The Boulder Pecker

[Christopher Stewart]

("Climber on Stem Gem" by Jarekt)

« The Boulder Pecker » is a composition that Miguel completed on his own and submitted to the band.

The piece contains some of the most difficult passages of the band's repertoire, and requires a high level of cohesion in order to be rendered precisely, without train wrecks.

In my opinion, although it definitely has a flavour all its own, the piece is a good illustration of Miguel's jazz-rock/fusion/latin influences, Al Di Meola probably being the most prominent.

The inspiration for the composition comes from one of his passions, rock climbing, of which there are various styles, including bouldering. From Wikipedia :

Bouldering is a style of rock climbing undertaken without a rope and normally limited to very short climbs over a crash pad (called a bouldering mat) so that a fall will not result in serious injury. It is typically practiced on large natural boulders or artificial boulders in gyms and outdoor urban areas. However, it may also be practiced at the base of larger rock faces, or even on buildings or public architecture (see buildering).

According to Miguel, who by the way is known to be a most excellent climber, it is quite common for people who practice the activity to search for figures to be revered as « Gods of Climbing. » So he imagined the Woody Woodpecker cartoon character as a climbing deity, hammering and drilling into rock. Can you spot the famous laugh ?