In a stunning, full-color book, author Anthony Garone details a 22-year journey of transformation in mastering the intricate complexity of \u201cFracture\u201d – described by composer Robert Fripp as \u201cimpossible to play.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnthony Garone\u2019s \u2018Failure to Fracture\u2019 is a success story.\u201d \u2013 Robert Fripp<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Watch Robert Fripp praising \u201cFailure to Fracture\u201d:<\/strong>\u00a0(https:\/\/youtu.be\/-S9rnPQB9RI<\/a>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n When progressive rock band King Crimson released \u201cStarless and Bible Black\u201d in 1974, very few recognized the astonishing virtuosity captured in the album\u2019s 11-minute instrumental capstone, \u201cFracture.\u201d Three minutes into the piece, guitarist Robert Fripp begins a quiet, non-stop barrage of notes called a \u201cmoto perpetuo\u201d an Italian term for \u201cperpetual motion.\u201d Fripp\u2019s moto perpetuo requires intense right-hand string-skipping, and picking capabilities only a handful of guitarists around the world possess.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Musician Anthony Garone was challenged by his father to learn \u201cFracture\u201d in 1998. As a 16-year-old who practiced guitar six or more hours every day, he could not understand why he could play other technical pieces of music, but not \u201cFracture.\u201d Over the years, he published blog posts and videos about his efforts. Garone kept working in isolated frustration until he enrolled in a week-long guitar instruction course led by Fripp in rural Mexico in 2015. That week was transformative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n It was in Mexico that Garone learned the mechanics of Fripp\u2019s very unique right-hand technique. To properly play \u201cFracture,\u201d Garone had to re-learn how to play guitar, sit, stand, and breathe. It would also require meditation and a new way of using his body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Following many months of back-to-the-basics guitar practice, Garone re-trained himself to play guitar, playing a single open string for two hours a day across several weeks. In 2016, he was finally able to play small pieces of \u201cFracture\u201d without any pain or frustration. He documented his progress on his Make Weird Music YouTube channel in a series called \u201cFailure to Fracture.\u201d The videos garnered hundreds of thousands of views and praise from Fripp himself, who wrote \u201cFracture is impossible to play, cf. Anthony Garone.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFailure to Fracture\u201d captures Garone\u2019s transformative 22-year journey. The story begins with his time as a teenager developing a friendship with guitar hero Steve Vai in 1996. It ends with video performances of both \u201cFracture\u201d and the even more difficult \u201csequel\u201d composition, \u201cFraKctured,\u201d written and performed in Fripp\u2019s own New Standard Tuning. It is a book about achieving the impossible, overcoming one\u2019s limitations, and retraining the mind and body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In March 2021, Fripp stated on YouTube:\u00a0\u201cAnthony Garone is a man who has just written a book about to be published on \u2018Failure to Fracture.\u2019 Anthony has spent 22 years failing to play \u2018Fracture.\u2019 Actually, he\u2019s done a pretty good job. Anthony\u2019s failure is so well-achieved in my book, it\u2019s a success.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n More praise from fellow Crims and chums:<\/strong> \u201cThis book is a game changer. It delivers a detailed insight into a \u2018secret\u2019 world that is hardly ever being discussed in popular culture.\u201d – Markus Reuter<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe insight in this book goes beyond simply learning to play an impossible song… it provides a roadmap for how to live your best life.\u201d – Gabriel Riccio<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Guitarist, author and composer Anthony Garone pens a compelling story of transformational failure after failure followed by a final victory: the ultimate performance of one of progressive rock\u2019s most challenging and complex songs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Release date:<\/strong>\u00a0May 18, 2021<\/p>\n\n\n\n To pre-order:<\/strong>www.FailureToFracture.com<\/a>Anthony@MakeWeirdMusic.com<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe best story of the long path of craftsmanship I have come across.\u201d – Trey Gunn, former member of King Crimson<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n