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SUBJECT:	Summer Music Workshop with Pat Back to Subjects
hman01 Aug 26 2011 at 9:23 AM	Hey,I know a couple of folks from the garage went to the Summer Music Workshop with Pat this week.Are you allowed to tell us a little about it?What went on? What was it like to be in the presence of the master and all those great musicians for a whole week?
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julian_crook Sep 07 2011 at 7:18 PM	Wow Miles, what a wonderful experience - I imagine that it will stay with you for a long long time to come, sounds fantastic - cheers, Julian :o)
shockandwoe Sep 07 2011 at 3:55 PM	The only question from me is how I can get my ears on that " ’The Way Up meets Secret Story’ new 42-minute composition"? Please!
Roll Tide Sep 07 2011 at 7:54 AM	fractalbass, nice write up about the seminar.
fractalbass Sep 04 2011 at 2:13 PM	It was something I will never forget. I wrote about some details on my blog: milesinmusic.blogspot.com. I came away from the experience as impressed as ever with Pat, Christian, Antonio, and Mick. Also, it was great to play with others at the clinic.
timdrackert Sep 04 2011 at 11:32 AM	in response to biken and sunship. the facts speak for themselves: he handed us a 16 page composition that goes thru virtually all the keys, numerous meters, 4/4, 3/4, 9/8 w/ tough slash chords. my take is this: Pat wants to hear narrative, protracted melodic/motif development. Seems to have little interest in speed per se or guitar licks. the whole thrust of what the trio said was: listen and be musical. a good deal of what was talked about can be had via previous interviews. the one thing that you had to be there for was how he communicated w/ the ensemble to get us to play a challenging piece in a 3 day time period. he’s very good at being supportive while being extremely demanding and critical.
DSOP Sep 03 2011 at 10:44 PM	If they do this again, I’m definitely going, even if I have to take out a loan.
Bikenjazz Sep 03 2011 at 8:20 AM	Thank you Camper 31 for your involvement and description of the workshop and for taking the time to share with forum readers. How would you rate the musical abilities of those involved and was everyone up to the task?
sunship Sep 02 2011 at 2:31 PM	Can anyone tell us something concrete that Pat said? Like any unusual answers to questions? I would be most curious to hear anything he has to say about music..
yossarian Sep 01 2011 at 5:52 PM	Sounds superb. But I wouldn’t like Pat to hear my attempts at getting though the chord changes of say Better Days Ahead or See the World. Come to think of it what d’ya reckon are the toughest set of changes Pat has put in front of a soloist (usually himself of course)? To my mind it’s See the World. Like Giant Steps you can find a way through after a while but it’s difficult to find more ways through - the harder the changes the more you hear ’your solo’ if you see what I mean.
-m Aug 30 2011 at 7:14 AM	What thehague said. Oh, I guess one other word: envy.
Camper31 Aug 29 2011 at 10:21 PM	If 10 on a scale of 10 was the best I could have ever imagined, this was 100 on a scale of 10! I am still bursting with inspiration and the joy that this amazing week brought to my life. To say that Pat gave us all of himself would be an understatement. The hours of work and preparation that he obviously put into all of this just reinforces and multiplies everything that I have ever heard about the man. It was way beyond the call of duty for something like this and far more than anything any of us expected. The piece that he wrote for us (16 pages per player, 40+ minutes long), my God. Yes, it was in fact at the level of The Way Up or Secret Story but custom written for us taking into account all the different styles and abilities at the camp (yet even Antonio was overheard saying that he hoped Pat would make it the next PMG record). It was just an amazing piece of music that i cannot get out of my head! And speaking of Antonio, and Christain and Mick Goodrick all you can say is wow. They were all as great as they could be, equal as teachers as they are as virtuoso players. On the first day of camp, there was even an incident of a bona fide escapee from a local mental instution crashing the camp and while this was all going Pat didn’t miss a beat or lose his place in the form of the song he was playing while cooly handling the whole thing! Scary as it was, it also proved a whole bunch of points that Pat and company emphasized throughout the week about rhythm, concentration and the hours of commitment that it takes to really own the music at the level they do. But beyond eveyrthing, the graciousness and energy and raw talent that makes Metheny who he is was something to behold the whole week. He was also extremely serious the whole time, there was no goofing around or mindless plucking during the sessions tolerated, which took a little getting used to for some of the campers. All in all, it was one of the best experiences of my life and I really hope he will make it a yearly event.
Ian Aug 29 2011 at 4:22 PM	An incredible experience that I will never forget. Pat, Antonio, and Christian were very down to earth and gave us lots to think about. I especially enjoyed sharing time with 48 other Pat Metheny fans. For me it’s a rare thing to be around people who are hip to this music, so spending a week with so many dedicated musicians and fans was a real treat.
thehague Aug 29 2011 at 3:26 PM	Wow!
METHenyaddicted Aug 29 2011 at 2:24 PM	Stop. Reread. A 42-minute new composition?
timdrackert Aug 29 2011 at 10:45 AM	Ditto to Drew! it was a great experience centered around Pat’s 42 minute composition that he composed for the ensemble to perform and record, kind of the Way Up meets Secret Story. Beautiful piece! Great experience for all!
drewsimpsonmusic Aug 29 2011 at 6:22 AM	It was a unbelievable experience. It was exciting to dig deep and have all of your questions answered in such a deep and personal way. Pat, Christian, Antonio & Mick was so patient and gracious with the whole class. Detailed examples of how to improvise over chord changes was given and the importance of Rhythm and playing in Time was stressed. Definitely Exceeded Expectations!
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