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The Battle of the Electronic Guitar Tuner Vs. Tuning Fork
At what cost has the electronic guitar tuner laden the amateur and/or budding professional guitarist? Is such a question even valid? Without the electronic tuner, every beginning guitarist would play out of tune. Or, maybe, the skill of learning to tune the guitar from a single reference note from a tuning fork should be part…
Petit Poney By Yvon Demillac
Petit Poney comes to us from the little-known French-born composer Yvon Demillac. After initially studying cello, Demillac switched to guitar and studied with Carel Harms and Alexandre Lagoya. He ran in the circles of Sylvain Lemay, the founder of the music publisher Les Productions d’OZ, because Lemay encouraged Demillac to pursue and publish his compositions.…
The Lost Joy Of Making Music At Home
There is great joy in making music with others, especially when making music at home. A close friend and student once told me before his passing that he could read and sing music notation by the age of 3 before he knew how to read words. This wasn’t just any friend and I took him…
Dutch Dance by Hans Neusidler
The Dutch Dance by Hans Neusidler comes to us from the Renaissance period of music. Though many know him as German, his roots begin in Slovakia. After marrying, he immigrated to Germany. Also, the lute gave Neusidler his method of musical expression (a few years later he would have undoubtedly chosen the guitar!). Publications and…
Stop Practicing And Intentionally Listen To Music
As a guitarist, I tend to spend a lot of time practicing in solitude. This solitude is not just from people but also other music than what is on my music stand. The more I isolate myself, the more disconnected I can become from the greater story that music is telling through history and in…
Carrousel By Claude Gagnon
Does anyone know anything about the composer of Carrousel, Claude Gagnon? It took me several searches to find much information on the man. I assume that is because he resides and works in Canada. Searching for him for me landed me on French websites. I translated these into English but failed to find any useful…
Mastering the Art: Better Judging of Yourself While Practicing Guitar
Embarking on a journey to learn the guitar is a fulfilling endeavor, but it comes with its own set of challenges. Among these challenges is the ability to accurately assess your progress and skill level during practice sessions. Often, we can be overly critical or overly generous in our self-assessment, both of which can hinder…
First Exercise on the E String by Mertz
This is one of those pieces that the entirety of the original work would be great to play through for any player. First Exercise on the E String comes to us from Johann Mertz’s guitar method. I have not been able to find a modern edition of the work but think it should find its…
Beginning Guitar Lesson 1 (Pick Version) – Part 2
Many beginning guitar methods can be overwhelming. Here, the method will begin with the act of getting each hand comfortable with playing the strings as quickly as possible.
Beginning Guitar Lesson 1 (Pick Version) – Part 1
There are many beginning guitar books that endeavor to set every student on the correct path to learning the guitar. This lesson focuses primarily on getting the right and left hands moving on the instrument.