Review

Instrumental guitar music generally leads a shadowy existence. For decades, a few dozen young and not-so-young men have been quietly putting on six to twelve new strings, and—open tunings or not—the impression that this is a fairly homogenous and exclusive circle cannot be entirely dismissed. Recently, however, there was a stir in the community when the New York Times caused a stir with a headline on Yasmin Williams's new album: "The Face of Solo Guitar Is Changing. It's About Time." The keyword "diversity" was finally—the author was heard sighing—the genre was changing, or rather, catching up with the present, necessitating a reconciliation with the patriarch John Fahey and the code name "American Primitive" he introduced—and which is now viewed as problematic. This neologism had previously been considered almost synonymous with an entire range of instrumental guitar music. Such abbreviations are as inaccurate as they are commonplace (and – carefully chosen – also justified). Pop music criticism is similar to retail in this respect: labels are affixed so that customers can orient themselves. This comment is not intended to stifle the necessary debate, but at this point a reference to the essay suffices, and I turn to Eric Arn, who has been around long enough, has seen and heard a lot – and is (not) the "old white man" who is often used as a cardboard cutout in recent discussions in order to dismantle him argumentatively. His musical repertoire is broad, and I don't want to contradict the digital label at this point; it aptly expresses what can be heard on the album: "›High Order‹ is an amazing mix of frenetic fingering and strumming, along with pieces that use space, tempo shifts, and melody to build super-descriptive narratives and landscapes." That's how it is, the guitar tells the story. About what? This isn't just a political question, but also one of imagination. What else is there to add? Not much, or rather, a reference to the newspaper article, which, beyond its agitational potential (food for thought!), is also good for giving well-deserved attention to the guild of guitarists (yes, explicitly with a gender asterisk, because besides Yasmin Williams, there are several other female players in this field) because – debate or discourse aside – they release music that is well worth listening to! In that respect: The face of solo guitar may be changing, but the music? Not so much! Or rather, the stylistic richness that the instrument enables has always existed and is constantly evolving. Eric Arn masters his instrument and offers a broad range of stylistic approaches, as the digital information leaflet already demonstrates (as mentioned above), and therefore the record offers an ideal musical entry point for the curious, who may have been attracted by the debate or who want to use the debate to lend contemporary relevance to the musical field. From there the journey can continue; there is much to discover.