Re: Where to go from here?
- From: "mark (sixstringtheoryDOTcom)" <mark2741@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 24 Aug 2005 00:42:25 GMT
tenplay wrote:
I've been playing everyday for about 14 months now. I know a bunch of jazz standard chord melodies that I learned from tablature in three chord melody books that I have. They sound pretty good although they can certainly always use more polishing up.
Sounds like you've definitely put in the effort and time!
Unfortunately I cannot play
much else.
But those chord melody voicings will come in handy.
I would like to eventually be able to jam with other
musicians and be able to back up singers with creative arrangements. So how do I get there?
Blues. Know how to play a I-IV-V shuffle rhythm cleanly in all keys, play along with some songs or backing tracks. As part of your practice regimen, after the chords (and perhaps other work you're doing - I don't know what else, if anything, you're working on (ie, reading, ear training, etc) then work on the minor pentatonic scale in root position. Work on that one position for a while until you get it down cold. Once you have the notes and fingering memorized, improvise with it against any of the simple 12-bar backing tracks that are available free on the web (or buy a book that has them if you prefer). Work on your bending if you haven't mastered that skill yet. Then find some local open blues jams. Go the jams and watch what happens. If you feel even remotely up to it, then bring your guitar the following week and sign up.
If you can play chord-melody beyond just the open chord stuff, then jamming to the blues should come to you relatively quickly.
I seem to learn well from books. I'm not sure
about learning from teachers since I had a bad experience with a teacher earlier this year who wouldn't let me play at all during the lessons. He would rather demonstrate his playing and talk about his accomplishments as a musician. Thanks for any suggestions/advice.
Well, you obviously had a bad teacher. But not because he didn't let you play your guitar the whole time, necessarily. I'd try to find a good teacher. It's hit or miss. I always recommend avoiding the music store guys. Now, there are plenty of great teachers teaching in music stores. But the problem is, the majority of them, at least in my area, are just not very good teachers. They are late-teens in local cover bands. That's cool and all but they can't teach and could care less about it. It's better than mcDonalds.
Having said all of that....I get the feeling you'd do fine working on your own. I don't say that too often around here : ) But if you had/have the discipline to work every night on chord-melody work, then you would certainly get the blues down in due time.
A good book I worked with a few years ago was called "Blues You Can Use" by, I think, a guy named John Ganapes. Some of the examples are quite good and some are kind of lame, soundwise. But they're all good learning examples. If that is too advanced for you, then just work with the single-position pentatonic on your own against backing tracks.
Either way, get out there and jam as much as possible once you have the 12-bar down.
mark .
- Follow-Ups:
- Re: Where to go from here?
- From: tenplay
- Re: Where to go from here?
- References:
- Where to go from here?
- From: tenplay
- Where to go from here?
- Prev by Date: Re: F2(no2)
- Next by Date: Re: E-media Guitar experience
- Previous by thread: Where to go from here?
- Next by thread: Re: Where to go from here?
- Index(es):
Relevant Pages
|
