Tory Slusher: Jazz-Blues Improv

[MarkRhodes]

Pretty amazing player. New to me. Good sense of humor too.

[MarkRhodes]

The right hand stuff...

[bako]

Hi Mark,

I recently stumbled upon a few of her videos. I enjoy her laid back ain't nothing much to this but hard work, study and experimentation. She is a humble and growing musician with a broad palette of interests and influences. I would be curious to hear her in a band setting.

[MarkRhodes]

Her amazing version of Led Zeppelin's "Hot Dog."

Great view of her right hand during the long solo section.

[MarkRhodes]

How Tory creates good jazz lines

[MarkRhodes]

Her Strandberg Salen review.

[nakim55]

What kind of telecaster is she playing?

[Bobby Timmons]

I didn't see you'd already created a thread about her haha. She's an angular player, and uses a lot of chromatics and intervals to get that sound. Lol at her with a bird on her guitar.

[MarkRhodes]

What kind of telecaster is she playing?

She plays a Strandberg Salen (umlaut over the "A" in Salen).
I'd never heard of those guitars.
Looked them up.
Very expensive.
But her review video was persuasive. (Not persuasive enough to convince my wife I need to one right now, but that's another story.)

[MarkRhodes]

I didn't see you'd already created a thread about her haha. She's an angular player, and uses a lot of chromatics and intervals to get that sound. Lol at her with a bird on her guitar.

She also does some country stuff.
In one video, she solos over the "Donna Lee" changes in the style of seven different piano players. A lot of her tapping stuff is pianistic. (In one of her videos she uses a pick for a bit to highlight that when she played with a pick, she was prone to just guitar cliches, so she doesn't use a pick anymore.

(One might ask, "Are piano cliches acceptable in a way that guitar cliches are not?")

But I do get a kick out of hearing her play. She is amazingly fluid and accurate.

[Alter]

Nice solo on this tune!

[Bobby Timmons]

Well her originality didn't come from only playing pianistically. She has a few facets to her style including guitarist influences. She can bop the changes like Bird, she has a bit of a fusion element like Scof and Metheny, she plays chromatically like Holdsworth, and she seems to want to play angularly using interval jumps like Monk. I don't know if these are her exact influences, just using these names to approximate what I hear. It's not like her style has never been done before but it's still pretty original and sounds very good. Her harmonic approach is cool and she's quick rhythmically.

The question I ask myself given her perspective is, should I practice developing in a style that is somewhat vanilla or should I pursue an original approach like her?

[nakim55]

Yes, I know she plays a Strandberg Salen, but she also plays a squire telecaster. By the way, in a recent comment on one of her videos she stated that she sold the Salen “for money.” My inquire is, what kind of squire is she playing? I think it is an Affinity. I could score an $200 squire, but not an $1800 Strandberg, lol.

[CliffR]

Here's a great interview where she talks about her influences and growth as a player:

[nakim55]

I discovered her a couple weeks ago, she blew my mind. Seems like she can absorb about any style I can think of, classical, Chet Atkins/ Bela Fleck country, Avant Garde atonal, metal shredding, Holdsworth legato, BeBop, fusion, blues, 2 hand tapping, finger style, rock, flamenco, etc, and apply in fluidly. She also does her own bass and drum tracks. She also writes good music. She also has a recording on band camp which reminded me of King Crimson, but her you tube “standards” play list buries that band camp recording. She does not sound like anybody I have ever heard, she delivers astounding technique effortlessly with a deadpan face. Her melodic lines are original and HIP! Actually, I think she can hold her own with any jazz guitarist you would want to mention, if not surpass them. She deserves wider recognition and will receive it as her reputation grows. Mary Halvorson has NOTHING on this young lady. She reminds me of Lenny Breau, that kind of breadth.STANDARD TUNES.... basically. - YouTube

[MarkRhodes]

Well her originality didn't come from only playing pianistically. She has a few facets to her style including guitarist influences. She can bop the changes like Bird, she has a bit of a fusion element like Scof and Metheny, she plays chromatically like Holdsworth, and she seems to want to play angularly using interval jumps like Monk. I don't know if these are her exact influences, just using these names to approximate what I hear. It's not like her style has never been done before but it's still pretty original and sounds very good. Her harmonic approach is cool and she's quick rhythmically.

The question I ask myself given her perspective is, should I practice developing in a style that is somewhat vanilla or should I pursue an original approach like her?

Agreed, she doesn't just play pianistically, but she does make a point of wanting to do things that aren't the normal guitar-player things to do.
I've heard her mention Holdsworth. He's a definite influence. And Steve Vai. (I think Vai was a big early influence on her. And then she took it to the limit. ;o)

Here she is playing "Birdland" on a double-neck guitar.

[Bobby Timmons]

I'm liking her shredding the roof off on Blues for Alice.

[MarkRhodes]

Yes, I know she plays a Strandberg Salen, but she also plays a squire telecaster. By the way, in a recent comment on one of her videos she stated that she sold the Salen “for money.” My inquire is, what kind of squire is she playing? I think it is an Affinity. I could score an $200 squire, but not an $1800 Strandberg, lol.

I have a Squier Affinity Tele. My wife gave it to for Christmas back in '99. (That's the year we got married.) It cost around $200. Believe me, I can't begin to do with it what Tory can do with hers.