The Recreational Guitarist

Bach Invention

July 27th, 2011

MP3 and PDF Included

Johann Sebastian Bach

Dm Invention PDF

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Here is an excerpt from a Bach Invention arranged for guitar.  It begins in the 2nd position and then moves to the 5th position for the remainder of the piece. J.S.Bach is famous for his improvisations and they sound great on guitar. – Michael

Classic Rock Progression

July 22nd, 2011

Video and PDF Included

This example of a “classic” rock progression is taken from volume 2 of the “Recreational Guitarist” DVD set and sounds great.  It uses a 3 chord progression (A, C, & D) with the A played with one finger and the C and D using the standard 3 note power chord.  Start slowly and try to get all the notes sounding clearly without hitting any unwanted strings. – Michael

Classic Rock PDF

Single String Study

July 18th, 2011

MP3 and PDF included

This is one of my favorite studies for right and left hand development.  For the right hand be sure to alternate your pick up and down, if you are a fingerstyle player alternate the thumb and first finger or any combination of the just the first, second or third fingers. For the left hand use only your first and fourth fingers (index and little finger).  I hope you enjoy this little study – Michael

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Single String Study

Cool blues sound using 2 notes

July 12th, 2011

Video Included.

I first heard this technique used by Stevie Ray Vaughn and thought it sounded great! Not really hard to play if you can hold a 3 string bar at the 5th fret while playing the blues scale.  Let me know if you like the technique.

2 Octave C Major Scale

June 28th, 2011

Video Included

Here is a simple but important scale that you can practice for speed, ear training and technique.  The most important thing to watch for (after you learn the notes) is that when you move from the 2nd position to the 5th position you do so seamlessly so your audience cannot hear you change.  This takes a fair amount of practice and attention to the fingering.  I have not included a tab sheet to allow you to hone your musical ears and eyes! – Michael

A 300 year old tune to help you play the blues and more

February 28th, 2011

PDF and Midi file included

Well it’s Monday and I’m at the studio looking at my student list and trying to find lesson material that is both enjoyable and instructive. This can be very challenging when you consider how many styles there are and how a students practice time is often tied to how much they like their study pieces.  Last week I was very happy with an arrangement of the “Canary Jig” by Gaspar Sanz (1640–1710) which uses all kinds of slurs (hammer ons and pull offs to you rockers). I have Included  a midi file with the melody and a pdf file with the notes and tab. You cannot hear the slurs on the midi file so you can concentrate on the timing.  Once you can play it in time add the slurs.  If you want to hear the piece with slurs included let me know. Also please send me songs that you would like to learn! Thirty minutes till my first student, bye for now.

Canary Jig Melody

Canary Jig pdf

The perfect guitar warm-up?

February 23rd, 2011

PDF included

With time being so precious to everyone these days what’s the best way to warm up before tackling your pieces? I think it’s the humble Chromatic Scale, easy to learn but great for any level of player. The Chromatic Scale is the one where you simply play all the notes one semi-tone (or 1 fret) at a time. Diatonic Scales are the ones that use different intervals (number of frets) such as the Major Scale or the Blues Scale. I have attached a pdf file showing the Chromatic Scale with some playing tips.  If you want more let me know and please let me know how you warm up before practicing.  Bye for now – Michael

Chromatic Scale PDF with Tips