One of the things that I love about music is the power of “dynamics”. Using dynamics in guitar playing is about having the ability to play soft and loud, and at varying volumes in between.
The A to Z of Fingerpicking (Part 2 – N-Z)
This is continued on from yesterday, so if you missed that post you may want to check it out. It is the A to Z of fingerpicking, including tips, and today we continue the fun with N.
Here we go…
The A to Z of Fingerpicking
Here is something fun for you today. It is the A to Z of fingerpicking and there are nuggets of good stuff throughout with tips to help with learning guitar so enjoy.
The Most Misunderstood Word in the Guitar World
There is a word that often gets used wrongly in the world of guitar playing and guitar exercises. Is it “vibrato”, “legato” or even “ostinato”? Nope, it is far simpler and if you are not careful, this word can send you down a rabbit hole, like Alice looking for the pesky white rabbit. The word is… “technique”.
3 Random Thoughts This Monday (Tuning By Ear, My Severed Finger Injury, the New Technique Book)
The last few Mondays I shared a post with 3 random thoughts about guitar, music, and life. So far, they have gone down well, so here is another covering injuries, tuning guitar by ear, and more…
I hope you enjoy… [Read more…]
The Three Ways I Teach Technical Exercises
The other day I talked about my complete disdain for most technical exercises out there in the land of guitar.
Today, I want to give you a tip on how to play the most commonly taught one ever, but specifically…
How NOT to do it and how you should practise it instead.
My Three Ways to Practise Fretting Hand Technical Exercises
There are a lot of technical exercises out there in the land of learning guitar.
Most are too complex and too intricate to be beneficial to most guitarists, beginners, and intermediates alike…
Especially when guitarists do them the way most people teach them.
Why Fingerstyle 101 Costs Less Than a Pack of Good Strings (And Why I’ll Probably Never Sell Anything This Low Ever Again)
A fair few of you have asked about why my Fingerstyle 101 book is so inexpensive but why my membership programme is pricier in comparison.
Good question.
The answer is simply because the membership is for the people who are dedicated, passionate, want more direct support, enjoy quizzes/challenges, and…
Want to improve faster than they would otherwise. (The membership is actually pretty reasonable in price and much cheaper than lessons).
The 6 Deadliest Fingerpicking Mistakes (And a Fun Little Test)
Below are 6 of the most commonly made fingerpicking errors I see on a day-to-day basis with students.
Take a look and see how many of these you make.
Be honest with yourself, as these 6 can crush progress faster than Bigfoot treading on a greenfly.
The Guitar Teacher from Hell
With a bit of nervousness and excitement, I took a deep breath and knocked on the door.
At this point, I had no idea that the next 60 minutes was going to be some of the most bizarre I was about to experience as a guitarist.
After a few moments, the door opened, and what I saw surprised me.
Out from behind the door came this guy with long greasy hair, tight jeans, and a big gut – looking like he had just woken up.
The blast of stale cigarette smoke hit me in the face as I stepped through the door.
“This is going to be fun” – I thought.
This was my first lesson with a so-called guitar tutor who was supposed to be the “best in town”.