Concepts & Ideas for Guitar Duo Playing

John Stowell teams up with Swedish guitarist Ulf Bandgren for an informal, hands-on discussion of approaches and strategies for the guitar duo format. Filmed together in Gothenburg, the dialogue is unscripted, and the two players' different but complementary approaches bring plenty of ideas to light.

What's covered

• Conventional solo/accompaniment roles, demonstrated on a familiar standard
• Simultaneous improvisation and counterpoint, including soloing together
• Bass lines and chordal ideas for the accompanist
• Pianistic voicings — borrowing comping ideas from piano players and big-band backgrounds
• Using space in your comping: implying harmony rather than stating every chord, leaving roots out
• Some extended harmonic concepts, such as implied and diminished-major-7 colors

John and Ulf play full duo performances and then break down what each was thinking, so you hear the concepts in context before they explain them. A practical session for any guitarist who plays in duos — or wants to comp with more imagination. Full video is 1 hour and 31 minutes.