A Modern Method for Guitar
myle...@gmail.com
b/c i'm looking for some beginnerish books for teaching.
i wish i would've been shown something like this when i was starting
out! i have a feeling that by the time i work my way through it, it's
going to help me out with a lot of little gaps i never filled in by
being pretty much self-taught prior to getting into jazz.
for instance, i never learned to read in the first position...went
straight from not being able to read at all to trying to read heads
out of the realbook somewhere in the middle of the neck.
anyway, i'm impressed so far. seems to be laid out in a really
logical manner covering lots of stuff. i feel like this book
should've come as an instruction manual with everybody's first
guitar.
as part of my new practice schedule, i'm reading for 30 minutes every
day....i think i will just be using this book until i make it through
to the end. i'm thinking my other reading materials (omibook, melodic
rhythms, etc) are going to be a lot easier once i've made it through
this book. i feel like i've found the lost lesson number 1 that i
skipped that would've made college sight-reading classes a lot easier
had i gone through this whole thing first.
myles
Joey Goldstein
Leavitt's stuff's 2 biggest strengths are also its biggest weaknesses.
He concentrates, almost exclusively, on 2 techniques; position playing
and alternate picking. And if you could only have 1 lh technique and 1
rh technique these would be the ones to have because you can cover an
awful lot of ground with just those techniques.
Unfortunately though he never quite gets around to explaining how and
why someone might want to change position or pick the strings in some
other way. IMO He should have written a 4th volume called "Beyond
Position Playing And Alternate Picking", but he never did.
Other than that, his approach is the most thorough and self-consistent
method in the world, still after all these years.
Also check out his Reading Studies For Guitar, and Advanced Reading
Studies For Guitar, if you want to get on the fast track for
understanding how position playing works and how to use it to improve
your reading.
--
Joey Goldstein
<http://www.joeygoldstein.com>
<http://homepage.mac.com/josephgoldstein/AudioClips/audio.htm>
joegold AT sympatico DOT ca
charles robinson
<myle...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:400095cf-3143-4427...@m71g2000hse.googlegroups.com...
Don't feel too bad about the first position thing. Steve Carter who once
taught at Berklee and who also posts here quite a bit recommends getting out
of there fast and reading up the neck as soon as possible.
Charlie
Joey Goldstein
Always good for a novice to get past 1st position as quickly as possible.
But later, after being a professional player fro 15 or 29 years, I went
back and worked through the 1st half of Vol 1 again. That stuff is hard
( if you want to play it accurately)! Open position is actually much
harder to play in than the upper positions because you have to deal with
open strings ringing out when they're not supposed to be.
For reading purposes, open position is the logical place to start
because there's only one place to play any particular pitch, except for
the high B which has two possible fingerings). Puts us almost on an even
keel with piano players in at least that one respect. And it introduces
the whole 1 finger per fret idea.
But the upper positions is where it's at for most single note lines
you're going to play on the guitar.
4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th positions are the middle range of the
fretboard. I generally try to sight read in one of those positions
(depending on the key/range of the melody) and simply walk down the low
E string for any notes below the position's range or up the high E
string for nay notes above the position's range.
charles robinson
"Joey Goldstein" <nos...@nowhere.net> wrote in message
news:fttai2$cm4$1...@news.datemas.de...
The difficulty is probably why Steve recommended that they beginner get
out of there soon. I go back now to open strings by reading out of classical
guitar books.
Charlie
Claus Rogge
> i feel like i've found the lost lesson number 1 that i
> skipped
This is exactly how I felt when I discovered these books. Best wishes!
It´s a wonderful feeling. I got a lot out of book 1 back then and tried
to use it for teaching, expecting th pupils to become just as happy with
it. Funnily enough, I haven´t found one (1!) who liked it.
--
Latest record "Know Greed" at the iTunes store:
http://tinyurl.com/57ots3
pmfan57
> charles robinson wrote:
> > <myles...@gmail.com> wrote in message
It's nice to hear a really good bluegrass player than can really play
nice stuff down in the lower positions, sometimes using hammers based
on open chord forms. Doc Watson and Clarence White, and their legion
of followers, come to mind.
tomb...@jhu.edu
For exercises reading on one string at a time -- up and down the neck
instead of position playing -- you could check out the sight-reading
books by Howard Roberts or Tommy Tedesco.
charles robinson
"pmfan57" <jwra...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:b41418b4-92a0-4d22...@a9g2000prl.googlegroups.com...
charles robinson
"pmfan57" <jwra...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:b41418b4-92a0-4d22...@a9g2000prl.googlegroups.com...
Nobody is objecting to playing with open strings it's just the hassle in
sight reading on them especially at the tempos that the guys that you just
mentioned played. Even Tedesco remarked that when he played in the studio
with a famous classical guitarist he was asked to use more open strings
because it wasn't a part of his normal sight-reading technique.
Charlie
charles robinson
"Claus Rogge" <claus...@SPAMTRAPaon.at> wrote in message
news:1ifcpxe.b45sbc4yhifoN%claus...@SPAMTRAPaon.at...
> <myle...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> i feel like i've found the lost lesson number 1 that i
>> skipped
>
> This is exactly how I felt when I discovered these books. Best wishes!
> to use it for teaching, expecting th pupils to become just as happy with
By coincidence I just ordered the 3 in one special of those books last
week to have some stuff to read through. I used to do that years ago when I
was teaching in a music store but have never actually owned any of them.
Charlie
cl...@claymoore.com
Yeah, those are both great books, but them being out of print is going
to make it a challenge to find them. Check it out:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0916902129/ref=dp_olp_2
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0899150039/ref=dp_olp_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1208130932&sr=1-2
Clay Moore
Roger
My students have also found them to be too dry. That, combined w/ the
fact that even book 1 is remarkably difficult past the first few
pieces, made it a tough sell for all but the most serious students.
Does anyone have a better suggestion for a general reading, fretboard
theory and harmony theory book? I'd love to hear some ideas for good
books for high school-age students.
Roger
Joey Goldstein
> book 1 is remarkably difficult past the first few
> pieces,
No it isn't.
It's remarkably easy, except for Solo #1 in the 1st half of the book.
And no teacher in his right mind should be all too concerned with a
student playing any of the stuff in the 1st half of that book "perfectly".
It's all just about note recognition, timing, reading, and building
finger strength. Most professional guitarists I know could not play the
material in the 1st half of Vol 1 "perfectly" unless they spent several
minutes on each piece figuring out how they're going to do their string
mutes, etc. Have the student get the notes, the timing and the picking
patterns *and move on*. Don't worry about playing it perfectly.
The goal, when putting a student on that book is to get the 1st half out
of the way as soon as possible and to move on to the 2nd half at page 60.
Gerry
> Roger wrote:
>> book 1 is remarkably difficult past the first few
>> pieces,
>
> No it isn't.
> It's remarkably easy, except for Solo #1 in the 1st half of the book.
> And no teacher in his right mind should be all too concerned with a
> student playing any of the stuff in the 1st half of that book
> "perfectly".
> It's all just about note recognition, timing, reading, and building
> finger strength. Most professional guitarists I know could not play the
> material in the 1st half of Vol 1 "perfectly" unless they spent several
> minutes on each piece figuring out how they're going to do their string
> mutes, etc. Have the student get the notes, the timing and the picking
> patterns *and move on*. Don't worry about playing it perfectly.
>
> The goal, when putting a student on that book is to get the 1st half
> out of the way as soon as possible and to move on to the 2nd half at
> page 60.
When I used them to teach a student said plaintively, "Can't I just
learn some songs. My friends are learning songs."
--
Dogmatism kills jazz. Iconoclasm kills rock. Rock dulls scissors.
Steve Carter
<robins...@comcast.net> wrote:
>Don't feel too bad about the first position thing. Steve Carter who once
>taught at Berklee and who also posts here quite a bit recommends getting out
>of there fast and reading up the neck as soon as possible.
>Charlie
>
I tell students who own Volume 1 to skip the first part of the book,
and come back to it later.
At Berklee, Bill Leavitt wrote a series of outlines for guitar majors.
They started with page 60 of Volume 1, C scale in second position.
Each week listed a scale study, an arpeggio study, a reading study,
and a duet in a given key and position (fingering type). So the first
five weeks were the keys of C, F, G, D, and A in second position.
Week six they were assigned some pages from Volume II, key of C
through five positions. So in less than two months they were exposed
to reading in higher positions.
These days I only teach intermediate players. These are mostly adults
who are professional players -- most often rock and blues, with maybe
a little jazz experience. So in the first lesson I ask them to play
Leavitt's "basic five fingerings" and be able to play and start
reading in position. I usually start with key of C in position V, but
actually key of C in position VII makes more sense. No finger
stretches. Then maybe key of Bb in position V, same fingering type.
Then maybe key of F in position V, one finger stretch (top and bottom)
for the Bb.
If they learn the basic five fingering types, they get some useful
fingerings for read in some middle-of-the-guitar positions:
Position VII: D, G, C, F, Bb.
Position V: C, F, Bb, Eb, Ab.
So up to two sharps and four flats. Very useful.
It's really important to supplement the Leavitt books with other
etudes and duets. The dozens of lessons on my site originated in that
way. For example, the "Presence Chamber" duets were written to provide
some reading experience in certain keys and positions. I wrote about
15 duets (these are not on my site) that I used with most of my
students. They found these more enjoyable than Leavitt's duets.
In fact, a few months ago, when I had a booth at the Boston Guitar
Festival, a guy walked up to me and said, "Steve Carter! Dudley Bus!.
I was one of your students at Berklee. We played Dudley Bus, and I
still have it, still play it." That duet started as an exercise in
drop3 voicings and inversions. I put some rhythm to the voicings, in
6/4 time with one measur of 5/4, then wrote a melody to it. So the
students got a lesson in voicings, in rhythm guitar, and in reading.
I'd ask them to play the melody in different positions, then I'd
suggest phrasing that moved from one position to another.
Of course, for me, the Modern Method for Guitar is a hot spot. It was
required material for most of my 25 years at Berklee. For years I've
been intending to write a kind of guide to my various lesson
materials, showing how to intertwine them with Leavitt's books. Maybe
I'll get around to it.
Steve
Steve Carter
www.frogstoryrecords.com
Steve Carter
>taught at Berklee and who also posts here quite a bit recommends getting out
>of there fast and reading up the neck as soon as possible.
>Charlie
>
I tell students who own Volume 1 to skip the first part of the book,
Steve Carter
wrote:
<snip>
>When I used them to teach a student said plaintively, "Can't I just
>learn some songs. My friends are learning songs."
Of course. And there's the obvious answer: "Sure, you can learn some
songs, along with learning to read." (Or you might say "learning the
guitar.")
Or you could say, "Really? Ask one of your friends to play the melody
of one of the songs he 'learned'". Most likely, your student will say,
"Melody? What do you mean."
In the town where I live, there are two music stores within a two
block area, there's a small private music studio across the street,
and, until recently, there was an arts center nearby, all offering
guitar lessons. One of my young friends -- who was also an occassional
student of mine -- taught at one of the stores, and recently went to
Germany for a year. Before he left, he told me that he wanted to
recommend a teacher for his students to study with, but no one else at
that music store "forced" their students to read. He told the owner,
"Unless you hire someone to replace me who will insist that the
students learn to read, I won't recommend to them that they stay with
this store." As far as I know, the did not, and he did not.
Another of my young friends teaches at the music store down the
street. He tells me that all the teachers at that store insist that
the students learn to read. This guy has 39 guitar students! They
don't use the Leavitt books, except for the more advanced students.
Just last night I ran into the young guy who owns the small music
studio. He said he was thinking of getting out of teaching. He said,
"Some of my students have been with me for five years. I tell them
I've taught them everything I know." That's a can of worms in itself.
But I wonder whether he taught his students to read. I wonder, if he
closes his studio, if the kids will go to the store that insists on
reading. I certainly hope so.
It's been more than 35 years since I taught young kids, and adult
beginners, in a music store. I used Alfred, Mel Bay, etc. back then.
Leavitt's Volume I *is* too dry. His "Phase One," which is geared to
beginners, isn't much better. If I were going to teach beginners
today, I'd have to write my own "method." (I guess I have many pieces
of it already.) I'd still use Leavitt's basic five fingerings, and I'd
probably introduce chord voicings pretty much in the order he did.
Steve
Steve Carter
www.frogstoryrecords.com
Gerry
> Then maybe key of F in position V, one finger stretch (top and bottom)
> for the Bb.
I missed that stretch...
Gerry
> It's been more than 35 years since I taught young kids, and adult
> beginners, in a music store. I used Alfred, Mel Bay, etc. back then.
> Leavitt's Volume I *is* too dry. His "Phase One," which is geared to
> beginners, isn't much better. If I were going to teach beginners
> today, I'd have to write my own "method." (I guess I have many pieces
> of it already.) I'd still use Leavitt's basic five fingerings, and I'd
> probably introduce chord voicings pretty much in the order he did.
For those who don't want to write their own method and/or endlessly
tailor materials for different (beginning) students, what's wrong with
using the Mel Bay method? I haven't looked at it for years, but I
remember it being the kind of thing a student could easily see and
gauge their progress with. Admittedly they might not be playing songs
with their friends. But logically that should be another phase of
their instruction anyway, I'd guess.
charles robinson
news:2008041409393150878-somewhere@sunnycalif...
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The last time that I taught at a music store people would show up for their
first lesson with a tape of Hendrix, that guy who plays with Green Day or
some other rock player and want me to show them how to play a particular
solo immediately. The younger the kids were the better it went,you could
start them out reading out of a Mel Bay book or something similar and they
would be happy to be playing anything.
Charlie
steffanii
I'm a 16 year old guitar student and I'm on the 2nd book of Berklee...
I'd have to say I really like how it's laid out and how everything's
presented. Coincidentally, it has stuff that ties in with a jazz
voicing chord book I'm doing at the same time.
Steph
Derek
tunes in Mel Bay/Hal Leonard IS boring, no matter what stage your
development is.
People learn the instrument to play songs. Learning open position or
barre chords so they can bang out a tune is what I am more frequently
asked than anything.
I am finishing up a 6 lesson stint with an adult woman who came in
with the very specific goal of learning enough chords so she can lead
singing in her church youth dept.
After 6 lessons, we covered open position chords (maj, min, dom),
circle of 4ths, major and minor barres, and some simple theory and
reading, including how to transpose.
She is happy and feels we met her goals, and has already sent another
student my way.
At some level they are the customer and should get what they pay for I
guess.
charles robinson
"Derek" <de...@ycoaoffice.com> wrote in message
news:717b2329-be63-4f5f...@d1g2000hsg.googlegroups.com...
I used to show them chords that were more advanced than the one found in the
books where they had to start off reading, as a supplement that would let
them start strumming through the changes to songs. There were also other
people who just wanted to learn chords in order to strum and play what is
now called "campfire guitar". If that was all that they wanted I was happy
to show them, The hard one though was trying to explain to some people that
a certain level of technical mastery (and here I'm talking about at least
knowing things like a C chord in the open position) had to be attained
before attempting some of the solos they would bring in the first day. No
amount of money could change that fact.
Charlie
335p...@gmail.com
the leavitt books are excellent. when I was going through them I was
young and inexperienced, and I made the mistake of thinking that by
learning the material in those books I was also learning to play jazz
guitar. Imagine my surprise when I tried to apply chord scales and
positional fingerings in real jazz gigging situations only to find
that I still couldn't play jazz. I was clueless. The Leavitt books do
give you the knowledge of the fretboard to prepare you for playing in
all keys, but if you want jazz knowledge you have to go to the
recorded sources and listen.
Mark
Claus Rogge
> When I used them to teach a student said plaintively, "Can't I just
> learn some songs. My friends are learning songs."
Yes you couldn´t use the Leavitt exclusively. You´d have to do some
Nirvana or Green Day or whatever the kids want as well.
But until last year, I made everyone that wanted to play electric guitar
buy Leavitt vol.1. I´ve given it up after 15 years. I still believe the
book is fantastic and still wish I had had a teacher who had used this
one 40 years ago.
Claus Rogge
> book 1 is remarkably difficult past the first few
> pieces
I think the problems start at page 111. I´v got a "page 111 and a half"
folded in my book but I never got anyone to use the book for so long
> Does anyone have a better suggestion for a general reading, fretboard
> theory and harmony theory book? I'd love to hear some ideas for good
> books for high school-age students.
I´ll keep following this thread and read all the answers you get ...
Gerry
> Gerry <some...@sunny.calif> wrote:
>
>> When I used them to teach a student said plaintively, "Can't I just
>> learn some songs. My friends are learning songs."
>
> Yes you couldn´t use the Leavitt exclusively. You´d have to do some
> Nirvana or Green Day or whatever the kids want as well.
Well that was around 1978, but I had a hell of a time teaching them the
pop tunes du jour without making it all about the pop tunes. I wasn't
the greatest teacher, and so thought it best to quit the trade.
> But until last year, I made everyone that wanted to play electric guitar
> buy Leavitt vol.1. I´ve given it up after 15 years. I still believe the
> book is fantastic and still wish I had had a teacher who had used this
> one 40 years ago.
Why did you give it up after forging ahead for so long?
Joey Goldstein
I only use these books with students who are trying to become
professional players, or with amateur students who like to be treated as
if their goal is to become a professional player.
I also teach them tunes.
Joey Goldstein
When I was 13 I took 12 lessons from the local guitar teacher.
He was using Mel Bay. I thought it sucked and I quit as soon as my
parents would let me.
But I wouldn't have like Leavitt any better back then either.
Joey Goldstein
The Leavitt book have very little to do with playing jazz.
They are all about basic plectrum guitar technique and learning to read
well on the instrument.
Steve Carter
wrote:
>On 2008-04-14 09:00:47 -0700, Steve Carter <sca...@frogstoryrecords.com> said:
>
>> Then maybe key of F in position V, one finger stretch (top and bottom)
>> for the Bb.
>
>I missed that stretch...
Sorry, that was a typo. I meant to say key of F in position VII.
Steve
Steve Carter
www.frogstoryrecords.com
Claus Rogge
> Why did you give it up after forging ahead for so long?
Not one of the kids liked it and got out of it what I wanted them to
get.
Chickenhead
When I saw the post recommending them, especially the Tommy Tedesco one, I'd
planned to eventually order it up. At those prices, I don't see it
happening. Ouch!
Rats.
<cl...@claymoore.com> wrote in message
news:20994abc-7cca-4495...@l64g2000hse.googlegroups.com...
antal...@gmail.com
<kuNOrtSPAMshapTHANK...@YOUhoVERYtmail.MUCHcom> wrote:
> Holy Crap!
>
> When I saw the post recommending them, especially the Tommy Tedesco one, I'd
> planned to eventually order it up. At those prices, I don't see it
> happening. Ouch!
>
> Rats.
>
>
> > Clay Moore
Im working through both Berklee book 2 and his Melodic Rhythms and I
gotta say, Rhythms is much tougher for me.
charles robinson
"Joey Goldstein" <nos...@nowhere.net> wrote in message
news:fu123t$ade$5...@news.datemas.de...
I did the same thing but before I quit I still had learned how to follow
basic chord charts and at least had gleaned a slight insight into what
reading was about. I concentrated on just learning from records after that,
mostly Chuck Berry and blues. A couple of years later I was using the same
method to learn how to play jazz along with the Mickey Baker book. That's
why later when teaching I tried to augment the reading with other things
that the students might be interested in.Guitar is notorious for that type
of thing, you can go into any music store that has lessons this Saturday
and walk by the rooms where they are teaching and hear everyone reading
songs, scale patterns etc. but when you get to the guitar room you the odds
are that you will hear some guy wailing with a distortion pedal.
Charlie
335p...@gmail.com
myle...@gmail.com
> Nirvana or Green Day or whatever the kids want as well.
how do you guys deal with teaching that kind of stuff? in the past,
i've always just popped in the burned cd the kid brings me of their
favorite songs they illegally downloaded and sit there figuring out
how to play the guitar parts to the songs. i show them what i'm
playing as i'm figuring it out and write out some kind of crude tab
version, then when i'm done, i show them how to play it. then i show
them how to play it again for the next 6 weeks with no results and
then one day they come in able to play it and i say, "oh that's
great! what did you do differently this week?". then they tell me
they practiced it for more than the 15 minutes a week they had been
doing previously.
seems like a huge waste of time. i'm not going to start teaching
again for a few months, but i'm thinking that when i do, i'm just
going to tell the kids that if they're not serious and just want to
learn to strum to some of their favorite tunes, that's fine and we'll
do that, but that if they are at least a little serious about learning
to play and want to become good players that i have a lesson plan they
are going to follow which would include going through something like
the leavitt book and learning to read, learning some theory, etc.
maybe i'll tell them that if they want to learn some certain songs or
whatever to buy the tab book b/c they can have the whole album written
out legibly for $25 and we can spend the time with me teaching them
how to play the songs.
anyway, for those of you who teach a lot of students, how do you
handle this?
thanks,
myles
Roger
Myles,
What you're proposing for dealing w/ songs they want to learn (have
them get the material outside of class) is the right direction.
Here's my approach to handling tunes/riffs they bring in: they must
find tab for it online and bring to lesson. I show them preferred
fingerings and picking patterns. (And, check the tab; sometimes they
are wrong or unnecessarily combersome regarding string/fret locations
for the given riff.) Then I use the tune/riff to teach: 1.
understanding the key center; 2. associated major or minor scales
(incl pentatonic maj/min); 3. the relationship between the riff and
the chord in play at that moment (e.g., a boogie-woogie line is really
just an elaborated arpeggio of the underlying chord); 4. the form of
the tune; 5. the tune's chord progression and how it is an example or
a variant of a common progression, and how it exemplifies typical
harmonic devices such as a tonal shift from major to relative minor or
the opposite; etc., etc. From here I can teach and create assignments
on many core music education topics - chords, scales, key and time
signatures, circle of 5ths and 4ths for understanding where sharps/
flats come from, reading rhythms and notes (e.g., transcribe the tab
to the treble clef; isolate the rhythm from the pitches, etc.), chord
formulas and concepts such as major, minor, dominant, etc., etc.
If I may offer some friendly criticism, I would definitely refrain
from asking the student to categorize him or herself as "serious" or
not, for reasons I am sure you can come up with by reflecting on that
a bit. Rather, as the teacher, consider it part of your professional
responsibility to discern how to awaken in each student their their
interest in learning music and playing the guitar. I teach Suzuki
method to very young children, and it is understood within the Suzuki
teaching community that it is the teacher's job (and parents too) to
motivate the child. This includes understanding the child's
personality and learning styles in order to select teaching tools and
ways of interacting that help each child be excited to learn to play.
In the Suzuki method, we use a slate of age-appropriate games and
other devices to make daily home practice, and the multiple
repetitions it requires, enjoyable or at least tolerable. So, try to
think of ways to motivate your students. You are their teacher, and
they will respect you and do what you ask if they succeed when they
apply your methods and assignments. Some basic psychology is critical
too - they need to know you know them as an individual and you care
about helping them succeed. So, here's just a few example devices for
jr. high to h.s. kids: require a daily log or check-off sheet for
assignments (parent must sign it each day); assign an easy song that
they are to play for a parent once it is learned (give a due date, but
be flexible); for a younger student, have them reward completion of
assignments of specific repetitions (play Twinkle Little Star 6x a
day) by eating one Skittle for each repetition. You buy the first
Skittle bag for them! Etc., etc.
Just the fact that you are asking folks here for suggestions shows
you'll become very good at teaching - because you care about your
students' success.
Roger
myle...@gmail.com
> you'll become very good at teaching - because you care about your
> students' success.
>
> Roger
thanks for your thoughts...i'm really just trying to come up with a
plan ahead of time so i can avoid spending all my teaching time
writing out tabs for no doubt songs.
myles
Tim McNamara
<519f09ae-9884-4b3e...@8g2000hse.googlegroups.com>,
myle...@gmail.com wrote:
> i'm not going to start teaching again for a few months, but i'm
> thinking that when i do, i'm just going to tell the kids that if
> they're not serious and just want to learn to strum to some of their
> favorite tunes, that's fine and we'll do that, but that if they are
> at least a little serious about learning to play and want to become
> good players that i have a lesson plan they are going to follow which
> would include going through something like the leavitt book and
> learning to read, learning some theory, etc.
This is wise, I think. The student is a customer. The teacher needs to
tailor the lesson approach to what the students goals are. If they want
to play "Kum-ba-ya" around the campfire that's a perfectly legitimate
goal and trying to teach them the harmonic minor scale isn't going to
make any sense. If they want to be able to play Metallica songs, the
approach will be different. Blues, different yet; and jazz is a whole
'nother critter.
myle...@gmail.com
> approach will be different. Blues, different yet; and jazz is a whole
> 'nother critter.
what about guitar hero? do people give guitar hero lessons yet?
myles
Derek
> what about guitar hero? do people give guitar hero lessons yet?
Not yet, but believe it or not, I have gotten a couple of new students
recently who said they were inspired to learn actual guitar due to
their Guitar Hero playing.
AND, they want to learn the set lists off of the various versions (I
guess there are 3 now). This one guy knows all the tunes from each
version.
Now he wants to play'em. Rock On! :-)
myle...@gmail.com
> recently who said they were inspired to learn actual guitar due to
> their Guitar Hero playing.
Didn't see that coming.
Btw, Derek, I just emailed Jay and got a reply about using his books
for teaching. I think I may use those in conjunction with some
Leavitt stuff and then ask the kids to bring in tabs or whatever for
tunes they want to learn. If you happen to come to Worlds of Fun this
summer, I'm playing guitar in the shows at the Tivoli theater starting
May 31st if you wanna stop by and say hi. It runs 10 weeks (with
Wednesdays off).
Myles
cl...@claymoore.com
> When I used them to teach a student said plaintively, "Can't I just
> learn some songs. My friends are learning songs."
A few years ago I was in the final stages of interviews to teach at a
family friendly (read kids) music academy. I'd never interviewed for a
teaching position for more than a few minutes, and this last interview
was presented to me as a get-to-know-each-other meeting with the
school's director, IOW, I thought I already had the gig. They were
heavily focused on classical pedagogy and the director was a
conservatory trained trumpet player. When he asked me about teaching
reading I told him in my experience it was optional for beginners. The
HR person who was there at the interview suddenly looked like she'd
seen a ghost and the director assumed that posture of superiority that
only can be done by someone who has been groomed since childhood for a
career as a "legit" musician. It was then I realized this was the
"real" interview, and it was also then that I proceeded to be lectured
about how wrong I was in my beliefs. I did get the gig, but I only
lasted a few months. True to my expectations the beginner kids I was
given (and that was all I was given) as students had little or no
interest in playing the guitar and they certainly had no plans to
practice, so having them read notation straight away seemed like an
appallingly bad idea. I was just trying to get them to a point where
they could play something at all, and assumed if any of them stuck it
out for a while we could always add reading to the routine. Having
been out the generic "guitar teacher" game foe a while I realized I no
longer had the stomach for it.
Clay
Derek
>Btw, Derek, I just emailed Jay and got a reply about using his books
>for teaching. I think I may use those in conjunction with some
>Leavitt stuff and then ask the kids to bring in tabs or whatever for
>tunes they want to learn. If you happen to come to Worlds of Fun this
>summer, I'm playing guitar in the shows at the Tivoli theater starting
>May 31st if you wanna stop by and say hi. It runs 10 weeks (with
>Wednesdays off).
Yeah, I use Jay's stuff quite a bit. I also use Jody Fisher's stuff,
and am about to begin to use some of Tony D's stuff with a young jazz
player I have been working with.
Sounds like a fun gig. What kind of music? My daughter has applied
for an EMT job out there.
If you get a hankerin for Asian food, come to the Asian Tiger in Blue
Springs on a Friday night, and I will buy. I play solo there
6:30-8:30.
myle...@gmail.com
> for an EMT job out there.
there are 3 days of rehearsals prior to it opening and i won't see the
music until then, so i'm not entirely sure, but the md mentioned it
would be a tune from footloose, a tune from hairspray, a tune from
high school musical, some tower of power/earth, wind, and fire type
stuff. i'm guessing it's about a 45 minute show repeated every 15
minutes or so. don't know if i'm onstage or in a pit, but it's all
about the singers/dancers. hopefully i'll have some nice scenery to
check out while i play ;)
> If you get a hankerin for Asian food, come to the Asian Tiger in Blue
> Springs on a Friday night, and I will buy. I play solo there
> 6:30-8:30.
thanks for the generous invite. not sure if i'll make it out
though...for the time being, i'm staying at my parents' place out in
shawnee, so it's a bit of a trek. i'm sure we'll cross paths at some
point one way or another.
myles
Derek
>
> thanks for the generous invite. not sure if i'll make it out
> though...for the time being, i'm staying at my parents' place out in
> shawnee, so it's a bit of a trek. i'm sure we'll cross paths at some
> point one way or another.
>
No doubt, KC just ain't that big. Have a good week.