Chris Ruel's Neoclassical Music Reviews: Uli Jon Roth

On On New Year's Day, 2004, I started off the year with an exhilarating and exhaustive telephone interview with Uli Jon Roth that spanned a wide range of topics with the European guitarist virtuoso and which spanned the spectrum of European musical history, Uli's classical influences, the evolution of the Sky Guitar, musical philosophy, guitar technique, transformation from Scorpions rock star to instrumental virtuoso, and Uli's upcoming plans for tours, releases, and video productions. Upon reflection of this revealing conversation with U.J.R, it became apparent that my original insights into what was involved in the culmination and production of his latest releases involving his patented Sky guitar had only scratched the surface of what was truly involved in the reality of his remarkable efforts. In fact, it is hard to believe that without his classical and renaissance background that U.J.R. could have ever achieved the amazing feats of musicianship that he managed on Transcendental Sky Guitar and Metamorphosis. These accomplishments would not have been possible without U.J.R.'s strong classical foundations, profound insights into European (classical) music, his firm grasp on the production of tone and sound from the electric guitar, and his understanding of the place of the electric guitar in the stream of musical history at this point in time and what is to follow in the next century. It was clearly the culmination of all of these factors, among others, that has resulted in U.J.R.'s unique intellect, views, and understanding that has driven and fueled his visionary efforts over the last decade. The broad breadth and thorough depth of U.J.R's understanding of music from the many viewpoints and angles that were discussed was truly impressive and profound.

Author's Note: Because this interview was very lengthy, I have attempted to summarize many of Uli's dialogs rather than quote them exactly. Though, admittedly, Uli has a great manner of expressing his views and some of the subtleties of his language may have been lost in this process. Hopefully, the important ideas in his meanings have been preserved with my apologies in advance to the reading audience if they are disappointed with the narrative summary format of the interview.

With so many topics covered, it is difficult to decide where to start. But, it seems logical to start with U.J.R's classical roots and influences. It may surprise U.J.R's fan base from his days with the rock group the Scorpions to learn that U.J.R. has a very strong classical background, affinity for classical music, and a deep theoretical and conceptual understanding of classical music, though this should come as no surprise to fans of his latest releases that have included coverage of many classical compositions. In fact, U.J.R. not only plays electric guitar, but also plays piano and violin. This valuable experience with other musical instruments has given Uli a great insight into the shared and unique facets that the electric guitar has to offer relative to these other instruments. This explicit awareness of the wide range of expression and technique that the guitar has to offer has enabled Uli to capitalize on these aspects of the electric guitar's instrumental characteristics. In fact, it was partially due to the wider tonal range (i.e. octaves) that the piano and, in some ways, the violin offered that the electric guitar did not that drove U.J.R. to design his incredible invention, the Sky Guitar.

In addition to his insights into the profiles that different musical instruments offered, U.J.R. has a very impressive knowledge and appreciation for the classical composers. Citing W.A. Mozart as the greatest composer of all time and his personal favorite, Uli also revealed the Chopin was next in line among his personal favorites due to his excellent melodies, creative harmonization, and contrasting lines on the different hands in his piano works. Among his favorites by Mozart, Uli indicated that his Requiem was a masterpiece that he greatly enjoyed and appreciated. Uli Jon also expressed a great admiration for the piano works of Franz Liszt, crediting him with an exhaustive command over the technique possible on piano and many innovations in terms of harmony and form. In addition, Tchaikovsky was mentioned as another melodic influence, as seems clearly obvious by UJR's fluid, dramatic expressiveness on his compositions such as Sky Overture. In addition to these, other obvious influences include Baroque giants Vivaldi and J.S. Bach, among many others from other ages of European music. It is difficult to imagine that U.J.R. could have evolved from his earlier role as a lead guitarists for a rock group to the classical instrumentalist he has now embraced without having had these foundations that make it clear why his musical voice along the path of his evolution has always been so distinctly unique and crystalline.

Now, with the classical background firmly established as a foundation for U.J.R's musical mindset, the next impressive topic to consider is the invention and evolution of the Sky Guitar. Of the many guitarists that pick up a guitar and try to master the instrument, there are few that look at the instrument itself from the perspective of analyzing its shortcomings. Of these few, some tinker with different tunings, adding a few frets, (something which Uli pioneered) swapping pickups, or even adding an extra string (Uli’s was probably the first 7-string guitar in rock). But, what U.J.R. has done with the Sky Guitar goes far beyond these minor adjustments to the capabilities and characteristics of the electric guitar because his Sky Guitar modifications to the standard electric guitar were driven by a vision of a completely new capabilities that he wanted out of his guitar. The inception of the Sky Guitar invention and its unique shape was the result of a meditation session that Uli had around Christmas time in 1982, when he was considering ways of improving the electric guitar to achieve his desired capabilities.

In his design of the Sky Guitar, U.J.R. expanded the chromatic range of the conventional electric guitar by adding an extra bass string that extended the bass to a fourth or (sometimes) a fifth lower than the standard low "E" string on the conventional electric guitar. At the other end of the spectrum, additional frets were added to extend the range two octaves higher than the "A" on the 17th fret of the high "E" string of a conventional electric guitar. However, the added frets did not actually reach the high "A" on the high "E" string and Uli actually achieves this range by playing on the bridge pickup! Uli decided to utilize standard electric guitar tuning from the low "E" to the high "E" strings after some experimentation with other tunings and considering the resulting problems and benefits of each. The resulting span of the Sky Guitar covers exactly six octaves, more than that of either Cello or violin and almost rivalling the piano - thereby making it practical for transcribing all sorts of compositions intended for execution on, say, the violin or the piano. The addition of the extra bass string had an additional complication that makes playing the Sky Guitar quite a bit more difficult than a standard strat because the strings are spaced closer to one another to fit on the neck. Uli says that this finer spacing requires more control and finesse than a conventional electric guitar – in his own words ‘on the Sky Guitar there is no margin for error…’

In expanding the chromatic range of the electric guitar, one of many obstacles that Uli had to overcome was the tight spacing of the frets that were added at the top of the register. In order to solve this problem, the frets at the top of the neck above the 27th fret "G" on the high "E" string are spaced by whole tone intervals, skipping frets for the semi-tone intervals. In addition to the already difficult mechanics of fingering notes this high on the neck of a guitar because the thumb can not be used to anchor the hand under the neck as it can be on lower frets, this whole-tone spacing of the frets in the upper register requires a different approach for executing lines that require the half-step intervals. Think about it for a second and try to imagine how you might accomplish this without bending, tremolo, or any sort of glissando techniques... The answer is a little more than unsettling. In order to execute these lines that require the missing semitone intervals due to the whole-tone spaced frets, Uli must use string hopping techniques that take advantage of the notes that are exclusive on the high "B" and high "E" strings at the top of the register. This is possible due to the fourth interval that these two strings are related that is based upon an odd number of semi-tones. This means that he must play one note on the high "E" string and then maybe the next a semi-tone higher on the high "B" string (six frets higher, probably with his pinky or third finger) and then back to the high "E" string to ascend a scale, and so on! Most guitarists struggle to achieve fluidity in the upper register of a 24 fret guitar without this added difficulty. Just imagine how difficult it must be to get any sort of continuity for fast passages with this quirk in the mechanics! When you listen to the music that he plays in these upper registers on TSG and Metamorphosis, it is hard to imagine that this is how he is executing the lines, especially considering the fluidity and speed he achieves.

U.J.R. not only wanted to increase the chromatic range of the electric guitar several octaves to match the range of the violin (which is something that any guitarist who has ever transcribed violin pieces such as Paganini's Caprices has wished for), but he also wanted to enhance the electric guitar's capabilities for producing widely-ranging, robust clean-toned voicings that exceeded the characteristics of the combination of the classic Stratocaster and double-coiled humbucker Les Paul tones. For this a special pick-up had to be designed. John Oram, chief designer of Trident Audio, aka 'the father of British EQ', volunteered to build for Uli the 'ultimate guitar pickup' according to Uli’s specifications as to what such a device should look like. After several prototypes which were built in the early Nineties, 'Mega Wing' resulted, which is essentially an active pickup system with unheard-of specs.

All three of these pickups utilize four coils per pickup and can be controlled with the four tone and volume control knobs in a manner that facilitates a wide range of tone that spans from a super clean classic Strat sound to a thicker humbucker tone thereby offering a wider palette of organic tones than the net sum of the best of both worlds. And, U.J.R. does not squander any of this range in tone, but instead relies heavily on it to achieve these vibrant tones that are required to execute classical music convincingly with these clean tones on an electric guitar.

After some trial and error with the evolution of his Sky Guitar design, Uli finally arrived at a design that was appropriate for executing the classical pieces that he wanted to cover. He then set out to apply the Sky Guitar to a number of classical compositions and discovered that a whole new set of problems lay before him. It turns out that the phrasings intended for the violin by the original classical composers were not easy to reproduce convincingly with the electric guitar using any obvious combinations of tones and techniques or without using heavy electronic processing to achieve his desired sound. The undesirable consequence of this electronic processing that U.J.R. observed was that there was a dimension of the music that is lost with the digital processing that deflates the vibrance and viability of the natural clean tones that clearly project the nuances and intimate emotions produced by the direct contact with and control over the instrument. So once again, Uli had to find solutions to the problems imposed by the difficult phrasings that did not translate easily to electric guitar and applied his creativity in each case to reach a convincing solution. Upon listening to Metamorphosis, any experienced guitarist can hear the devices that Uli applies to achieve these ends with his relentless pursuit of perfection in the projection of the pure-spirited interpretations that he devised to tailor to his interpretation of Vivaldi's Four Seasons variations in the unique combinations of guitar techniques, tonal. The unending variations in the unique combinations of guitar techniques, tonal voicings, and inflections that U.J.R. imparts to these combinations is staggering. It is an entire dimension to the music beyond the musical score. It is daunting to consider the amount of thought and effort that must have gone into each phrasing that Uli tailored in the expansive Four Seasons composition, especially when considering the difficulty in just playing such a complicated piece with the intended instrument.

When asked about the possibilities of the production of the Sky Guitar for the general public, Uli pointed out several issues with this idea, indicating it had already been considered. The bottom line, however, is that Uli sees the Sky Guitar very much as his own personal creation. He feels that in the hands of some players the spirit of the instrument might be misunderstood and there would be the distinct danger of people using the really high notes just as a gimmick without any musical justification. Used as a gimmick, this would cheapen the whole value of the added register and would grate on everyone’s nerves, which he says is pretty much what happened when the Wah-Wah first came out.

But even if it were to be built commercially there would be a whole range of problems associated with production. In short--these guitars are very difficult to build and will only really be viable if they are hand crafted, which means they would be extremely expensive to produce.

Uli pointed out that the guitar was imitated by Japanese manufacturers twice in the past until Uli found out about it and stopped them through his lawyer. He obtained the remaining copy and realized upon playing it that was only a shadow of the real thing in terms of quality and sound.

Much like J.S. Bach who reinvented the tonal relationships in the chromatic scale with his equal-tempered chromatic scale to allow his organ to be applied to different keys with homogenous sounding intervals and thereby enabling a whole new dimension of music due to coherent modulation, modern Renaissance man Uli Jon Roth has reinvented his instrument to suit the needs of his musical vision. This drive for excellence and the advancement of the instrument of his choosing has set him apart from the other contemporary guitarists who embark on different paths in their pursuit of musical challenge. Another thing that has set U.J.R. apart from his contemporaries is that he has adapted a more pure classical approach to the electric guitar than many of the other neoclassical guitarists. In fact, Uli does not consider himself to be grouped together in the same vein as the neoclassical guitarists because of the purist approach to his music that sets out to integrate the electric guitar within the classical framework, rather than to merely fabricate derivative works from classical compositions that apply rock-isms and shredding as a basis for the stylisms that the classical influences are fit within.

Uli considers himself within the broader context (continuous stream) of musical history where his role is the incorporation of the electric guitar as a viable instrument into the conventional European-derived (classically-derived) musical stream of history. The difference being that his approach integrates the electric guitar as a legitimate instrument into the mainstream of classical music whereas neoclassical is more of an offshoot of intensively instrumental rock and roll that integrates classical influences without any commitment to adhering to strict classical form, content, and traditions. Notably, a few others have made some efforts in this regard, including Yngwie Malmsteen with his CD, Orchestral Suites for Electric Guitar which follows a similar classical, orchestral structuring, though the compositions are all originals by Yngwie. Marty Friedman has also contributed electric guitar leadwork to the conventional new age compositions of Kitaro, as well as composing a number of original compositions in a near purist classical style.

Having realized his vision for the improved electric guitar with the Sky Guitar, Uli embarked on a mission to demonstrate how the electric guitar could be integrated with traditional orchestras and conventional classical instrumentation. His recent releases, Transcendental Sky Guitar and Metamorphosis, have been driven by a desire to establish the electric guitar in a historical context in the mainstream of European classical music.

Uli admits that the emergence of the electric guitar in this context is in its infancy, although Metamorphosis clearly sets a new (the new) standard in this respect, but he also expressed a visionary view that over the next century that he thinks that the role of the electric guitar in the mainstream of conventional music might grow if the players mature (in a more classical sense of this concept) and the guitar culture evolves to embrace the more subtle and refined aspects of classical music, such as those that are passed down from generation to generation with classical music and the interpretations involved in the compositions of the masterpieces.

The proof in this hypothesis thus far has been his great acceptance among the classically-inclined audiences in Europe that have been quick to grasp his vision and its significance due to his command over the electric guitar and his ability to achieve a high level of intensity in his expressionism using the electric guitar as his vehicle.

The truth in the nature of the expressionism that he projects is clearly perceivable to his audiences. Even though they may not always understand the difficulties, techniques, and mastery that is involved in its creation, Uli recounted that his audiences absorb the feeling and emotional content projected through his music on a level that is more profound than the mechanics involved. It has been that way with his music even before his age of classical focus that gained momentum in the 1990's. But, the dedicated focus on the classical genre has intensified this aspect of his music because he has had to perform at a level comparable to world class classical musicians to make his interpretations of classical music convincing.

Commenting further on the role of mentoring in the musical timeline of music history, Uli pointed out that the great masters of each musical age have also been the great teachers of those ages. He made the observation that this was not yet part of the guitar culture to the extent that it has existed in the classical community for the centuries prior to the current age. Though some attempts have been made to pass on guitar technique and the knowledge gained by some of the modern greats, such as at guitar academies like Guitar Institute of Technology (GIT) in California and The Berkeley School of Music in Boston, MA, the level of sophistication involved is not quite as advanced throughout the stages of musical development for the practitioners of the electric guitar as what has existed in the classical community over the centuries.

Author's comments: The general idea inferred being that an infusion of this type of mentoring and classical training will greatly advance the role of the electric guitar within the classical context. As an observation of this issue, most people who pick up an electric guitar are driven by a desire to play some form of rock, blues, or maybe jazz. Most people who pick up an electric guitar are not driven by the desire to play or embrace the classical form. Though notably, there are several great neoclassical artists that have been classically trained, namely Tony MacAlpine and Vitalij Kuprij. Of those that have, there are few that are able to assimilate the depth and subtleties to the degree that players like Malmsteen and Kuprij have. And, there are fewer that have built a following of students to pass on their knowledge and interpretations the likes of which George Bellas has done around the Chicago area. But, though these things do exist in the guitar culture in specific examples, it is not yet a basic foundation of the culture to the extent it exists in the classical culture. For example, consider the average electric guitar virtuoso that has acquired the majority of their skills by listening to CDs and figuring out the advanced guitar work of their predecessors with their fine-tuned, well-developed ear skills. Possibly this electric guitar virtuoso may have supplemented their growth with some lessons from some better guitarists and the more serious players may even have attended a college like Berkeley School of Music or even Juliard. Compare this to the typical classical violin virtuoso that has undergone a rigorous training regiment since a young age with an escalating progression of mentors until they reach the master level, having along the way become themselves the trainer. The major difference being that in the classical paradigm, it is a continuous stream of training that leads up a ladder to the top rung where the few true masters reside.

U.J.R's role in this unfolding of music history holds no certainties in this regard. But, it does seem as though the range and capabilities of the electric guitar for artistic expression pose it for a greater role in the future of music if it can be approached in a manner that fits within the existing paradigms where it can be applied, as Uli has had the vision to attempt to do with the classical mainstream. He sees the electric guitar as an instrument that is more emotionally driven than the piano or violin, perhaps due to the versatility and control the guitarist can exert over the instrument to create inflections, nuances, and persona in the manner that he excels, possibly more so than any modern guitarist.

Uli also stressed the importance of note choice in the role of music. The choosing of notes that impart meaning to the music rather than the reliance on technique and speed of playing is centric to his musical philosophy. In fact, Uli composes his original compositions first, and worries about the mechanics of executing them after the score has been worked out. Uli suggests that it is the inspired selection and attention to the individual notes in the composition that give the music its true character and depth rather than the mechanics that are involved, though the mechanics are something that has to be addressed along the way. But, the perspective he looks at things in this regard is clearly a higher perspective that views the mechanics as a detail of the execution and that is something that just has to be dealt with. The composition, note selection, and the interpretation are paramount in his musical paradigm.

So, this being U.J.R's musical vision, what does the future hold in store for Uli? Uli has an upcoming tour with European supergroup UFO scheduled for Europe that will kick off in March 2004. He is also devising a return to the US after a decade long absence for a tour to support his Metamorphosis album and classical focus.

In addition to this, Uli has a DVD video that is in the making to support the Metamorphosis album. This video will feature some fantasy-like Renaissance artistry that is reflective of the types of extensive artwork and poetry that graces the lengthy liner notes that accompany the Metamorphosis CD. Uli's sense of artistry admittedly does not end at music, but the music instead fits within a larger artistic context that includes visual, poetic, and theatrical artistry.

As a parting note concerning the time I spent discussing all of these topics with Uli Jon Roth, I would like to thank Uli for his gracious nature, time, and patience in communicating his ideas to me. Uli's capabilities for articulating his ideas are very striking. The clarity he has in his thinking and vision that rings a resonance with truth that leaves you knowing that you have spoken with somebody who possesses true greatness of character within them. The humility in his gentle, easy nature lets you know that he is self-assured in his convictions and feels no need to prove them to anybody. The gravity of his convictions and the greatness it has developed within him make the manifestations in his music not so surprising after getting a glimpse into this mind that drives this music. U.J.R. is a man that has dedicated his entire life, soul, and spirit to the pursuit of artistic excellence to make his mark in its history. It will be interesting to see in time where his vision will fit in the history of music that is to follow the current age.

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