How to Create a Groove Using Harmonized Scales Introduction Many times in lessons, I create a groove for students (using a looper or midi-generating pedal or software) on the fly for them to solo over or practice switching chords with. The advantages of doing this as opposed to using pre-made backing tracks (on Youtube, [...]
Comparing How Amateurs and Professionals Jam Because of the unpredictable nature of a jam session, each participant’s musicianship really comes to the fore in many ways. I have run many jam sessions that were open to the public over the years, and I offer this, not as a be-all end-all guide to jamming, but [...]
How I climbed Mount Everest… Imagine this - you’re at the base of Mount Everest. You’ve got all your hiking gear on and you’re ready to climb. Now just the idea of climbing this mounting can seem pretty like a daunting task. I mean… that’s a lot to climb! Where do you even start? [...]
3 Reasons Why You Are Not Likely To Blame For Not Being Able To Learn To Play Guitar Yet So, you have tried to learn how to play guitar already and it did not go well. Guess what? You are not alone. The reality is that most people who pick up a guitar to [...]
5 Reasons Why Your Guitar Playing Doesn’t Sound Good Yet A time comes, in the course of learning the guitar, where the student feels like he can play songs, riffs, licks and solos but for some reason, they don’t seem to sound good. How To Get Started With Writing Your Own Songs Even If [...]
Three Benefits Of Learning Music Theory There are many guitar players who try to learn independently (without guitar lessons or a teacher) and for some reason take pride in it. Some of these people believe that doing so will create a unique sound for themselves, something that nobody can teach. While this could possibly [...]
Beware of Trojan Horses I don’t mean computer viruses here, nor literal wooden horses delivered unexpectedly to your door. ‘Trojan horse’ in this case is a metaphor for ‘things which you think are good for you but are actually bad.' 3 Reasons You Want To Play Guitar With Other People Modern society constantly bombards [...]
The Top 5 Reasons People Give To Avoid Learning to Play Guitar One of the coolest parts of being a guitar teacher is getting the opportunity to meet and talk with people. These people come from all walks of life and have different likes and dislikes. One of the things I've noticed that people [...]
What To Do When Practicing Guitar Becomes Stale (PT 2 Inner Turmoil): There are many reasons why your practicing might become stale as a guitar player and so, as a teacher I think it’s important to discuss why your practicing has gone stale and how to give it some new juice and life. If [...]
How Great Guitar Teachers Set Themselves Apart From The Rest Choosing a guitar teacher is one of the most important choices of your musical life. Choose the right one and you’ll make fast progress towards becoming the guitarist you always wanted to be. This should be your goal as a student. To help you [...]