Inna, thanks for the Tony Scott clip. I like the clip. Frankly, about the most enjoyable thing that I have ever heard by Tony Scott; he is generally not my cup of tea. Interesting player whose style always shows his fascination with folk music. There is a quality in his playing reminiscent of the way that the clarinet is used in Eastern European folk music. He is often touted as a bebop clarinet player and in my opinion that is quite a stretch.
My comments are not meant to provoke or offend but to hopefully inspire interesting and friendly discussion. I think that one of the challenges in evaluating and discussing music on a thread like this is in keeping our own personal musical style and genre preferences separate and independent from evaluations about the artistic and technical merit, or as you recently stated, the "level" of the playing. You commented about the Connors clips that Ghosthouse posted and seemed to object to their "level". You then posted music by Jesse Cook and Tony Scott. What is it about the level of that music that you find superior (presumably) to that of the Connors other than the fact that you may like those styles/genres better? I don’t find anything inherently superior in either the Jesse Cook or Tony Scott clips on a technical or compositional level. Style/genre? Obviously very different and they each evoke different feelings mostly dictated by our personal likes and preferences. I would also argue that the Scott is on a lower level technically and compositionally. Jesse Cook, as you say, is a very good guitarist, and even though I am not quite sure he is, along with Paco, one of the two best I do like some of his stuff. However, that clip (as you point out) barely rises above the saccharine Flamenco flavored "New Age/World Music" thing; and, I would also argue that with the exception of Cook himself the playing is not on the same "level" of virtuosity as that on the Connors clips. Just what do you mean when you refer to "level"? I welcome your thoughts.
Not comparing; just two acoustic guitarists that I enjoy:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ahL2vE-AGSYhttps://m.youtube.com/watch?v=pi83LbDpUd0