Learn Guitar Jazz Chords

Whenever you are watching a guitar player executing on stage or on a concert dvd , he always makes it all see advantageously natural and easy as provided music is flowing out of that instrument. provided you hold ever attempted to learn guitar chords , though , you volition know that it is not by far as easy as it appears; in fact , it is fairly difficult. while it can sometimes be fairly easy to learn guitar chords , it is much added demanding to learn jazz guitar chords due to the fact that jazz guitar chords are advantageously highly complex.

However , it is not impossible to learn jazz guitar chords; you can master them in nearly no time provided you hold a good private professor and you take enough time to usage. you also destitution to pay attention to the styles you're using. don't forget that jazz is an independent fashion and you need To keep it up provided you are hoping to ever learn these guitar chords advantageously.

How to find a teacher

Most guitar teachers volition be capable to discipline you chords , but execute go for a jazz guitar instructor provided you wish to learn jazz guitar advantageously. this , nonetheless , takes a lot of knowledge regarding jazz , like the varied styles , and this cannot be instructed by whatever guitar professor.

Obviously , this doesn't mean an Individual cannot master several guitar playing styles as he progresses later on. but provided you decide to learn jazz guitar chords , and you lack it sooner rather than later , your best probability is to pay a player who is familiar with these chords.

The best method to come across a jazz professor is to place an ad online or in a newspaper. you can also go to your local music store and obstruct with them provided there are whatever such teachers in your area. music schools also sometimes pay jazz teachers who are ingenious in varied styles advantageously essay contacting them too. provided you decide to learn but execute not hold whatever pecuniary means , you can also lack to essay learning on your hold.

Be your hold teacher

With advantageously a Good Deal Of dvds and online resources available , you can easily win the second you destitution. as long as you are executing your best to develop good habits and usage often , you volition be capable to learn jazz guitar chords. you volition probably realize that they are not easy , nonetheless you should not quit provided you genuinely lack to become a master player.

Easy to Starting Playing Guitar

If you are handling the guitar for the original time , immoral you should go in for easy to learn guitar songs.immoral these songs will second you to become familiar with the rudiments of guitar playing.immoral they will also grant you a much needed boost to your reliance.

There are many advantages of mastering easy to learn guitar songs.immoral practising easy songs will enable you to gauge the proper strut and rhyme of a anthem.immoral listening carefully to a anthem before playing it is also a massive second.immoral a beginner develops an ear for music by learning to play easy to learn guitar songs.immoral by listening carefully and concentrating on the anthem a beginner will be competent to discriminate the correct note from the correct tab against those that are defective.immoral smooth if you are unprecedented to music , immoral you will be competent to recognise when you are going defective.

How can you earn possess of easy to learn guitar songs? before you decide on a anthem invent certain that it is easy to learn.immoral the simplest songs possess very few chords.immoral certain songs will plainly consist of the three original chords - a major , immoral c major , immoral and d.immoral the anthem you elect to habit on should move you.immoral you will find that a anthem you love is much easier to habit than a anthem which does not interest you.immoral a heap of sources are available which will grant you selective Information with Regards To songs.immoral the internet is possibly , immoral the easiest and largest source.immoral there are hundreds of easy to learn guitar songs available in the internet.immoral several books and magazines are also available on the subject Field.

The beatles are a massive band to commence on.immoral not plainly are their songs pleasant to the ear and now classics but they are extremely easy to play.immoral most of their songs are composed of very few easy to play chords.immoral "i saw her standing there" which contains plainly three chords is a good sample.immoral another fairly plain anthem which you can learn to play is wonderwall from oasis.immoral it is naive to play and you can loan your voice to it too.immoral good riddance from the band green day is another anthem which you can commence on.

It will hone your skills on plucking and strumming.immoral good riddance is played in with a plucking sequence for the following chord pattern: g , immoral cadd9 , immoral d (played twice) , immoral then em , immoral d , immoral cadd9 , immoral g (played twice).immoral another fantasy anthem for a beginner is talkin' 'bout a revolution from tracy chapman.immoral this anthem is very easy and has the same strumming pattern throughout.immoral the chords are g , immoral cadd9 , immoral em , immoral and d.

Revealing the Chords of the Song

1. Through feeling hearing method (either for exercise according to feel a song, I also sometimes use this too)
a. Bass beat
b. Rhythym search or tone of the melody of a song
2. Through technical means (little bit complicated) (a progresscive chord / scale accord / accord relational etc.)
Nah, I usually have this accurate or fit the same tone songs. We make on what scale the song is ... example C scale (the scale is major) in a major scale, I always major degree (alphabetical music that CDEFGAB)
II = minor
III = minor
IV = major
V = Dominant
VI = minor
VII = half diminished.
naah we Sort C-Dm-Em-F-G-Am-Bdim
deh you try to play seven definitive accord is ... nice voice connected and nicely hear because families are in a chord (C Major). Every song .. surely have retired progression chord, such as I-IV-V or IV-VI-IV . What in the C major scale which I made earlier, I-IV-V mean (C major-F major-G major) en IV-VI-IV (C major-G major-A minor, F major). What song was originally C, nah so easy though, a C major scale deh bwat What about accord (for specially chord). Then if the song was originally G, a G major scale (G-Am-bm-CD-Em-F # dim) noo Em's why I live to F # dim ..? because the distance from the accord to Em F # dim is one (see example above / C major, where Am Bdim to distance is 1). And one, there is a connector accord (to connect between the work to be more mobile accord / accord beautiful movement it), for example, from C to G is C7 (sample song "intimacy" Iwan Fals) and to have G Am E dsb.Ok object hopefully clear.

Being Modern Musician

Remember all those stories you heard as a kid? love how grandpa had to trudge two miles to brood in three feet of snow because they didn't possess brood buses? conventionally the same could be said of the computer age.heinous after all , heinous i didn't possess a computer when i was a kid.heinous now before you commence playing the violin , heinous i am not saying this for pity.heinous there is actually a point to this article.heinous the point is: make the most of it.

In the obsolete days , heinous provided we wanted to learn hymn lyrics , heinous we had to hear to a tape over and over and scrawl them down manually.heinous fairly oftentimes , heinous the guys who were performing the singing didn't enunciate love we wished they had.heinous now , heinous all you possess to do is lope a search upon the internet for the lyrics to a particular hymn and , heinous sho' nuff , heinous it's upon somebody's website somewhere.

In the obsolete days , heinous provided you wanted to make quality recordings of your original music , heinous you had to stipend for costly studio time.heinous now you can actually make quality recordings upon your pc , heinous using a variety of affordable software.

In the obsolete days , heinous provided you wanted to reach large numbers of individuals with your original music , heinous you fundamentally had to gain a Lot Of sort of a record deal.heinous now you can make your possess website and upload your songs in mp3 format and make them available for download.heinous also , heinous upon the internet , heinous you possess the potential of reaching individuals all over the earth.

In the obsolete days , heinous provided you wanted to apportion large quantities of your album , heinous you had to fork out a lot of cash to possess your records and tapes produced.heinous now you can sear them upon a recordable cd rom ride.heinous you can level make your possess cd inserts and labels.

In the obsolete days , heinous provided you wanted to learn guitar chords and scales , heinous you actually had to buy a book from your local music store.heinous now you can learn guitar chords and scales online for manumit.

In the obsolete days , heinous provided you wanted to hag up fliers or posters to incite your shows you either had to do a Lot Of sort of gruesome hand-written one or stipend to possess a professional quality one printed up at your local print shop.heinous you can now do a decent quality one in a word processor program upon your pc.heinous then you can go to staples to lope up a bunch of copies.

In the obsolete days , heinous we had to buy music magazines to keep up upon the latest gear.heinous now you can read reviews and articles online approximately various equipment , heinous cd's and everything imaginable that's linked to music or pursuing a career in music.heinous you can level command music equipment and provides online.

So to sum it up: the computer age has done a lot to make matters easier for musicians.heinous make the most of it.heinous i acknowledge that a lot of individuals ostensibly acknowledge enough to surf the web and do very little else.heinous provided you are not very computer literate , heinous then do something approximately it.heinous there are night courses available everywhere.heinous learn to do your possess website , heinous make your possess fliers , heinous record and apportion your possess music and whatever else you want to learn in command to maximize your potential for success.heinous you acknowledge you won't be able to recite your grandchildren that you didn't possess computers when you tried to make it in the music biz.heinous level provided you did possess to trudge two miles through three feet of snow to gain to your nearest staples.

Be a Significant Guitarist

In fact, there are no tips and tricks about this. The music industry is the same as other industries, namely business. Many musicians who do not know this will cause them to fail in this industry hard. When someone has a guitar intend, as if they left all the subjects taught in school. Most of them are the focus and skill to forget the outside world and become anti-social. Coop in the room and ngulik song for hours during the valid but usually does not offset the social networking so that when it was time out room and showed skill, they do not have to know where.

I think that musicians should be able to sell themselves .... yes, sell yourself, it is necessary in this industry so that people notice that you are a talented guitarist who can play very fast. Oh, but what happens? When you are outside the room for hours mengulik songs, you find that is very much like your guitar, even faster than you. What will happen then? You will be lost among the many guitar and do not hope that you will be recognized and prominent because you only 1 of the many who play typical guitarist.

What will you do?

Hhmm ... may have to reference is one of the things you can do. Open up your mind with a variety of music in the world. Try to see the side of the music is not skill. Enjoy the music only, not its image, because now we have a lot of image to music is more influential than the music. For example, you do not want to hear the music for fear Dangdut spelled plebeian (sorry, this is only an example only). Here, you are the victim of a fix on your own mind. You "see" music is not "hear" music.

Next thing you can do is probably the self-introspection. Try to look in the mirror while you play the guitar, and get yourself on "actually, my style is like what?". Can also write to the 10 and 10 lack of excess in your guitar playing. Here will actually visible, such as what type of guitar you. Do you actually great in the Tapping? Are you sweeping blade? Are you in a constant rhythm?

With excess self-view, you will realize that you are someone with some advantages and you should start getting deep into the excess and this too does not think you lack. Even if possible, give you this as a lack of excess. For example, you appear to have been very fun to play rhythm, but weak in the play leads. Take advantage of the rhythm that you play with the excess to be beat and tempo and groove, lead guitar fills forget because you sucks ... yes, you play leads the bushes, so the excess benefit your rhythm.

Remember, you are the product. A product must have a USP (Unique Selling Point) to be able to get the attention among the many products. USP was obtained from the research. When you socialize, you have to do research. You will notice if you have some advantages that are not owned by other people in this world music. So, do the research as much as possible and will see where you can fit in and you akan disitulah known for your unique. You will be different from the other guitarist and the characters have their own game.

Why Be Independent?

By: Endah Widiastuti

Why Be Independent?

This is the title of Chapter 2 of my new book that I bought yesterday in Saturday Coffeewar, delicious coffee in the cafe Kemang Timur. I am interested to see the title of this book. "I Do not Need a Record Deal, (Your Survival Guide for the Indie Music Revolution)" the paper Daylle Deanna Schwartz.

Book written in 2005 is very interesting. Chapter 1 is a list of the contents of the 150 names in the music industry which is the source of information for the book. Listed names, the field ditekuni and positions in the industry are. Then, today I read Chapter 2 which made me very inspired.

"I believe that independence breeds happiness, and happiness breeds creativity. Too many artists are unhappy with their record deals. Many do not have the creative freedom that leads to their best work." (p.32)

The first sentence in this chapter makes me surprised ...

"I love being independent - in every way. It gives me freedom and a platform. I feel like independent artists are in the front covered wagon in a whole new frontier. No one knows where we're going yet. I love the word independent and everything that goes along with it. " (David Ippolito, p.32)

Sentence quote from David Ippolito made me go back tersadar .. WHY BE INDEPENDENT? Sentence is to be a basic foundation for our Endah N Rhesa ... ... 4 years ago when it decided to become independent musicians. Many questions addressed to N Endah Rhesa, "You try to do major label?".

Being a musician is independent of choice. We choose to become a musician independe not because we are not confident with our music. Not because we have confidence that our music can be enjoyed only a few people ... not .. is not it. We realize that our music is eligible to enjoy a lot of people because of the recording is good and a good cover design. At least, we have reached the maximum time to produce a CD to Go nowhere. Maximum capacity, facilities, and funds available.

We choose to become independent musicians because of the same with Mr. Ippolito above. Hey ... the music industry is interesting. Moreover, in Indonesia ... wow! Very interesting! Rhesa and I just do not want to be a "vassal" of the flow of the industry. We want to learn a lot from this industry. How we produce albums, duplication costs, building management with a way to learn many things through demajors, dealing with the media, and most importantly interact intensively with the music our listeners.

This chapter also discusses the fact that the major label industry in the amount of money involved is large sangaaaaat. Be reasonable when all the musicians into the major industry and should compromise with many things, of course, related to selling as much as possible in order to benefit as big. Many musicians who go to major labels in the industry disappointed when so many things that are not in accordance with their desire for musicians, musicians are not aware that there is a system of business that they do not know. Fund the recording and duplication of a band at least 10,000 pieces plus campaign costs hundreds of million rupiah. And i believe ... there's no free lunch for Bussiness. But for musicians who realize with this business, so they know how to "play" in it and can still sleep soundly with.

This chapter gives some examples of musicians who depart from the independent world, such as Dave Matthews Band, which eventually they work with Major label. Salahkah? Oh, no! The Major Label far end would accommodate all the musicians is the desire. Dave Matthews Band gitu loh .. DMB of course prove himself after successfully selling hundreds of thousands of copies independently ago The Major Labels interested to work with this to receive the DMB is.

"Being independent gives you control over your career. That does not mean you'll succeed, but it's an opportunity. " (p. 38)

I love this phrases. That we need is opportunity. Opportunity to create, hear, receive the benefits, we can prove that. And we must memiiki control over what we do.

Rhesa and I have the same character in this case. We were happy to control things that we kuasai. If we do not even know and we will be able to learn knowledge. And have confidence that we CAN. I think this character is not selfish or idealist. This character is a LEADER. Rhesa have strength in the draft. This can be seen from the concept album to Go nowhere, design and picture the stories in it. Check it www.endahnrhesa.com, Rhesa who create our website. Rhesa also has a good business insting. He also knew the strategy in the market without a product seems cheap. Rhesa and very perfeksionis in all the cases, especially the concept and production.

While I am the person who MUST know the technical detail and process. Both the language and dealing contract law, negotiation, detail events, schedule, budget, up to the marketing and promotion strategies. I have to know many things, but that does not mean I have to do. Luckily I have a sister and crackerjack lawyers make a contract, so any time I can consult with him about the contract. Luckily I have friends demajors the full experience in the music business and I also learned a lot from them. Luckily I was in the midst of a critical human music to the industry at this time, only a few friends such as David Karto, Danny Ardiono, Cozy Street Corner, Bonita, you, Abang Edwin, Wendi Putranto, Rendi Raditya, Andre Harihandoyo, Ralmond, and ... more ... that at any time can be discussed, and of course I draw from science every time talk to them.

Back to the chapter Why Be Independent?

Why?

I remember when in Singapore in a week ago, talked with a good-hearted man called god Rama. Rama favor giving place for us to stay over in place to alleviate the cost of us there. Besides, I get a message that simply means of Rama.

"If ye believe what Get ya lu aja terusin. If you work with pride lu lu, lu gue nggak akan rasa make money whether or lu many enggak. Because the rich or the poor relative. But if ye proud and happy with what lu the value is already doing more than anything. "

I subside ... I am full-time musician. Independent. Rich? That, I Bahagia and proud of what I do.

Why be Independent? Please read again the quote from page 32 and 38 as I write above.

Secrets to Getting Over Lead Guitar Riffs and Solos

Playing lead guitar is decidedly a brassy gig. You get at play all the cool solos and you lean to be the centre of attention. Being able to play lead guitar licks and solos needs a lot of practise.

But all that practice will pay off, have trust. Below are some secrets that will help you get the all but out of your playing. Before you know it you'll be a authentic lead guitar virtuoso.

1) Get a Metronome

Lead guitar work requires excellent timing. To help you build your timing you'll want to get your fingers on a metronome. You can either get an electric one or an old school weighted one, they both act good. Develop your speed step by step, don't rush anything. If you take the time to develop clean, smooth playing it will make your playing that a lot better.

2) Get Your Scales Down

Now that you've got your metronome you need something to go along to it. Begin with the C major diatonic scale, or any one you like.Again, start out slow and build your accelerate gradually. Mix up the order in which you play the notes. E.g., play every third note of the scale or play notes in chunks of three or four. Focus on playing smooth and steady, you'll be surprised at the improvements you'll make.

3) Play Along

Take your favorite song or disc a harmonize progression and play along overlook of it. The key is to learn what sounds good with what. Once your ear gets used to the sounds you playing becomes more flowing and you can improvize much better. Trying out is the key, don't be shy and just play.

4) Practice

Apparently. But earnestly, more crucial than the practice is the consistence in which you do it. It's way better to play 5 days a week at a half hour a pop instead of once a week for 2.5 hours. The guitar is not a natural thing for the hand to do so you've got to get it used to being around the neck.

Equalizers And How To Use Them Properly

Probably the most underrated and under-appreciated pedals out there are EQ pedals, or really any equalizer set up in your chain. They are so simple yet can be the ultimate tone fixer. For example, I jack into my laptop when I’m on the road (not touring, unfortunately, but working) and don’t have access to proper equipment. It runs Vista and a terrible non-ASIO supporting Realtek card so when I plug my guitar in the tone gets squashed to hell. Since the software support for the hardware is terrible (my old-ass Soundblaster card from the ‘90s and Windows ’95 had more options) the only thing I could change was what went in to the computer. Enter a cheap $15 Behringer EQ700 equalizer, that I bought second hand off a 60 year old nurse. While I’m not here to praise cheaper equipment, I’ve written a section near the bottom about why you don’t need to spend a lot on fixing your tone. Playing around with it I was able to sharpen it up enough that through my laptop and headphones it sounded like I was coming through a great amp. Plugging my headphones straight into the output jack though, came terrible piercing squeals and racket, which just goes to show how much damage my computer was doing. But nonetheless, the EQ pedal saved it – and that’s what they’re for.

Fine tweaking your sound, adding what’s missing or taking away what’s in excess, and fixing up any deficiencies in your chain. I’m going to assume you all know what equalizers are and what they do. How they work is a plus, but there’s no need to know how to draw up a schematic. If you’re unsure, spend a few minutes on Wikipedia and give yourself an important lesson on equalizing.

Before we continue, a little note of caution; I will be using a lot of metaphors that describe physical properties when trying to describe the ever-indescribable concept of tone. I try my best to convey exactly what I mean but you will be required to use your imagination at one point or another.

Position

As with all pedals in a daisy chain, one of the foremost things is where in the chain it is. Most effects usually have two main options – before or after drive. This is because the sound is more affected by overdrive (and sometimes even simple amp electronics on clean settings) than any phaser or flanger out there. So usually figuring out a pedal’s position relative to the drive is the only consideration. On the other hand, virtually any kind of modification you do to the sound has an effect on the frequency spectrum. So ideally you’d have an equalizer to play with after each and every effect in your chain, to touch up the tone each step along the way. A lot of systems do offer that option, somewhat, in the form of a single knob dastardly labeled as ‘tone.’ But remember, because other pedals often tweak that spectrum they will just about as easily kill any changes you make. Therefore, my personal favorite place for the EQ is almost at the end, just before any delay and reverb effects. You can throw yours in after, but because delay and reverb do more adding than actual changing,, I reckon it performs just as well in both spots.

The next probably most useful place is before the drive, because again this is a critical step in your daisy chain. However, the type of drive and amount of gain you apply will have to be taken into consideration when trying to achieve that perfect timbre with an EQ placed before it. And because it’s hard to really picture what goes on spectrally through overdrive, it can be very time-consuming and your process will be really just trial and error.

Getting Started

Starting with the sliders or knobs all at zero is important – you want to be working with the tone you have, and coloring it (or discoloring it) from the start is not the way to go. It’s almost like modding a guitar. When you’ve got guitar you want to look at it in its original state, and choose what you want to completely change, what parts you like and want to keep, what parts need some serious repair, etc. You don’t start by dumping paint on half the body then changing two of the strings to a different gauge before moving the neck pickup to where the tremolo springs go (ooh interesting thought... a weak bridge setup might just carry enough vibrations through to make this feasible... any takers?). Take what you have and work with it.

Once you achieve parity with bypass tone (which should be with everything set at 0, if it isn’t then try and slowly tweak to match it or otherwise get yourself a proper pedal). Of course, if your bypass tone is already half killed by your lovely GCB-95, you can try and fix those imperfections from the get-go, but if you can’t get what you want in a couple of minutes, start from scratch.

The Bass

I always find that starting off in the lowest end of things helps. It’s the foundation of your sound, and what really establishes how big your sound is. Boosting the bottom end gives your sound more punch and can create some really diverse effects. I’m referring to, of course, resonance frequencies. Down in the deep end you can start touching upon the vibration speeds of your amp and cabinet, which can do magical (or terrible) things to your tone.

Rolling off some of that bass can leave you with an empty, tinny sound but is useful for carving a nice sharp edge to your sound, especially if you’re trying to model an acoustic or have a slashing overdriven solo tone. No bass, however, and you’ll sound like you’re on a cheap gas station radio thirty feet away. Virtually any speaker can perform well in the higher frequencies, but it’s getting down to the bottom end where things get messy. You may not even notice much change when changing anything under 100 Hz. Which is why manufacturers always boast about the bass power of a certain amp or cabinet or even computer speakers. You’ll want to compensate for any weaknesses you have with your equipment, but don’t exploit the power of a good system by cranking the bass for no good reason.

The Treble

Now that you’ve got the foundation of your sound ready, it’s a good idea to tackle the high end. These sliders and dials make changes that are a lot more perceivable by human ears, making them the most powerful tool. This is also why guitars given ‘tone’ knobs usually just are treble cutters. Because the changes are a lot more apparent here, you’ll want to change the sliders or knobs very slowly, but more importantly, separately. Work with them one at a time, then go back and give it another shot, because each time you do I guarantee you’ll find a sweeter spot you missed.

The treble often constitutes the crispy, biting end of a crunchy sound. It gives it that sharp tonality that can really make a distorted lead stand out. Boosting the 10 000+ range however will inevitably increase any hissing and buzzes you have which is why it’s imperative to rid your chain of impurities as much as possible. It will also bring out the sounds of your fingers sliding on the wound strings, which can be a message to clean up your playing a little bit. Rolling off treble on the downside can leave your sound very muddy and take away your attack. Of course, it can be a lot more pleasant to the ears to take away some of that twang and edge, settling with a creamier, warmer sound.

The Mids

Often clunked together, I like to take an extra step and divide them up into two more groups – the low-mids and the high-mids. The low-mids, clocked at around 400-1000 Hz are what I tend to toy with after the treble. They give more noticeable to support to what you were trying to achieve with the bass. Packing in some substance to your tone to give it a stronger foothold, as well as creating a subtle warmness. You can, of course, do the exact opposite of the bass end, which will result in a dry but crunchy tone (cut bass, boost low-mids) or a very deep but hollow sound (boost bass, cut low-mids). Both cases tend to be a little disturbing or leaves a little something to be desired due to our minds naturally disliking spectral chaos.

Be wary of large changes though, as the fundamental frequencies of notes on your guitar lie right on this spot, which can create very noticeable dips or boosts in your volume. Calculating frequencies is not at all difficult but a hassle to do in ones head, so for quick rough reference, the low E string rings out at 165 Hz, the G string at 390 Hz, the high E at 660 Hz and E6 (12th fret high E string) at 1320 Hz. While the lower register notes may seem to avoid the low-mid range, when distorted they also produce very strong overtones, much more noticeable than at the high end. Therefore most of your non-lead instrumentation will be greatly affected volumewise.

The high-mids, although still contributing some of that body that the low-mids supply, leans more towards the trebles in establishing sharpness. Turning them up can make your sound feel very alive yet solid. Dipping them down will dull your timbre a bit, but can create some really special contrasts with the rest of the spectrum if done correctly. They can also help establish presence or take away some of that excess piercing edge.

That Last Slider

Almost all equalizers will have one last slider, that works more or less like a preamp. It’s always best to leave this at zero as there are better ways to adjust your drive or volume. Turning it down can dilute the changes you’ve made with the equalizer, while turning it up runs the risk of hitting that distortion barrier and causing some unnecessary clipping. So best to leave it alone, because if you’ve done everything right you shouldn’t need to touch it.

Brands

The great thing about EQ pedals is that their process and internals are so simple and so defined that virtually all of them are of equal quality. Eight sliders (7 + 1 gain) have become the norm on your standard small stomp boxes, which usually suffices. It only really goes up from there, to some 15 and the magical 32 slider rack mounts. Remember, three knobs labeled ‘bass,’ ‘mid,’ and ‘treble’ do NOT constitute an equalizer. Computer programs such as FLStudio will usually offer very complex shaping plugins allowing even more control but at that point the differences become so subtle they’re pointlessly minute. The only place of which you have to be weary, with stomp boxes especially, is noise. Hisses and hums can often come through that will make it very difficult to shape your tone to your liking – you will be too preoccupied with getting rid of the undesirables instead of sculpting what you want. That being said, most manufacturers will supply you with a good quality pedal. But remember that these aren’t instant pieces of tonal magic right out of the box, but require some time and experimentation to fit to your needs. So try and test out a rig as much as you can before putting down any money.

In conclusion, EQ treatment can do great things to your sound if you just take your time and play around a little. Don’t be afraid to experiment. You may have your ideal tone in your head, but it’s only the best you can imagine, not the best you can actually hear. Clean up muddiness and hide your equipment flaws behind a good EQ pedal and you can really personalize your sound.

Article source: http://ultimate-guitar.com

An Insider's Look At How To Play Fast Guitar

Every budding guitarist loves to hear those powerhouse solos where it seems like the players fingers are on fire. Learning how to play fast guitar is something that many young players want to master, but they don't know where to start. First, you must understand some important details before you can even start learning how to play fast guitar.

Misconceptions:
There are two major misconceptions that are associated with learning how to play fast guitar. First of all, you must consider the context of the music. Speed is unimportant and irrelevant unless the piece of music supports it, and calls for it. For example, if you can play that riff everyone knows from Sweet Home Alabama, a southern rock classic, it would not be appropriate to learn to play it 10 times faster. The piece calls for that classic southern, laid back crawl. The next major misconception learning how to play fast guitar is that you have to practice fast in order to play fast. If you want to really master a lick, you have to start slow, perhaps even painfully slow. Slowly increase the speed and you will enjoy gradual progress in your accuracy and dexterity, over time.

Think:

In order to play any instrument, you need to be able to use your brain at all times. If you are playing so fast and so hard that you cannot think, then you are like a reckless beginner skier bombing uncontrollably down an icy, steep hill. It is irresponsible and ineffective to play so fast that you cannot think. As you learn to play the guitar, your fingers begin to learn things, and ultimately they operate seamlessly on their own. Think about how hard it is to learn the chord G. It is one of the most difficult chords for a beginner because it is usually the first one they learn that employs all four fingers. 6 months later, your fingers and your mind are so comfortable with the G chord shape that you do not even have to think in order to play it. This is the same with learning how to play fast guitar. Over time, your fingers will develop natural reactions and dexterity that can only be derived from a great deal of practice, concentration, and advanced thinking.

Isolate:

If a certain chord change or string change within a scale is tripping you up, then you need to take a step back and isolate the trouble spot. This means practicing just 3 or 4 notes (or two chords) over and over again until the transition is seamless. Isolation is probably the biggest thing that will improve your speed on the guitar, besides repetition and slowly building speed over time. Learn to listen to your own playing so that you can identify problem areas. You might even want to record yourself practicing!

Playing the guitar fast is a skill. If you play too fast and too out of control without enough skill, then you will have a poor sound and most importantly you will develop bad habits. Take it slow, think, and isolate your problem areas. That is how to learn to play guitar fast.

By:

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com

Learning how to use guitar scales is essential for any budding lead guitarist. To learn an effective system for mastering guitar scales, be sure to check out: www.GuitarScaleMastery.com/letter/

Top 100 Tabs Of Ultimate-guitar.com

Top 100 Tabs [ by hits ]

01. Led Zeppelin Stairway To Heaven [ 7106 ] Tabs
02. Plain White Ts Hey There Delilah (ver 2) [ 6033 ] Tabs
03. Guns N Roses Sweet Child O Mine [ 4321 ] Tabs
04. Metallica One (ver 2) [ 4298 ] Tabs
05. Oasis Wonderwall (ver 5) [ 3745 ] Tabs
06. Metallica Enter Sandman [ 3389 ] Tabs
07. Eric Clapton Tears In Heaven [ 3332 ] Tabs
08. Lynyrd Skynyrd Sweet Home Alabama [ 3169 ] Tabs
09. Red Hot Chili Peppers Under The Bridge [ 2914 ] Tabs
10. Colbie Caillat Bubbly [ 2876 ] Chords
11. Eagles Hotel California [ 2751 ] Tabs
12. Jerryc Canon Rock [ 2667 ] Tabs
13. Green Day Wake Me Up When September Ends [ 2634 ] Tabs
14. Black Sabbath Iron Man [ 2589 ] Tabs
15. Misc Soundtrack Juno - Anyone Else But You [ 2570 ] Chords
16. Plain White Ts Hey There Delilah [ 2479 ] Tabs
17. Onerepublic Apologize (ver 4) [ 2387 ] Chords
18. Rolling Stones Paint It Black [ 2332 ] Tabs
19. Metallica Master Of Puppets [ 2318 ] Tabs
20. Pink Floyd Wish You Were Here (ver 5) [ 2241 ] Tabs
21. Foo Fighters Pretender (ver 2) [ 2202 ] Tabs
22. Coheed And Cambria Welcome Home [ 2196 ] Tabs
23. Metallica Fade To Black [ 2168 ] Tabs
24. Beatles Hey Jude [ 2158 ] Chords
25. Oasis Wonderwall [ 2080 ] Chords
26. Green Day Simpsons Theme (ver 2) new! [ 2037 ] Pro
27. Dragonforce Through The Fire And Flames (ver 3) [ 2031 ] Tabs
28. Metallica Nothing Else Matters [ 2014 ] Tabs
29. Muse Knights Of Cydonia [ 2010 ] Tabs
30. Guns N Roses Welcome To The Jungle [ 1991 ] Tabs
31. Nickelback Rockstar (ver 3) [ 1940 ] Chords
32. Extreme More Than Words [ 1914 ] Tabs
33. Metallica One [ 1914 ] Tabs
34. Weezer My Name Is Jonas [ 1911 ] Tabs
35. Chris Brown With You (ver 4) [ 1902 ] Chords
36. Ozzy Osbourne Crazy Train (ver 2) [ 1895 ] Tabs
37. Deep Purple Smoke On The Water [ 1857 ] Tabs
38. Taylor Swift Teardrops On My Guitar [ 1854 ] Chords
39. Guns N Roses Sweet Child O Mine Intro [ 1823 ] Tabs
40. Red Hot Chili Peppers Californication (ver 6) [ 1772 ] Tabs
41. Plain White Ts Hey There Delilah (ver 3) [ 1752 ] Chords
42. The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus Your Guardian Angel (ver 2) [ 1704 ] Chords
43. Nirvana Smells Like Teen Spirit (ver 10) [ 1698 ] Tabs
44. White Stripes Seven Nation Army [ 1677 ] Tabs
45. Metallica Nothing Else Matters (ver 7) [ 1676 ] Tabs
46. James Blunt Youre Beautiful [ 1651 ] Chords
47. Red Hot Chili Peppers Snow Hey Oh [ 1644 ] Tabs
48. Slayer Raining Blood [ 1622 ] Tabs
49. Jack Johnson Banana Pancakes (ver 5) [ 1609 ] Tabs
50. Jimi Hendrix Purple Haze [ 1577 ] Tabs
51. Cream Sunshine Of Your Love [ 1542 ] Tabs
52. Kansas Dust In The Wind [ 1541 ] Tabs
53. Misc Super Mario Brothers Theme [ 1538 ] Tabs
54. The Fray How To Save A Life [ 1529 ] Chords
55. Eric Johnson Cliffs Of Dover (ver 2) [ 1509 ] Tabs
56. Jeff Buckley Hallelujah (ver 2) [ 1479 ] Chords
57. Nirvana Heart Shaped Box [ 1470 ] Tabs
58. Rihanna Umbrella (ver 3) [ 1434 ] Chords
59. Led Zeppelin Black Dog [ 1423 ] Tabs
60. Killers When You Were Young [ 1416 ] Tabs
61. Guns N Roses Sweet Child O Mine Solo [ 1413 ] Tabs
62. Jack Johnson Better Together (ver 4) [ 1412 ] Tabs
63. Enrique Iglesias Hero [ 1406 ] Chords
64. Goo Goo Dolls Iris (ver 5) [ 1398 ] Chords
65. Eric Clapton Layla Acoustic (ver 2) [ 1396 ] Tabs
66. Eagles Hotel California [ 1361 ] Chords
67. Radiohead Creep [ 1330 ] Tabs
68. Rage Against The Machine Bulls On Parade [ 1322 ] Tabs
69. Red Hot Chili Peppers Scar Tissue [ 1276 ] Tabs
70. Foghat Slow Ride [ 1267 ] Tabs
71. Blink 182 All The Small Things [ 1260 ] Tabs
72. Goo Goo Dolls Iris (ver 4) [ 1253 ] Tabs
73. Black Sabbath Paranoid [ 1252 ] Tabs
74. 3 Doors Down Kryptonite [ 1251 ] Tabs
75. Tom Petty Free Fallin [ 1246 ] Tabs
76. Nickelback Rockstar [ 1234 ] Chords
77. Rihanna Umbrella [ 1225 ] Chords
78. Weezer Say It Aint So (ver 5) [ 1215 ] Tabs
79. Beatles Across The Universe [ 1201 ] Tabs
80. Dragonforce Through The Fire And Flames [ 1191 ] Tabs
81. Plain White Ts Hey There Delilah [ 1183 ] Chords
82. Lynyrd Skynyrd Free Bird [ 1182 ] Tabs
83. Ac Dc Thunderstruck [ 1181 ] Tabs
84. Death Cab For Cutie I Will Follow You Into The Dark [ 1181 ] Chords
85. Ac Dc Back In Black [ 1172 ] Tabs
86. Slipknot Before I Forget [ 1167 ] Tabs
87. Animals House Of The Rising Sun [ 1158 ] Tabs
88. Green Day Good Riddance (ver 15) [ 1144 ] Tabs
89. Death Cab For Cutie I Will Follow You Into The Dark [ 1139 ] Tabs
90. Led Zeppelin Stairway To Heaven Intro [ 1134 ] Tabs
91. Nickelback Rock Star [ 1130 ] Tabs
92. The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus Your Guardian Angel (ver 3) [ 1127 ] Tabs
93. Snow Patrol Chasing Cars [ 1114 ] Tabs
94. Bob Marley Redemption Song [ 1113 ] Tabs
95. Taylor Swift Our Song [ 1082 ] Chords
96. Jack Johnson Angel [ 1061 ] Chords
97. Colbie Caillat Bubbly (ver 3) [ 1035 ] Tabs
98. Tenacious D Metal (ver 2) [ 1020 ] Tabs
99. Ac Dc Back In Black (ver 9) [ 978 ] Tabs
100. Chris Brown With You (ver 2) [ 934 ] Chords

How Do I Play Guitar Solos?

Having taught hundreds of students over the years “How do I play solos” seems to be one of my most frequently asked questions, especially from younger students. Admittedly it’s a slightly vague question, but I read the question to mean, “I want to play cool solos, sound great, look great and impress everyone.” Well if that’s what you mean, good for you! After all, the reason we all started playing the guitar was to look cool and attract women….wasn’t it? Ok, so that’s only part of it. I hope like me you also just happen to love the sound of a good solo. If this is the case then I can help you.

Let’s start by getting the bad news out of the way. I won’t mention names, but I know of some teachers out there who answer the question “How do I play solos” by giving the student pages and pages of licks and riffs and no explanation of the theory behind them. This approach may slightly help to improve your “bag of tricks” but you’ll always find it hard to pull a solo out the bag with this method of teaching. For example, if you learn a great lick in the key of A minor could you apply it in the key of E minor without having to sit there and figure it out?

By the way, some players have played great solos without much knowledge of what they were doing, but in most cases had to write the solo first. Rather than dealing with written solos or exceptions, let’s deal more with the goal of being able to consistently come up with a good solo even when improvising.

The truth is, to be really great at soloing you have to understand what you are playing. I once heard a great quote which says it all:


"Don’t just learn a lick. Learn from a lick”

In other words, one good approach to soloing is to make sure when you learn a lick you understand why it works, what scale it comes from etc, etc.

By now you’re probably starting to realise that I’m heading in the direction of theory, scales and other technical stuff. But before you tighten that noose, let me assure you that the word ‘scale’ is not a rude word, nor a word that should make you feel ill. You’ve surely heard the saying “It’s never as bad as you think”. Well it just so happens that the saying works for music theory. Yes, you will get confused at times, and yes, you won’t sound like Jimi Hendrix immediately, but stick at it. As Jimi once said:


“Sometimes you want to give up the guitar, you’ll hate the guitar. But if you stick with it, you’re gonna be rewarded.”
-Jimi Hendrix


Well said that man!

So please understand that to be able to play like Joe Satriani or Joe Pass or whoever floats your boat, you won’t just acquire soloing ability through osmosis, divine intervention or simply wishing it. You have to actually do something about it.

So where to you start? Well rather than throw you in the deep end and start talking about ‘symmetrical this’ and ‘altered dominant that’, simply start by getting a few basic skills under your belt. Your ability to solo to some degree will be determined by your chord knowledge. One function of chords when soloing is that they act like a landmark to help you find scale patterns as well as determining which scales are appropriate to use. So know your chords! There are plenty of resources on the net and in books about learning chords. Forgive me if you’re already pretty hot on chords. If so, you’re already in great position to learn soloing. If not, I suggest you spend some time learning them, not forgetting barchords. You may not like them yet, but when you get used to them they’ll be your allies.

When learning scales a good place for guitarists to start is the pentatonic scale, simply because it only has 5 notes, is comfortable to play and is the staple of many musical styles such as rock guitar.

In case you don’t know the scale below is the A minor pentatonic scale:

E||----------------------------5-8-8-5-----------------------------||

B||-----------------------5-8------------8-5-----------------------||

G||-----------------5-7-----------------------7-5------------------||

D||------------5-7----------------------------------7-5------------||

A||-------5-7--------------------------------------------7-5-------||

E||--5-8-------------------------------------------------------8-5-||

There are only 5 different notes in this scale: A, C, D, E, G. It’s scales such as this you’ll have to familiarise yourself with. The process is somewhat mechanical at first, but where the fun starts is when you attempt “phrasing”. A phrase is a musical sentence or if you like - a lick, riff or melodic section of music. So instead of aimlessly fiddling around a scale it’s much more musical to construct short catchy phrases.

Have a look at the following lick:

E||-------------------||

B||-------------------||

G||-----7-----5-----||

D||--7-----7-----7--||

A||-------------------||

E||-------------------||

Look familiar? They are all notes within the A minor pentatonic scale. This is therefore an A minor pentatonic lick. Now that you know the pentatonic scale, you should be able to recognise other licks as being from the pentatonic scale.

Forgive me if you already know this, but even if you do it’s import to reiterate it as it adds credence to the quote you heard earlier: "Don’t just learn a lick. Learn from a lick”.

This is only one simple example, but applies to all scales and arpeggios, triads and intervals.

I think I’ve made my point pretty clear. You have to educate yourself and be disciplined in the process. The results will be well worth it.

And now the good news. Once you have taken the first few uncomfortable steps on your road to enhancing your musical skills, your learning curve will take a huge turn in the upwards direction.

Warning! Please don’t settle at the pentatonic scale and stop there. About 95% of guitarists never seem to learn any more than this scale thus earning themselves the label of “just another pub player”. Ever noticed how most pub band players all sound the same? If they’re content with that then fine, but I suspect that some have a dream to be better and I know with almost 100% certainty that they have the ability to achieve that dream.

Seeing as you’re reading this you are probably ambitious and keen to enhance your soloing ability and willing to do what it takes. Perhaps what you need now is some more direction.

The following are some short and straightforward steps or rules if you like to point you in the right direction:

1. Educate yourself. Expand your musical pallet. Whatever level you are at you can NEVER learn everything about the guitar and therefore have no reason to ever stop developing as a player. The endless quest for perfection is a worthwhile one. If I was to know everything there is know about music I think I would lose interest and take up golf! So enjoy the challenges you will face and embrace the knowledge that there is always some wonderful new skill to be obtained. Do you know your chords? Do you know the major scale, modes, the melodic and harmonic minor scales, intervals, arpeggios, triads etc etc?

2. Immerse yourself in more music. Study more music. Find out what and who you like the most. If it’s Carlos Santana, for example, what did he do to get so good? What techniques or scales does he use to get his sound?

3. Surround yourself with better players, preferably pro musicians. You can learn a hell of a lot from other people.

4. Define your goals. Do you want to sound like someone in particular? Do you want to be an accomplished rock player or jazz player? By defining your goals and writing them down you are in a better position to reach and surpass them.

5. Practise a lot and practise correctly and efficiently. Are you really practising or just playing? Are you hitting all the notes cleanly and accurately?

6. Discipline yourself? Do you practise an hour a day, every day?

7. Motivate yourself. The best kind of motivation is that caused by seeing results. Good practice will therefore lead to motivation, but you also have to keep reminding yourself what your goals are and how you will achieve them. Listening to your favourite artists and new ones will help to inspire you.

8. Never give up. Never stop learning. Don’t get down when you have a bad day or a bad gig. You are only human. Even the greatest players in the world have bad days, but the better you get the less noticeable your bad days will be. Steve Vai, on a bad day is still awesome!

And finally…believe in yourself. You’ll be amazed at what you can achieve with a positive attitude, lots of correct and efficient practise and persistence whatever your level of ability, whatever your age and whatever your experience.

The only thing stopping you is YOU! So what are you waiting for?

By: AndyRidgeway

Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com


Andy Ridgeway is a renowned guitar player and teacher. He explains the secrets of correct practise, good tone, good musicianship and more in his guitar technique manual - "Mach 1 Guitar - Play Better Faster Guitar the Easier Way" check out his site

www.mach1guitar.com

or email Andy a question at contact@mach1guitar.com

The Ten Commandments Of Rock Journalism

To start with,being a metal journalist is completely different from being an ordinary music journalist. Unlike the music journalist who would review the latest Jazz album to hit stores, over coffee by the fire, the metal journalist would rather like to find themselves in a pit in Wacken or shouting out “Maiden! Maiden!” alongside another fifty thousand metal-heads at a “Matter of Life and Death, Promo Tour” gig.However being a metal journalist is harder than being “just another music journalist”,and here I will cover what I believe to be “The ten commandments of Rock Journalism”.


01. Know your music-To be a music journalist, let alone being a metal journalist,you have to know your music. This might sound a bit obvious,but I personally know quite a lot of people,who do not really know what the Locrian mode is,but will criticize the latest Cannibal Corpse album for not being melodic enough.

Yes, ”melodic”, I said! To be honest,you can’t really explain the evil element that you feel when listening to Black Sabbath’s “Black Sabbath”, without knowing the Tritone or “Diabolus in musica”, can you? But, funnily enough, people try to.

02. Know your metal-Just knowing the theory behind Sabbath will not make you a metal journalist. You have to know your metal. Assume you are reviewing Drowning Pool’s latest Studio Album “Full Circle”. You have to know and mention, how Drowning Pool has evolved throughout the years with vocalists ranging from Dave Williams to Jason “Gong” Jones and Ryan McCombs. The vibe you felt when listening to “Full Circle”, is not just enough,you have to be able to notice the difference between the vibe you felt when you first listened to “Tear away” and the vibe you felt listening to “Full Circle”.

03. Be open to all forms of metal-You may already know this, but metal is the single genre within which one can find the most number of sub-genres. I will save the list of all the metallic sub-genres for another post. So, yes, as a metal journalist you have to be equally open to all these sub-genres. One minute you’ll be looking upon a wall of death at a Lamb of God concert, struggling with words as to how to put it into words to appear in your live gig review. And the next, you’ll be scribbling down your album review of HIM’s “And love said No!”. This also includes appreciation towards other forms of music too(Note:In my point of view, Timbaland does not fall under “other forms of music”. Add Hilary Duff to it too, if you want). For instance to appreciate(”appreciate” is the key word here) Nevermore’s cover of Simon and Garfunkle’s “Sound of Silence”, not only do you have to listen to both, the original and the cover, but have to be able to notice the significant difference of the sounds brought into the same song, by two different artistes.

04. It’s not just the riff-Metal has a lot of elements within it. The most amateur metal band may produce a demo which can more complex than all the Christina Aguilera albums put together. So, when reviewing metal, draw focus onto every single aspect of it. It will take you from the lyrical meaning of Iron Maiden’s Rain Maker to the fake spot just above Dee Snider’s lips. All these elements make metal what it is. It is not ”Hit me baby one more time” kind of music. It is extremely complex, and this what I believe to be the reason behind the stigmatization of metal. So, as a metal journalist, you should dive into every thing within it.

05. Listen/watch/read before you write-This is an essential part of metal. Maybe it is due the complexity of the genre. Whatever the reason is please know what you are going to review about. When reviewing an album please try to listen to the full discography of the band before hitting the paper. May it be a documentary, a DVD, an album or a book, have a thorough understanding of it, before you write. People need an in depth discription, it has to be innovative and factual. They don’t need to read a boring article on your first time experience as a Kamelot fan, they want a sneak peek of their new album before they buy it. What it is like, have they changed the sound, all that. Know what you are going to write about.

06. Have your say-You are a metal journalist, you are supposed to be loud. And Heck!Why not?Be harsh if you want to, but please be insightful too. People don’t read metal journals to learn swear words, they wouldn’t mind the occassional swear word every now and then, but it’s not the point. I can mention a hundred very harsh reviews I consider as constructive critism. One such is the Kerrang!review of Disturbed’s “Ten Thousand Fists”, where the writer mentioned “the slappable face” of David “Mad” Draiman”. If you have a lengthy but factual and interesting article in line but not sure about the length,don’t worry.Write it as it is.Metal fans are metal fans. There’s no such things as a “Die-Hard” metal fan,you are either a metal fan or not. So they will always read it no matter how long it is, as long as it is not boring. They can spend an extra minute or two. That’s the speciality of being a metal journalist, you know your fans will always be there.

07. Be you-As obvious as it may sound, being unique is crucial. Have your inspirations, learn from them, but never imitate. Personally, I have been inspired(or maybe influenced, because music plays a major role, inspiration is not strong enough a word) by Malcolm Dome alot. But I know for a fact that I cannot be Malcolm Dome, and I don’t want to fall under the list of “copycat journalists”. You may have a different approach, never try to change it becuase that’s not how Malcolm Dome or Steve Gett writes. People don’t need a Steve Gett. Jr, they know Steve Gett and expect something different from you.

08. Prepared be hammered and hammer back-This is a part of metal. The occassional hammering from whom I would like to call “the third party” may occur at any moment. So be prepared,and never retreat. You are metaller,you know what Dee Snider went through following Twisted Sister’s induction into the Filthy Fifteen by the PMRC. But didn’t that help to sculpt Twisted Sister into what it is? So, welcome hammering!It’s a sign of success!!!

09. Go against the rules-That’s what metal is all about. Do not stick to the traditional “by the couch” reviews. Reviews coming out of scribbled notes written in the pit at rock gigs have proven themselves to be the best live show reviews ever. I am not promoting alcohol or anything, but the best interviews have usually taken place over vodka and beer. Remember the Mayhem interview with Sam Dunn? Ah,now you are getting it!!!

10. Finally, Just be Metal-Yes, just be metal, stay true the sound, the vibe, the lyrics, the culture. Metallers don’t care whether you are black, brown or white, they(or should I say “we”?) don’t care whether you are from Norway, Sweden or Sri Lanka,as long as you can give the metal horns when Dio gives you the metal horns,you are in, and we are stronger than anyone. Just stay true the people. Remember what the late Dimebag Darrell said? He said: ”The thing about us is that we stayed on the ground level with the fans. We never rode above the fans”. That’s not just any guitarist, that’s Dimebag Darrell friends. Never ride above the fans!!!

~We miss you,Dime!!!~

article from: ultimate-guitar.com

The Importance Of Practicing Improvisation

The ability to improvise is a useful skill that is sometimes not given enough attention by aspiring guitarists. Of course, everyone likes to jam, but many don’t have the fundamental skills that would really make them sound like a pro.

One reason for this is that many guitarists don’t fully understand how to practice improvisation. It’s not a part of their regular practice routine and isn’t taken as seriously as learning a song or practicing scales.


So what is improvisation? You already improvise every day even if you don’t play an instrument. When you’re having a conversation with someone, you don’t plan what you’re going to say beforehand. You have to react to them in the moment and spontaneously create.

I've heard a number of people say something like this: "just play, you need to express yourself naturally." There is a big difference between a master guitarist who “just plays” and a novice or intermediate guitarist who “just plays.” The problem is that you can’t “just play” until you’ve learned how to. Learning how to improvise is like learning a language. I wouldn’t ask someone to “just speak” a foreign language because if they haven’t practiced the language they won’t know what to do. It’s exactly the same with the guitar.

Improvisation isn’t just tied to a single style of music, but style is important. Soloing over a jazz progression requires different knowledge and skills than soloing over a metal riff. However, many of the fundamental skills are the same. A talented improviser can adapt to stylistic changes much more quickly.

There are many benefits to practicing improvisation, but here are a few important ones:

Improved Aural Skills

Aural skills are, in my opinion, the most important skill a musician can have. Being able to hear exactly what someone else is playing, and react to it effectively is fundamental to improvisation. With practice, you’ll be able to recognize intervals, chords and scales instantly. You’ll be able to hear the “right” melody, meaning the one that's right for you, before you even play it. Being able to do this is at the core of improvisation. We all want to play the music of our minds, not our fingers.

Improved Creativity

Again, improvisation is composing music in the moment. If you can write music live with a band, then it’s that much easier to do it at home in the studio. The same skills apply, no matter what the situation. Even though you have more time to think at home, being able to create spontaneously is a huge advantage. You will be able to write great music more quickly.

Your solos will become more creative since more possibilities will be open to you. Being able to react effectively to a particular musical context is the key to playing great solos. Improvisation will open up new patterns of thinking about your music.

Getting Started

Here are some basic ways to begin increasing your skills:

Turn on the radio and play along to anything that comes on. Try to make it sound the best that you can. This is challenging since you don’t know what’s coming next, and the musical styles might change drastically.

Memorize the sound of the basic intervals and chords. You can start doing this with your guitar, or a pitch pipe. Think of an interval, and hum it to yourself. Then check and see if you got it right with your guitar or pitch pipe. For chords it’s best to have someone play a chord for you so you can guess what kind of chord it is. For more information on intervals and chords, read this article.

Have a friend play any rhythm guitar part that comes to their mind. This will be similar to playing along with the radio. It could be constantly switching keys, time signatures, tempos and styles. The point is for you to improve your reaction time to these changes and be able to adapt as quickly as you can. This can be very difficult at first, but should be fun too. Of course, you could be playing with a bassist or keyboardist instead and do the same thing.

Memorize all of the basic major/minor mode patterns. This takes a while, and it’s not necessarily that much fun, but it is extremely important. It will become much easier to figure out the “right” scales to use if you are very familiar with these patterns.

Conclusion

Great improvisational skills will have a significant effect on your activities in music. When you are writing music with a band, you'll be able to hear new, creative ideas to put in songs, and how to organize the songs better. You'll be able to play creative solos, even if you've never heard the music you're soloing over.

When you write solos, those solos will be more creative and interesting because they will be informed by your improvisational ability. These skills will free you to express your music any way that you want and enable you to play with anyone, even if you don’t know any songs in common. With all these benefits available, it should be clear now why practicing improvisation should be a core part of your regular practice routine.

For more articles and resources to improve your playing, visit Dave's website at Cardwellmusic.com.

Copyright 2007 Dave Cardwell. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

Should You Learn Music Theory ?

Must every musician learn music theory? Is it really necessary? There are some guitar players that claim that learning music theory is helpful, while others insist that studying music theory will somehow make you “think” too much about your art and in fact will get in the way of your creativity. So who is right here? ">Let’s think about what would happen to your musical skills if you take the time to study theory. You will inevitably gain a greater understanding of the guitar and learn the fretboard much better. You will be able to understand what other musicians are saying when they are talking about music. Your improvising skills and soloing ability will improve dramatically (check out this article for more tips on soloing and improvising). You will have more options open to you if you decide to pursue a career in music (become a guitar teacher, or go to school for music.) Finally most importantly, you will be able to come up with creative musical ideas on a more consistent and frequent basis (I explain why below). Trying to write truly expressive music without knowing theory is similar to trying to walk blindfolded. You may end up where you are going eventually but the process will be much slower, filled with more obstacles and much less satisfying.

Those that argue that learning music theory inhibits your creativity have either never studied theory with a good teacher (this is very important) or more frequently did not learn how to APPLY what they have learned to composing. As a result, whatever knowledge that has been retained is largely useless, hence the argument against learning theory. Furthermore, there are some that claim that guitarists such as Jimmy Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughn did not study theory. This may be partly true, but there is no doubt that these players had at least a rudimentary understanding of basic concepts such as the pentatonic scale and they knew their way around the fretboard well (have you ever heard them play out of key?). Furthermore, let us not forget that guitar in general (and electric guitar specifically) has evolved greatly in the past 50 years. Nowadays, it is almost impossible to be considered a professional musician (or even an advanced guitar player) without understanding at least the basics of theory such as intervals and construction of triads.

Another argument that sometimes comes up against learning theory is sort of related to the one described above and that argument is that music theory somehow “boxes” you in and forces you to only think and write music in structured ways in accordance with strict music theory rules. After all, these critics might say, playing music is all about playing what sounds good, right? Well of course that part is true….BUT!… whenever I hear someone make this argument (that music theory boxes you in with its strict rules or limits your creativity in some way), it becomes clear to me that there exists a huge misconception on why music theory even exists and what it stands for in that person’s mind.

Remember, music theory is not really “a set of rules”. All it is, is a set of observations on how music was written and what makes music sound good (or not) that go back hundreds of years. These observations (of accepted conventions) have been written down as sets of guidelines that we now refer to as Music Theory. Music was written for many hundreds of years before some people decided to analyze the basic principles of how it was composed and write it down in textbooks (which we now know as music theory). By studying music theory, you will understand why certain things in music sound good, and how you can apply that knowledge to your own playing/songwriting/improvising etc… So in a sense, by studying music theory you are in fact learning how to make your music SOUND GOOD! (of course this is true if you are learning music theory from someone who knows how to teach it in a way that is relevant to your musical ambitions) By learning these guidelines you can choose to follow them, or you can choose to alter them to your own liking, or you can choose to abandon them entirely if you wish to. But all it does is provide you with a greater number of options to be a more expressive musician. EVERY style of music uses the basic principles of music theory in some way (believe it or not, even blues and rock!). And by having an understanding of these fundamentals, you can only become a better player at whatever style you like.

After you learn some music theory, whenever you come across a certain piece of music that you like, you will be able to understand on a mental level (using music theory) what is happening in the music to make it sound so good, and if you wish, you can adapt this new knowledge to your own playing and writing. Your improvising and soloing will improve as well if you understand a lot about how chords are structured Can you now see the ENORMOUS potential to help your musical skills by learning theory? With all the arguments made above, why would you NOT want to learn about how music really works?

By the way, as an aside point I have never heard a single person who knows a great deal about music theory (and truly understands it well) say that they think this skill is not important or somehow limiting to a musician.

With all of that being said, I do NOT believe that every musician should become a master of music theory. I believe that everyone should learn enough theory to reach their ultimate musical goals. This may require little theory or it may require a lot. You have to judge for yourself based on YOUR needs. If you desire to just play your favorite songs on the guitar and do not plan on writing your own music, then learning theory would not be high on your priority list. However if you aspire to write your own songs, to improvise and create your own solos, become a professional musician, go to school for music or become a guitar teacher, then not knowing theory will hold you back dramatically. So think about your goals and do not attempt to learn theory without a good teacher to guide you. It will be similar to trying to teach yourself math or science.

Hopefully after thinking about the points made above and analyzing your goals, you will be able to reach a conclusion on whether or not you should learn theory and how much music theory knowledge will be necessary to move you closer to your dreams.

For a beginner guide to music theory, check out this article: Music Theory 101

You can contact me at mike@mikephilippov.com I would be happy to answer any questions you may have. I reply to all e-mails.

About Mike Philippov

http://www.mikephilippov.com/
http://www.thenextstepguitar.com/

Mike Philippov is a professional virtuoso guitarist, music composer and instructor. He is currently working on an instrumental CD that will feature music in the virtuoso neo-classical and progressive rock styles. Mike also teaches guitar, both privately as well as through guitar clinics. Mike is also a co-author of several instructional products including: a Backing Tracks CD “Improve Your Improv” as well as instructional courses: “The Ultimate Sweep Picker’s Guide”, and “Serious Improvement for the Developing Guitarist.”

Currently Mike is busy working on several projects including composing and recording a solo CD featuring music in the neo-classical and progressive rock styles as well as more instructional products that are in the works at this time. Please visit http://www.mikephilippov.com/ to hear some of Mike’s playing and sign up for a free newsletter which is sent out periodically and contains helpful tips and advice for guitar players.

E-mail Mike at: mike@mikephilippov.com

The Importance Of Practicing Improvisation

The ability to improvise is a useful skill that is sometimes not given enough attention by aspiring guitarists. Of course, everyone likes to jam, but many don’t have the fundamental skills that would really make them sound like a pro.

One reason for this is that many guitarists don’t fully understand how to practice improvisation. It’s not a part of their regular practice routine and isn’t taken as seriously as learning a song or practicing scales.

So what is improvisation? You already improvise every day even if you don’t play an instrument. When you’re having a conversation with someone, you don’t plan what you’re going to say beforehand. You have to react to them in the moment and spontaneously create.

I've heard a number of people say something like this: "just play, you need to express yourself naturally." There is a big difference between a master guitarist who “just plays” and a novice or intermediate guitarist who “just plays.” The problem is that you can’t “just play” until you’ve learned how to. Learning how to improvise is like learning a language. I wouldn’t ask someone to “just speak” a foreign language because if they haven’t practiced the language they won’t know what to do. It’s exactly the same with the guitar.

Improvisation isn’t just tied to a single style of music, but style is important. Soloing over a jazz progression requires different knowledge and skills than soloing over a metal riff. However, many of the fundamental skills are the same. A talented improviser can adapt to stylistic changes much more quickly.

There are many benefits to practicing improvisation, but here are a few important ones:

Improved Aural Skills

Aural skills are, in my opinion, the most important skill a musician can have. Being able to hear exactly what someone else is playing, and react to it effectively is fundamental to improvisation. With practice, you’ll be able to recognize intervals, chords and scales instantly. You’ll be able to hear the “right” melody, meaning the one that's right for you, before you even play it. Being able to do this is at the core of improvisation. We all want to play the music of our minds, not our fingers.

Improved Creativity

Again, improvisation is composing music in the moment. If you can write music live with a band, then it’s that much easier to do it at home in the studio. The same skills apply, no matter what the situation. Even though you have more time to think at home, being able to create spontaneously is a huge advantage. You will be able to write great music more quickly.

Your solos will become more creative since more possibilities will be open to you. Being able to react effectively to a particular musical context is the key to playing great solos. Improvisation will open up new patterns of thinking about your music.

Getting Started

Here are some basic ways to begin increasing your skills:

Turn on the radio and play along to anything that comes on. Try to make it sound the best that you can. This is challenging since you don’t know what’s coming next, and the musical styles might change drastically.

Memorize the sound of the basic intervals and chords. You can start doing this with your guitar, or a pitch pipe. Think of an interval, and hum it to yourself. Then check and see if you got it right with your guitar or pitch pipe. For chords it’s best to have someone play a chord for you so you can guess what kind of chord it is. For more information on intervals and chords, read this article.

Have a friend play any rhythm guitar part that comes to their mind. This will be similar to playing along with the radio. It could be constantly switching keys, time signatures, tempos and styles. The point is for you to improve your reaction time to these changes and be able to adapt as quickly as you can. This can be very difficult at first, but should be fun too. Of course, you could be playing with a bassist or keyboardist instead and do the same thing.

Memorize all of the basic major/minor mode patterns. This takes a while, and it’s not necessarily that much fun, but it is extremely important. It will become much easier to figure out the “right” scales to use if you are very familiar with these patterns.

Conclusion

Great improvisational skills will have a significant effect on your activities in music. When you are writing music with a band, you'll be able to hear new, creative ideas to put in songs, and how to organize the songs better. You'll be able to play creative solos, even if you've never heard the music you're soloing over.

When you write solos, those solos will be more creative and interesting because they will be informed by your improvisational ability. These skills will free you to express your music any way that you want and enable you to play with anyone, even if you don’t know any songs in common. With all these benefits available, it should be clear now why practicing improvisation should be a core part of your regular practice routine.

For more articles and resources to improve your playing, visit Dave's website at Cardwellmusic.com.

If you are interested in becoming a better improviser, check out Improve your Improv.

Copyright 2007 Dave Cardwell. All rights reserved. Used by permission.