Jim Ferguson
Encyclopedia
Jim Ferguson is an American guitarist, composer, music educator, author, and music journalist/editor.
Born in Dayton, Ohio, Jim Ferguson began his early music education playing the trombone at age 7, and then after eight years of study, switched to the guitar at age 15. He moved to California and began his music career in the 1970s, performing, teaching, and devoting serious study to the guitar. He has since performed in the U.S. and abroad, is featured on solo guitar CDs showcasing his original compositions for classical guitar
, and has had numerous compositions published in both anthologies alongside the works of other notable contemporary composers and in publications dedicated solely to his works. Jim Ferguson is the author of six highly-acclaimed jazz guitar instructional books, including his best-selling first instructional book All Blues For Jazz Guitar, and is well known for his work as an award-winning and Grammy-nominated music journalist and editor, where he has generated groundbreaking and unique instructional articles for guitar players, has been influential in changing how guitar music is notated, and has spread his expert knowledge of jazz and classical guitar to the wide audience of Guitar Player Magazine and other music publications. He holds B.S. and M.F.A. degrees and has taught guitar and music courses at California universities for over 20 years, has conducted guitar and music workshops in the U.S. and abroad, and has taught guitar privately for over 30 years. A biography of Jim Ferguson is featured in Maurice J. Summerfield’s The Jazz Guitar—Its Evolution, Players and Personalities since 1900.
(1979–1992), Down Beat
, JazzTimes
, Fingerstyle Guitar, Britain's prestigious Classical Guitar (1993–1998), and others. His advanced music education, which included studying with Lenny Breau
, George Barnes
, David Tanenbaum
, Red Varner, and José Rey de la Torre
, and earning a Master of Fine Arts degree in Performance and Literature from Mills College (Master's Thesis: "Darius Milhaud
’s Segoviana—History, Style, Implications"), enhanced the scope and level of expertise of his work and made him even more in demand. He wrote 14 biographies and two history articles for The New Grove Dictionary Of Jazz, and edited several volumes for Guitar Solo Publications of San Francisco, including an instructional series on the works of Fernando Sor
, Leo Brouwer
, and Matteo Carcassi
, and Federico Moreno Torroba
's Castillos de España. He also compiled numerous collections of historic performances for Fantasy Records
, Rhino Records, and Concord Records
, and worked on several projects for other labels including Riverside Records
. In 1994, Ferguson and Orrin Keepnews
earned a Grammy Award
nomination for Best Album Notes for their liner notes to the 12-CD set Wes Montgomery
—The Complete Riverside Recordings
. The extensive liner notes include a biography of Wes Montgomery
by Ferguson and Jim's interviews with numerous prominent jazz musicians including Nat Adderley
, Ron Carter
, Kenny Burrell
, John Scofield
, and Tommy Flanagan
. As Jude Hibler (20th Century Guitar) said in her 2001 interview of Ferguson, "With his many excellent accomplishments, his quest for excellence, and his sensitive, informed writing, it is little wonder that many consider him to be the Jazz Guitar Guru."
). He also received coaching from Ernest "Red" Varner and many others. In the early 1990s, he began actively composing, with his flagship pieces being "Blanca," "Aurora," "Elegy," and "Nisene." Since then he has written dozens of compositions, some of which are recorded on and/or published in the works mentioned here. Regarding the style of his music, both playing and composing, Ferguson said:
In 2004, he released his first solo CD, Cedar & Silver, with Ferguson playing his original compositions. His efforts were rewarded with the warm reception the album received. Dr. Frank Forte (Just Jazz Guitar) wrote: "All the pieces are based on engaging motifs and are full of musical enjoyment. Throughout the entire CD there is a wonderful feeling of soulful sensitivity demonstrated by this ever so multifaceted virtuoso guitar player." Tracks from Cedar & Silver such as "Aurora," "Blanca," and others have been licensed by various networks including A&E
, ABC
, PBS
, Spike TV
, and MTV India
. "Brothers" was licensed by The History Channel
for their special "The History of Thanksgiving." The score to "Asian Pavan," the album's "haunting opener," was published in the October 2005 issue of Classical Guitar Magazine, and "Asian Pavan" is also included in the Contemporary Anthology of Solo Guitar Music for Five Fingers of the Right Hand.
The Contemporary Anthology of Solo Guitar Music for Five Fingers of the Right Hand, edited by Charles Postlewate and published in 2009, includes original compositions by renowned guitarists/composers from Europe, North America, South America and the Caribbean, including Ferguson, Ernesto Cordero
, David Flynn
, Gerald Garcia
, James Lentini
, John Oliver
, Carlos Dorado, John Hall, Ricardo Iznaola, Charles Postlewate, Mirko Schrader, Burkhard 'Buck' Wolters, and Luis Zea. All pieces were written to be played fingerstyle using all five fingers of the right hand, a style and technique championed by Charles Postlewate and used by Ferguson and other advanced guitarists. The anthology features six pieces by Jim, including four pieces recorded on his second solo CD Moonstone. In his liner notes to Moonstone, Ferguson wrote:
Moonstone, released in 2009, features Ferguson playing an all-original program of 17 of his compositions. The feedback on the album, and on his performance, has been very positive: "I think the CD is convincing evidence of Jim Ferguson's place among the great fingerstyle jazz guitar artists. He fits in the ranks of Gene Bertoncini
, Charlie Byrd
, Ken Hatfield, and Lenny Breau
," according to Dr. Frank Forte (Just Jazz Guitar), in May 2010.
Recorded on Moonstone are six of the twelve studies written by Jim for his collection 12 Simple Jazzy Studies, published by Les Productions d'OZ in 2010. Regarding the studies, Dr. Frank Forte (Just Jazz Guitar) said, "The studies are engaging and a rewarding challenge well worth the time to play them. I liked number 6, and Howard Morgen is reminded of Stephen Sondheim
by it." The scores of two other pieces on Moonstone, "Cirque du Soul" and "Lady Di," were also published in 2010. Of this latter piece, Dr. Frank Forte (Just Jazz Guitar) wrote, "Lady Di, for Jim's lady friend, is a stately feeling, moving piece with interesting parallel movements and pedals. The movement from E major to A minor makes for great tonal contrasts and fires the soul."
Ferguson's numerous performances in and outside the U.S., both as a soloist and an ensemble member, have garnered great reviews. Cadence Magazine wrote, "Bluesy and swinging, Ferguson bears up under repeated listening." Jim has performed with Tommy Tedesco
, Jorge Morel
, Paulo Bellinati
, Ernie Watts
, Ray Drummond
, Bruce Williamson, David Goloshokin, Red Varner, Hannu Rantanen, former members of the Count Basie
and Woody Herman
big bands, and many others.
Ferguson continues to perform, record, and compose. He writes compositions and arrangements for both solo guitar and a variety of ensemble settings, including nylon-string guitar and flute, and nylon-string guitar and contrabass
.
. The entire series has received wide acclaim; industry review comments include:
Born in Dayton, Ohio, Jim Ferguson began his early music education playing the trombone at age 7, and then after eight years of study, switched to the guitar at age 15. He moved to California and began his music career in the 1970s, performing, teaching, and devoting serious study to the guitar. He has since performed in the U.S. and abroad, is featured on solo guitar CDs showcasing his original compositions for classical guitar
Classical guitar
The classical guitar is a 6-stringed plucked string instrument from the family of instruments called chordophones...
, and has had numerous compositions published in both anthologies alongside the works of other notable contemporary composers and in publications dedicated solely to his works. Jim Ferguson is the author of six highly-acclaimed jazz guitar instructional books, including his best-selling first instructional book All Blues For Jazz Guitar, and is well known for his work as an award-winning and Grammy-nominated music journalist and editor, where he has generated groundbreaking and unique instructional articles for guitar players, has been influential in changing how guitar music is notated, and has spread his expert knowledge of jazz and classical guitar to the wide audience of Guitar Player Magazine and other music publications. He holds B.S. and M.F.A. degrees and has taught guitar and music courses at California universities for over 20 years, has conducted guitar and music workshops in the U.S. and abroad, and has taught guitar privately for over 30 years. A biography of Jim Ferguson is featured in Maurice J. Summerfield’s The Jazz Guitar—Its Evolution, Players and Personalities since 1900.
Music journalist/editor career, music education
Before gaining widespread recognition and praise as a performer, composer, educator, and author, Ferguson was already well known in the guitar world as a prominent journalist for his hundreds of articles, interviews, reviews, instructional columns, and series for national and international magazines including Guitar PlayerGuitar Player
Guitar Player is a popular magazine for guitarists founded in 1967. It contains articles, interviews, reviews and lessons of an eclectic collection of artists, genres and products. It has been in print since the late 1960s and during the 1980s, under editor Tom Wheeler, the publication was...
(1979–1992), Down Beat
Down Beat
Down Beat is an American magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond" to indicate its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chicago, Illinois...
, JazzTimes
JazzTimes
JazzTimes is a magazine that dates back to Radio Free Jazz, a publication founded in 1970 by Ira Sabin when he was operating a record store in Washington, DC. It was originally a newsletter designed to update shoppers on the latest jazz releases and provide jazz radio programmers with a means of...
, Fingerstyle Guitar, Britain's prestigious Classical Guitar (1993–1998), and others. His advanced music education, which included studying with Lenny Breau
Lenny Breau
Leonard Harold "Lenny" Breau was a musician, guitar player, and music educator. He was known for blending many styles of music including: jazz, country, classical and flamenco guitar...
, George Barnes
George Barnes (musician)
George Barnes was a world-renowned swing jazz guitarist, who claimed he played the first electric guitar in 1931, preceding Charlie Christian by six years. George Barnes made the first recording of an electric guitar in 1938 in sessions with Big Bill Broonzy.-Biography:George Barnes was born in...
, David Tanenbaum
David Tanenbaum
David Tanenbaum is an American classical guitarist.Tanenbaum made his concert debut at the age of 16. He has since become known as an enthusiastic promoter of new music for his instrument, although his repertoire also includes much music from other periods...
, Red Varner, and José Rey de la Torre
José Rey de la Torre
José Rey de la Torre , known by his stage name Rey de la Torre, was one of the most significant classical guitarists of the mid-twentieth century, and considered by many to be the father of “modern classical guitar technique”.-Early life:De la Torre studied with Severino Lopez in Havana, Cuba...
, and earning a Master of Fine Arts degree in Performance and Literature from Mills College (Master's Thesis: "Darius Milhaud
Darius Milhaud
Darius Milhaud was a French composer and teacher. He was a member of Les Six—also known as The Group of Six—and one of the most prolific composers of the 20th century. His compositions are influenced by jazz and make use of polytonality...
’s Segoviana—History, Style, Implications"), enhanced the scope and level of expertise of his work and made him even more in demand. He wrote 14 biographies and two history articles for The New Grove Dictionary Of Jazz, and edited several volumes for Guitar Solo Publications of San Francisco, including an instructional series on the works of Fernando Sor
Fernando Sor
Josep Ferran Sorts i Muntades was a Spanish classical guitarist and composer. While he is best known for his guitar compositions, he also composed music for a wide range of genres, including opera, orchestra, string quartet, piano, voice and ballet...
, Leo Brouwer
Leo Brouwer
Juan Leovigildo Brouwer Mezquida is a Cuban composer, conductor and guitarist. He is the grandson of Cuban composer Ernestina Lecuona Casado.-Biography:...
, and Matteo Carcassi
Matteo Carcassi
Matteo Carcassi was a famous Italian guitarist and composer.Carcassi began with the piano, but learned guitar when still a child. He quickly gained a reputation as a virtuoso concert guitarist....
, and Federico Moreno Torroba
Federico Moreno Torroba
Federico Moreno Torroba was a Spanish composer, born in Madrid.-Biography:Moreno Torroba is often associated with the zarzuela, a traditional Spanish musical form. Directing several opera companies, Moreno Torroba helped introduce the zarzuela to international audiences...
's Castillos de España. He also compiled numerous collections of historic performances for Fantasy Records
Fantasy Records
Fantasy Records is a United States-based record label that was founded by Max and Sol Weiss in 1949 in San Francisco, California. They had previously operated a record-pressing plant called Circle Record Company before forming the Fantasy label...
, Rhino Records, and Concord Records
Concord Records
Concord Records is a U.S. record label now based in Beverly Hills, California. Originally known as Concord Jazz, it was established in 1972 as an off-shoot of the Concord Jazz Festival in Concord, California by festival founder Carl Jefferson, a local automobile dealer and jazz fan who sold his...
, and worked on several projects for other labels including Riverside Records
Riverside Records
Riverside Records was a United States record label specializing in jazz. Founded by Orrin Keepnews and Bill Grauer under his firm Bill Grauer Productions, Inc. in 1953, the label was a major presence in the jazz record industry for a decade...
. In 1994, Ferguson and Orrin Keepnews
Orrin Keepnews
Orrin Keepnews is an American writer and jazz record producer. In June 2010, he received a lifetime achievement award from the National Endowment for the Arts.- Career :...
earned a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
nomination for Best Album Notes for their liner notes to the 12-CD set Wes Montgomery
Wes Montgomery
John Leslie "Wes" Montgomery was an American jazz guitarist. He is widely considered one of the major jazz guitarists, emerging after such seminal figures as Django Reinhardt and Charlie Christian and influencing countless others, including Pat Martino, George Benson, Russell Malone, Emily...
—The Complete Riverside Recordings
The Complete Riverside Recordings
The Complete Riverside Recordings is a box set of American jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery's early recordings on the Riverside label. It is a twelve-CD box set and was released in 1992. It contains 157 songs and includes 15 previously unissued performances, six re-edited versions of previously issued...
. The extensive liner notes include a biography of Wes Montgomery
Wes Montgomery
John Leslie "Wes" Montgomery was an American jazz guitarist. He is widely considered one of the major jazz guitarists, emerging after such seminal figures as Django Reinhardt and Charlie Christian and influencing countless others, including Pat Martino, George Benson, Russell Malone, Emily...
by Ferguson and Jim's interviews with numerous prominent jazz musicians including Nat Adderley
Nat Adderley
Nathaniel Adderley was an American jazz cornet and trumpet player who played in the hard bop and soul jazz genres. He was the brother of saxophonist Julian "Cannonball" Adderley....
, Ron Carter
Ron Carter
Ron Carter is an American jazz double-bassist. His appearances on over 2,500 albums make him one of the most-recorded bassists in jazz history, along with Milt Hinton, Ray Brown and Leroy Vinnegar. Carter is also an acclaimed cellist who has recorded numerous times on that...
, Kenny Burrell
Kenny Burrell
Kenneth Earl "Kenny" Burrell is an American jazz guitarist. His playing is grounded in bebop and blues; he has performed and recorded with a wide range of jazz musicians.-Biography:...
, John Scofield
John Scofield
John Scofield , often referred to as "Sco," is an American jazz guitarist and composer, who has played and collaborated with Miles Davis, Dave Liebman, Joe Henderson, Charles Mingus, Joey Defrancesco, Herbie Hancock, Pat Metheny, Bill Frisell, Pat Martino, Mavis Staples, Phil Lesh, Billy Cobham,...
, and Tommy Flanagan
Tommy Flanagan
Thomas Lee Flanagan was an American jazz pianist born in Detroit, Michigan, particularly remembered for his work with Ella Fitzgerald...
. As Jude Hibler (20th Century Guitar) said in her 2001 interview of Ferguson, "With his many excellent accomplishments, his quest for excellence, and his sensitive, informed writing, it is little wonder that many consider him to be the Jazz Guitar Guru."
Guitarist/composer career
Ferguson received early compositional training from Joseph Blaha (currently of Roanoke CollegeRoanoke College
Roanoke College is an private, coeducational, four-year liberal-arts college affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The college is located in Salem, Virginia, a suburban independent city adjacent to Roanoke, Virginia...
). He also received coaching from Ernest "Red" Varner and many others. In the early 1990s, he began actively composing, with his flagship pieces being "Blanca," "Aurora," "Elegy," and "Nisene." Since then he has written dozens of compositions, some of which are recorded on and/or published in the works mentioned here. Regarding the style of his music, both playing and composing, Ferguson said:
- ...for many years I've written about, taught, and played jazz guitar, a passion whose roots reach back to the moment I first heard Kenny BurrellKenny BurrellKenneth Earl "Kenny" Burrell is an American jazz guitarist. His playing is grounded in bebop and blues; he has performed and recorded with a wide range of jazz musicians.-Biography:...
's version of "My Favorite ThingsMy Favorite Things (song)"My Favorite Things" is a show tune from the 1959 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical The Sound of Music.-The Sound of Music version:The song was first introduced by Mary Martin in the original Broadway production, and sung by Julie Andrews in the 1965 film.In the musical, the lyrics to the song are a...
" and got the notion that I wanted to do that. But I've experienced several other such moments, ones that led me to explore a variety of other styles, as well as composing and arranging. So while I love jazz, it's fair to say that I love the guitar even more, something that's reflected in [my compositions], which to varying degrees draw upon jazz, blues, classical, folk, and world elements.
In 2004, he released his first solo CD, Cedar & Silver, with Ferguson playing his original compositions. His efforts were rewarded with the warm reception the album received. Dr. Frank Forte (Just Jazz Guitar) wrote: "All the pieces are based on engaging motifs and are full of musical enjoyment. Throughout the entire CD there is a wonderful feeling of soulful sensitivity demonstrated by this ever so multifaceted virtuoso guitar player." Tracks from Cedar & Silver such as "Aurora," "Blanca," and others have been licensed by various networks including A&E
A&E Network
The A&E Network is a United States-based cable and satellite television network with headquarters in New York City and offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, London, Los Angeles and Stamford. A&E also airs in Canada and Latin America. Initially named the Arts & Entertainment Network, A&E launched...
, ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
, PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
, Spike TV
Spike TV
Spike is an American cable television channel. It launched on March 7, 1983 as The Nashville Network , a joint venture of WSM, Inc...
, and MTV India
MTV India
MTV India is the Indian version of MTV , a channel specialising in music and youth culture programming. It was launched in 1996 and is now part of the Viacom 18 Media Pvt. Ltd based in Mumbai. . "MTV India" is one of the oldest Music Television Networks in Asia...
. "Brothers" was licensed by The History Channel
The History Channel
History, formerly known as The History Channel, is an American-based international satellite and cable TV channel that broadcasts a variety of reality shows and documentary programs including those of fictional and non-fictional historical content, together with speculation about the future.-...
for their special "The History of Thanksgiving." The score to "Asian Pavan," the album's "haunting opener," was published in the October 2005 issue of Classical Guitar Magazine, and "Asian Pavan" is also included in the Contemporary Anthology of Solo Guitar Music for Five Fingers of the Right Hand.
The Contemporary Anthology of Solo Guitar Music for Five Fingers of the Right Hand, edited by Charles Postlewate and published in 2009, includes original compositions by renowned guitarists/composers from Europe, North America, South America and the Caribbean, including Ferguson, Ernesto Cordero
Ernesto Cordero (musician)
Ernesto Cordero is a Puerto Rican composer and classical guitarist.-Education:Ernesto Cordero began his higher studies in 1963 when he entered the Conservatory of Music in Puerto Rico and he continued at the Madrid Royal Conservatory, Spain where he earned a diploma in 1971...
, David Flynn
David Flynn
David Flynn is an Irish composer and musician with a number of major awards and commissions to his name. His recent music is noteworthy for merging the influence of traditional Irish music with contemporary classical music and jazz...
, Gerald Garcia
Gerald Garcia
Gerald Garcia is a classical guitarist and composer.After studying chemistry at Oxford University, he became a professional musician, making his debut at the Wigmore Hall in London. His more than fifteen CDs have sold more than 30,000 copies worldwide...
, James Lentini
James Lentini
James Lentini is an American composer and guitarist.After completing undergraduate studies at Wayne State University in guitar performance and composition, he pursued a master‘s degree in composition at Michigan State University and a doctorate from the University of Southern California, where he...
, John Oliver
John Oliver (composer)
John Oliver is a Canadian composer, guitarist, and conductor. An associate of the Canadian Music Centre and a member of the Canadian Electroacoustic Community, his music has been performed throughout North America and Europe...
, Carlos Dorado, John Hall, Ricardo Iznaola, Charles Postlewate, Mirko Schrader, Burkhard 'Buck' Wolters, and Luis Zea. All pieces were written to be played fingerstyle using all five fingers of the right hand, a style and technique championed by Charles Postlewate and used by Ferguson and other advanced guitarists. The anthology features six pieces by Jim, including four pieces recorded on his second solo CD Moonstone. In his liner notes to Moonstone, Ferguson wrote:
- For over two decades, Postlewate has advocated the use of the right-hand little finger, which, for a variety of reasons, has traditionally been avoided by classical guitarists. I've used the little finger since I first met fingerstyle great Lenny BreauLenny BreauLeonard Harold "Lenny" Breau was a musician, guitar player, and music educator. He was known for blending many styles of music including: jazz, country, classical and flamenco guitar...
in the early '80s, and I deploy it at several points throughout this recording....
Moonstone, released in 2009, features Ferguson playing an all-original program of 17 of his compositions. The feedback on the album, and on his performance, has been very positive: "I think the CD is convincing evidence of Jim Ferguson's place among the great fingerstyle jazz guitar artists. He fits in the ranks of Gene Bertoncini
Gene Bertoncini
-Biography:Bertoncini was born in New York City, where he was raised in a musical family. His father played guitar and harmonica. Bertoncini began playing guitar at age seven and by age sixteen was appearing on television. He graduated from high school and attended the University of Notre Dame,...
, Charlie Byrd
Charlie Byrd
Charlie Lee Byrd was a famous and versatile American guitarist born in Suffolk, Virginia. His earliest and strongest musical influence was Django Reinhardt, the famous gypsy guitarist. Byrd became the American guitarist who best understood and played Brazilian music, especially the Bossa Nova genre...
, Ken Hatfield, and Lenny Breau
Lenny Breau
Leonard Harold "Lenny" Breau was a musician, guitar player, and music educator. He was known for blending many styles of music including: jazz, country, classical and flamenco guitar...
," according to Dr. Frank Forte (Just Jazz Guitar), in May 2010.
Recorded on Moonstone are six of the twelve studies written by Jim for his collection 12 Simple Jazzy Studies, published by Les Productions d'OZ in 2010. Regarding the studies, Dr. Frank Forte (Just Jazz Guitar) said, "The studies are engaging and a rewarding challenge well worth the time to play them. I liked number 6, and Howard Morgen is reminded of Stephen Sondheim
Stephen Sondheim
Stephen Joshua Sondheim is an American composer and lyricist for stage and film. He is the winner of an Academy Award, multiple Tony Awards including the Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre, multiple Grammy Awards, a Pulitzer Prize and the Laurence Olivier Award...
by it." The scores of two other pieces on Moonstone, "Cirque du Soul" and "Lady Di," were also published in 2010. Of this latter piece, Dr. Frank Forte (Just Jazz Guitar) wrote, "Lady Di, for Jim's lady friend, is a stately feeling, moving piece with interesting parallel movements and pedals. The movement from E major to A minor makes for great tonal contrasts and fires the soul."
Ferguson's numerous performances in and outside the U.S., both as a soloist and an ensemble member, have garnered great reviews. Cadence Magazine wrote, "Bluesy and swinging, Ferguson bears up under repeated listening." Jim has performed with Tommy Tedesco
Tommy Tedesco
Thomas J. Tedesco was an American master session musician and renowned jazz and bebop guitarist.Tedesco's credits include the iconic brand-burning accompaniment theme from television's Bonanza, The Twilight Zone, Vic Mizzy's iconic theme from Green Acres, M*A*S*H, Batman, and Elvis Presley's '68...
, Jorge Morel
Jorge Morel
Jorge Morel is a classical guitarist and composer from Argentina. He is now living and working in New York City.-Biography:...
, Paulo Bellinati
Paulo Bellinati
Paulo Bellinati is a classical guitarist from Brazil. He studied classical guitar with Isais Savio and graduated from the Conservatório Dramático e Musical de São Paulo...
, Ernie Watts
Ernie Watts
Ernest James "Ernie" Watts is an American jazz and rhythm and blues musician. He plays saxophone and flute. He might be best known for his work with Charlie Haden's Quartet West and his Grammy Awards as an instrumentalist...
, Ray Drummond
Ray Drummond
Ray Drummond is a jazz bassist and teacher. He also has an MBA from Stanford University, hence his linkage to the Stanford Jazz Workshop...
, Bruce Williamson, David Goloshokin, Red Varner, Hannu Rantanen, former members of the Count Basie
Count Basie
William "Count" Basie was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. Basie led his jazz orchestra almost continuously for nearly 50 years...
and Woody Herman
Woody Herman
Woodrow Charles Herman , known as Woody Herman, was an American jazz clarinetist, alto and soprano saxophonist, singer, and big band leader. Leading various groups called "The Herd," Herman was one of the most popular of the 1930s and '40s bandleaders...
big bands, and many others.
Ferguson continues to perform, record, and compose. He writes compositions and arrangements for both solo guitar and a variety of ensemble settings, including nylon-string guitar and flute, and nylon-string guitar and contrabass
Contrabass
Contrabass refers to a musical instrument of very low pitch; generally those pitched one octave below instruments of the bass register...
.
Band recordings
- Songs For Our Fathers, 2002, by the Robin Anderson Big Band, featuring Jim Ferguson and former members of the Count BasieCount BasieWilliam "Count" Basie was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. Basie led his jazz orchestra almost continuously for nearly 50 years...
and Woody HermanWoody HermanWoodrow Charles Herman , known as Woody Herman, was an American jazz clarinetist, alto and soprano saxophonist, singer, and big band leader. Leading various groups called "The Herd," Herman was one of the most popular of the 1930s and '40s bandleaders...
big bands.
Solo recordings
- Cedar & Silver, 2004. Includes 11 original compositions and 2 arrangements/medleys.
- Moonstone, 2009. Includes 17 original compositions.
Published compositions
- Note: Not an exhaustive list.
- "Asian Pavan"
- "Sumi Dance"
- "Debussiana"
- "Chuck's Waltz" Dedicated to Charles Postlewate.
- "Leo's Blues" Dedicated to Leo BrouwerLeo BrouwerJuan Leovigildo Brouwer Mezquida is a Cuban composer, conductor and guitarist. He is the grandson of Cuban composer Ernestina Lecuona Casado.-Biography:...
. - "Before Six"
- "Study No. 1"
- "Study No. 2"
- "Study No. 3"
- "Study No. 4"
- "Study No. 5"
- "Study No. 6"
- "Study No. 7"
- "Study No. 8"
- "Study No. 9"
- "Study No. 10"
- "Study No. 11"
- "Study No. 12"
- "Cirque du Soul"
- "Lady Di"
- "Dark Streets & Shadows"
- "Wheelman"
- "Femme Fatale"
- "Heater"
- "Requiem For A Fallen Artist"
Compositions dedicated to Jim Ferguson
- "Romantico y Allegro Ritmico," 1992, by Jorge MorelJorge MorelJorge Morel is a classical guitarist and composer from Argentina. He is now living and working in New York City.-Biography:...
- "Chinese Metronome," 2009, by Charles Postlewate
Writing career
Ferguson's instructional writings for guitarists evolved into a series of highly-regarded jazz guitar instructional books; to date, six books have been published. All of the books include examples written and played by him (on accompanying CDs). The first book in the series, All Blues For Jazz Guitar, was named one of "100 Great Guitar Books" by Acoustic Guitar Magazine, and this book along with the second book in the series remain bestsellers at Mel Bay PublicationsMel Bay Publications
Mel Bay was a musician best known for his series of music education books. His Encyclopedia of Guitar Chords remains a bestseller.-Childhood and early life:...
. The entire series has received wide acclaim; industry review comments include:
- "Superb. One of the most comprehensive and clearly presented approaches to this much dissected subject." —20th Century Guitar Magazine
- "Learn these smoky lines, and you'll amaze your bandmates the next time they launch into a shuffle." —Guitar Player Magazine
- "Taken together [Ferguson's books] offer myriad options in navigating various blues forms. An essential resource for students." —JazzTimesJazzTimesJazzTimes is a magazine that dates back to Radio Free Jazz, a publication founded in 1970 by Ira Sabin when he was operating a record store in Washington, DC. It was originally a newsletter designed to update shoppers on the latest jazz releases and provide jazz radio programmers with a means of...
- "The examples on the CD are well executed, and contain that classic dry-as-a-bone archtop tone." —Fingerstyle Guitar Magazine
- "Jim Ferguson continues with a terrific book of all intros and endings. If you've ever had trouble coming up with interesting intros or endings, this will surely help. Highly recommended." —Just Jazz Guitar Magazine
- "[Ferguson's] trilogy could help up your status from Jazz Wannabe to Legit Hepcat. Dig it, man." —Guitar Player Magazine
Jazz guitar instructional books
- All Blues For Jazz Guitar—Comping Styles, Chords & Grooves, 1997. Book/CD set.
- All Blues Soloing For Jazz Guitar —Scales, Licks, Concepts & Choruses, 1999. Book/CD set.
- All Blues Scale For Jazz Guitar—Solos, Grooves & Patterns, 2000. Book/CD set.
- All Solos & Grooves For Jazz Guitar—Position Studies, Scales & Patterns, 2001. Book/CD set.
- All Intros & Endings For Jazz Guitar—Bebop, Swing, Latin, Ballads, 2003. Book/CD set.
- Shapes, Patterns & Lines For Jazz Guitar, 2007. Book/CD set.
Teaching career
Ferguson has helped hundreds of guitar and music students in the many years he has been teaching. He teaches private lessons, conducts workshops, has appeared on radio and television, and has lectured and taught at various California universities. Highly regarded by many students, he received a Great Lecturer Certificate of Honor, a student-nominated award, from California State University Monterey Bay. He also served on the Literature and Pop Culture committee at Cal State Monterey Bay, authored the department’s guitar sequence and qualified it for the university’s learning requirement for Creative and Artistic Expression, advised students, and performed in and coached ensembles for department concerts. He created the Music in Film class at Cal State Monterey Bay, and also reinvented the Survey of World Music class at Cal State Monterey Bay as an online class, making it the Music and Performing Arts Department’s first online course.Academic courses and universities
- Courses taught include: Jazz Guitar, Classical Guitar, Jazz Ensemble, Guitar Ensemble, Introductory Music, Music Appreciation, Music History, Survey of World Music, Music Production and Artistic Development, and Music in Film.
- Universities taught at include: California State University Monterey Bay (1998–2008), Evergreen Valley College (1990–present), and San Jose City College (1991–1992).
Lectures and media appearances
- Appearance on the Los Angeles-area cable television program Soundboard (1985), a tribute to Lenny BreauLenny BreauLeonard Harold "Lenny" Breau was a musician, guitar player, and music educator. He was known for blending many styles of music including: jazz, country, classical and flamenco guitar...
- San Francisco Conservatory of Music: "Russian Classical Guitar" (1989)
- University of San Francisco, and San Jose City College: "Guitar In The Soviet Union" (1989)
- National Public Radio (NPRNPRNPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
) program Weekend Edition: performance/commentary for a profile of Johnny SmithJohnny SmithJohnny Smith is an American cool jazz and mainstream jazz guitarist.-Early years:...
(1993), commentary for a profile of Wes MontgomeryWes MontgomeryJohn Leslie "Wes" Montgomery was an American jazz guitarist. He is widely considered one of the major jazz guitarists, emerging after such seminal figures as Django Reinhardt and Charlie Christian and influencing countless others, including Pat Martino, George Benson, Russell Malone, Emily...
(1998) - Numerous KUSP (NPRNPRNPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
affiliate) Jazz Guitar Classics live broadcasts (1993, 1994)
Workshops
- Topics covered include: Developing and Using the Right-Hand Little Finger ("c"), Fingerstyle Guitar, Improvisation, Ear Training, Classical Theory, Jazz Guitar History, Russian Classical Guitar, Jazz Theory, Classical Guitar, Guitar Ensemble, Jazz Guitar, Jazz History, and Fingerboard Harmony.
- Organizations include: South Bay Guitar Society (California, 2010), National Guitar Summer Workshop (Connecticut, 1988–1994), Midnight Sun Guitar Festival (Finland, 1988–1990), Sibelius Academy (Finland), Koupio Conservatory (Finland), Dixie Days (Finland), Chorus Guitar Festival (Finland), Kauhajoen School of the Arts (Finland), and Seinjoki Jazz Society (Finland).