Improvised Music Videos

When I began playing improvised music, I immediately began experimenting with objects on my guitar. My rudimentary rock guitar skills, in the context of group improvisation, lagged in speed & tonal responsiveness. My growing collection of magnets, bolts, rods & chalk stretched out my sonic palate and allowed me to respond to the music instantaneously. Over the last 15 years, I’ve been developing these techniques, exploring nuances in objects and actions. I feel this path is somewhat unique for a guitar player. A more traditional path would have explored guitar pedals and computer processing, or would have worked to develop traditional fretting/strumming/fingerpicking approaches. My playing is also quite different from table-top prepared guitar. The physical distance with that approach creates music that is cleaner and more clinical. With the guitar on my lap, my music and my body are physically linked. My muscles strain, my body shakes, my arms mute or brush the strings – I am connected. My only pedal pans my sound between two amps. A very simple interface between my mind, body, sound & space.

I’ve played countless shows with many different collaborators. This music is best enjoyed in person, but here are some video documents of some of my favorite performances.

Sandy Ewen & Sam Newsome, 2019