Loving the looper

[kevets]

I got a Boss RC3 for Christmas. Wow, I wish a teacher had recommended this years ago! I've been a classical player branching in the past few years into Fingerstyle jazz and some Blues.

Coming from classical, my rhythm discipline stinks. It's easy to shrug that off as artistic expression via rubato. But that's just excuse making. Playing 90% of the time solo, with only the occasional ensemble work, I just didn't really incorporate rhythmic discipline into my practice.

So now, I am taking standards out of the Real Book. I play and record the chords, loop that and then add on the melody. And that's when I realized how bad my rhythm really is. It's one thing to get off the metronome beat. But when you get off the loop, you get some crazy dissonance happening.

Any of you teachers have other recommended looping exercises you could share?

[Turp]

I had a very similar experience. I'm a fingerstyle player who played solo pieces for years. Loopers, with a little technique and imagination, open up another realm of expression and artistry.

Loopers allowed me to finally develop an ear for improvising a few years ago.