This is the second volume in Hristo’s series of book dissecting Pat Metheny’s distinctive guitar style. You can read my review of the first book, Chromatic Methenyisms here.
In this book, Hristo shares 7 guidelines to get closer to the rhythmic and melodic sensibility of Pat Metheny. I won’t share all of them here, but here’s one for an idea of what he says: “If you have two notes a half step apart ascending – pick the first one and slide into the second one.”
It’s details like this that really make these melodies shine and give that Metheny vibe.
The book itself seems small at 10 pages. However, you get 17 phrases in total. 10 of the phrases are 4 measure Methenyism phrases. Another 7 are 2 measure Methenyism phrases that are over a Dmin7 G7alt Cmaj7 chord progression. This is a great way to internalize the vocabulary that Hristo first explained in the first volume.
So what is the difference between the first book and this one?
Well, the main difference is that the first book introduces the “Methenyisms” and practice approach, and works more like a practice routine or workout. Meanwhile, this volume is more about applying what he previously introduced.
Since the phrases are all 16th double time feel phrases, there’s a lot to digest especially if you’re trying to learn the phrase with the exact picking & articulation that Hristo uses. What I did to learn the first line is actually edit a version of the video with only the slowed down version of the phrase. It takes time to get it to sound the same but it’s definitely worth it.
To conclude, I would say that this book would be great for anyone who has gotten the first volume (previously reviewed here). Alternatively, if you are a more intuitive player and prefer to learn licks or phrases in context, this book could be a good place to start. There are many lick-based books in the market, two recent ones I’ve reviewed are 50 ii-V-I Licks by Cecil Alexander and The Master Arpeggios Book Vol. 1 For Guitar by Chase Maddox.
Comparing those two books to Hristo’s release, I would say that Hristo’s works present a whole ecosystem of learning that builds on top of each other. If you need every single fingering written out when learning a lick (and you learn better from tablature/notation), then Chase Maddox’s book is a good one to consider. If you need a variety of different licks in a single licks then Cecil’s book might be cool to get.
However, if you want to keep building your skills and understand the underlying concepts (both from a physical, technical point of view & music, theoratical perspective), there are very few releases out now that can compete with what Hristo is doing.
Pros: Great sounding lines, high quality video with examples demonstrated clearly at performance tempo and slowed down.
Cons: No picking directions & articulation notated in the PDF. Example in the video are not separated into different videos (everything is in one video, you might need to loop, cut up and/or slow down the sections to figure out right hand picking articulation).
TLDR: If you want to get some good phrases that give you that Metheny vibe, get this.
How to Buy:
You can get the book & video here: https://gum.co/KrzHB
Thank you Hristo for the complimentary review copy.
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And here are the links to all of Hristo’s related products in this series:
Hristo’s main website: http://www.modernjazzguitarbooks.com/
VOLUME 1: CHROMATIC METHENYISMS
Get the Book (TAB and standard notation + HD Tutorial Video + Two backing tracks) here: https://gum.co/VXwiF
VOLUME 2: CHROMATIC METHENYISMS ii-V7-I Application (Chromatic Melodic Ornamentation in the Style of Pat Metheny)
Get the Book (TAB and standard notation + HD Tutorial Video + backing track) here: https://gum.co/KrzHB
VOLUME 3: CHROMATIC METHENYISMS (Imaginary Triads)
Get the Book (TAB and standard notation + HD Tutorial Video + backing track) here: https://gum.co/cvTVd
VOLUME 4: CHROMATIC METHENYISMS (Pentatonics Uncompromised)
Get the Book (TAB and standard notation + HD Tutorial Video + backing track) here: https://gum.co/FYCLQ
CHROMATUDE #1: (Solar) – Chromatic Methenyisms Technical Studies: melodic/chordal
Get the Study (TAB and standard notation + backing tracks) here: https://gum.co/GUesG
CHROMATIC METHENYISMS (Lines You’ve Heard #1) – Short Melodic Phrase Example (FREE DOWNLOAD)
Get the Study (TAB and standard notation + HD Video/Audio + backing tracks) here: https://gum.co/IxGVV
CHROMATIC METHENYISMS (Lines You’ve Heard #2) – Short Melodic Phrase Example (James by P. Metheny)
Get the Study (TAB and standard notation + HD Video/Audio + backing tracks) here: https://gum.co/LkMQd
CHROMATIC METHENYISMS (Lines You’ve Heard #3) – Short Melodic Phrase Example – Minor Blues in “D”
Get the Study (TAB and standard notation + HD Video/Audio + backing tracks) here: https://gum.co/JAGZo
CHROMATIC METHENYISMS (Arpeggios ala Matini)
Get the Study (TAB and standard notation + HD Video/Audio + backing tracks) here: https://gum.co/AKbvDa
CHROMATIC METHENYISMS (Arpeggios ala Matini) Volume 2
Get the Study (TAB and standard notation + HD Video/Audio + backing tracks) here: https://gum.co/NkMyL
CHROMATIC METHENYISMS (Arpeggios ala Matini) 2516 Illustrations
FREE DOWNLOAD – Get the Study (TAB and standard notation + HD Video/Audio + backing tracks) here: https://gum.co/yppyt
CHROMATIC METHENYISMS – Wild Triad Quilts (3 Ornamentation Techniques)
Get the Study / Video Masterclass (TAB and standard notation + 30 mins. HD Video Masterclass + backing track) here: https://gum.co/lhcwx
DIATONIC METHENYISMS (Volume 1) – Diatonic Melodic Ornamentation in the Style of Pat Metheny – Video Masterclass
Get the Book / Video Masterclass (TAB and standard notation + backing tracks + HD Video Masterclass) here: https://gum.co/uhgkp
DIATONIC METHENYISMS (Methenycise #1 – C minor blues)
Get the Study (TAB and standard notation + HD Video + backing tracks) here: https://gum.co/jmmtf
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