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Comment by Brandon Dyke on February 16, 2012 at 10:04am

New solo guitar EP, Timeless Moments, is on itunes and amazon for purchase here are the links! I hope you enjoy guys!  I would love it if you could rate and review as well.  Thanks!

itunes http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/timeless-moments/id502060214

amazon http://www.amazon.com/Timeless-Moments-EP/dp/B0078JS8VE/ref=sr_1_5?...

Comment by Michael S. Jackson on November 30, 2011 at 9:14am

I have been doing some research on tab and thought I'd share a bit of it and ask for your input on something I read.

As you know, tab has been around a long time and it works well for fretted instruments and is instrument specific. Standard notation for fretted instruments sometimes leaves the player wondering where to fret the note, since it can be found in several places on the fretboard. Pianos have middle C; flutes have a high D and you know where you are, but fretted instruments can be confusing.

I have seen tab from the 1600s (lute, Ireland) and found variations of it in countries such as Italy and France. It's interesting that France used letters in lieu of fret numbers (a = open; b = 1st fret; c = 2nd fret, etc.) and both Italian and French tablature entered timing notes above the tablature indications (standard notation of quarter, 8th, and 16th notes for timing; not for note fretting).

Here come the controversial comments. Tab had all but faded out for about 100 years when it was revived in the late 1940s. The author (I'm witholding his name and the publication in which he wrote his opinions - which he stated as fact - because of various reasons), in 1996, wrote that the resurgence of tablature is attributed to four things:

1. Industry and science caused WWI and WWII and gave us the atom bomb.

2. There was an urge, in the 1940s, to return to simpler things and a drive to experience the world in a more elementary, emotional manner.

3. People were too stupid and too poor to understand or learn standard notation.

4. Standard notation and classical music is for the socially elite, which people rejected.

I always thought tab was reestablished because it was a simpler form of musical notation and it got people into music quicker and easier than spending years learning how to sight read.

What do you think?

 

Comment by Andy Tulenko on June 19, 2011 at 5:18pm

Terry,

Your students problem is fairly easy to solve.  He has no timing skills.  Get a metronome and do some pattern studies for a month or so and I bet that fixes his ability to play.  If you need some help putting some patterns together, then PM me your email and I'll send you a couple of sheets I use with my students.

Comment by Valerie Elizabeth on June 19, 2011 at 11:27am

Started the discussion. :)

 

Thank you!

Comment by Donna Zitzelberger on June 19, 2011 at 8:45am

Hi Valerie,

 

You might want to start a discussion with this instead - then it would be a thread and easier to follow.  "Good Riddance" is too hard for a first song.  I think the girls may be overwhelmed and possibly discouraged.  It involves a full stretch of the hand for the 4-finger "G" and the "D" chord - which is pretty difficult in the beginning.  It also involved a syncopated strumming pattern, as well as a syncopated flat-picking pattern.  It is also recorded at 172 bpm - far too fast for a beginner.    I have found that song  takes the average 2nd year student a good 6 months  to learn. And they generally get it to about 144 bpm.

 

Since most young girls like Taylor Swift, I would like to suggest Taylor Swift's "Teardrops on My Guitar" -- G, Em, C, D7. Change all the "D's" to "D7's"  This song moves with common and guide fingers in the beginning.  Then there is a jump between Em and D7 that is comfortable.  The hardest move is C to G but there is no G to C (which is much harder).  Start with a basic quarter note down strum, move to 8ths - down/up, and then move to a calypso pattern.  The song can be mixed up to include all those patterns.

 

The time-line for learning is different with every student, but the first songs takes the longest to learn.  The student has nothing to fall back on in practice, so practice is all about work - no fun yet.  When you and I practice, we can work super hard as we push to the next level and then we can take a break and have fun with all the other tunes we know.  I find that for the student to really play that first song well - we are talking about 4-6 months.  There is a lot going on.  Just getting comfortable with holding the guitar is difficult, let alone demanding that each hand does something different. In addition to the first song, I have students play familiar tunes by TAB right away - this is very satisfying to them.  I also begin rhythm notation.  Utilizing the first pentatonic scale as an exercise for moving the fingers about the fretboard, kills two birds with one stone.

 

Hope this helps, and have fun with the kids! :)

 

Donna

 

Donna

Comment by Terry Angelli on June 19, 2011 at 5:36am

Valerie,

Although I'm not a full time instructor and have only one "student" I can appreciate your dilemma

Let me begin by explaining about my student. I'm looking at winding down my career as a trade school instructor. I thought I could start to teach guitar and make that my vocation through the remainder of my working career. In an effort to test the waters I found a young man who was seeking a mentor as he could not afford lessons. Since I want to learn the ropes of teaching guitar and he wants to learn how to play it is a win/win situation

My student has been in for five lessons so far he came to me with basic open chord knowledge as well as some scales and barre chords. I had him select a song to learn from a list (Rocky Raccoon - Beatles) and I pointed him to my videos posted here at my Mentor page to start learning.

He got the chord changes down no problem but has been struggling with the rhythm ever since. I've had him play along with the recording, play along as I sing (he can't sing), play along with me playing as well and he still cannot get the rhythm down.

He is very proactive with his practicing so that isn't the issue. To keep from rehashing the song over and over I introduced him to the Chuck Berry style shuffle in open "E" so it can be folded into other songs. Son of a gun don't you know he struggles with the shuffle as well?

I suggested we move on to a simpler song so he could work back up to Rocky but he is adamant about learning Rocky.

My plan as of right now is to force the issue, that is make him work on another song by explaining that he must master a simpler tune and then we'll move up to something more complex and ultimately back to Rocky.

Perhaps that would work for you as well? Perhaps stating during a lesson that there is little to no progress on this song so we're going to try another?

Hope this helps.

Terry

Comment by Valerie Elizabeth on June 18, 2011 at 6:34pm

I'm at a deadlock with two of my students. They both seem very eager when they're at their lesson, but they come back each week with little to no progress. They just started with me about two months ago and we're still on the first song, Good Riddance - Greenday. These girls are sisters. I'm trying to do several things with them per lesson so that we don't spend the entire hour on a single song.

Anyway - I'm just not sure how to get them to make progress. I can't control their practice at home but I don't want their mother wasting money on the lesson with us working on the same song for what seems like FOREVER.

I'm spending some time with them during the lesson introducing them to reading notes and playing them on the guitar. We're also working on a very simple pentatonic scale lick that I got from a Guitar Tricks lesson. It's literally just playing up the scale.

 

I don't know.... Any suggestions?

Comment by Andy Tulenko on April 21, 2011 at 2:38am

The only problem with anything FREE is you're going to get people that think they might want to learn to play.  Out of 100 you might actually get 1 or 2 students worth having.  If you're not paying for it, it won't mean anything to you.

 

You could try a barter with a student. He/She works off the lessons somehow.  Cleaning the studio, cutting your lawn... something.  People willing to do that are MOTIVATED to learn and thats the very best kind of student.

 

Comment by Terry Angelli on April 20, 2011 at 6:41pm

Donna & John

Sage words of wisdom. Looks like I dogged a bullet with this student I'm mentoring.

I came across him on CraigsList.org by accident as I'm looking to get an acoustic duo going. His ad was looking for a mentor and I replied stating my situation and skills upfront. I also told him that time was a premium for me and that he needed to be flexible because of my personal time demands.

Luckily for me he, so far, is a great student! He has to travel an hour on the subway to get here and he bombards me with questions in his email. He has the burning desire to play which works great for both of us.

Since the subject of "free" lessons came up does anyone offer a free lesson for booking several lessons in advance? Or perhaps a free first lesson? I'd be curios to know the results of that type of marketing.

Terry

Comment by John Horne on April 20, 2011 at 10:21am

I will add to Donna's comment. I had a student that received a need-based scholarship from a local organization. It seemed like a great opportunity and the money came straight to me for a series of lessons. But as Donna pointed out: "if they are paying nothing, they don't appreciate it or don't care."I was paid at least, but the student constantly missed lessons, and of course asked me to reschedule those. I was so glad when the lessons ran out and I did not offer to sign on for more lessons - even though it was guaranteed income.

 

In short, don't teach for free. No matter what your experience is - your time and energy is worth a fee comparable to other teachers in your area. Just be honest with yourself and your students about your strengths and weaknesses.

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