During the time of the Greeks, it was necessary to treat strangers with kindness because the average-looking guy next to you could be a God in disguise. If guitar god Trey Gunn is any indication, things aren't much different today. Tall and lean, Gunn looks like your stereotypical average Joe until he picks up his touch guitar. A variant on the familiar six-string, this behemoth of an instrument boasts eight strings and enough knobs to tune in Bulgarian television. The fret-board looks sufficiently wide to double as an emergency runway and seems like an impossible piece of wood for an instrument -- until Gunn takes it into his hands, that is. Played with a tapping style (imagine Eddie Van Halen without the cock-rock), the instrument melds with Gunn's hands in a dance that is incredibly smooth and natural. As Gunn plays bass lines with his left hand, his right is free to solo in the upper registers, resulting in a combined effect that makes Gunn sound like a band unto himself.

Gunn's solo efforts move from Eastern trance to rock bombast with stops and all points in between. In addition to his own work, he has played with King Crimson, former Ministry drummer Bill Rieflin and damn near everyone else you can think of. In between stops on his current west coast tour, which you can read about on his website, Gunn took a few moments to correspond with Splendid.

Trey Gunn: Neither. However, I do use big guitars and big drums; that means rock and roll. But then, there is a lot of improvisation, so that means jazz. But I certainly don't use the jazz vocabulary and none of the musicians I play with can play jazz.

Splendid: Have you watched any of Ken Burn's Jazz series on PBS?

Trey Gunn: I haven't seen it. I don't own a television. But I do have the book and have been fascinated with working through it. The most immediate and powerful thing that he presented is that this music, jazz, "encoded" within it the wild spirit of America. And encoded in a way that listeners were able to gain access to this spirit simply by being with the music.

Splendid: Any other books you've been reading lately?

Trey Gunn: TC Boyle's Water Music and Sylvia Plath's Ariel.

Splendid: How structured are your compositions? How important is improvisation either in the studio or on stage?

Trey Gunn: I use both very tightly constructed compositions and relatively loose improvisation. And all points in between. And even with the same piece. We may begin the piece very loosely and then I will cue the next very tightly composed section which will flow through its architecture for a while until we hit a solo section where the chords are cued while I am soloing, and then finally cueing into a tightly composed concluding section. This is exactly how the piece "Rune Song" (on The Joy of Molybdenum) is structured.

Splendid: Any particular cities you prefer to play?

Trey Gunn: I prefer to play cities where the performance space is perfect and the audience is "there" with us. Failing the first one I am happy just when the audience is completely with us.

Splendid: What makes the performance space "perfect"?

Trey Gunn: Good acoustics and good PA system. Between 250 and 500 capacity. Partially seated and partially standing (at least for this band. Other projects need a fully seated audience.). Decent backstage space separate from the on-going chaos of the venue. Good catering!

Splendid: How did you get started on the touch guitar?

Trey Gunn: I began playing the Chapman Stick in 1988 and moved the Warr Guitar about four years later.

Splendid: What was it about this instrument that made it preferable to a standard six-string?

Trey Gunn: The quick answer is that the Warr Guitar is simply "my" instrument. It only resembles the standard six-string guitar in small ways. It has a six octave range so I can play both bass and treble parts without switching instruments. It is also set-up for tapping style. And all of this is augmented by the fact that Mark Warr listens to exactly what I need as a player and builds the instruments specifically to my personal needs.

Splendid: You also play the "smokey guitar"?

Trey Gunn: This is my name for playing the Warr Guitars through these very small practice amps called Smokeys. They sound very small and completely unique.

Splendid: Would you consider yourself a gearhead?

Trey Gunn: I love toys, so yes, I guess am a gearhead.

Splendid: Which musicians would you name among your influences?

Trey Gunn: I have only met one master musician in my life and that was Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan.

Splendid: What is it about him that influenced your playing?

Trey Gunn: I can't say how he has influenced my playing. But he is a constant source of inspiration.

Splendid: Have you had formal musical training?

Trey Gunn: Yes, I have a degree in composition from the University of Oregon.

Splendid: How important do you feel formal training is for a musician?

Trey Gunn: I'm pretty mixed on this issue. In one sense my musical training has opened incredible doors for me that never would have been opened otherwise. I can sight read music by Wagner and unlock Bach inventions. This is a wonderful thing to have access to these musics in an intimate and detailed way that would not be possible without my formal training. I can also communicate with musicians from all sorts of backgrounds. This is largely due to my varied background. However, it is true that in addition to being able to join in a reggae jam, hang out in punk club and talk with techno musicians, I can also walk into Julliard and hold my own.

On the other hand I think the academic approach to "making a musician" is completely flawed, at least in terms of the kind of musician I aspire to be -- the musician who can tap into the creative world and build/make/touch something completely new and unknown. As far as being able to successfully deliver a classical (or even in these days a dogmatically acceptable) jazz performance, it is not at all possible without years of formal training. The standards are just too high to be able to reach very far without a strong education.

However, my experience in the academic world and my researches around academia (and beyond) after completing my university studies was that there is a total absence of understanding in regards to music being a living, breathing presence. And, the truth be told, that you need no training at all to touch it. How to reconcile these two worlds is my ongoing struggle. But I will add that without a teacher you are looking at a much longer and more difficult journey as a young musician trying to touch something VERY BIG. You just need to find the right kind of teacher with the right kind of teaching. I am sure that some of these people can survive within the academic world, but it doesn't seem like a very good place to make a musician to me.

Splendid: Is it difficult living up to the legend of King Crimson?

Trey Gunn: I don't feel bound by the history of King Crimson. My interest in being in the band is in its future. Which is why, I suppose, that I am in the band.

Splendid: Do you find anything particular about King Crimson fans? Are they more open-minded or more weird?

Trey Gunn: King Crimson fans are extremely open minded and extremely disturbed individuals. And wouldn't you be if you listened to this music all the time?

Splendid: How did you get hooked up with Bill Reiflin (with whom Gunn worked on The Repercussions of Angelic Behavior)?

Trey Gunn: I met Bill Reiflin many years ago when he was passing through New York (where I lived at the time) on the road with Ministry. Bill has the most intense "feeling" for music that I know. He is a born producer.

Splendid: Who would you like to work with in the future?

Trey Gunn: Female singers.

Splendid: Do you have anyone in mind?

Trey Gunn: My antennae are up and focusing... I'll let you know.

Splendid: Have you ever felt pressure to add vocals to your music?

Trey Gunn: I don't feel any pressure to add vocals. My current work has been to explore instrumental music, and to try to find successful (and I use that word in terms of internal musicality) forms that work for what I do. As soon as you add a voice to music you immediately have something very interesting going on. And you don't need the music around the voice to be as captivating. So if you take away this fascinating element how do you make up for it?

Splendid: Have you ever given thought to other musical outlets, such as composing for others or soundtrack work?

Trey Gunn: Yes, I would love to do soundtracks.

Splendid: What is it you seek in the music you write?

Trey Gunn: My interest in playing music is to activate the imagination of the listener. Playing music is my way of life. It connects me to the deepest parts.

Splendid: What would you like others to take away from your music?

Trey Gunn: Inspiration.