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25.01.2022 When working on a rhythm in a melody, it is a great idea to clap a few bars over and over, looping where you can. This way you are removing one entire level of complexity in learning it, i.e. the pitch and reinforcing the movement through time. I still use this technique all the time. Clapping in time is something most of us learn when quite young, so it should not pose a problem. I tell my students, if you can't clap the rhythm, you want be able to play it.

25.01.2022 Dont lose your tempo! There was a joke that used to go around (and probably still does) that went like this: Q. How do you know when a drummer is knocking at the door? ... A. The knocking gets faster the longer it goes on. The reality is, however, that it is not just a phenomenon that happens to drummers it happens to guitarists also. The uncontrolled tempo rush is like a black hole that draws us into an ever increasing tempo, even to the point where we can no longer breathe. Your body then begins to tense, your fingers tighten, and then you start to stumble. It is just like running downhill it is very hard to slow down. What we need to do is to learn to control our tempo. One of the best ways to do this is to practice with a metronome. This can be very hard to get accustomed to because it sounds like the metronome will not keep time. The reality is, however, it is YOU! The book of proverbs has a valuable insight: Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses. Proverbs 27:6. You may think that the metronome is your worst enemy because it exposes your inability to keep time. However, the metronome can become your trusted friend that will mark your footsteps through the flux of time, ensuring you will not drift into the vortex of the perpetual accelerando.

24.01.2022 When learning and playing a piece of music, it is more important to get the rhythm working than it is to get the exact chords or notes in the melody. The rhythm is what actually carries the music along. If you hit a bad note, it is not nearly as noticeable as screwing up the rhythm.

20.01.2022 There are primarily two modes of guitar practice, and both of them are vital. The first involves learning of new skills and requires a lot of thinking. Remember when you first learned to drive a manual car? You had to think about which gear you need to be in for the speed you were going, the best hand position to use in order to move in and out of a particular gear, balancing of the clutch, hand-brake and accelerator when doing a hill start. You had to learn these in a part...Continue reading

18.01.2022 Practice without Theory is blind, Theory without practice is sterile. Karl Marx (1819-83) said "Practice without Theory is blind, Theory without practice is sterile." So what does that have to do with guitar? In a sense: everything; that is, if you are serious about becoming a better guitarist and musician. Although I am taking Marx a little out of context, this is a great philosophy we can use as far as our playing and musicianship goes. I will exaggerate two extremes to mak...Continue reading

17.01.2022 I just saw a great video on improvisation from the classical viewpoint. Although not guitar, well worth watching http://www.youtube.com/playlist

15.01.2022 I cannot overemphasise the importance of learning and practicing a piece slowly. Although it is very tempting to try and get the piece up to a higher speed, dont do it! If you keep practicing the mistakes, you will get good at them (the mistakes that is). If you practice something slowly and get it good slow, it will be much easier to bring the tempo up because you will have trained yourself. What people dont realize is that it is not just like training a machine, but it is... like folding a piece of cardboard. When you have a crease in the cardboard, it just wants to fold at the crease. Once you have the crease in, it is very hard bend it at the right place so you have to try to iron it out, and sometimes you cant. Every repeated mistake is a repeated crease. It is best to fold the cardboard in the right place. So later, when you bend the cardboard back and forth, it will bend in the right place. This is also a reminder to me!

08.01.2022 I had an epiphany last night while I was with Jez Ashman, and it was not the manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles as represented by the Magi (Matthew 2:112). What it was is that each Major 7 Chord and Minor 7 is made up of two parallel perfect 5th intervals separated by the quality of 3rds that define the type of chord. Eg, in a Major 7 chord, the perfect 5ths are separated by a major 3rd, and likewise, a minor 7th has them separated by a minor 3rd. This is only really ev...ident on the manuscript when you have close position chords in root position. In Jazz, you make what is called scale of diatonic seventh chords by making a scale of seventh chords on each interval of the scale. Eg, in C major, you make a scale of seventh chords on C, D, E, F, G, A, and B (then finish back at C). If you then look at these chords, you have CMaj7, Dmi7, Emi7, FMaj7, G7 (note that it is dominant 7), Ami7, Bmi7b5m then back to CMaj7. We have parallel movement of perfect 5ths among the thirds except when we got to the V chord (G7) and the VII (Bmi7b5). Note that these two chords still have one perfect 5th each, but only one, and the separation from the other two notes of the chord have opposite qualities - one a major third and the other a minor third. Moreover, they swap around between the V and the VII. I have not worked out the full implications of this, however, in the style of Euclid, I think I will try to make a demonstration with Cuisenaire rods (I have been using them to show swing rhythms to my students) and this will give me hours of fun working it out on the fretboard. See more

08.01.2022 Don’t lose your tempo! There was a joke that used to go around (and probably still does) that went like this: Q. How do you know when a drummer is knocking at the door? ... A. The knocking gets faster the longer it goes on. The reality is, however, that it is not just a phenomenon that happens to drummers it happens to guitarists also. The uncontrolled tempo rush is like a black hole that draws us into an ever increasing tempo, even to the point where we can no longer breathe. Your body then begins to tense, your fingers tighten, and then you start to stumble. It is just like running downhill it is very hard to slow down. What we need to do is to learn to control our tempo. One of the best ways to do this is to practice with a metronome. This can be very hard to get accustomed to because it sounds like the metronome will not keep time. The reality is, however, it is YOU! The book of proverbs has a valuable insight: Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses. Proverbs 27:6. You may think that the metronome is your worst enemy because it exposes your inability to keep time. However, the metronome can become your trusted friend that will mark your footsteps through the flux of time, ensuring you will not drift into the vortex of the perpetual accelerando.

05.01.2022 What do kittens and children have in common? Watch the way the kitten sees the little piece of string. Its tail begins to swing back and forth in excitement. It crouches, ready to pounce. Pow!! got the string. It seems to never tire of the game. One day, that kitten will be a great hunter. Or look at the kid with the soccer ball, bouncing the ball; first on his or her feet, then thighs, head, and switching between the two. If any of you remember the movie Goal, the scout,Gl...en Foy, asked the coach whether he taught Santiago how to play soccer, to which the coach said 'God taught Santiago to play.' Santiago loved soccer. Cats and kids love to play games and they have fun doing it. In doing so, they build strength in their bodies and learn coordination. In the novel The secret garden, Marys cousin Colin was a cripple in bed, but there was nothing actually wrong with him. When Mary and Dickon have Colin playing games in the secret garden, Colin became strong and was able to run, jump and play. Mary and Dickon did not behave like a physiotherapist and say you need to do this number of this type of exercise, and then this and that, increasing this many times per day. No, they played games and had fun. We often do this as musicians where it is all work and no play. I was speaking with a boy the other day that played piano. He told me he went for his fifth grade AMEB but failed because a piece was not to standard. He made it clear to me that he actually hated playing piano it was all work to him. His friend had a similar attitude, but not quite as bad. To them, Bach was hard work. He was amazed when I shared with him the beauty in Bach and the fun it is to get the different lines of music to stand out. We are so busy trying to become better that we often forfeit fun at the expense of excellence. Yes, scales are important. Yes, studies are important. Yes, technique development is important. However, you can build up a lot from just picking up your guitar and just experimenting. Over the last two years of suffering with RSI caused by having too much fun playing scales (I was doing over an hour of scales every morning I dont know of anyone else who could get a doctors certificate to not have to play scales), I have had to do short stints on the guitar. But during this time, I made up musical games to play and experimented with the sounds I could get from the guitar. If you look at world class soccer players, I bet they started off enjoying playing the game. Do the same with music make it fun. Develop a passion for music, which in turn will develop into a passion to develop your craft.

04.01.2022 Is "Stairway to Heaven" a blatant rip-off Randy California's "Spirit"? I have heard about this law suit for a while and thought that I might have a listen to "Spirit" for myself. Have a listen for yourself from about the 44 second mark from the link below https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xd8AVbwB_6E... I had a listen and immediately thought that it was a dead give-away. However, after listening to it, pulling my guitar out and analysing what is actually happening, I am not convinced at all. When you listen to them again, what you really have is a chromatic bass line going from A down to F over basic Aminor harmony using arpeggios. What you really have is A minor, A minor major 7 (or you could interpret that that as E13 in first inversion), A minor 7 (3rd inversion), D major (first inversion), F major 7. Play those chords in 4/4 one strum per beat and change every second chord. i.e |Am Am Am/G# Am/G#| Ami7/G Ami7/G D/F# D/F# | FMa7 FMa7 FMa7 FMa7| Now substitute these chords with similar ones |Ami Ami E7/G# E7/G#| Ami7/G Ami7/G Ami6/F# Ami6/F# | FMa7 FMa7 FMa7 FMa7| or even |Ami Ami E7/G# E7/G#| C6/G C6/G C7b5/Gb C7b5/Gb | FMa7 FMa7 FMa7 FMa7| They all sound extremely similar. Randy California is just really giving a chord progression. What does Jimmy Page provide us with? We have the chromatic bass line with the arpeggio but he also provides a melody in contrary motion. While bass is going A, G#, G, he gives a melody of A, B, C. I have been playing about with this and I was able to make my way using same arpeggio pattern making my way up to the E on 12th fret while getting chromatic movement back down to F. I remember Don Andrews impressed upon me that you can't copyright a chord progression, which is what I believe is the similarities between the songs. That is my opinion.

04.01.2022 Stages of learning One of the big things about playing music with a musical instrument is that it is not only an art, but it is also a craft. Webster's dictionary defines craft as "an occupation or trade requiring manual dexterity or artistic skill." Although this might sound obvious, one of the implications is that you are required to use your body, particularly your hands, in a physical way that requires intricate control by your brain. What many people are unaware of is t...Continue reading

02.01.2022 Thinking about what style of guitar you should be playing. Read this blog http://www.newcastleguitarlessons.com.au///superior-music/

01.01.2022 Performance Anxiety or Stage Fright