HOW TO PLAY LIKE… BRIAN MAY
Since winning our prestigious Guitarist Of The Year competition back in 1994, Dave Colquhoun has toured and recorded with a number of diverse artists including Ian Brown, Bow Wow Wow, Francis Dunnery, Go West and even rock bastions Bananarama. He’s also worked with Brian May, and it was through this relationship that Dave found himself on set of the recent Freddie Mercury biopic Bohemian Rhapsody, coaching actors Gwilym Lee and Rami Malek, neither of whom were actually players of any note, to allow them to convincingly mimic May and Mercury’s guitar styles for the hugely successful film. Dave is now guitarist with Rick Wakeman’s English Rock Ensemble and also finds time to teach at Croydon’s BRIT School for Performing Arts and Technology and the WaterBear Music College. He’s currently in the final stages of completing an MA in Music Industry Analysis, but we’ve managed to tear him away from it to give us his insider tips on recreating May’s unique style.
PHRASING AND FEEL
Practice makes perfect in this vital area
Brian May is a master of injecting his playing with feel and, in this regard at least, he’s up there with just about anyone who’s ever picked up the instrument. Phrasing and
