Jesse van Ruller Triplet Licks

Diederikeggenkamp · #1 12-21-2011, 01:16 PM

Hello!

I was wondering if anyone here is familiar with the guitarist Jesse van Ruller from the Netherlands. And if so, does anyone have any ideas on how to develope the agility to execute the fast triplet/doubletime licks he often uses? I think he kinda got the way he does it from George Benson, but I can't be sure.

Anyway this video has some examples I believe:

Hello George - YouTube

obviously it's the younger fellow. Catherine plays awesome here too!

TruthHertz · #2 12-21-2011, 01:36 PM

Jesse's really great. I think he won the Monk competition a while back, didn't he? His career and output is not easy to come across here in the States. Thanks for bringing him up. I look forward to the discussion.
David

Diederikeggenkamp · #3 12-21-2011, 01:47 PM

He did indeed. 1995. Me too!

Cheers

Philco · #4 12-21-2011, 06:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Diederikeggenkamp

Hello!

I was wondering if anyone here is familiar with the guitarist Jesse van Ruller from the Netherlands. And if so, does anyone have any ideas on how to develope the agility to execute the fast triplet/doubletime licks he often uses? I think he kinda got the way he does it from George Benson, but I can't be sure.

Anyway this video has some examples I believe:

Hello George - YouTube

obviously it's the younger fellow. Catherine plays awesome here too!

Jesse is my fave player. He writes his own tunes and has a "fresh" way of playing. He manages to avoid sounding old school bop but still has that sensibility or flavour......the excitement of bop is there but the cliches are not.
He's not much of an "outside" player but I'm not a fan of that anyway.
Has a great sound and covers a variety of styles.
He's not a speedster but his technique is actually quite awesome.
The way he crosses strings and plays fourths with ease is quite astounding.
More important than any of the above, the guy has a great feel and is always musical and thoughtful. A very "honest" player....no bling.
If you search Youtube you will find him playing some fairly straight jazz blue tunes and his solos are just brilliant.
No cliches and he has that modern slightly outside but inside sound and no hint of blues at all.

To the OP. The triplets you hear are a sweep technique that is fairly common.
An example sweeping down would be....(E minor)

Ist string - down stroke 10th fret
1st string - up stroke 7th fret
2nd string - up stroke (a continuation of the last stroke) 8th fret
3rd string - up stroke (a continuation of the last stroke) 9th fret
3rd string - down stroke 7th fret

Now try it sweeping up
3rd string - up stroke 7th fret
3rd string - down stroke 9th fret
2nd string - down stroke ( a continuation of the last stroke) 8th fret
1st string - down stroke ( a continuation of the last stroke) 7th fret
1st string - up stroke 10th fret

You can apply this technique all over the place.

For the last 3 weeks I have been learning "Circles" by Jesse.
It really is the hardest thing I've ever tried.
Not because of the technique....it's not to hard.
But the TIMING!!
Goodness me it really did my head in.
But Jesse plays it so easily and with such groove.

I was confused about a certain timing thing so I wrote to him.
Can you believe he actually wrote back and explained where I went wrong?
Great guy.
I have also worked out the chordal section of this tune

YouTube Video

His chord choices are very fresh sounding to me.
But if you want to play that piece you have to really work on your "thumbing" technique (left hand).

Diederikeggenkamp · #5 01-01-2012, 09:29 AM

Dude, awesome reply! Haven't had time to check if your sweeping thing is exactly what I was aiming at, but it sure as hell would be a good technique to master. Can you inform me on what exactly it was you corresponded about?

I agree with the above by the way, the whole kinda outside-ish but still inside stuff. I get what you mean, but I totally disagree about the no blues thing, he can have quite a bluesy touch!

all the best and happy 2012

Diederikeggenkamp · #6 01-01-2012, 09:32 AM

I've checked your thing and it's indeed a common sweeping lick, but not really what I was reffering to. Thanks anyway!

MeneerJelle · #7 01-04-2012, 08:29 PM

@Philco,

Last year I also tried to transcribe Circles, but then I came to the realisation that I "flipped" the beat. I was counting 2 as 1, and so forth. It's a though song. What did Jesse say to you exactly?

@Diederik:
If your talking about developing agility, then it al comes down to practice, practice. But I assume you already know this. What kind of triplet licks do you mean exactly? The ones at 2:07?

Diederikeggenkamp · #8 01-05-2012, 07:36 AM

Hey,

@MeneerJelle I was talking more about the licks around 2:45 in the "Hello George" vid. Ofcourse I knew about the practice thing, but I meant some pattern or starting point for this specific challenge

Jake Hanlon · #9 01-05-2012, 08:03 AM

i'm a huge fan of this guy, love his note choices and pacing of his playing, love his sound. This clip is pretty old methinks. I haven't heard his last side which is like a chamber thing but all his straight up albums just are killing with great bands. Doesn't hurt that he uses Bill Stewart a lot on his records who is my fav current drumsetist.

MeneerJelle · #10 01-05-2012, 09:25 AM

I looked at it for you, and it think it's not really sweeping what he does there at 2:45.
The cord is something G major there I think, and he slides to a high D, and then chromatically descends from a Bb to an F. Then Eb, E, C and a chromatic approach the the third of the G. (A, Bb, B). He picks every note, just really fast. When you play and think this line in a particular pattern, it may be a lot easier to play than you think!

Philco · #11 01-10-2012, 08:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Diederikeggenkamp

Dude, awesome reply! Haven't had time to check if your sweeping thing is exactly what I was aiming at, but it sure as hell would be a good technique to master. Can you inform me on what exactly it was you corresponded about?

I agree with the above by the way, the whole kinda outside-ish but still inside stuff. I get what you mean, but I totally disagree about the no blues thing, he can have quite a bluesy touch!

all the best and happy 2012

Sorry I've been in Japan for 3 weeks on holidays and haven't replied to the post.

Well if you start counting "Circles" you will find that when you get to the second section (with the rising chords) you will have to insert a 3/4 bar and then add a 5/4 bar to get into the next section............and it just feels all wrong.
I just couldn't figure how those guys were playing with that awkward time as if it was a stroll in the park.
So I asked Jesse what was going on with the time and how did he "feel" it.
The answer was so simple.
The song is simply in 4/4 BUT that bass riff starts on 2. So when you hear that bass accent you know it's the second beat of the bar and your brain will then feel the one etc.
Once you count it that way it all falls into place. No odd time bars at all.

This is a interesting level of complexity. That is.....we usually hear someone playing something overtly difficult......fast etc. But here is a tune that requires a high level of musicianship just to play and feel in the groove.
I'm still working on it.
It still does my head in.

Philco · #12 01-10-2012, 09:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Diederikeggenkamp

Hey,

@MeneerJelle I was talking more about the licks around 2:45 in the "Hello George" vid. Ofcourse I knew about the practice thing, but I meant some pattern or starting point for this specific challenge

Oh that lick is an Andreas Oberg fave (and many other players) and it works over any dominant altered chord.
Adreas plays that lick clearly in his Truefire vid (not that I'm trying to get you to buy it)
I'm sure it's in the part where he is breaking down his solo in Cherokee and talks about the Super Lochrian scale. He plays a little melody and then rips that lick very fast. But he uses it all over the place it many other Youtube clips.
It's a common one.....but a good one!

BTW there is a hammer on and off at the start and the rest is alternate picking.

Diederikeggenkamp · #13 01-11-2012, 04:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeneerJelle

I looked at it for you, and it think it's not really sweeping what he does there at 2:45.
The cord is something G major there I think, and he slides to a high D, and then chromatically descends from a Bb to an F. Then Eb, E, C and a chromatic approach the the third of the G. (A, Bb, B). He picks every note, just really fast. When you play and think this line in a particular pattern, it may be a lot easier to play than you think!

Thanks, I didn't think it was sweeping though haha :P the sweeping thing I thought about was kind of the last thing he plays in the song, like the ending "lick or something" but the pattern thing you're taking about makes sense.