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Frequently Asked Questions (from our previous site!)

Here's the last update to the previous site's FAQ section. Thanks for your interest and your questions. Check out our new online Forum. This format is intended to replace the "FAQ" section on the old site, and is better suited for handling questions and answers. The forum is a place where you can ask questions about my tunings, recording methods, guitars, arrangements etc. and discuss pertinent matters with me and other users. I ask that you keep it relevent and try to peruse the forum before posting a question- you may find it has been asked and answered before. All registered users may post new topics and questions on the forum. I promise I'll try to answer questions in as timely a manner as possible. I greatly look forward to the opportunity to chat with you soon. Check it out!

Q: Ed, I got your Nightbirds CD for Christmas, and I love it! In particular, I'm really nuts about the song "No. 11." I'm hoping to work out a decent rendition of it, but the tuning listed on your website is a little off-the-beaten-path for me. Is there any chance the song could be rendered effectively in another tuning?
Thanks! -Bill, Springfield, IL

A: Hi Bill, thanks for your note. As for "No. 11" in a different tuning, I guess you could try it in another tuning, but I don't think it would sound quite the same. The first thing I play in the tune is a strummed harmonic at the twelfth fret which makes an Fmaj9 chord. But hell, go ahead and try it in another tuning. I often work up several versions of tunes in different tunings. It's a nice challenge and there's no law that says your version has to sound anything like mine. One guy told me that he had worked up a tune of mine ("The Handing Down") in DADGAD (the tune is in EADEAE) and said, "Man, some of those stretches are a bitch!" Good luck!

Q: Ed,I understand that you cap the nails of your picking hand with acrylic. Have you been doing this for a long time? How thick of a coating do you put on your nails? Do you do your nails differently for performing -vs- recording?
Thanks, Mark

A: Hi Mark- I don't slather the stuff on too thickly, and I don't change anything for recording. I try to keep the nails absolutely as smooth as glass especially when I'm recording. I've been using the acrylic for about ten years now with nary a problem.

Q: I am a 12 string fan, so I'm a little curious as to how you set yours up. Mine is a Lowden O32/12 (rosewood/spruce) & a O12/12c (mahogany/spruce). I tune to DADGAD (my "standard" tuning) & then take the whole thing down one step. I find that I like the sound of the D'Addario EJ39 (12string-med) but the are rather hard on the fingers. On the other hand the light set (EJ-38) is easier to play but loses something tuned that low. Any advice? By the way, I don't own a six string.

A: My twelve string is set up pretty low, and I use a D'Addario medium set, but I'll replace the B and high E strings with .017 and .013s. You may want to look into having the guitar set up a bit lower. Sometimes a few thousandths off the nut and/or saddle is all it takes. Also, check to see if you're getting excessive bowing of the neck- you may need to tighten the truss rod a bit if the bow is severe. Good luck!

Q: ED: I'm trying to locate the tab for Duet. I can't find it within the products offered here on your site. Did I miss it or is it not available? Looking forward to meeting you at the Elderly Instrument clinic/performance in Lansing, Mi. in March 2001.
Thanks, JB 

A: Hi JB- thanks for your interest. The TAB for "Duet" should be there on the website under "Miscellaneous" in the Gift Shop. As for Elderly, I was there in March 2000. When time travel becomes possible I hope you'll stop by- we had a great time. I hope to get back to Elderly again soon. We'll keep you posted.

Q: Hey Ed, Happy Holidays to you and Kelli. I was just sitting here trying to work and listening to the Live Album. I was fortunate enough when you were in the Loveland/Fort Collins Colorado area to not only catch your show but also take a private lesson from you (I was the nervous one with the Breedlove). While I can only imagine that these lessons and clinics provide you with countless horror stories and bad music jokes, I just wanted to tell you that I had one hell of a good time and your patience and insight was very much appreciated. It was definitely one of the cooler things I did for myself this year. Thanks for the good time and I hope you're back in the area next year! Looking forward to the new album! Mark

A: Hi Mark- Nice to hear from you. No, I don't really have many horror stories from lessons, I do too few of them to rack up a litany of terror. Teaching at clinics and workshops is an inspiring thing for me. Hope to see you next time in CO!

Q: Hi Ed, no question, just a comment that I caught your performance of The Water is Wide on WUMB today (11/29/00) and it was the most captivating piece of guitar work I've ever heard on that station. Just an incredible arrangement and performance. OK I guess I do have a question. Can I buy a recording of that somewhere?
Thanks Ed

A: Thanks for your nice comments. I've recorded "The Water is Wide" twice; on "the live album" and on "Counting the Ways." If you're asking about buying a recording of the radio show, I don't think it's available.

Q: Knowing that you tune down a half step, when you work with other guitarists do you tune up, capo up, or do they tune to you?

A: All of the above. It depends, really on the guitar, the tune, etc. It helps to be flexible. If I'm sitting in with someone I'll usually tune to whatever works best.

Q: Dear Ed, One of the most hotly debated issues in my classroom is the Napster controversy. I always think of you when the subject arises because it seems to me that an artist who records for a relatively small, independent label (whose hallmark is impeccable production quality) might have some pretty serious objections to having his work pirated. Care to weigh in with a response that I can pass along to my students? I'm really curious about what you'd have to say and I think it would be great for them to hear directly from a person who actually earns a living playing music. 

A: Oh, man, what a can of worms. There's no easy way to answer that. It's too early to tell what kind of impact it'll have. The record companies are screaming because now they're the first in line to get screwed. Like an arsonist screaming "FIRE!" I'm very curious to see how the whole matter is resolved. As long as artists are getting paid fairly I guess it's okay. Artists are always the last in line to get paid. There's no reason the delivery of music online can't be done in a fair and equitable way for all parties.

Q: Dear Ed, I am currently waiting on the production of my Breedlove guitar. Through the years I've used dozens of capos, some better than others. Which do you use with your Breedlove?

A: I always use the Shubb capo. Never found another one I've liked as much. 

Q: I've tried playing with my nails and they seem to wear down quickly. Do you use Acrylic Nails? Have you ever tried a nail hardner on top of existing nails? What's your secret? Please come to St Louis!!! 

A: I use acrylic and Krazy Glue. No secret! Hope to get to St. Louis soon. I'll keep you posted. 

Q: Just picked up a Weissenborn and would love try and tackle "Shallow Brown" and "Homage". Could you tell me the tunings? Love your music!! 

A: Both tunes are in open D (D A F# A D) but are pitched at about B. Thanks!

Q: Hi Ed, I've been doing some simple recording lately and the results have been quite a bit better than I though they'd be - and good enough to make me think of completing a CD (just for me, Jean, and our two Cocker Spaniels!). I'm using a Roland VS880EX hard disk recorder, a Mackie 1202VLZ mixer, and a stereo X-Y pair of Neuwmann KM-184 microphones placed about one foot in front of the soundhole, one pointed towards the bridge, and one pointed towards the 14th fret. I'm at the stage now where I'm trying to see if reverb and/or compression will help. I remember you saying that you've used the Lexicon reverb. Do you add any reverb while recording, or record dry and add reverb during mixdown? How much do you get from the ambience of the room, and how much reverb do you add? Have you used compression in your recordings? If so, do you use compression during recording (analog?), or during mixdown (digital?) It seems that my playing is not controlled enough to keep a constant level, so in the little bit I've played with compression (only digital at this point), it does seem to make it more listenable. However the resulting sound also seems to lose some it's "closeness" or "air". Thanks, and hope to see you in a workshop again soon.
Ken 

A: Hi Ken, thanks for writing. I usually don't process the guitar at all when recording. Compression can sometimes help in mixdown, but if you're using it to correct a chronic dynamics problem I think you may be better off working on that. The problem with using compression, in my opinion, is that it's easy to use "too much:" that is, you hear the compressor pumping and breathing. Sometimes you want that, sometimes you don't. Compression is used a lot in the mixing and mastering phases of recording and can be helpful when you want your guitar record to be as loud as the thrash metal guys'. I really don't like to hear compressors working, but sometimes they're wonderful at taming the odd peak or helping a bass, drum, vocal, slide guitar track sit in the mix better. As far as room ambience, I like to get a little if the room sounds good. This is where a little experimentation can pay off. Just moving the mics back a few inches can make a big difference. Just remember that once it's recorded it can't be removed. I always record dry, but sometimes a little verb in the headphones can be nice. Good luck!

Q: Hello there. I've played for many years and always told myself I was going to learn how to really play, i.e. read music. My question is do you read and can I learn to fingerpick without this skill... I have a good ear and can figure out most of what I here, but it seems I could pick up new stuff quicker with the sheet music. Thanks for any advice. Jim S. 

A: Reading music is not necessary. If you pick up stuff by ear already, I'd encourage you to stay with it. Learning notation and theory can be great, but the object of all of that is to gratify your ear. Sometimes tab and notation can provide information you don't get from listening, and vice versa. It's all good!

Q: Hi Ed. This may not be a Q. for the web page but I thought you might be interested. Knowing that you are respected for your tone as much as your arrangements I was wondering if you've had an opportunity to play a Kevin Ryan Guitar. I have no affiliation whatsoever but I just had one made and received it the other day. What an incredible instrument! The neck is just incredible, the body size is perfect but most importantly is the tone. Beautiful, deep bass with balanced trebles and midrange. He builds with the fingerstylist in mind and the use of alternate tunings is addressed with a little longer scale length. Anyway. I just thought you might be interested. On another note. Any performances scheduled for the NE PA area soon? Also. If you had to pick which Christmas show to attend which one would you pick? Friday? Saturday? I thinking ahead and want to try to come up to the show. Thanks a lot for your time and keep up the great guitar music.

A: Hi, Gordon, thanks for writing. I played a Ryan a few years ago, and seem to remember liking it. Sorry to be so vague. No PA appearances are scheduled at this time, but I hope to get back there soon. I think 2001 will be a busy road year for me. I'll keep you posted. Both nights of the Christmas concert are good (I'm not just saying that- honest!) and it's hard for me to recommend one over the other. Hope we'll see you at one of them.

Q: Dear Mr. Gerhard, Can you tell me any info concerning the origin of the tune "The Handing Down"? I enjoyed hearing some background on "The Water is Wide" on your Fingerstyle Summit video. Thank you.

A: Thanks for your interest! The Handing Down started as the third movement of the "Suite" on my "NightBirds" album, and was written as a tribute to a friend who had passed away. Will Ackerman at Windham Hill Records heard it and asked for a longer version for the Windham Hill Guitar Sampler album. I reworked the tune and Will liked it, so we recorded it a few months later. I was never completely happy with the way the Guitar Sampler was mastered, so I rerecorded it on my "Luna" album. A live version appears on the live album as well. I don't play this one any more, but may revive it in the future. This piece is very special to me.

Q: Ed, Do you ever plan on coming to Ohio? 

A: Maybe! Always have a good time in Ohio. I'll be sure to let you know- thanks for your interest.

Q: Greetings Ed, can you please tell me what tuning you're in for "slide improv" of your live album ,I knowit's in open D but I'm hearing notes that sound as if some string is tuned differently, am I right.......Cheers! 

A: Plain old open D. I'm tuned down a half step, so it sounds like C#.

Q: How to improve my guitar chords ? 

A: Practice! Seriously, I don't know which aspect of guitar chords you're trying to improve. As far as fingerings go, it's helpful to practice chord progressions slowly, and only press down as hard as you have to. Many of us grip the neck too tightly, and it makes the left hand work much harder than it has to. Good luck.

Q: When is your birthday? Thanks for writing down your music and making it available to us other players. 

A: June 4 is my birthday. Thanks for your interest in my stuff!

 

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