The Mighty Popo's African Guitar

The Mighty Popo offers a selection from his Learn Roots Music instructional DVD: African Guitar.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Mighty
• Popo
• guitar
• African
• Godin
• Multiac
• DVD
• instruction
• music
• lesson

[cartoonlike]

When the strings are hit a bit harder than usual, that aesthetically unpleasant "quack" rears its ugly head.

[LearnRootsMusic]

The guitar is a Learn Roots Music studio guitar, set up with low action for jazz flat picking, so some of the aesthetically questionable tone is from the set up. The Mighty Popo's fingerstyle attack sounds much better with higher action. He was going to record the DVD with his electric but decided to have some tonal variety with the Godin. He also plays his Gibson ES135 (w/ p90 pickups) on the DVD.

[ajvan]

hey is that classical godin or regular one?

[LearnRootsMusic]

It's the regular neck-width Multiac Duet. It's the earlier version with the bridge pickup and the internal microphone.

[crouch3131]

Never ceases to amaze me that when a talented person posts a music video people start arguing like cats and dogs..must be that old emotion jealousy rearing its ugly head again..

[Leonmitch]

I just love the uplift of the sound of African music!

Simple and yet so beautiful!!! That's the artistry! xxx

[diddleydee]

hey  wonderful music , thanks

[hotelesbaratos1]

is a machine on the guitar, a really spectacular theme

[TheIlai04]

what guitar is it and how can i get me one like this??

[Surfister]

@SharaNaturalJourney no

[GtoThaillDog]

@nappyroots89 afriscale

[strummer43]

I agree with nonix - and I learned classical guitar up to Grade 8 level pieces. You can play this stuff with classical fingering. But it doesnt sound the same. Playing with one finger and thump emphasises the rhythmic interplay of bass and treble lines. Its the same with the Rev Gary Davis's stuff.

[leftysergeant]

@Nonix321 Dude, the technique works . This fingering style is also the roots of blues guitar. Go look for some video of the n'goni. What he is doing here is translating the sound of the n'goni to the guitar. To do that, it follows that he would finger it the way he would an n'goni. This uses just the two fingers in most cases. Another really beautiful African instrument is the kora, a 21 string lute that is played with only four fingers, two from each hand. He isn'tplaying flamenco here.

[SharaNaturalJourney]

that was very good!

do we have to have the same guitar to do this?

[ChrisManuel]

@Nonix321 I'm not meaning to be argumentative here, but close you eyes and listen: can you tell how many fingers he's using? Also, notice that he's damping the strings with the side of his right hand at the bridge. African guitar is not classical guitar - if he was using Aaron Shearer's technique he wouldn't be able to damp at the bridge, which is essential to emulate the sound of the mbira. The mbira's sound is the inspiration for many African guitarists. Listen with your ears, not your eyes.