This week Mike Christiansen shares a few tips to help get the most out of your guitar practice sessions, including goal setting, environment, mind set, attitude, and more.
Using Consonus Backing Tracks in the Ensemble Concert
One of the benefits of Consonus Blended Learning Courseware for Classroom Guitar is that most ensemble arrangements come with online accompaniment tracks. These tracks usually omit the guitar part that is being practiced so that the student can hear her own part with those on the recording. Another feature of the accompaniment tracks is that Read the Rest…
Combine Chords & Melody
For most guitar students the early stages of their studies focus on learning the foundations of playing the instrument. These things include the mechanics of playing single notes, strumming patterns, and basic chord vocabulary. Sometimes teachers are so consumed with these building blocks of playing that students aren’t taught how to combine chords & melody into Read the Rest…
Singin’ the Blues
In this week’s expert tip Mike Christiansen explains how to come up with great lyrics for the blues. Learn to write melodies and rhythmic phrasing that will have you singing the blues like you came straight from the delta. Post your own blues lyrics in the comments below!
Tablature Vs. Standard Notation
In classroom guitar it’s important to understand the benefits of tablature and how to use it in your guitar curriculum as a tool to transition to standard notation. Some of the great benefits of tablature include learning rhythmic values, get comfortable with notes in a given position, play songs in an alternate tuning and more. Read the Rest…
Major Pentatonics Classroom Guitar
In this blog post Mike talks about Major Pentatonics for Classroom Guitar. This is a great sounding scale that is easy to play and works well over nearly any major chord progression. This scale is extremely popular and used all the time even by the pros. Another great scale is the Minor Pentatonic Scale, which is Read the Rest…
Artist of the Month – B.B. King
Bio B.B. King (Riley B. King), American blues singer, guitarist and songwriter, was ranked one of the top greatest guitarists of all time by Rolling Stone. He introduced a seasoned soloing style with fluid string bending and bright vibrato, which influenced many later electric blues guitarists. An inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Read the Rest…
Classroom Guitar: Sequence Every Skill
Every skill taught in classroom guitar has an associated sequence that it should be taught with. By using the correct sequence there’s a natural progression that allows more advanced skills to build on prior skills in the sequence. Whether it’s chords, reading, accompaniment patterns, or any other skill, understanding sequencing will save both teachers and Read the Rest…
The Muted Strum
Sometimes it’s the small things that make the biggest difference. In the world of guitar accompaniment techniques good time and rhythmic feel can make you sound like a pro when playing even the simplest strumming patterns. One of the easiest ways to develop that feel is by adding muted strums to your playing. It’s the percussive pop Read the Rest…
Skills Development – Fingerstyle Connecting Runs
Fingerstyle connecting runs are the glue that turns simple fingerpicked chord patterns into professional sounding accompaniment. With a few simple rules you’ll be able to incorporate this technique into your own playing. Watch this free video lesson to learn how and download the pdf below.
