The performance by legendary jazz guitarist Pat Metheny, one of the Frost School of Music’s most famous alumni, was one of the highlights of the April 8 Centennial Celebration Concert on the University of Miami’s Coral Gables campus.
But for students, the bigger thrill was the chance to hear from the brilliant musician in person. The day before the Centennial festivities, Metheny gave a two-hour masterclass at the Knight Center for Music Innovation, sharing his thoughts on everything from composing to artificial intelligence to being in school.
“This is a time when you guys have the luxury of coming up with some new ideas,” Metheny told a rapt audience of Frost School students and faculty in Newman Recital Hall. “I promise that if one of you comes up with something great and not like anything else, doors will fly open. That’s always been true.”
That was certainly true for Metheny, who was recruited in 1972 by then Frost School Dean William Hipp, who offered the teenage prodigy (who was so devoted to music that he was on the verge of failing high school) a full scholarship on the spot after hearing him play at a club in Kansas City. Metheny, who was so brilliant at music and so resistant to academics that he was soon made part of the faculty for the new electric guitar major, only stayed at the Frost School for a little over a year. But he was integral to a legendary period in the jazz program in the 70s that fostered Bruce Hornsby, Carmen Lundy, Jaco Pastorius, and many more, establishing the Frost School as a groundbreaking, profoundly creative place.
“Seems like that era was a storied thing,” Metheny said at the Knight Center. “It was unique musically. Every player was unique and incredible.”
Metheny became an artist renowned not just for his musical prowess but also for his originality and eagerness to experiment; he was always ready to work with new technology, inventing new guitars and an entirely new instrument he called the Orchestrion. Metheny has collaborated with artists ranging from minimalist Steve Reich to Brazilian legend Milton Nascimento, pop icon David Bowie, and a galaxy of jazz stars. He’s won 20 Grammys in 12 categories, more than any other artist, and countless other honors.
His achievements were recognized with an honorary doctorate in music at the Centennial Concert, with Dean Shelton G. Berg and University of Miami president Joe Echevarria robing Metheny in graduation regalia.
“We all know he’s an icon – the one of one, never settling,” said John Daversa, chair of the Frost School’s jazz program, to introduce Metheny. And not just for students; the masterclass audience included illustrious Frost School faculty members Kate Reid, Etienne Charles, David Ake, Marcus Strickland, and Steve Rucker.
Metheny spoke about complex concepts in down-to-earth and sometimes humorous terms.
“Say on that tune, I need you to tell me a story about green beans,” Metheny said about improvising. “Can’t be peas or potatoes. But each night, I need a completely different story about green beans. That’s a challenge on some nights when I want to talk about brussels sprouts.”
Students asked about his practice routine, composing methods, touring, improvisation, and more. What emerged from Metheny’s responses was the picture of an artist who remains awed by the possibilities of his art form and has never stopped pushing himself to new artistic frontiers.
“Writing [music] for me is ten times harder than anything else,” he said. “Harder than ever because my standards are so much higher than they used to be. I gotta write about ten things to get two that will be useful.”
Charlee Loyst, a master’s student in jazz piano performance who also composes, said hearing Metheny humanized a legend. “It was an incredible experience to have an artist like Pat Metheny talk to us face to face,” Loyst said afterwards. “He might have all these incredible things under his belt, all these incredible people he’s played with, all this incredible music. But it also reminds us that he’s also a person, and it’s not impossible to do what he’s doing. That was really inspiring.”
Metheny said he composes at home, rising at 4 am, before his family, with three kids and two dogs, are up. “I usually get more done in those two hours than the rest of the day,” he said. He also emphasized discipline and practicality. “One of the best things is a deadline,” he said. “Say, I gotta do my recital on Thursday, I’d better write some music. That’s always good for focus.”
To the students’ surprise, Metheny said he composed primarily on piano. “It makes no sense at all,” he said, to laughter. (He does keep a guitar and computer on hand.) “I’m not a good piano player. But it’s much more neutral for me.”
He also startled them by urging them to learn about artificial intelligence. “I’m all over [AI] and you guys should be too, because that’s what’s happening now,” he said. “It’s just a new tool for us. Musicians, in general, have always been the people who do cool things with technology, and we will be again. But you definitely need to understand it, and now is a good time to jump in.”
He never composes on tour, saying travel, warm up, sound check, and performing don’t leave him the time or mental bandwidth, which leaves him free to focus on the creativity of improvising and playing. “Part of why I like playing on the road so much is you don’t have to think about anything,” Metheny said. “At this point, my metabolism is so geared to that, sometimes I want to get out on the road to rest.”
Metheny repeatedly expressed his appreciation for other musicians. “I could talk about dozens of people who are huge to me,” he said. “My best friend was [jazz bassist] Charlie Haden, my hero. [Jazz composer] Ornette Coleman was one of the most incredible musicians I’ve ever known, but more than that, one of the most incredible human beings ever lived.”
“There was Bach, and I’m like, ok, that’s the end of the discussion. There was Wes Montgomery, Charlie Parker, and John Coltrane. Compared to them, I’m intermediate.”
He also talked about his interest in younger artists. This was partly to pay forward the mentorship he’d received starting out. “I was the beneficiary of being hired when I was really young,” he said. “So, for a while now, I want to hire the people in the generation below me. Christian McBride and Joshua Redman are 10-12 years younger than me, I’m like, ‘those are my people’.”
Even as he fosters young artists, Metheny is also inspired and challenged by them. “Once I hire someone talented, I have to use what they’re good at, and also challenge that person,” Metheny said. “If they’re good at X, I have to give them X plus. Because once you get to gig number 37 at the Peoria Arts Center on a rainy Tuesday night, you want people to be still engaged. A big part of this for me is to write music that’s right for the band and also challenging. I want to create an environment where people are happy.”
Kevin Venier, a doctoral student in jazz guitar who assisted Metheny during his visit, witnessed the master musician’s discipline and kindness. Metheny called Venier at 8 am before the masterclass, asking where he could practice beforehand, and chatted with Venier about his home in Italy near Venice, where Metheny has performed. “Since I started playing jazz guitar, he’s been a point of reference,” Venier said. “Sometimes I feel I even play too much like him. But it’s inevitable because his voice and playing are so influential. He’s just so good.”
A moving aspect of Metheny’s visit was the connection to generations of Frost School alumni, 100 of whom received Frost School Centennial Medals at a ceremony on April 8. Among the medalists was David Roitstein, who got both a bachelor’s and a master’s in jazz piano at the Frost School from 1972 to 1980, and was a close friend and collaborator of Metheny and Bruce Hornsby, another famous alumnus from the 1970s. „There was high-level, innovative stuff going on at that time, an explosion of amazing people,“ said Roitstein, who co-founded the Cal Arts Jazz Program, which he still directs, in 1983. One of its alums is Daversa, who got his master’s there. „I was so proud that they hired John,“ Roitstein said. „That continues the tradition of being non-traditional.“
One student asked Metheny if he ever felt burnt out. “No,” said Metheny, unhesitatingly. “To me, music is so interesting and so fun. Sometimes I know I gotta go to bed, but I can’t wait to get up and start working. It’s always been like that for me.”
“I feel so lucky to be a musician. “It’s a very difficult life. But so worth it.”
He encouraged the students to take full advantage of their time at the Frost School so that they, too, could have a musical life.
“This is an incredible place; you guys are lucky to be here. You are in one of the world’s two to three best music schools,” Metheny said. “Yet you will only get out of it what you put into it. You will form connections during this special time of your life that will last forever. You will get a thousand hours back every hour you spend playing music. Work on anything. You cannot go wrong. The only thing you can go wrong with is to sit there and say, ‘What should I work on?’ So just do it.”
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