Nick Johnston, the Canadian guitar master, gave a masterclass in Tel Aviv on Friday afternoon.
The even was sponsored by Wild Guitars and it was a packed full house.
Johnston came on, asked everyone to first cheer and then boo him which he recorded for a mini-documentary he is making. He asked what we think of his mustache. The answer was not the resounding positivity perhaps he had been hoping for.
He played a couple of songs on a red signature Schecter Nick Johnston Traditional HSS (basically a Strat shape but with a humbucker in the bridge position).
Then he answered questions. He even offered a sweaty, used pick to the person who asked the first question.
We learned about his biggest inspiration — the boy who moved in to the house next door when Johnston was 13 and the neighbor was 14. We learned about the order he creates album titles, song titles and album art (in that order).
The question answer of the day was to the question, “Can I jam with you?” (“No!”).
The longest answer was about chromatics. The tl:dr version is that it is either all about intervals or just chucking in some extra notes to fill up the space between notes.
Who does Johnston consider is the best chromatic guitar player in the world? Brett Garsed (an Australian guitarist I had never heard of before).
What does Johnston like best about Israel? He thinks we have the best beach in the world.
Nick grew up on all the Shrapnel bands I heard back in the 80s, but he was listening to them in the 90s (because he is only 35). This allowed him to develop his “orchestral” style with beautiful sonic lines interspersed with lightning fast runs.
How does he compose music? It all starts at the piano. He locks the guitar up in a cage until the melodic outline of the song is composed. Because if he would compose on the guitar, it would be all shred and no music.
Why did he stop using the whammy bar a few years ago? Because he became too reliant on it (also because he beat up his hands on it a lot). Why did he start using it again recently? Because it is so much fun. Also, the Schechter non-locking tremolo that stays in tune is just amazing.
How does he do the legato runs but make them sound so percussive? Partly because he is left-handed. Partly because he practiced eight hours a day for 20 years. Also, by resting the fleshy part of his right hand lightly on the strings.
It was a great afternoon of music and conversation from Nick Johnston. And the main comment I heard afterwards was, “He is such a nice guy.”
If you ever get the chance to join him in a master class you totally should.
Follow Nick Johnston on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/nickjohnstonguitar
Follow Nick Johnston on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NickJohnstonOfficial
Follow Nick Johnston on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nickjohnstonmusic/
Follow Nick Johnston on Twitter: https://twitter.com/nickjmusic