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Guitar Craft (GC) is a series of guitar and personal development classes, founded and often presented by Robert Fripp, who is best known for his work with King Crimson. The Introduction to Guitar Craft (2004) describes GC as three things: * A way to develop a relationship with the guitar;| * A way to develop a relationship with music;| * A way to develop a relationship with oneself. In the wider guitarist community, GC is best known for its advocacy of New Standard Tuning, Fripp’s term for the alternate guitar tuning that came to him in 1984, and that he had personally switched over to by 1985. The term ‘New Standard Tuning’ is a misnomer: it is certainly ‘new’ but in no way ‘standard’ by any definition. This is because the tuning is only used by a very tiny percentage of the planet’s guitar players - specifically those connected with Guitar Craft. It would only become ‘New Standard Tuning’ if it was used by the majority of the planet’s guitar players in preference to the ‘Old Standard Tuning’. In GC itself the tuning is only one tool used towards a wider aim of re-inventing the student’s guitar playing from scratch. This in turn is designed to foster a personal renewal and self-development. New Guitar Craft students are not expected to have any guitar experience at all, and it has been suggested, by Fripp and students, that previous experience can sometimes work against the course objectives, because of the expectations it places on the course and on music in general. Some course activities have little or nothing to do with the guitar, such as “sitting” (meditation), housework, the Alexander Technique, and philosophical discussion. One notable tactic in a GC course is to pressure students with a deadline, such as performing a concert at a local venue at short notice. The success of the courses in revitalizing a student’s guitar playing is demonstrable, given the technical excellence clearly evident in the catalog of guitarists found through Fripp’s label, Discipline Global Mobile (dgmlive.com). In the 20 years since its foundation, few GC students have gone on to further mainstream commercial success. One exception is Trey Gunn, who became a musical collaborator of Fripp’s after attending one of the first GC courses, and was a member of King Crimson from 1994-2002. He has taken a more individual approach to music and established himself as a solo artist and bandleader in his own right. The California Guitar Trio are a group of GC veterans who have worked together since 1991 with some critical success. Other highly skilled Guitar Craft practitioners include Curt Golden, Steve Ball, and Tony Geballe. |
