Seven Practices of Guitar Craft — Insights from Robert Fripp
Reliability, Stillness, Presence, Attention, Observation, Relaxation, and Silence
Robert Fripp presents his Guitar Circle teachings as a path to playing guitar impeccably and living impeccably. One set of practices, he says, applies in both domains. For Fripp, music is a discipline that leads to freedom in the midst of chaos and contact with the unconditioned world.
This sounds wonderful. Is it true? I’m searching for concrete ways to test these lofty ideas. I’m looking for concrete behaviors, movements of the body and attention. Following are practices to consider.
Reliability
A primary aim in developing a discipline is to establish a singularity. What is singularity?… It is to know for a certainty that, when I say I will, all the various parts which comprise the totality of who and what I am, can be relied upon to act as one.
Discipline is above all reliability. When we commit to do something, everyone knows that we will follow through. Our word becomes as dependable as gravity. All the aspects of our behavior align with each other. Another word for this is integrity, a quality that we develop by 1) noticing when we make verbal commitment to do something and 2) actually doing it.
Stillness
We usually associate discipline with being able to do something. Discipline also means, being able to do nothing.
If I can’t follow through on a commitment to sit quietly and do nothing for an hour, then there is little chance that I can follow through on any other commitment. Doing nothing is a real practice. It invites us to observe ourselves and fully show up for the present moment.
Presence
So, the question is, how to develop presence? A quick answer: by developing the attention. Where our attention is, is where we are. If our attention is volitional, we are present where we Wish to be. Without this capacity, life sweeps us along: we are unable to resist its power, or find our own way in the world.
Presence means paying attention here and now — receiving the rich sensory impressions of the present moment with a mind that's undistracted by thoughts of past or future. Mastery of anything, the guitar, calls for choosing where to place our attention. We can begin simply by engaging with the body — noticing whatever physical sensations are happening right now. Unlike the mind, the body always resides in the present moment.
Attention (1)
The practising guitarist may notice that the little finger of their left hand waves about to an alarming degree, even points to the heavens, in the discharging of a simple manoeuvre. This mighty and accomplished being, the guitarist, has no control over a small digit. This is bad news. But the good news is, I have noticed. When I become aware of my hands, I begin to be a human being. After all, this is the animal I inhabit.
Noticing any inefficient movement, no matter how small, offers valuable information. Noticing the movement our hands is a skill that we can broaden to noticing our automatic thinking, our emotional reactions, and the results of both. Before we can become free of our mechanical behavior and self-defeating habits, we must see what they are.
Attention (2)
…there are three kinds of attention: • No attention. • Engaged, or attracted attention. • Directed, volitional, voluntary attention.
A little practice soon reveals that we possess little attention. Sometimes our attention is passively attracted to sudden changes in the environment, especially when these events trigger our likes and dislikes. Freedom begins when we can intentionally direct our attention to things that don’t interest us — even things that we actively dislike. Human beings can direct their attention; machines cannot.
Attention (3)
I will notice that often more than two people play upon the stage of my life: many relatives in a large family of disparate characters appear and perform. These characters are related by one common factor: my noticing of them. The characters in the forefront of action change as the drama of living unfolds, but my noticing remains the same: it is noticing.
Part of directing attention is learning to divide it. For example, can we notice what we are doing, feeling, and thinking at the same time? Sometimes it seems that we are two people — the one who acts and the one who notices. And sometimes, it seems, we are no one at all.
Attention (4)
The Extended Present Moment: to extend the duration of the moment in which our attention is engaged. There are several forms of this, but the essence is to train the mind to hold a pattern.
When beginning to play a piece of music, we begin by focusing on playing one measure at a time. With practice, we can hold larger patterns in mind — four measures, eight measures, or more. Eventually we can see the entire piece unfolding in time.
Observation
It is necessary, although exceptionally painful, to see what we are. Our motivations are unpleasant, selfish, unkind; our minds a windfill of prattle; and our capacity for action uncertain at best. When we meet ourselves face to face, it is an unpleasant surprise. Probably the most difficult personal work I have ever undertaken is to bear what I am. If I am able to find forgivingness for others, I may find forgiveness of myself.
Most of the time we live our lives on automatic. We move through our days like robots, reacting mechanically to events, acting without intention or attention. We sleepwalk through life. We don't really exist. Seeing this can be terrifying. In such moments, we observe our thinking, feeling, and behavior from a distance, as if watching a separate person. We function as a scientist who collects data without judgment.
Relaxation
We move from making unnecessary efforts — the exertions of force — to making necessary efforts, the direction of effortlessness. In this the prime maxim is: honour necessity. We do what we must do, but no more.
We can burden our playing with excess effort — making facial grimaces, tensing too many muscles, holding our breath, hammering fingertips on the frets with unnecessary force. Much of our practice is noticing and releasing such habits.
When playing guitar with a pick, for example, there are no downstrokes. Instead, we simply release the picking hand, which allows the pick to contact the string.
The same principle applies to the rest of our life: Notice the details of our moment-to-moment posture and even the smallest physical movements. Look for the places where we make unnecessary effort. Whenever possible, conserve energy. Lighten up and let go.
Silence
While cultivating silence, we approach sound. Are we in tune? Are we in time? Are we in tone? When our note is true, we are surprised to find that it sounds very much like silence, only a little louder.
As guitar players, we do three things: We play solos. We accompany other players. And we remain silent. Silence is just as important as the other two functions. On and off the bandstand, we practice being present and quiet. There is a time to speak and a time to give silence a voice.