Lesson 12: "Basic Blues"
This time we are working with only two strings, and we are making the rhythm rather uneven. A very interesting lesson this one is, getting away from simply memorizing, and doing more of something that has a little more meat to it. But I would surmise that like any infant, one must start out with milk before one can move on to solid foods.
How ironic, that I would lean towards "Surf Blues", just to have this lesson pop up as next in line. Yet more motivation to be added with this one. And it is evident why the finger exercise was at the lesson before this, as that practice should start to pay off with the beginning of this lesson.
Practice has been going ok, it slowed down a bit over the holidays, so I am going to take more time on this lesson than usual, so I can catch back up on some of the practice I slowed down on before doing a video of the progress with this particular lesson. Besides, not looking at my hands will make this lesson all the harder. Might indeed be a while before the next video.
Chapter 12: "The Circle of Fifths (and fourths)"
I love this little circle! And I am going to have me one of them, (Somewhat like the one discussed) in the first week in January. Here it is here if you have never heard of it, or seen it.
The circle shows keys' relationships to one another, the closer two keys are on the circle, the more notes they have in common, the more closely related they are musically, and the more likely they are to be found close together in a musical phrase or piece. The circle also shows chord relationships.
This chapter was rather short, and had only the blank circle to fill in from past lessons. It was mostly about how to use the circle, and what it can do for you as a musician.
Sunday, December 28, 2008
LRAG-BEG - L# 12 & EMT C# 12
Friday, December 5, 2008
EMT C#7, practice & a new family member joins in!
Practice is going just fine, the old fingers are starting to callus nicely. :-) Again, since Sarge deciphered my problem, the practice has just been outstanding, and I just can't get enough! Speaking of practice, you should check this post out by Sarge on that very subject: 13 Tips To Get A Better Practice Routine I bookmarked it, and let me tell you, this advice that Sarge gives is just pure gold. If you are struggling with your practice, or are looking to review it, and see what can be done better, I highly suggest you read this.
The wife asked me yesterday about playing the keyboards. It has been something she has always wanted to learn, and seeing as I was learning the guitar, and she has been getting inspired by my progress, and she likes the format of the RHM products, we decided to get her the lessons:
She is really excited about getting started, and I am just overjoyed for her, this will be great for her, and I am going to be right beside her to support her along the way...
Besides that good news, she is also going to be posting here to chart her progress on the Keyboards, and we are going to film videos of her practice sessions as well, in the hopes of inspiring others to take up the keyboard! So now we have two journey's to watch over soon.
And if that weren't enough... My 5 year old has been barking daily about playing the drums! So I finally gave in, and told her that early next year, I will get her:
- Rock House Method Learn Rock Drums (Beginner)
- Ludwig Junior 5 Piece Drum Set (Puhleese... What else would I buy?)
I think it will be good to let RHM set her up with the basics, and give her something to watch. I can always guide her along with the DVD, and lead her in the right direction. Then when we reach the end of the lessons, I can pick up from there, and teach her whatever needs to be absorbed to get her on her own. (minus the R&R lifestyle that I am better at then the instrument! LOL)
My family getting really excited about learning instruments of their own has just flooded me with motivation. My desire not only to strive on with the guitar, but to be there for my wife and children as they reach out for their dreams has just made this journey all the more worth it.
I have to give out yet another big Thank You to John McCarthy for his excellent teaching skills, and to Sarge for his "remote teaching & support". Going with The Rock House Method was a decision that changed not only my life, but the lives of family as well. You two are men of exceeding character, and it is an honor to learn under both of you.
*There is a growing thought in the back of my mind that I might gently guide my 3 yr. old towards an interest in the Bass. There could be something in the wind for a family whose members comprise an entire band! But what to do with my 2yr. old, and the 4 mo. old? Rhythm guitar? Vocals? Fiddle? A wind instrument?
Edly's Music Theory Chapter 7 was on "Chord Inversion".
I have been dealing with chords in the "root position" (The lowest note in the chord) But now we are transposing (moving) the lowest note up an octave, and by changing the order, it is inverted.
- Chord progressions sound better with root position chords mixed with inverted chords.
- Inversion makes the chord easier to reach.
- A chord-tone is simply a note in a chord.
Yet another chapter I will re-read like the rest before moving on.
And speaking of Guitar, Keyboards, and Drums being a family affair...
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Happy Thanksgiving!
Turkey day has been quite busy so far, the kids are getting ready to sit down and watch a movie as the food is still in the works, hopefully I can talk them into "Gone With The Wind". It is one of our favorites, and we haven't seen it in quite a while, so quite overdue it is!
Today is quite the practice day indeed. I have been, and am going through my practice routine over and over again. Going to use the holiday "extra time" to pound away on it.
I have decided on the amp I am going to buy, no more investigation is needed, I have gathered all the relevant data, and there really isn't a need for for re-hashing the search for one much more.
Fender '65 Twin Reverb Combo Amplifier Done deal.
If you are one of the probably few that has never heard the amp in action, Fender has some demo clips you can see and hear:
- Demo Clip 1
- Demo Clip 2
- Demo Clip 3
- Demo Clip 4
- Demo Clip 5 *My Favorite (of course)
Before I go, i'll leave you with that tone of mine... (Or at least the one I will be searching for one day!)
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Practice day & 4 Fenders
Still on the usual, except now I am mixing the strumming in with the picking exercise as I do each chord: Strum E x8, 4-1-3-1-2-1, Strum A x8, 4-1-3-1-2-1, Strum D x8, 4-1-3-1-2-1, then backwards, and so on. You get the picture if you have seen the DVD.
Looked at 3 guitars and 1 amp today:
- Fender American Vintage 62 Jazzmaster
- Fender American Vintage 62 Jaguar
- Fender Vintage Hot Rod 57 Stratocaster
- Fender Cyber Twin SE Guitar Combo Amplifier
So seeing as we have a quiet day on the blog, we can post a recent picture of the baby! (Georgia Rose)
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Practice day & more Window Shopping
Still faithfully on L#6&7, but instead of doing L#7 in just D (As shown on the DVD), I have been doing it in A & E as well. And switching back and forth between the picking exercise & strumming rhythm too. I get a lot more time in that way, instead of just focusing on each lesson to practice. And it makes it lot more interesting! After reading the post at the RHM blog about practicing songs, I thought why not move some of the practicing around to make it a little different every now and then?
I told a friend of mine last night that, the more I have been playing this acoustic, the less of a hurry I seem to be in to get an electric. He is a guitarist from my old days, and he was overjoyed to hear that. LOL
He started on an electric, and never picked up the acoustic, he said he has the "want", but not the "need", no real regret, just a secret longing to "unplug". He is the sentimental type, feels that he is "betraying" his electrics by wanting to get away from them, but at the same time knows that the thought is just plain silly. I imagine it would be a piece of cake for him to buy one and play it, I mean it is still six strings, still a guitar, how much (if any) different could it really be? Where is the learning curve? I imagine I will find out myself when the time comes. :-)
He is not much of a "help" with this journey of mine. He wants me to "go it alone", and not depend on him as some sort of guide. His primary reason is that "You are not me, find your own tone." It is kinda disappointing, I was expecting him to hold my hand through this, but he insists that I will never be happy becoming his clone. I suppose he is right, and we do have a few different tastes in music, so it would be a bit disappointing to pass by them whilst following him.
But he has popped off with a little quip now and then that keeps me moving in the right direction, or answers a question, or motivates me, so that is a good thing. He is a parent as well, so when he lectures me in the context of letting children be themselves and not a mirror image of you, I get stuck with no rebuttal.
He did suggest that since I already owned a Taylor, that the least I could do was to show some bias towards their electrics, so I did spend quite a bit of time reading up at the website, and poke around some other places looking for customer comments and testimonials, and it appears that there is quite a few folks out there that have many nice things to say. So maybe I might have to throw a bit of bias their way, seeing as I am overjoyed with their product that I currently own?
Friday, November 14, 2008
Practice day & Window Shopping
Still on L#6 & 7 of course... Getting there quite slowly, but quite surely.
I started hunting around today on some of the suggestions for the electric guitar & amp that I will be getting in the Summer of 2009.
As I stated on the RHM Blog this morning... Charvel & Jackson are on the top of my list before all others, so there is no real need to investigate them until the time comes that I have gathered up everything else, and then begin the weeding out process. Whoever survives the weeding out process will have to go up against those two, to see what I end up with.
Today, and for the next few days, I will be looking over a guitar and amp that quite a few suggested after talking to them about what I might be looking for if I was going to go for a sound or genre that might be my second pick, or maybe something I always wanted to do, but was too afraid to admit to. So my current investigation involves:
I have no music store anywhere near me, so... Like the Taylor, the only thing I can do is go with the majority of positive feedback, and hope that all those that touted, were right after all.
The Taylor turned out to be a good choice, I do like it, and those that touted it were indeed right, so I am hoping they will all be right when the time comes to narrow it down to an electric. The only difference with this purchase, is that Charvel & Jackson will get a running start on all of the rest because of the exposure I had to them with my exploits in the 80's, so I will go into this biased. LOL
Oddly enough though, some (not all) of the old friends I talk to here and there, have a bitterness over Charvel & Jackson's association with Fender, but assured me that it was nothing about the product, just a personal beef. (They just wanted to get on the record with it, so as not to look like a Presidential election, where mud starts slinging, and folks dig up old bad blood. Silly indeed, but I do miss Southern California sometimes.) And besides, I lived in Ontario & Pomona, California for a while in the 80's, so other "local" considerations get thrown into my bias. :-)
All of the info I am researching now was collected before I came to RHM, so going there to ask folks in the forums will be my "last stop", and the beginning of my weeding out process.
No email yet on the Rock House Wired DVD & Edly Music Theory book being shipped yet, so I expect it won't be until Monday that they get on their way to me.
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