When you start working with a new teacher, the first few lessons are often a preliminary feeling-out process. It can take some time to get a complete sense of how they work, how knowledgeable they are, and whether their approach speaks to you. I always make a real effort to make a connection in the […]
Managing hand pain: should you push through it?
We’ve all heard the old adage “no pain, no gain”. It might be the right mindset for the gym. But when it comes to playing music, pushing through pain can cause chronic problems. If you’re serious about learning to play well, it’s important to be able to distinguish between normal “growing pains” and something that […]
Making the most of your practice time
Most people start playing an instrument with the expectation that they’ll need to practice, especially if they’re taking formal lessons. But yet, many people don’t, especially once they’ve developed some basic skill. They might pick up the instrument and try to play new things, but don’t know how to actually improve other than to just […]
Core Concepts 12: build a repertoire and perform it
There’s no better way to master a piece of music than to perform it. Practicing alone can only take you so far. Many people find that when they learn a new song, stubborn trouble spots persist even when everything else has become fluid. These might be very obvious things, like a difficult lick or chord […]
Core concepts 11: never stop looking for new options
If there’s a single lesson that might have the most impact on your guitar playing, it’s that you should never stop looking for new options. When we first start playing, nearly everyone learns the basic open chords. This is foundation stuff, and important to any style of music. But a significant percentage of people stop […]
Core Concepts 10: improvise and explore!
A confident player is unafraid to explore. People learn to play in two ways. One involves the guidance of a teacher or mentor, who leads the student one step at a time. The other involves exploration and experimentation: try this, try that, and see what happens. In last week’s Core Concepts we looked at the […]
