Pasquale Grasso
guitar
Italian-born jazz guitarist based in New York who plays bebop on the guitar; guitarists from Barry’s circle say he studied with Barry, who helped him and thought highly of him.
- mentions
- 3
- recordings
- 2
- Barry speaking
- 1
What Barry says
In a Jazz at Lincoln Center class, while a young guitarist works through the scales in contrary motion at the piano, Barry names a Pasquale and says he started learning this material at about 11. The caption does not show whether Barry means Grasso, or whether the guitarist at the piano is the Pasquale he names.
Jazz theory, part 5: the sixth diminished scale0:0010:0712:30
In his own words
His name is Pasquale. But he started learning this when he was about 11.
Every mention
3 moments in the recordings, 1 of them Barry speaking. Each says who is talking.
Jazz theory, part 5: the sixth diminished scale
- 12:30
Names a Pasquale who began learning this material at about 11; unclear whether this is Grasso.
Jazz GUITAR Reflections on BARRY HARRIS
In the interviews and notes
A forum member thinks Grasso gets close to Bud Powell’s way of playing on the guitar, and adds that Barry helped him.
After reporting Barry’s remark that guitarists such as Peter Bernstein do not know chord scales, a member suggests this is why Barry loves Pasquale so much: he can play that material up and down the instrument.
jazzguitar.be members (usernames kept per post), Tom Jobim - Wave Analysis using Barry Harris Method ¶473jazzguitar.be members (usernames kept per post), Tom Jobim - Wave Analysis using Barry Harris Method ¶474
A member calls the Grasso brothers amazing musicians with a thorough command of Barry’s material, and wishes more players were like them.
Pasquale showed one member an exercise for running scales through a tune: instead of beginning each bar’s scale on beat one, leave off one more note from the bottom each time, so that each new scale starts at a different point in the beat.
jazzguitar.be members (usernames kept per post), Things I learned from Barry Harris Study Group ¶903jazzguitar.be members (usernames kept per post), Things I learned from Barry Harris Study Group ¶904
Arguing that Barry’s classes simulate the bandstand and that you learn to play fast by practising fast, a member cites Grasso’s point that you will not play at 320 beats a minute unless you practise at that tempo.
jazzguitar.be members (usernames kept per post), Harris vs Haque... please set me straight? ¶55jazzguitar.be members (usernames kept per post), Harris vs Haque... please set me straight? ¶57
Grasso’s online video lessons are recommended for a clear example of harmonising the melody of My Ideal with the sixth diminished scale.
jazzguitar.be members (usernames kept per post), Kingstone/Harris Harmonic Method for Guitar ¶37
Grasso suggests practising the sixth-diminished voicings across every string set, from drop 2 on the top four strings down to drop 3 on the sixth string; a member notes he seems to switch string sets at the same places every time.
jazzguitar.be members (usernames kept per post), Kingstone/Harris Harmonic Method for Guitar ¶596
A list of ways to build lines from Barry’s rules includes Pasquale’s four-note patterns, which differ depending on whether the starting note is the root of a major or a minor chord.
jazzguitar.be members (usernames kept per post), Quick start guide to Barry Harris line building ¶40
Pasquale is named as a regular at bassist Ari Roland’s jam at the Fat Cat in New York, a session that sticks to bebop heads and standards from before 1950.
jazzguitar.be members (usernames kept per post), Tom Jobim - Wave Analysis using Barry Harris Method ¶444jazzguitar.be members (usernames kept per post), Tom Jobim - Wave Analysis using Barry Harris Method ¶445
Not every guitarist warms to him: one member finds his use of Barry’s approach hyper-virtuosic and out of reach, and another does not find him very interesting, saying he watches him objectively rather than enjoying the playing.
jazzguitar.be members (usernames kept per post), Kingstone/Harris Harmonic Method for Guitar ¶425jazzguitar.be members (usernames kept per post), Official Barry Harris Thread (jazzguitar.be forum thread) ¶555
Recordings that name them
Barry’s performances and records in the archive that credit or name them.
- Barry Harris- Pasquale Grasso2016, 11 min YouTube
- Barry Harris - Pasquale Grasso2016, 6 min YouTube
- Luigi & Pasquale Grasso with Barry Harris.wmv2011, 8 min YouTube
Method ideas nearby
Ideas of the method taught in the classes where they come up, with how many mentions fall in each.