my friend (fabulous NW Ohio double bassist Jason Gahler) going to Amra's, a "jazz venue" cigar bar. Well, the band was very good (and the ciga… Continue
Posted on November 3, 2009 at 8:20pm —
Comment Wall (4 comments)
- At 7:12pm on November 6, 2009,
scott goudie said…
- thanks for getting back to me robert the more info the better there would be nothing worse than putting a set of pickups on and you liked the sound of your originals better thanks again robert regards scott
- At 3:02pm on November 6, 2009,
scott goudie said…
- thanks for your help robert ive been told by the guy in the guitar shop thats going to do the work that i should think about seymour duncan seth lovers but im no expert thanks again
- At 8:14am on November 6, 2009,
Bernard Jones said…
- Thanks man
- At 7:08pm on October 22, 2009,
Lyle Robinson said…
- Hi Robert and welcome to the Jazz Guitar Life Players Network. I look forward to having you here and thanks for the kind words regarding Jazz Guitar Life. Please feel free to make yourself home here. Take care and all the best.
Lyle Robinson
http://www.jazzguitarlife.com
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