3 minute read
High Five- Tyler Cooney
Barry O’Sullivan talks with the Brisbane-based guitarist
Tyler Cooney performs many different styles with a wide range of dynamic capabilities adaptable to any musical environment. Having completed a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Performance (Guitar), he is currently finishing his Master of Music Studies degree at the Griffith University’s Queensland Conservatorium at South Bank in Brisbane. Tyler has recorded and released numerous recordings with a variety of groups across many genres and toured Australia and New Zealand.
When did jazz music first enter your life and which artists influenced your style?
Jazz first entered my life in 2014 when I started at the Jazz Music Institute in Brisbane. I hadn’t listened to jazz before that, but a few of my friends were planning on enrolling, so I did the same and have since ended up falling in love with it. My teacher, Ben Hauptmann, introduced me to Full House and Boss Guitar by Wes Montgomery. Both albums became hugely influential to my style. In 2019/2022, I played both albums in full in a tribute to Wes at both JMI Live and the Brisbane Jazz Club.
What are your current musical projects?
My current musical project is called Modern Ideal. This recording is a guitar trio album of original contemporary jazz compositions focusing on interaction, strong composition, intensity, and sensitivity in each player’s interpretation of the material. It was recorded at Hunting Ground Studios in Brisbane in early 2022 with Tim Firth (drums) and Nick Quigley (bass). I recently completed an Australian tour promoting the album. I am also a part of several other projects, one of which is called Headland, with fellow Brisbane guitarist Joe Rabjohns. We play a mixture of progressive acoustic guitar music that has jazz, country, folk, and Americana influences.
Tell us about some of the challenges that have confronted you so far and how you have overcome them.
One of the challenges I’ve been dealing with recently is being over-committed to my music. Being committed is not a bad thing, but when music and everything else that goes along with it is all you do in life, you can start to get burned out, which happened to me. I’ve come to appreciate having activities like bouldering, playing golf, and going to the gym. These act as an escape from my musical commitments. I think it’s important to take a step back at times, whether that be from music, certain foods, or seeing your partner all day every day, because more often than not you’ll come back to that thing with a renewed sense of love for it and you’ll be that much more invested.
What are your favourite guitars and why and how do you select which one to play?
In all honesty, I love playing just about any guitar. Each has a different feeling and can suggest different things to you. David Gilmore (Pink Floyd) once said that he wrote Wish You Were Here on the guitar that had gifted him the tune because it felt like it came from the feeling and sound of the instrument. I have several guitars, but my main axe is a Greco SA-700, which is a copy of a Gibson 335. It’s a high-quality lawsuit model (lawsuit, as they were sued, for it is too close of a replica to the real thing) made in Japan in 1978 in the famous Fujigen factory. I also regularly play a cream Telecaster with black pickguard when I want a blues/rock/ different vibe. I play a 7-string guitar in the band Monstera, an indie pop band, to help me reach a lower range for the heavy, low riffs. I also have several acoustic nylon and steel string guitars that I play when the occasion demands.
You are home alone on a Sunday night. What music would you choose to listen to and why?
It could be anything from Meshuggah, James Muller, Frank Sinatra, Barney Mcall, myself (haha), Peter Bernstein, John Scofield, and the list goes on… I have a wide musical tastes. Currently, I have been checking out a new John Scofield album John Scofield Solo. If I am working out at the gym, it’s Meshuggah. If I am cooking dinner and drinking wine, it’s Sinatra. Am I digging into something of mine and constructively critiquing it? I’m listening to myself! Am I listening to James Muller for the millionth time? Quite possibly!
A Jazz Hour is broadcast on Fridays at midday. https://tylercooney.bandcamp.com/
