Robert Fripp is the founder, guitarist, composer and main inspiration behind the group King Crimson (1969 – present) as well as a much in demand ‘gun for hire' having worked for David Bowie, Peter Gabriel, David Sylvian, Brian Eno and Andy Summers to name but a few. Before I go into my discourse concerning the magical end of my Fripp relation I would like to detail the equally magical event in October of 1985.
Early in the summer of 1985, I was made aware (from a friend who worked for the same music company that I do now 25 years later) of a chance to study with Fripp, whom he knew I admired greatly. I was shown the magazine article, which I mulled over and eventually inquired about it. Soon I found myself to be one of twenty two guitarists from around the world chosen to Become the very first Guitar Craft Course. Robert Fripp, it seems, had taken a teaching position at the American Society for Continuous Education in Claymont Court, West Virginia, and this was his immediate task. I was 25 years old and had been working in the music business as a guitarist for about 6-7 years already. I welcomed the chance for what I would now consider as a "Rite of Passage".
To say that a little bit of LBM was taking place became an understatement as we stood in a huge, dark-lit room. Then at the top of the stairs with the help of a lightning bolt to illuminate the area, stood Mr. Fripp. This was way too cool and I knew this was going to be life-changing. After greetings and small talk, we were advised to group into threes and fours, and were given the "New Standard Tuning' that we would retune our guitars to. We were then informed that we had a gig this Wednesday at a local watering hole full of rednecks. Say what?
This was one of many devices used that week to break down our habits and force us to "Become Awake", as Gurdjieff would put it (a favorite study of Mr. Fripp by the way). We learned Alexander Technique, meditation, various Zen-like activities, as well as music instruction. The goal was to develop a personal relationship with the instrument and to Become a voice for the Muse to be heard through.
I cherish every moment and every memory I have of that week, and use to this day the various techniques that were taught. The late night discussions in the basement make-shift pub over a pint of home-brewed beer with Robert will enlighten me until my dying day, and I am proud to say that I have passed some of this enlightenment to a few of the musicians and other media artists whose paths have crossed mine.
Aside from the disciplined, mind numbing technical prowess this musician has worked towards, Fripp has always ventured into the Dark corners of the World's cultures, a dip into the Underworld if you will, and brought back with him new ways of expression on the guitar, he is without a doubt a true ‘hero' of the guitar in every sense of the Joseph Campbell Word.
Some of these new expressions were exotic scales and sounds from the Middle East and the Gamelan of Indonesia. These sounds on the guitar resonated heavily through me when I heard them and still do today. So intrigued with them as I have become, they have led me to take up playing fretless guitar and studying ancient music, particularly Egyptian and Middle Eastern. I have also, from reading much on these music's philosophies, discovered a universe of deep and metaphysical attributes associated with the creation of this music.
At times I have used sigilism, mantras and yantras during the composition process to engulf myself in the essence of what I am working on. This came to fruition with my three part composition for orchestra and fretless guitar, A'nen Khem Sedjet. This piece is based on Egyptian and Persian scales and is homage to Egyptian Goddess Aset/Isis. I am greatly looking forward to learning advanced magical techniques to create further evolved music with.
1985 W.Virginia - Student Master
