Thank you for this timely youtube! I'm a guitar major at Berklee College of Music and I've shared your list with some of my teachers since we get very little (or mostly no) representation in the jazz realm. By the way, my private teacher is Amanda Monaco and she has some great albums of jazz up there, also she just recorded an all female jazz band album called Lioness - Pride and joy that was released on international women's day. Again, thank you for giving attention to this important topic and you have turned me on to some great players that I didn't know and am now listening to. Thanks!
Thanks Kristina for sharing! I will look for Amanda's recordings and hopefully feature her on my next female jazz guitarist review (hopefully someday you too can be among them!) By the way I am a Berklee alumni (class of '83). Is Larry Baione still there?...he was one of my teachers along with Jon Damien.I did a masterclass and concert there back in early 2014 with Oscar Stagnaro (bass dept) and other faculty members and students...always nice to go back...it's changed and grown so much!
Thank you for this video! I will definitely check out the artists I don't know. As others have mentioned, I would add Jocelyn Gould and Eleonora Strino on this list.
Thank you for putting the spotlight on all of these underrated jazz guitar players. Why are there not more female jazz guitar players? it is because they do not get the backing that they so rightly deserve. Hopefully, in the age of all things internet, female musicians of all kinds will finally have the spotlight and medium they deserve to propel their careers. Thanks for this Mr. Zellon!
Thanks for mentioning Sandra Hempel! One of my favourite guitarists for sure. I took some lessons with her years ago and she continues to inspire me. Unfortunately there is not that much recorded material of her...
Wow Richie, I know Shirley Bailey and Emily Remler but Sandra Hempel I hadn't heard of. Very special. Each note, phrasing, etc means something. Great lines, note choices,space. Downloaded all her links, kinda thing i listen to before i start improv work. To wake the chops memory in the brain. I hunt/scout for unknown jazz guitarists online that inspire me and can learn or get inspired in anyway from. Got a HUGE database of downloads. You just dicovered Sandra Hempel for me! Tnx
Thanks for your informative video. I can think of seven more female jazz guitarists - they are: 1) Susana Raya - a Spanish lady now living in Amsterdam - then: 2) Diane Hubke (based in the USA) known for playing 7-string guitar, and: 3) Tina Jackel - a German contemporary jazz guitarist based in Berlin, then: 4)Nora Bite - a Latvian jazz guitarist based in London (UK), post-bop/contemporary in style, and: 5) Jess Lewis, from Chichester, also in the UK. Jess also plays bass, and plays guitar in a variety of styles, but can definitely play bebop. Then there's: 6) Anouk Andre, a French guitarist, and: 7) Louise Maggs, based in Brighton (UK). All seven players are on You Tube. But as to why there seem to be so few female jazz guitarists, I don't know either! I'd be interested in knowing what everyone thinks of these seven ladies. If you contrast this with female jazz pianists, where there are so many excellent players from Europe, Japan, USA, and South American countries - the list easily runs into the hundreds, perhaps the thousands...
I was driving today and Mimi Fox was on my local jazz station. And it dawned on me that I couldn't name 3 straight-ahead, modern bebop rooted female players. I thought of Mimi, of course and Emily Remler. I was a fan of Emily when she was alive and recording. Well, it took a few more long moments and I came up with Leni Stern. But Leni isn't really a jazz player in the same style as Mimi and Emily. But damn. I was a really dumbfounded that I didn't really know more female players. So here I am getting familiar with a bunch more. Thanks!
Being new to jazz guitar I also wondered about the scarcity of women players. While trying to develop my own ear and jazz vocabulary I've been searching out videos of various players and came across a Canadian women, Jocelyn Gould, who to my untrained ears seems to be a straight-up, no-chaser, traditional jazz player producing nice melodic lines with her Eastman archtop.
Nice to find you shining the spotlight on female jazz guitarists. I agree, there seems not to be too many of them, for reasons I've never understood, but I proudly count myself among them. I've been playing guitar for forty years now (I'm 51), but didn't discover jazz until I'd been playing ten years or so. I suspect that my stylistic leanings might seem a little stodgy in comparison with most of the folks who frequent this excellent channel: Though I listen to a lot of bebop, I'm mainly interested as a player in the chordal-style solos and Freddie Green rhythm of the pre-Charlie Christian era. ... Speaking of Charlie, I was glad to see Mary Osborne mentioned. She was a friend of Charlie's and widely considered back in the day to be one of the closest adherents to his style -- marvelous player and a good singer, too.
Sure its jazz...just not mainstream.. like i said in the video, my list doesn't including players outside of the bebop/post-bop or fusion bag. I on the other hand admit to being an ignoramus when it comes to avant-garde...sorry but I need to hear melody and a degree of consonance in the harmony...I find the avant garde interesting for the first few minutes at tops...but then...ugh! Some Ornette Coleman I even like. I call it avant garde light...but Cecil Taylor I couldn't stand. Total chaos..
Dear Richie, thanks for all your interesting and helpful videos. In England, one of the leading jazz guitarists is Deirdre Cartwright: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deirdre_Cartwright. I’m not certain, but I’ve been told she uses non-standard tuning (EADGCF?). I wonder if that might be a topic you could consider? When one first starts to learn guitar, the different interval between the third and second strings seems annoying, and I’ve never heard an explanation for it. Keep up the good work!
Yeah...that darn 2nd to 3rd interval tuning on the guitar. I know that 6 string bass players tune entirely in 4ths...at least most of them. I honestly don't know who came up with the conventional guitar tuning or why. I don't know much about alternate tunings...it's hard enough mastering the guitar with it's conventional tuning! I think I've heard Deirdre Cartwright but recall her playing smooth jazz...or was it someone else? Will check out your link...thanks Robert!
Thanks for this! Woman here... I think it is puzzling in general that relatively few jazz musicians (other than vocalists) are women. Maybe jazz culture is macho? Maybe still too much of a boys’ club? I suspect also that it’s under confidence. In my experience as a very amateur musician, male musicians are often over confident, and female musicians are often under confident. Is that mostly cultural? Probably. I love Remler and Bailey is great too. I didn’t know the others, so thanks! Gonna check ‘em out.
Thanks for your feedback! I wish more women would comment on this subject. I truly don't have the answer. I see a lot of female pianists, woodwind players and many, many other kinds of string instruments such as violin, viola, and cello. Even bass!!!! But guitar is rare. Is it because it's jazz guitar ? I guess there are female classical guitarists in a much larger number. Hopefully this will change with time.
Hello, I'll try to answer your question : why are they so few ? I'm a jazz and gipsy woman guitarist and I see three main reasons : first (and so, so big !) : cultural and educational then the transmission is between men, with their functioning finally, there are too few female guitarist models in improvised music Thanks a lot for your video Béatrice (France)
May I include Amanda Monaco to your list? She’s a professor at Berkeley and has fronted a few of her own groups. The Amanda Monaco 4 is more in the avant-garde realm but her solo releases are more standardized. But I appreciate this list....I was only familiar with Sheryl Bailey. I’m looking forward in hearing the rest!
I'd put Mary Osborne high up on this list as well, especially since she was most active in the heyday of the 40s, 50s and 60s. Great bebop guitarist who played with some of the biggest names in the game, at a time when it was especially tough for women.
The late Emily Remler and Susan Weinert are my favorites female jazz guitarist but You should check out Tory Slusher, her technique and composition is amazing.
Thank you for a much needed video highlighting female jazz guitarists from around the world, both less and more known! I wish the video had not started with such a negative tune towards Halvorson- it dampened the otherwise positive intent in this video, and answered your own question posed at the end: women are usually inclined towards positive and encouraging forms of critique and feedback, and the music world can often appear as too negative, dismissive and discouraging for newcomers, particularly from minorities. Thanks anyway and please keep posting!
Thanks for the feedback! As far as Holvorson goes, my intent was not to be negative, but aside from the fact that I don't particularly care for avant garde jazz, whether it be male or female (and note that I mentioned late Coltrane to make the point), she did not make my list because it consists of only "mainstream" female jazz guitarists. My other point here is the fact that a female guitarist like Holvorson only gains recognition in today's jazz media because she stands out as being totally different, more due to the fact that she is the only female that plays "avant garde". But other than playing random notes and using effects, I wonder, can she create "melody" over a set of chord changes, such as in a jazz standard? Meanwhile, like I demonstrate in this video, there are several female jazz guitarists who clearly have developed their skills and their own unique voices in the mainstream jazz idiom, and are ignored by the jazz media. As a result they undeservedly remain in obscurity. :(
Thanks for this! Some interesting comments on the subject of women playing electric guitar in general as well as jazz. I think there is a continuous cultural shift towards equality and I have been seeing more and more women guitar players which I think is great. Still prejudice is and exists everywhere and we just need to stand up for equality and support those who face these prejudices because sometimes if we are not a minority we don't always realise that they exist as we don't experience them. An example would be a friend of mine who is your typical middle aged white guy who didn't think there was much of a racist issue in the UK (after UK race report was issued) because he doesn't experience it himself and he is not racist and He is a good guy. When I explained how racism affected me and other foreigners and darker skin he was surprised. We all need to support equality and be aware of prejudices and call them out. In our company for example, workers are not allowed in the depot (or anywhere else) to have semi naked pictures of women which trust me I have seen many at many other companies. There is a strict culture of respect for all and anything outside of that is not tolerated.People think they are harmless jokes and pictures but it's things like this that drive the culture of sexist against women and also the women who expose themselves like this contribute to this. Its a viscous cycle. People are not always aware and some are gender stuck. I have gotten way off topic of women guitarist in jazz but think that the picture has to be seen from a whole. I see on TH-cam a lot of bad and misogynist comments against women guitarists and women in general and Some very disgusting comments too. I wish yotube or the poster of the video would address this but not many say anything. Even on Facebook and Instagram, it's disrespectful. We don't chose how we come into this world, the sex we are born into, the parents we have, nor our genetic makeup or upbringing. We are all unique and we all have the right to be here and to be respected. We have the power to change culture and I think videos like these help a lot! Enjoy your channel very much! Just got into Jazz 4 months ago 🙂
I'm going to guess that the fairly widespread issue of sexism in the music industry is the root cause of the paucity of female guitarists. There aren't a whole lot of popular female instrumentalists in any genre, because it can be a terribly hostile environment: virtually every female musician I've met has experienced condescending salespeople at music stores, some sort of heckling from audiences, skeptical dudes at jam sessions, and worse. Now, for whatever reason, guitar culture tends to be a lot more toxic than some other instruments (the whole Steel Panther pedal thing is a recent reminder) so there are even fewer guitarists, but the problem goes well beyond guitar. Also, the avant garde thing is difficult for a lot of people to get. I grew up on a lot of Grateful Dead and Frank Zappa, so going into jazz, I had an appreciation for weirdness. Thelonious Monk was my first jazz love, then I listened through Cecil Taylor's work chronologically and eventually got super into Eric Dolphy, Albert Ayler, Sonny Sharrock, Ornette Coleman, late Trane and whatnot. Halvorson is a recent favorite. What makes free jazz so appealing is hard to articulate. I think it comes in large part from the fact that it's so unabashedly different from everything else, proud to push listener's boundaries and eager to explore new sounds. It's more of a visceral kind of passion than a cerebral one, and so it's expressed in a completely different manner, and as a result, you have to listen differently to appreciate it. Whereas most the time, improvisers explore harmony, melody, and rhythm, free jazz improvisers explore timbre, density, texture, and dynamics. If you listen to an album like Interstellar Space, you have to reorient your listening to focus more on those aspects if you want to get the most out of it, in my experience. I believe that learning to appreciate free jazz is a wonderful exercise in listening to music in general, as it teaches one to adopt new perspectives from which to listen to different things, finding the good in everything.
Thanks Nate for your valuable insight! I think what you are saying about sexism in the industry is true, however I have worked in jazz circles with various female vocalists and pianists mainly, and there was always a good vibe. I find that if they can play there's no problem. What bugs a lot of male musicians is when a female is mediocre and gets hired just cause she has a pretty face and nice body. I think this is also a form of sexism. As far as the avant garde goes, you are the first one to actually make an effort to educate me and others who don't feel this music on how to maybe learn to listen to it. Others, and curiously today, I have received some "hate mail" for admitting that I don't like the stuff. Unfortunately instead of educating me they just insulted me with inappropriate language. So it is refreshing to read your comments for a change. By the way, I also grew up listening to the Dead and even got to hang out with Garcia once while living in SF, but music later took me in an entire different direction. I have tried throughout my entire life to listen to avant-garde off and on to see if I could feel it. I will keep trying...I guess it's an acquired taste....thanks again!
I think Jazz circles tend to be classier than other genres, but it seems that most people (at least that I've met) don't start out playing jazz, and get deterred earlier on. Even in jazz, microaggressions are all too common. Of course, if someone gets a job just because they're attractive, that's not okay, but there is a flip side to that, where people more harshly scrutinize the way attractive women play, or write them off altogether. I've even heard people dismiss Chet Baker because he was so gorgeous, when he of course deserves a good deal of respect. I'm happy to be the first! Hopefully not the last. Once you get it, listening can become a really powerful, cathartic experience, so it makes sense that people might get attached. It's unfortunate that they would express that love by being hostile to those who don't share it. I'm glad to hear you'll keep exploring. I hope you find something you end up loving. If you're into Monk at all, try listening to Cecil Taylor's early stuff and making your way into his prime chronologically. I've had success getting others into it that way, as it helps bridge the gaps and connect it to the familiar tradition a bit more clearly. Meeting Garcia sounds like a wonderful experience. I still play a bunch of Dead tunes, albeit in a more jazz-oriented way. Stella Blue and Ramble on Rose especially. Their songwriting was on another level especially from Workingman's Dead to Shakedown Street. Garcia/Hunter is one of the few I'd put in the conversation with Dylan.
Carol Kaye was an active bebop guitarist who became a studio bass guitarist. She played on pop R&B and country records as well as jazz. After Carol stopped working in the studio, she became more of a teacher and had a bass guitar column in Guitar Player Magazine. As of the 1990s, USA jazz record sales were much lower than rock and hip hop sales. If you want to make a living, being a jazz musician is far less lucrative than making pop music. The only setting jazz is popular in is in college. Why would anyone, male or female, want to pursue a carer playing jazz in the USA? Jazz is more popular abroad. More women are pursuing careers now than ever before. This is why more female jazz guitarists are popping up abroad.
Thanks...just checked her out! Good player! Just goes to show that you don't have to play a lot of fast notes to be good and above all to make a statement on the instrument. She's Israeli and post-bop like the majority of female players outside of the US. Love it...here is a link for anyone who is reading these comments and wants to expand their horizons .... th-cam.com/video/VI1zx1bwAu8/w-d-xo.html
Nice listing, was lucky enough to see Emily Remler in the Village in the mid-80s, shocking loss. Not making your list: Memphis Minnie (not just guitarist but also arranger, band leader)? Rosetta Tharpe (too blues pentatonic?). Also, Ornette roots were Texas blues/jazz, and bebop. [Note: 'almost said sideman' was to say it, with laugh track. Neither tasteful, respectful, nor funny. Sorry] Great to hear Mary Osborne acknowledged!
Jocelyn Gould is another Canadian top guitarist who's roots are in mainstream Jazz. Check her out, she might be the Emily of the future (please don't crap on me, it's only my personal opinion...). facebook.com/jocelyngouldmusic/videos/252873792034792/UzpfSTUwODMxNTE1NzoxMDE2MTAwNTc3ODE1MDE1OA/ Thanks for the great video Richie!
Well, at least I'm not alone. I've already gotten my share of hate mail over the fact that I don't particularly care for her music. But, it's not her...like I said, it's avant garde in general. Will someone kindly educate us instead of just coming up with insults? 😧
Halvorson has done more trad compositions, at the edge of Mingus, and I feel the same way about her more avante garde stuff. I can't listen to Ornette Coleman.
two theories 1 jazz guitar is very stuck in tradition and bit of that tradition is machismo a lot of "old guys" who don't always dig neither younger players or female players. 2 jazz guitar and the whole of the idiom is also a bit stuck in acedemia, where you pretty much have to have a pedigree of instruction and a degree to play and be taken seriously when other styles you don't need the lineage of credentials. both those examples plus females are kund of pushed into different roles like piano vocal or even bass instead of guitar or horn in jazz that's just how it seems to me personally.
mmm...it used to be that way. Its changed a lot. Check out my previous video.."are u a jazz guitar conservative or liberal?" . I discuss the subject in depth. The bottom line is either you can play or you can't...screw the degree and the pedigree, however, you will need some proper instruction in order to get good or you'll spend your life trying to reinvent the wheel and never get there.
The Jazz Guitar Channel I watched that video the other day more liberal here I play a tele quite a bit years ago I played archtops exclusively I was playing with a friend who plays drums in the local jazz band and also percussion in the symphony and I asked him if he knew anyone one who taught jazz guitar at that time I'd been playing abput 30yrs he said"why"? I said what do you mean ? he told me "you play jazz and you improvise so you're a jazz guitarist" I took that as a great compliment at the time
Absolutely...I love Holdsworth and have everything he ever recorded. He was in a league all by himself! I do however prefer to listen to him when he is not using the synth. What I am trying to say here, and maybe I'm not expressing myself correctly, is that I am in love with the sound of guitar. What I liked about Susan Weinert was that I could still hear the sound and attack of the acoustic nylon string mixed in with the synth.
That's a very interesting observation and I understand completely. In that regard, you may want to check out some of the videos of Holdsworth during the "Sixteen Men of Tain" era with Chris Carpenter and Gary Novak. He couldn't take his Synthaxe out on the road anymore because of reliability issues, so he used a Roland GK pickup attached to his Carvin guitar for the synth aspects of his sound, and some of the sounds he used were "blended" tones of guitar layered with synth. Looking forward to your next video!
Guess it depends what circles you move in. Off the top of my head I can think of a lot more female jazz guitarists, than I can female jazz drummers, or bassists. Or even female jazz sax players, for that matter. I find your definition of "jazz" rather limited. It seems odd to me to hear someone refer to jazz as a "mainstream" art, considering it's origins as an outsider music played by groups that were kept decidedly and deliberately OUT of the mainstream. In a way, recording kind of ruined jazz. Instead of live music and continually fresh improvisation, we've developed a catalog of "definitive" performances -- not unlike classical music -- that new players try to emulate. Sad, really. And if Mary Halverson doesn't make you list of female jazz guitarists, then maybe I have an answer as to why you're having trouble finding female jazz guitarists -- it's because women jazz guitarists are TOO innovative. To them jazz is a living, growing art form; they're not stuck in your 60-year old rut. Oh well.
Thank you for this timely youtube! I'm a guitar major at Berklee College of Music and I've shared your list with some of my teachers since we get very little (or mostly no) representation in the jazz realm. By the way, my private teacher is Amanda Monaco and she has some great albums of jazz up there, also she just recorded an all female jazz band album called Lioness - Pride and joy that was released on international women's day. Again, thank you for giving attention to this important topic and you have turned me on to some great players that I didn't know and am now listening to. Thanks!
Thanks Kristina for sharing! I will look for Amanda's recordings and hopefully feature her on my next female jazz guitarist review (hopefully someday you too can be among them!) By the way I am a Berklee alumni (class of '83). Is Larry Baione still there?...he was one of my teachers along with Jon Damien.I did a masterclass and concert there back in early 2014 with Oscar Stagnaro (bass dept) and other faculty members and students...always nice to go back...it's changed and grown so much!
@@RichieZellon Larry is still there as chair emeritus.
Thank you for this video! I will definitely check out the artists I don't know. As others have mentioned, I would add Jocelyn Gould and Eleonora Strino on this list.
Thanks for putting this vid together!! It’s great!!!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Thank you for putting the spotlight on all of these underrated jazz guitar players. Why are there not more female jazz guitar players? it is because they do not get the backing that they so rightly deserve. Hopefully, in the age of all things internet, female musicians of all kinds will finally have the spotlight and medium they deserve to propel their careers. Thanks for this Mr. Zellon!
Thanks for mentioning Sandra Hempel! One of my favourite guitarists for sure. I took some lessons with her years ago and she continues to inspire me. Unfortunately there is not that much recorded material of her...
I have seen Camila Meza perform in Chile 8 or 9 years ago. What a talented musician. I am glad she is getting some recognition.
A wonderful new world for me to discover and your love of all things jazz shines through. What an unselfish thing for you to do for us. Thx!
Wow Richie, I know Shirley Bailey and Emily Remler but Sandra Hempel I hadn't heard of. Very special. Each note, phrasing, etc means something. Great lines, note choices,space. Downloaded all her links, kinda thing i listen to before i start improv work. To wake the chops memory in the brain. I hunt/scout for unknown jazz guitarists online that inspire me and can learn or get inspired in anyway from. Got a HUGE database of downloads. You just dicovered Sandra Hempel for me! Tnx
Great! I was also pleasantly surprised...and inspired!
Thanks for this video. Great recommendations
You forget Eleonora Strino and Jocelyn Gould , both singers an guitarists.
I must admit that was only familiar with four of them. Thanks for this fair recognition.
Thanks for the list! Yeah, only knew about 5 of them: Remler, of course; and I have Bailey's dvd; Mimi Fox, Leni Stern and Holvorson, but that's it.
Jocelyn-Marie Gould is one to watch out for too.
Thanks for your informative video. I can think of seven more female jazz guitarists - they are: 1) Susana Raya - a Spanish lady now living in Amsterdam - then: 2) Diane Hubke (based in the USA) known for playing 7-string guitar, and: 3) Tina Jackel - a German contemporary jazz guitarist based in Berlin, then: 4)Nora Bite - a Latvian jazz guitarist based in London (UK), post-bop/contemporary in style, and: 5) Jess Lewis, from Chichester, also in the UK. Jess also plays bass, and plays guitar in a variety of styles, but can definitely play bebop. Then there's: 6) Anouk Andre, a French guitarist, and: 7) Louise Maggs, based in Brighton (UK). All seven players are on You Tube. But as to why there seem to be so few female jazz guitarists, I don't know either! I'd be interested in knowing what everyone thinks of these seven ladies. If you contrast this with female jazz pianists, where there are so many excellent players from Europe, Japan, USA, and South American countries - the list easily runs into the hundreds, perhaps the thousands...
Emily Remler is one of favorite jazz guitarists.
I was driving today and Mimi Fox was on my local jazz station. And it dawned on me that I couldn't name 3 straight-ahead, modern bebop rooted female players. I thought of Mimi, of course and Emily Remler. I was a fan of Emily when she was alive and recording. Well, it took a few more long moments and I came up with Leni Stern. But Leni isn't really a jazz player in the same style as Mimi and Emily. But damn. I was a really dumbfounded that I didn't really know more female players. So here I am getting familiar with a bunch more. Thanks!
So I'm lovin your jazz channel it is on the top and the best Thanks a lot from so California. Cap....
Being new to jazz guitar I also wondered about the scarcity of women players. While trying to develop my own ear and jazz vocabulary I've been searching out videos of various players and came across a Canadian women, Jocelyn Gould, who to my untrained ears seems to be a straight-up, no-chaser, traditional jazz player producing nice melodic lines with her Eastman archtop.
Thanks for sharing! I'll definitely check her out ...oops that didn't come out right :)
Nice to find you shining the spotlight on female jazz guitarists. I agree, there seems not to be too many of them, for reasons I've never understood, but I proudly count myself among them. I've been playing guitar for forty years now (I'm 51), but didn't discover jazz until I'd been playing ten years or so. I suspect that my stylistic leanings might seem a little stodgy in comparison with most of the folks who frequent this excellent channel: Though I listen to a lot of bebop, I'm mainly interested as a player in the chordal-style solos and Freddie Green rhythm of the pre-Charlie Christian era. ... Speaking of Charlie, I was glad to see Mary Osborne mentioned. She was a friend of Charlie's and widely considered back in the day to be one of the closest adherents to his style -- marvelous player and a good singer, too.
Thanks for the feedback...somehow I would have mistaken you for a trombone player from your username 😀
Yeah, I played trombone for about seven years -- thus the "Erstwhile."
ahh...so I wasn't that far off..thanks!
I love Mary Halverson! Is Ornette Coleman not jazz? But other than that, great video as always.
Sure its jazz...just not mainstream.. like i said in the video, my list doesn't including players outside of the bebop/post-bop or fusion bag. I on the other hand admit to being an ignoramus when it comes to avant-garde...sorry but I need to hear melody and a degree of consonance in the harmony...I find the avant garde interesting for the first few minutes at tops...but then...ugh! Some Ornette Coleman I even like. I call it avant garde light...but Cecil Taylor I couldn't stand. Total chaos..
Dear Richie, thanks for all your interesting and helpful videos. In England, one of the leading jazz guitarists is Deirdre Cartwright: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deirdre_Cartwright. I’m not certain, but I’ve been told she uses non-standard tuning (EADGCF?). I wonder if that might be a topic you could consider? When one first starts to learn guitar, the different interval between the third and second strings seems annoying, and I’ve never heard an explanation for it. Keep up the good work!
Yeah...that darn 2nd to 3rd interval tuning on the guitar. I know that 6 string bass players tune entirely in 4ths...at least most of them. I honestly don't know who came up with the conventional guitar tuning or why. I don't know much about alternate tunings...it's hard enough mastering the guitar with it's conventional tuning! I think I've heard Deirdre Cartwright but recall her playing smooth jazz...or was it someone else? Will check out your link...thanks Robert!
thanks at all !
Merci pour la belle musique ~ j'écoute votre video de Nuages de Django Reinhardt, c'est très beau. J'aime Django Reinhardt.
Thanks for this! Woman here... I think it is puzzling in general that relatively few jazz musicians (other than vocalists) are women. Maybe jazz culture is macho? Maybe still too much of a boys’ club? I suspect also that it’s under confidence. In my experience as a very amateur musician, male musicians are often over confident, and female musicians are often under confident. Is that mostly cultural? Probably. I love Remler and Bailey is great too. I didn’t know the others, so thanks! Gonna check ‘em out.
Thanks for your feedback! I wish more women would comment on this subject. I truly don't have the answer. I see a lot of female pianists, woodwind players and many, many other kinds of string instruments such as violin, viola, and cello. Even bass!!!! But guitar is rare. Is it because it's jazz guitar ? I guess there are female classical guitarists in a much larger number. Hopefully this will change with time.
Emily -the Best!
Hello, I'll try to answer your question : why are they so few ? I'm a jazz and gipsy woman guitarist and I see three main reasons :
first (and so, so big !) : cultural and educational
then the transmission is between men, with their functioning
finally, there are too few female guitarist models in improvised music
Thanks a lot for your video
Béatrice (France)
May I include Amanda Monaco to your list?
She’s a professor at Berkeley and has fronted a few of her own groups. The Amanda Monaco 4 is more in the avant-garde realm but her solo releases are more standardized.
But I appreciate this list....I was only familiar with Sheryl Bailey. I’m looking forward in hearing the rest!
Sure, thanks...wasn't familiar with her. Is she at Berkeley, CA., or did you mean Berklee in Boston?
Great Info
Mary Halvorson is my favorite modern guitarist on the planet, male or female! Love her work.
I'd put Mary Osborne high up on this list as well, especially since she was most active in the heyday of the 40s, 50s and 60s. Great bebop guitarist who played with some of the biggest names in the game, at a time when it was especially tough for women.
Great video. Liked and subscribed.
The late Emily Remler and Susan Weinert are my favorites female jazz guitarist but You should check out Tory Slusher, her technique and composition is amazing.
Check out Monnette Sudler. She's been around for over 4 decades and also Jocelyn Gould.
I guess you really didn't watch the video. I mention Monnette Sudler and even have a link in the info section to one of her videos.
Thank you for a much needed video highlighting female jazz guitarists from around the world, both less and more known! I wish the video had not started with such a negative tune towards Halvorson- it dampened the otherwise positive intent in this video, and answered your own question posed at the end: women are usually inclined towards positive and encouraging forms of critique and feedback, and the music world can often appear as too negative, dismissive and discouraging for newcomers, particularly from minorities. Thanks anyway and please keep posting!
Thanks for the feedback! As far as Holvorson goes, my intent was not to be negative, but aside from the fact that I don't particularly care for avant garde jazz, whether it be male or female (and note that I mentioned late Coltrane to make the point), she did not make my list because it consists of only "mainstream" female jazz guitarists. My other point here is the fact that a female guitarist like Holvorson only gains recognition in today's jazz media because she stands out as being totally different, more due to the fact that she is the only female that plays "avant garde". But other than playing random notes and using effects, I wonder, can she create "melody" over a set of chord changes, such as in a jazz standard? Meanwhile, like I demonstrate in this video, there are several female jazz guitarists who clearly have developed their skills and their own unique voices in the mainstream jazz idiom, and are ignored by the jazz media. As a result they undeservedly remain in obscurity. :(
Great Video! Thank you for the female German Jazzer!
Thanks for this! Some interesting comments on the subject of women playing electric guitar in general as well as jazz. I think there is a continuous cultural shift towards equality and I have been seeing more and more women guitar players which I think is great. Still prejudice is and exists everywhere and we just need to stand up for equality and support those who face these prejudices because sometimes if we are not a minority we don't always realise that they exist as we don't experience them. An example would be a friend of mine who is your typical middle aged white guy who didn't think there was much of a racist issue in the UK (after UK race report was issued) because he doesn't experience it himself and he is not racist and He is a good guy. When I explained how racism affected me and other foreigners and darker skin he was surprised. We all need to support equality and be aware of prejudices and call them out. In our company for example, workers are not allowed in the depot (or anywhere else) to have semi naked pictures of women which trust me I have seen many at many other companies. There is a strict culture of respect for all and anything outside of that is not tolerated.People think they are harmless jokes and pictures but it's things like this that drive the culture of sexist against women and also the women who expose themselves like this contribute to this. Its a viscous cycle. People are not always aware and some are gender stuck. I have gotten way off topic of women guitarist in jazz but think that the picture has to be seen from a whole. I see on TH-cam a lot of bad and misogynist comments against women guitarists and women in general and Some very disgusting comments too. I wish yotube or the poster of the video would address this but not many say anything. Even on Facebook and Instagram, it's disrespectful. We don't chose how we come into this world, the sex we are born into, the parents we have, nor our genetic makeup or upbringing. We are all unique and we all have the right to be here and to be respected. We have the power to change culture and I think videos like these help a lot!
Enjoy your channel very much! Just got into Jazz 4 months ago 🙂
Thanks for a another great video Richie! If you have a chance, check out Jane Miller, a great player and wonderful teacher at Berklee.
Thanks, will do!
i just heard Eleonora Strino and of course Mary Osborne!!
I'm going to guess that the fairly widespread issue of sexism in the music industry is the root cause of the paucity of female guitarists. There aren't a whole lot of popular female instrumentalists in any genre, because it can be a terribly hostile environment: virtually every female musician I've met has experienced condescending salespeople at music stores, some sort of heckling from audiences, skeptical dudes at jam sessions, and worse. Now, for whatever reason, guitar culture tends to be a lot more toxic than some other instruments (the whole Steel Panther pedal thing is a recent reminder) so there are even fewer guitarists, but the problem goes well beyond guitar.
Also, the avant garde thing is difficult for a lot of people to get. I grew up on a lot of Grateful Dead and Frank Zappa, so going into jazz, I had an appreciation for weirdness. Thelonious Monk was my first jazz love, then I listened through Cecil Taylor's work chronologically and eventually got super into Eric Dolphy, Albert Ayler, Sonny Sharrock, Ornette Coleman, late Trane and whatnot. Halvorson is a recent favorite. What makes free jazz so appealing is hard to articulate. I think it comes in large part from the fact that it's so unabashedly different from everything else, proud to push listener's boundaries and eager to explore new sounds. It's more of a visceral kind of passion than a cerebral one, and so it's expressed in a completely different manner, and as a result, you have to listen differently to appreciate it. Whereas most the time, improvisers explore harmony, melody, and rhythm, free jazz improvisers explore timbre, density, texture, and dynamics. If you listen to an album like Interstellar Space, you have to reorient your listening to focus more on those aspects if you want to get the most out of it, in my experience. I believe that learning to appreciate free jazz is a wonderful exercise in listening to music in general, as it teaches one to adopt new perspectives from which to listen to different things, finding the good in everything.
Thanks Nate for your valuable insight! I think what you are saying about sexism in the industry is true, however I have worked in jazz circles with various female vocalists and pianists mainly, and there was always a good vibe. I find that if they can play there's no problem. What bugs a lot of male musicians is when a female is mediocre and gets hired just cause she has a pretty face and nice body. I think this is also a form of sexism.
As far as the avant garde goes, you are the first one to actually make an effort to educate me and others who don't feel this music on how to maybe learn to listen to it. Others, and curiously today, I have received some "hate mail" for admitting that I don't like the stuff. Unfortunately instead of educating me they just insulted me with inappropriate language. So it is refreshing to read your comments for a change. By the way, I also grew up listening to the Dead and even got to hang out with Garcia once while living in SF, but music later took me in an entire different direction. I have tried throughout my entire life to listen to avant-garde off and on to see if I could feel it. I will keep trying...I guess it's an acquired taste....thanks again!
I think Jazz circles tend to be classier than other genres, but it seems that most people (at least that I've met) don't start out playing jazz, and get deterred earlier on. Even in jazz, microaggressions are all too common. Of course, if someone gets a job just because they're attractive, that's not okay, but there is a flip side to that, where people more harshly scrutinize the way attractive women play, or write them off altogether. I've even heard people dismiss Chet Baker because he was so gorgeous, when he of course deserves a good deal of respect.
I'm happy to be the first! Hopefully not the last. Once you get it, listening can become a really powerful, cathartic experience, so it makes sense that people might get attached. It's unfortunate that they would express that love by being hostile to those who don't share it. I'm glad to hear you'll keep exploring. I hope you find something you end up loving. If you're into Monk at all, try listening to Cecil Taylor's early stuff and making your way into his prime chronologically. I've had success getting others into it that way, as it helps bridge the gaps and connect it to the familiar tradition a bit more clearly.
Meeting Garcia sounds like a wonderful experience. I still play a bunch of Dead tunes, albeit in a more jazz-oriented way. Stella Blue and Ramble on Rose especially. Their songwriting was on another level especially from Workingman's Dead to Shakedown Street. Garcia/Hunter is one of the few I'd put in the conversation with Dylan.
Rosie Frater Taylor?
Mimi is great
I think you are wrong about Mary Halvorson. You should listen to the new work she has coming with Bill Frisell.
I may be...and I will definitely listen. Thanks for the feedback...
Thank YOU for all these terrific lessons!!!!!
Jocelyn Gould??
Gabi gonzalez check out Baião alterado (Brazilian jazz)
Carol Kaye was an active bebop guitarist who became a studio bass guitarist. She played on pop R&B and country records as well as jazz. After Carol stopped working in the studio, she became more of a teacher and had a bass guitar column in Guitar Player Magazine.
As of the 1990s, USA jazz record sales were much lower than rock and hip hop sales. If you want to make a living, being a jazz musician is far less lucrative than making pop music. The only setting jazz is popular in is in college. Why would anyone, male or female, want to pursue a carer playing jazz in the USA? Jazz is more popular abroad. More women are pursuing careers now than ever before. This is why more female jazz guitarists are popping up abroad.
Thanks for the feedback!
Check out Inbar Fridman
Thanks...just checked her out! Good player! Just goes to show that you don't have to play a lot of fast notes to be good and above all to make a statement on the instrument. She's Israeli and post-bop like the majority of female players outside of the US. Love it...here is a link for anyone who is reading these comments and wants to expand their horizons .... th-cam.com/video/VI1zx1bwAu8/w-d-xo.html
No Mary Osbourne? I thought she would've been number 2
Of course I mentioned her! You probably didn't watch the video all the way.
Yeah right, thanks!
Love Emily. Jocelyn Gould is also great.
Nice listing, was lucky enough to see Emily Remler in the Village in the mid-80s, shocking loss. Not making your list: Memphis Minnie (not just guitarist but also arranger, band leader)? Rosetta Tharpe (too blues pentatonic?). Also, Ornette roots were Texas blues/jazz, and bebop. [Note: 'almost said sideman' was to say it, with laugh track. Neither tasteful, respectful, nor funny. Sorry] Great to hear Mary Osborne acknowledged!
nice to see some female representation 👌
yes, so nice !
Jocelyn Gould is another Canadian top guitarist who's roots are in mainstream Jazz. Check her out, she might be the Emily of the future (please don't crap on me, it's only my personal opinion...). facebook.com/jocelyngouldmusic/videos/252873792034792/UzpfSTUwODMxNTE1NzoxMDE2MTAwNTc3ODE1MDE1OA/ Thanks for the great video Richie!
I suggest that you check out Dida Pelled here on TH-cam!!! A New York-based Israeli guitarist and vocalist.
Agree about Mary Halvorson. Listened to her a number of times, but her music leaves me cold.
Well, at least I'm not alone. I've already gotten my share of hate mail over the fact that I don't particularly care for her music. But, it's not her...like I said, it's avant garde in general. Will someone kindly educate us instead of just coming up with insults?
😧
Checkout Jazz Guitarist & Professor Emily Wheeler in action Yall: th-cam.com/video/HHmxJ_IOiUs/w-d-xo.html
Thanks! Very good player...nice duets with her guitarist husband too! Will add her to my list.
Halvorson has done more trad compositions, at the edge of Mingus, and I feel the same way about her more avante garde stuff. I can't listen to Ornette Coleman.
two theories
1 jazz guitar is very stuck in tradition
and bit of that tradition is machismo
a lot of "old guys" who don't always dig neither younger players or female players.
2 jazz guitar and the whole of the idiom is also a bit stuck in acedemia, where you pretty much have to have a pedigree of instruction and a degree to play and be taken seriously when other styles you don't need the lineage of credentials.
both those examples plus females are kund of pushed into different roles like piano vocal or even bass instead of guitar or horn in jazz
that's just how it seems to me personally.
mmm...it used to be that way. Its changed a lot. Check out my previous video.."are u a jazz guitar conservative or liberal?" . I discuss the subject in depth. The bottom line is either you can play or you can't...screw the degree and the pedigree, however, you will need some proper instruction in order to get good or you'll spend your life trying to reinvent the wheel and never get there.
The Jazz Guitar Channel oh yeah exactly
love Emily btw
such a great player
The Jazz Guitar Channel I watched that video the other day
more liberal here
I play a tele quite a bit years ago I played archtops exclusively
I was playing with a friend who plays drums in the local jazz band and also percussion in the symphony
and I asked him if he knew anyone one who taught jazz guitar
at that time I'd been playing abput 30yrs
he said"why"?
I said what do you mean ?
he told me
"you play jazz and you improvise so you're a jazz guitarist"
I took that as a great compliment at the time
Female jazz bassist? There is a great new young lady from Portland.
I take lessons from Monnette
Cool, I'm sure you're in good hands! Be sure to share this post with her...
Susan Weinert died in march 2020
That is a great loss...I am so saddened to hear that. She deserved so much more recognition!
Like
Come on Mr. Z. Open your mind. Spend more than 20 seconds listening to avant garde. Don't give up so easily.
I've listened not for 20 seconds...but instead over and over for years, since I was in my 20s. I finally realized it's not my cup of tea!
LENI STERN!!!
Kinga glyk
Halvorson's musical approach is just pure nonsense -- not for me...
As far as guitar synth goes....Richie, you NEED to listen to Allan Holdsworth. Thanks for all the great information on female jazz guitarists.
Absolutely...I love Holdsworth and have everything he ever recorded. He was in a league all by himself! I do however prefer to listen to him when he is not using the synth. What I am trying to say here, and maybe I'm not expressing myself correctly, is that I am in love with the sound of guitar. What I liked about Susan Weinert was that I could still hear the sound and attack of the acoustic nylon string mixed in with the synth.
That's a very interesting observation and I understand completely. In that regard, you may want to check out some of the videos of Holdsworth during the "Sixteen Men of Tain" era with Chris Carpenter and Gary Novak. He couldn't take his Synthaxe out on the road anymore because of reliability issues, so he used a Roland GK pickup attached to his Carvin guitar for the synth aspects of his sound, and some of the sounds he used were "blended" tones of guitar layered with synth. Looking forward to your next video!
Guess it depends what circles you move in.
Off the top of my head I can think of a lot more female jazz guitarists, than I can female jazz drummers, or bassists. Or even female jazz sax players, for that matter.
I find your definition of "jazz" rather limited.
It seems odd to me to hear someone refer to jazz as a "mainstream" art, considering it's origins as an outsider music played by groups that were kept decidedly and deliberately OUT of the mainstream.
In a way, recording kind of ruined jazz. Instead of live music and continually fresh improvisation, we've developed a catalog of "definitive" performances -- not unlike classical music -- that new players try to emulate. Sad, really.
And if Mary Halverson doesn't make you list of female jazz guitarists, then maybe I have an answer as to why you're having trouble finding female jazz guitarists -- it's because women jazz guitarists are TOO innovative. To them jazz is a living, growing art form; they're not stuck in your 60-year old rut.
Oh well.
Richie, I figure that you haven't taken enough illegal drugs to appreciate Avant Garde' guitar.....
J Schmoe what is an ate garde'?
J Schmoe and another thing re substances, do you see his hat?
rillloudmother, huh? All that you have to go on is a type-o? That's a pretty thin indictment.
J Schmoe back when people used to talk in person those were called wise cracks. No indictments unless you worked on a certain campaign...
OK rilloudmother, I gotcha... yes a sense of humor... I'll have to go out and get one !
Emily Remler rulezzzz
Holeeeee Hell vorsen 😂