Ear Training

For any aspiring guitarist, technical proficiency and creative expression are essential aspects of becoming a master of the instrument. While learning chords, scales, and techniques is crucial, one…

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The Importance Of Guitar Repertoire

The Importance Of Guitar Repertoire “Guitar Repertoire” is the music you know how to play, not the music you’re learning, or struggling with.  If your first response is to say “I…


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Why Practice Scales?

Why Practice Scales? Scale work is a basic part of many guitarists’ practice routine. Teachers routinely assign scales and talk about the importance of “the 5 positions” or “CAGED…


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Organizing Your Guitar Practice Time

Organizing Your Guitar Practice Time I hear frequently from students that they don’t know what to focus on, or how to organize their guitar practice time. There’s so much material out…


5 TIPS FOR SITTING IN

5 Tips For Sitting In (On A Jam Session)

5 Tips For "Sitting In" (On A Jam Session) “Sitting in” means getting up to play with an established group as a guest. Years ago I had the opportunity to sit in with the…


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Restarting practice after an injury

Restarting practice after an injury A hand injury can be an existential crisis for a guitar player. I had the misfortune of slipping on the ice on Christmas Eve, landing by my outstretched…


Play More of the Music by Playing Solo Guitar

Play More of the Music by Playing Solo Guitar Solo guitar melody arrangements are a fun and satisfying way to play more of the music by yourself. Working up an arrangement also helps pull…


Guitar Resolutions for the New Year

Guitar Resolutions for the New Year Make this the year your resolutions lead to some musical resolution. In this age of the internet guitar multiverse, you could easily see more lesson…


Guitar Practice: Touch and Tone

Touch and Tone The best compliment I ever got on my tone was from the producer on a recording session. He said, “you’re the only guy I know who can make a Gibson sound like a Fender”.  He…


Triads and Melody

Guitar Practice: Triads and Melody Triads are chords in their simplest form. You might think that the “box” forms you learned early on are the simplest ones, but any major or minor chord…