"It is an interesting instrument because nobody agrees on it" – Pat Metheny explains the fundamental way the guitar is unique in music

Jazz great Pat Metheny recently sat down with D'Addario guitar strings to talk guitar and his perspectives on the instrument. It's easy to forget that Metheny isn't just a pioneering jazz fusion musician and composer, his progressive mindset has extended to gear with everything from strings to the type of delay setup he uses. As a musician who began on trumpet – he's also able to view the guitar in context, including what makes it so unique.

Pat Metheny Interview: The Story Behind D'Addario XL Chromes & More - YouTube

Watch On

"My oldest son who's great, he's a really cool guy – he always has an interesting perspective," says Metheny. "When he was about eight, he said [about the guitar], 'I like it, but guitar, it's so 20th century'.

"However guitar, all it is is an instrument – all anything is is a potential manifestation tool. It is an interesting instrument because nobody agrees on it. Nobody agrees how to hold it, nobody agrees how to touch it, nobody agrees how to play it. Every person that picks it up finds their own way to do it. There's no other instrument quite like that – almost every other instrument has, this is how you play that instrument. There is not that with guitar. And, you know, that's pretty cool."

Agreed! Check out the full interview – and more about the XL Chrome electric guitar strings he developed with D'Addario – in the video above.

• Pat Metheny on Wes Montgomery: "He had this amazing ability to describe very complex ideas in ways that were so clear and well backed up with spirit and soul"