Tommy Emmanuel has been giving his thoughts on guitar playing following the release of his new Live at the Sydney Opera House opus. In a new interview, the acoustic guitar master philosophizes about the difference between being a guitarist and a guitar player.
“My music is not for musicians; it’s for everybody,” insists Emmanuel in an interview with The Bluegrass Situation. “I’m trying to be an all-around artist, entertainer, writer, player, performer. I’m trying to give people a bit of everything.”
“Being a guitarist is being a gun for hire. Being a guitar player is a way of life,” explains the maestro. “A guitar player is someone who loves to play for people and who loves his instrument deeply.”
Emmanuel knows a thing or two about both. He was a gun for hire in the ’80s, playing in bands for Australian vocalists John Farnham and Doug Parkinson. He is also undoubtedly a guitar player, being one of a handful of musicians conferred the title of Certified Guitar Player by the late Chet Atkins.
“My role model, Chet Atkins, worked harder than anybody I’ve ever seen at practicing and making sure that every little detail was so smooth,” he recalls.
“If you want it to be good, to flow, and to be wonderful to watch, then there’s a lot of work ahead. You’re going to have to work so hard to make it that way. I never stop working on my abilities, because it’s so important.
“Everything comes down to commitment. How committed am I to be a better player?” asks Emmanuel.
Despite this, Tommy insists that technique is not the most important thing. “I often tell people who want to talk about my technique, ‘I don’t talk about my technique. It’s invisible.’ The music is what counts, not how I do it.”
His chops are awe inspiring, but Emmanuel admits he has his struggles. “My abilities fluctuate because I’m a human being. I’m not a robot; I’m not going to be exactly the same every time.
“My age is challenging me as well,” admits the 69-year-old. “There are things I could do twenty years ago that I can’t do today and I have to be okay about that.”
Even on the road, with little chance to practice, Emmanuel is constantly looking for ways to improve. “Every day was like, get to the venue, get my guitar out, start playing, work on some songs that maybe I didn’t play the night before… remember some of my other songs that I haven’t been playing, put them in the show, and constantly find ways of making it different and interesting from the night before.”
Emmanuel recently expressed his admiration for Les Paul, saying that in the last year of the pioneer’s life, Emmanuel told him “I swear, you're playing better than you were last year.” Tommy also gave us a picking masterclass alongside Molly Tuttle.
