tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-69507200235961658512024-03-20T00:52:39.628-07:00Adventures in Classroom Guitar InstructionA discussion of Matt's experiments in methods of classroom guitar instruction at the middle school level. It also features links to related sites on the use of guitar in music education and guitar pedagogy.Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.comBlogger55125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-53270977411838048872010-05-15T19:17:00.000-07:002015-03-19T11:00:51.292-07:00Spring Guitar Concert<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Well, we had our spring guitar concert a few weeks ago and it was a resounding success! This year,I really beefed up the program with more music, had our high school counterparts perform as our special guests and even had Jacob Jordan, a local friend who is a professional classical player, close out the program. He's pictured above with my daughter, Claire.<br />
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At the suggestion of the high school guitar instructor, we held the concert at a local church. This allowed us to use the church sound with a combination of the church's choir mics and our own condensers/mic stands. Additionally, the choir loft risers ensured that students were more easily seen by parents. The acoustic sound in the church was great too. Thanks for the great idea Mr. Cole! <br />
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I ended up having sixty kids on stage, but I should note that it would not have been possible to have that many kids in the years previous when we weren't using footstools. Footstools save a lot of horizontal real estate by having the necks of the guitars at a 45 degree angle instead of straight across.<br />
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Here's our program:<br />
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Summer of ’59<br />
The Sounds of Jazz<br />
Woodstock<br />
Song Tune...arr. Bill Swick<br />
A Minor Study # 1...arr. Bill Swick<br />
A Minor Study # 12...arr. Bill Swick<br />
St. Anthony Chorale...arr. Jerry Snyder<br />
Some Kind of Sunset...arr. Jerry Snyder<br />
Strawberry Moon...arr. Jerry Snyder<br />
Achy Breaky Heart<br />
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The first three tunes are super easy and come from Everybody's Guitar Ensembles. Part one is E, F & G on the first string using only whole, half and quarter notes. All of my special ed kids can play these and that's their purpose on the program. We also did three tunes from Bill Swick's ensemble series and three from the ensemble edition of Jerry Snyder's Guitar School.<br />
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If I could go back, I would have planned for more easy music that was kind of in between the first three and <i>Song Tune </i>in difficulty. The way the program was laid out, I had everyone on stage and as we got to the more difficult stuff, some kids would take their seats in the audience while others adjusted seating on stage. By the end, we were down to an ensemble of about eight kids with me playing along. <br />
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<i>Achy Breaky Heart </i>was something that I transcribed from a beginner band arrangement earlier this year. It was for a beauty pageant performance whose theme was "Boot Scoot'n Beauties". I know...<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijZIdJDbmci2Q4IQ1KfmLi5NH-3lKQQCdeAJMUmj9UREWsmIObYZxetQq53c0pOmsqBU1bEwdArwao4uPeRfQSRDERzATSRik7zXQA1sGH5pwV0MQ2ySFUTzSt6wqJp6mQ4c8Az6qPsgik/s1600/IMAG0233.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="cssfloat: left; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijZIdJDbmci2Q4IQ1KfmLi5NH-3lKQQCdeAJMUmj9UREWsmIObYZxetQq53c0pOmsqBU1bEwdArwao4uPeRfQSRDERzATSRik7zXQA1sGH5pwV0MQ2ySFUTzSt6wqJp6mQ4c8Az6qPsgik/s320/IMAG0233.jpg" height="214" width="320" wt="true" /></a><br />
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Anyway, it turns out the beginner band arrangements I've transcribed in the last three years have been well worth the effort. Easy, beginner guitar ensemble music is just kind of a newer thing. Meanwhile, there are tons of beginner band arrangements out there. They've just been doing it longer. They always end up being the coolest thing on the program. Achy Breaky Heart is a pretty cheesy tune, but this a great arrangement. <br />
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In preparation for this concert we spent the second semester with the kids passing off ensemble music assignments after they had passed off all the textbook material. We did some chords, rhythm strums, bass/strum patterns, learned the twelve-bar blues with a blues shuffle and basic improvisation.<br />
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I was very pleased with everything we did this year and felt like we grew a lot from the previous year. I even talked to the curriculum guy at the state department about doing a pilot guitar program for the state and getting Guitar on the books as an actual course listing. I was trying to be optomistic and plan as if things weren't changing, but this has been a rough year for education in the state of Mississippi. I found out a after the concert that my program had been cut, along with two other music teachers, a band director, two art teachers, a gifted teacher, a PE teacher and various other special ed and and part-time positions. </div>
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So, I will probably be in a church or something next year. I'm still really appreciative to have had the opportunity to teach guitar. General Music went from being a chore, taught between "real music" performance classes, to something that I really looked forward to every day. I'm working on doing guitar classes in conjunction with the local store this summer. I'll also be working on possibly relocating. <br />
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On a lighter note I had a "blues epiphony" after an early morning jog a few weeks ago. I'll post more on teaching the blues in another post. Also, in another post I'll discuss what you, as a teacher, can do with 50 minutes (or more) in a guitar classroom. Someone asked me about that a couple of months ago, and it's really a great question. Believe me, I was in the same boat a couple of years ago.<br />
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Blessings,<br />
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Matt JonesUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-54850480744600598722010-04-15T11:36:00.000-07:002015-03-19T11:47:40.962-07:00Repost: Guitar In the Schools Video from GAMAThis is primarily an industry marketing video, but I always thought that it was very cool. It also features a mentor of mine, Bill Swick, and his program at Las Vegas Academy. We used his curriculum when I was teaching at Lafayette. For whatever reason this has been yanked from the interwebs. It's somehow still stuck here in blogspot limbo. Enjoy while you can:<br />
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<a href="http://classroomguitar.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2007-10-01T16:00:00-07:00&max-results=7&start=35&by-date=false">http://classroomguitar.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2007-10-01T16:00:00-07:00&max-results=7&start=35&by-date=false</a>Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-72463822919627276602010-03-15T07:28:00.000-07:002014-06-24T14:39:53.222-07:00justinguitar.com<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;">
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<img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin4UXhOGlOO4rmoR7LYFWiLTH5iQBPxxTtYvO9jraVgA6TXj26trMELCkeWPUvpkqV4QDSeQVK3qcDYmnlfvgDjL-C2gtHeTse90BZA1KdiWnk7XPPmen_K4ZPsHBbIpBFB0Ara39vzcIB/s1600/justin+logo.gif" n4="true" />I wanted to take the opportunity to recommend this site which I've been using quite a bit lately for my personal jazz study. I'm sure that it would be a great reference for any classroom teacher as well. His site is probably the most comprehensive free guitar lesson site I've seen. While most sites with this much information are a little dry, Justin's is a lot of fun and he's a great teacher. He has a real gift for thorougly presenting a topic while keeping it as simple as possible.<br />
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<a href="http://justinguitar.com/" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwN8_vz4ctjk_fKcledien54fRxMfG4lSkSpPn8t2_lRpf_O_Xvu-EzXow6jF9-8DRFJTd8USieCt8kMvlwajgIqEC2cPQIwVWPoKtdmdGl0WHfW45XKLjdRZBYr7epiLjy_DLBv2FL_Wz/s1600/justin+characture.jpg" n4="true" /></a>The material is sequenced and grouped in a logical way that defies the tendancies of most of us musical/creative types. There are beginner and intermediate methods on the site with text and video. You'll also find intermediate/advanced material covering various styles such as blues, reggae and jazz. <br />
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His presentation of the CAGED system with it's corresponding chords, scales and arpeggios is the best that you'll find on the web. If you're a teacher, the graphics for his chord grids and scales are a great reference. </div>
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All of this material is presented free. So, donate or buy something. </div>
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<a href="http://justinguitar.com/"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ_oVeVQXArjwBlFO5ndPlOTAxt-X6ruFFHSFlkha1Zv6nTsLzP1lC1dc_ygU-QX5MSFs2Ox90GJsX3dW7xPIDmpC4FKdzhcjbJqH28jAssthZuD819zB7rKXoweU9dDdcToas-oBqKy-Z/s1600/Jus-IMF-250x250.jpg" n4="true" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEin4UXhOGlOO4rmoR7LYFWiLTH5iQBPxxTtYvO9jraVgA6TXj26trMELCkeWPUvpkqV4QDSeQVK3qcDYmnlfvgDjL-C2gtHeTse90BZA1KdiWnk7XPPmen_K4ZPsHBbIpBFB0Ara39vzcIB/s1600/justin+logo.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-59383384073016049832010-01-30T09:17:00.000-08:002011-03-10T06:56:05.469-08:00Updated Class Grading Rubic/Grading Sheet<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMWWCXy8RHVUFzDkWOLIZWVZEJlifVlY-8dTW2QBgdmVOiZNlrsjLLQP96w10P85DhlTg1pG-FMajWh8PWkmtiWDBham4dn8HSrL4-XhTuu-1kIkmOSkly3YJzLdmeVIBQ1iZfjCdnfrP4/s1600/rubric.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="308" q6="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMWWCXy8RHVUFzDkWOLIZWVZEJlifVlY-8dTW2QBgdmVOiZNlrsjLLQP96w10P85DhlTg1pG-FMajWh8PWkmtiWDBham4dn8HSrL4-XhTuu-1kIkmOSkly3YJzLdmeVIBQ1iZfjCdnfrP4/s400/rubric.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>This is the grading sheet I use when students play something for a grade in class. It has all the technical stuff I always tell them. So I can just circle the things they need to work on and give them a grade. That way it's not so subjective, but I don't assign a certain number of points for each items. So, in that sense it's not a strict rubric. <br />
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I format it in the document so that it's two per page although the google doc doesn't support this. I do it front-and-back to save paper and time copying. I punch holes in it and they put it in their binder. Then they've got four weeks worth before I have to give them another one. Click the "Open in a New Window" icon above to print this version, or click <a href="https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0BzyLWJOv_MPyOTZhNzAyMzQtMjM2Ny00ODhkLWEwNzctZjk2NGQzOGQzZjE2&hl=en&authkey=CKqOy7UE">here</a> for the link to a Word doc which you can save and edit. <br />
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If you're looking for ideas for a rubric or syllabus, check out Bill Swick's backward assessment models at classroomguitar.com. If you want something to use in grading students that has specific things to check off as the student plays, the guys in Austin, TX at guitarcurriculum.com have a great sheet in their curriculum. It's classically focused if you want that, but even if you don't, it's really helpful in the way it breaks down the technique. It can be difficult to assess certain bad technical habits or find the correct phrase or imagery to help a student fix them. Their grading sheet is excellent and I've incorporated a lot of their ideas into mine. Both of these sites are linked in the bar to the right.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-47008466653488560022009-12-12T18:55:00.000-08:002011-03-10T07:11:32.611-08:00Ensemble Book Reviews and Spring Concert Plans<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I wanted to share my thoughts on some of the ensemble music I'm using. After doing my first Christmas concert a couple of weeks ago, I really want to gear up for our spring concert and do some real music. I plan on hitting the ensemble stuff pretty hard after Christmas. Right now my average student is finishing up study with the 4th string. I estimate that in 3 to 4 weeks I'll have 80% who've passed off the 6th string material. Then, they'll graduate on to the ensemble music. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Right now the plan is to have a few ensemble pieces that all of these students work through and pass off. Then, I hope to have several small ensembles of 3 to 6 kids to better fill out our Spring concert program. </div></div></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Also, I've got students of pretty widely varying levels of skill. I've got a couple of 'nerds' who just are reading and technical machines. They have no previous musical experience but just freakishly adhere to every musical and technical suggestion I make. And they just can't get enough guitar. </div></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I also have the band kids who can already read music. Then there are the students who have been in my class a previous year and are a little ahead. I say "a little" because this is the first year that I've actually done guitar exclusively in my General Music classes. So, we're basically almost a semester ahead of last year already. </div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Then there are my special education students. Of these, I've got three who will never be able to read beyond the first strings even with letter names and/or fret numbers written over the notes. Then there are probably another 8 to 10 who are "struggling" with 2 to 3 strings. For these students, I've had to find ensemble music that accomodates these challenges. I'll address this issue in my reviews of the books. </div></div></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">My main considerations in finding ensemble music for first-year middle school guitarists are ease of playing and quality of arrangement. I guess I'm looking for the highest "quality of arrangement" to "ease of playing" ratio in these pieces. Honestly, there is plenty of material out there that is good quality. It's just more difficult. I also was looking for some of the arrangements to be more rhythmic and contemporary. There are tons of classical arrangements to be found, many of them free. There is a definite need for lighter concert material to mix in with the classical arrangements. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">I'll review the four ensemble books I got from the GAMA workshop this summer and also the other sources I'm using for the concert. There are a lot of other sources out there and I certainly haven't seen them all. I'm just giving my thoughts on the few that I've seen. All of these books are companions to method books of the same title. Some of them even let you know at which point in studying the method the ensembles can be used. (Purchasing any of these products through the links provided here supports my blog. Thanks.)<br />
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<strong>21st Century Guitar Ensemble</strong><br />
<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0898987369&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0897245474&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">This is book one of the ensemble companions to the popular "21st Century Guitar" method series. I haven't used the method book yet. So I can't really compare it to that method. This one I found to have the lowest ratio of the two afore mentioned factors. Many of these short pieces have substantial measures of rest for one or two parts while the others begin alone, almost canon style. I don't think you can easily hold student interest with many measures of counting rests in such short musical works. </div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The arrangements didn't really do anything for me either. I know that's very subjective, but I don't have the book in front of me. I'm not using any of the pieces from this book and don't foresee using them in the future. I think there are better options out there. Again, if you want something more difficult, why not just do something which is also of more interest and quality. I will say that the 21st Century Ensemble Series has a large number of books in publication. Some of the other books in the series for specific styles and themes have good reviews at Amazon.com. If you're looking for something different or a specific theme (like <em>Peter Gunn</em>), they may be worth checking out. </div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong>Bill Swick's Guitar Class Ensemble Series</strong></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit-Z2RFXx7ktYMzbifL23j0SODh9O3OXPPy9i8Kl7fPBK3dzmbfR5v45aIoZbIj0VHkGVuNJcIJJAZ1_0r5dy7hMCzI2vR54jSQrnz5Tcc0NuFSWQBJvnbEC9Fd4Z-vPAVybmCpnZoYlsb/s1600-h/Bill+Swick+Ensemble+Series.bmp" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit-Z2RFXx7ktYMzbifL23j0SODh9O3OXPPy9i8Kl7fPBK3dzmbfR5v45aIoZbIj0VHkGVuNJcIJJAZ1_0r5dy7hMCzI2vR54jSQrnz5Tcc0NuFSWQBJvnbEC9Fd4Z-vPAVybmCpnZoYlsb/s200/Bill+Swick+Ensemble+Series.bmp" /></a>This is an ensemble companion to the material I use daily for classroom instruction. I used "Song Tune" last year for my spring concert, and it was by far the best thing we did on the program. It is the simplest tune, using mainly whole, half and quarter note rhythms, and each part has notes on a couple of strings each. </div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">This year I've given a few kids who are finished with the classroom materials the next two ensembles which are a couple of Paganini studies. These have some eighth notes, a few high A's on the first string and some accidentals if I remember correctly. The pieces in this series are all from classical compositions and have pretty basic rhythms for beginner guitar students. The pieces become gradually more difficult as you work through the book with the last few including notes in upper positions for students who are a little farther along in their study.</div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
<strong>Everybody's Guitar Ensembles </strong><br />
<div style="text-align: right;"><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><strong><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=1569397368&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe></strong></div></div></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_iAdOSh4jlZzcHFDwpMYNR3R25s-36y2qjojoZTdWHRLQ-a6ZRVUlmpPprW9Xm0ryGd0JFUTrtSI-cQiiMYtZM4bf1rkqXbiXox_IDSg-xCcxLmJ62d2JstwvYX77qbFDKYP8MA850W9J/s1600-h/Everybody's+Guitar+Ensembles+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>This is the companion ensemble book to Everybody's Guitar Method, which I used for several years in private lessons. It's pretty much what the title indicates, very simple and graded to be easy enough for anyone to be able to succeed. It's funny because I had already picked 3 or 4 of these pieces out for our spring concert and was calling them our "everybody" songs before I remembered the title. </div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">We're doing the first 4 arrangements which are <strong><em>very </em></strong>simple and probably way too easy for high school or what you might consider "normal" even for middle school, but with the large number of special education students I have these are great. They're good sounding arrangements and are very short. This book would definitely be good for use early in the year. </div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Part 1 on these first few pieces is first string only and very simple quarter, half and whole note rhythms. They also have 2 to 3 additional parts with optional chords. Some of the lower parts include notes as far down as the 6th string. This book also has arrangements which are limited to the first three strings or so, two of which we used for our holiday concert. </div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">These were <em>My Dreydl </em>and <em>Jingle Bells</em>, which were very nicely arranged and simple to play. We put them together in all of two weeks time. I had a couple of second-year kids strum chords which really filled the sound out. The arrangements become slightly more advanced as you go through the book, but overall this is probably the simplest of the books. These pieces are mostly lighter numbers which can be hard to find arranged well like this. This book is highly recommended, especially for Middle School. </div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong>Hands On Training Guitar Ensembles</strong></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAA_LCnFTiqfcjk1yo3W6I85c5gGEudk1wlky6m-s_RuItUcHJmwd60Fw8N3BhnnOQyfhHyG4KglJuy7RuyBrBehVTkJ5Sn38DvCWr6cPxxVBjksNg5RZ9QsqHafgFJ16O0HDFP6NP4noW/s1600-h/hot+guitar+ensemble.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ps="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAA_LCnFTiqfcjk1yo3W6I85c5gGEudk1wlky6m-s_RuItUcHJmwd60Fw8N3BhnnOQyfhHyG4KglJuy7RuyBrBehVTkJ5Sn38DvCWr6cPxxVBjksNg5RZ9QsqHafgFJ16O0HDFP6NP4noW/s200/hot+guitar+ensemble.jpg" /></a>This is the companion to the H.O.T. method books. It contains very nicely arranged pieces which are simple to play if you have some kids who are reading on all six strings. It says in the description on their website, "no sixteenth note rhythms". There is a very tasteful use of dynamics as well as other guitar sound effects and optional percussion parts on some pieces . This book has several American and international folk song arrangements. This book is a good value and contains a wide variety of styles. </div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
<strong>Jerry Snyder's Guitar School Ensemble Book</strong><br />
<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0739012827&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0739012835&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><strong></strong></div>The Jerry Snyder Guitar School series is probably one of the more popular methods for classroom instruction and with good reason. It is very well written and if you don't have a copy for reference in your classroom, you should get it. The companion ensemble book is also excellent, having the best arranged pieces of those reviewed here. When playing through these, you can really tell that these were arranged by someone who has played a lot of guitar and knows his instrument. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">Most of these arrangements are a little more difficult, but many are entirely appropriate even for middle school students performing an end of the year concert. This book has the best balance of classical and contemporary arrangements of the books reviewed. There is also a wide range of difficulty to be found from piece to piece. Definitely don't overlook this book. It deserves a place in your reference library. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><strong>How They're All Going Together</strong></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">For the final concert, I plan to have 3 to 4 "everybody" pieces which should take up all of 5 minutes, 3 or 4 pieces that most of the other kids play together and then a few small ensemble pieces for the kids that just need something a bit more difficult. Then we're having our high school counterparts play a few pieces as our special guests. </div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; text-align: left;">Last, I've arranged for a buddy who is a classicaly-trained professional guitarist to come perform a short set for us. I think we're going to end the concert with him, the high school guitar teacher and myself playing as an ensemble for the kids. I though they would get a kick out of seeing the old guys play with a pro. I'll update as we get closer to the concert. </div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-51105278951608808562009-12-05T10:54:00.000-08:002009-12-05T11:02:33.510-08:00Right Hand Technique for Middle School GuitarI thought that it might be good to address the issue of right hand technique since it is something that I really struggled over at the beginning of the year. I went to the GAMA workshop and was inspired by a couple of people who had gone beyond picking with thumbs and were doing finger alternation. Of course this was on the high school level, but I really wanted to do something more than just using the thumb. <br />
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I began with teaching alternating "I-M" rest strokes while we were learning the first string. Then, we started the second string. When we finally began approaching the point of putting them both together, I realized that I would have to deal with the issue of string-crossing. If you've never played classical guitar, this has to do with avoiding awkward fingerings when going from the 1st string to the second and so forth. The idea is to alternate so that you're not playing with the same finger on two consecutive notes. <br />
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The problem is that sometimes in order to alternate you have to: <br />
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1. Make an awkward crossing to a higher string with the lower finger while moving the entire hand parrallel to the strings and try to keep the angle.<br />
2. Incorportate the "A" finger and plan out string crossings ahead of time. <br />
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When I was in college, I learned a set of general principles for avoiding string crossings and wrote in the R.H. fingerings in tricky places using the "A" finger to avoid awkward "I-M" crossings. <br />
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I just really thought that this might be way to difficult for Middle School kids. So, I emailed a few people I really respect in the field to ask what they would do on the Middle School level. One was a friend of mine who is a professional and he recommended I talk to his buddy who works with Middle Schoolers out in Austin, TX. They are the guys with the Austin Guitar Society who run the <a href="http://guitarcurriculum.com/">guitarcurriculum.com</a> site. <br />
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</div>I really like their philosophy of emphasizing technique and ensemble playing from the start. I spent a couple of weeks looking pretty hard at their stuff and have incorporated some of the ideas, but it becomes obvious pretty quickly that the techniques don't fit with a traditional guitar method. They've begun with the idea that the methods <em>are</em> the problem, and I whole-heartedly agree. So they wrote their own curriculum from scratch. <br />
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I just couldn't do a whole new curriculum a few weeks into the semester. I think that if I'm still doing this in a couple of years, I'll probably be using this. I would definitely like to do some of their training. It's a very comprehensive but is definitely a "next level" concept for someone who wants to really train up players. <br />
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I also talked to Bill Swick from <a href="http://classroomguitar.com/">Las Vegas Academy Guitar Program</a>. His is program is probably one of the most prestigious in the country and the entire county out there has a huge guitar program. (<a href="http://www.discoverguitar.com/workshopmovie.html">Check out the GAMA video</a>.) He teaches high school but told me about the technique he used when he taught middle school. <br />
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It involves simply assigning a finger to each string: A - 1st, M - 2nd, I - 3rd and P to 4, 5 and 6. I thought this made a lot of sense and decided that it would be a good step in the right direction after thumb-picking for a couple of years. I pulled a couple of pages from a classical book that involve playing open-string patterns and worked them with the kids for a week or so using the meticulous attention to technique suggested by the guitarcurriculum.com method. <br />
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Then, we went back to our method book and played all of the 1st string notes with the A finger and all of the 2nd string notes with M. Most kids grasped this pretty well, and we are using it with a good deal success to this point. I <em>do </em>have to note that when you use this technique with a traditional method you begin with the 1st string which is the A finger. This inherantly makes proper technique more difficult to reinforce. <br />
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I've got the technique principles written on their rubric/grading sheets and consistently try to reinforce them, but I know that all of this would be easier if you could start with playing P, I and M on open strings the way the Austin guys do it. You would just have to have a curriculum written to that goal. Well, they do and again that's why I think that eventually I may go that direction. <br />
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For now, the kids are using footstools, sitting in a healthy seated postion, and they're playing with PIMA using reasonable technique. This is a great improvement from what we were doing a year ago and I think that it also gives us a lot more range in the difficulty of literature that they can perform without having to worry about string crossing.Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-10153543754634884622009-12-05T09:43:00.000-08:002015-03-20T17:53:20.746-07:00Christmas Guitar Concert 2009<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Tuesday night was our Christmas concert, actually my first Christmas concert for guitars. I had 53 of 58 students show up which is very good for our rural school. I was very happy that there were enough instruments for everyone to play especially since a few kids didn’t bring their own after having said they would. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfVGvFrIcIM22WYFvaqvIJ5hpDq_M63H-dDnIYck6KcB6JL6lA7K5PM-gbCp3g525caL6A83O9wpgikdq4XD_2Rec2Klg1UhmX4AMlDog1-bPm6KFEKYqs4CuABH6A990ByVO_7Iw0fK-9/s1600-h/IMG_2036.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfVGvFrIcIM22WYFvaqvIJ5hpDq_M63H-dDnIYck6KcB6JL6lA7K5PM-gbCp3g525caL6A83O9wpgikdq4XD_2Rec2Klg1UhmX4AMlDog1-bPm6KFEKYqs4CuABH6A990ByVO_7Iw0fK-9/s200/IMG_2036.JPG" er="true" /></a>At our school, all of the kids can’t provide his/her own instrument. I have about 25 guitars that we use at school every day. We made up the difference for the concert with about fifteen kids bringing their own instruments, using a few baritone ukes that were here when I first came to the school, old guitars that I have here at school, and using a few of my own personal instruments. </div>
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All went well, and I had each class play its own piece sitting at the front of our seating arrangement. When they finished, they moved back to their permanent seat and the next group came and sat in front. When the third group had finished, we had everyone sitting on stage together. We played the nine pieces I listed in my previous post minus Joy to the World, which we didn’t have time to finish rehearsing</div>
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Tuesday night was the first time all of them had played together. That being said, it went pretty smoothly. I did learn several important lessons from this performance which I will be glad to share with you. </div>
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First, for a guitar performance, sound reinforcement is a very high priority. The day of the concert, I found out that the sound system I used for last year’s performance no longer worked. There was another PA in the auditorium but it only had one speaker and I didn’t have a lot of time to set up a new PA. I honestly thought, “I’ve got almost twice as many players. I should be good.”. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1QoSaG1znaAYoKO9SlUAnDKnoSQW1i-ih2lkeqjgiPYpUxF6iP3crIBrpDxLY6E2-JzeFKbeF6I5t-I1A7RmG9oup3W1lby-WnoYaFK5GMpxcQA0a1bj2s3lCiUTGvjpzSVHnpxU-CeJG/s1600-h/IMG_2038.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1QoSaG1znaAYoKO9SlUAnDKnoSQW1i-ih2lkeqjgiPYpUxF6iP3crIBrpDxLY6E2-JzeFKbeF6I5t-I1A7RmG9oup3W1lby-WnoYaFK5GMpxcQA0a1bj2s3lCiUTGvjpzSVHnpxU-CeJG/s200/IMG_2038.JPG" er="true" /></a>I knew that we wouldn’t be heard over the air conditioning (imagine a 747) without sound reinforcement. But I had run into the air-conditioning man in the hall that day. He showed me how to turn the fan off and said that he would program the unit it from his computer to turn off in time for the concert. Well, I didn’t get it done correctly and the folks in the back couldn’t hear much. Next time, I will definitely have my condenser mikes set up and have sufficient amplification. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTO_L8g12L8MB2aMdPB7yF-Gi0_jLSLfCJHsscjFdWXbd9M3oXt_VnrMvImxkCxGr5ADFwbXif2XJQHRAI7dqlkFImeLoTfilnCa0kSbWxeYzopmyCG59LiRXn_A5AZ0JV2cu74OsJnmBB/s1600-h/IMG_2042.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTO_L8g12L8MB2aMdPB7yF-Gi0_jLSLfCJHsscjFdWXbd9M3oXt_VnrMvImxkCxGr5ADFwbXif2XJQHRAI7dqlkFImeLoTfilnCa0kSbWxeYzopmyCG59LiRXn_A5AZ0JV2cu74OsJnmBB/s200/IMG_2042.JPG" er="true" /></a>Second, there comes a time when one must sacrifice aesthetics and acoustics for practicality. We were really too big for the auditorium. It was darker at the back of the stage and parents can’t see kids back there anyway. Besides, with the loud air-conditioning factored in the acoustics weren’t any better than the gym. Our next concert will be in the gym. It may sound worse and look cheesier to this musician, but Momma will be able to see Sweetie Pie from the audience and that’s probably all she cares about anyway. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCkRFMj9jYq_rURPjIFbWNj-catWZD2PQ88IwwpoEy861-PxMz86E0MVV5dy2tLv8tdNCbXffXTJRfvgt12ux-GR9JM2YeUmYoXaaviLJ6ffaPusWHCrppjVAtuS81OjpQPWwdZQuzAE8i/s1600-h/IMG_2037.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCkRFMj9jYq_rURPjIFbWNj-catWZD2PQ88IwwpoEy861-PxMz86E0MVV5dy2tLv8tdNCbXffXTJRfvgt12ux-GR9JM2YeUmYoXaaviLJ6ffaPusWHCrppjVAtuS81OjpQPWwdZQuzAE8i/s200/IMG_2037.JPG" er="true" /></a>Third, I would begin rehearsing the ensemble music earlier and lose the expectation of having everyone play everything. I spent a larger portion of the beginning of the school year just playing the stuff out of the book and really started working ensembles about three weeks before the concert. They did really well with this because of the simplicity of the music we did, but my students that were already way ahead could have been working on some more challenging pieces for a smaller ensemble performance. </div>
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I kind of geared this beginning of the year concert toward what everyone could do. My special needs students could play one of the parts on most of these pieces. Then, they kind of struggled through other pieces. When a couple of players are “off”, it makes the whole thing sound less professional. </div>
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For my spring concert, I’ve already chosen my “everybody” pieces. Then, I’ll have a few “average” pieces that all of my regular ed. kids will perform. Last, I plan to include many more small-ensemble pieces for my students that are more advanced. I think this will help fill out the concert more and give exceptional students a chance to really shine. </div>
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Finding music on this wide range of skill levels can be a challenge without just buying a ton of music to check it out. At the GAMA Teaching Guitar Workshop, this summer, I got five or six ensemble books. So, in my next post I’ll give reviews of the three ensemble books I’m using and their appropriateness for different skill levels. </div>
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Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-50332574165013320472009-11-20T16:11:00.000-08:002011-03-09T12:14:49.937-08:00Christmas Concert<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo5mKOY6sJZdd4bWBpgo1yaGO-qyWjlGdzKee7giUhWiSeD7ZGP-16aWXFaj4Fw3su2U5Y73ZbxlIpydNOxo-9673BQv61LfXeDr4Po7DNfVGJuGMSXV5IMqhNn0seqeHqGfNkZUuVsSWH/s1600/Everybody's+Guitar+Ensembles+1.jpg"></a>Well, it's that time of year, and I'm preparing for my first Christmas Guitar Concert. It's set for December 1st. I'm trying to get thirty extra footstools made because right now I only have a classroom set. I'm also trying to figure out how I'm going to seat 50+ kids on the stage when they won't have all been together at the same time until the night of the concert.<br />
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<div>I've got each class divided into 3 parts and we're doing all 3-part music. I'm also trying to account for an ensemble group I'm putting together for my advanced kids. I want to seat them in the front so we don't have to move people around during the concert.<br />
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<img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5406728516704121298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM9CnSOHWB8b2LxsR5GXaZjOkmMcwomhcZcEAorl5Qy66li09TIcLUz9zlbuCcOgMbbExOHu6Vcko4MnWa0g4sZKf1BdXqPIbPvRyrnUZFoLdOjRDzLX9XhyphenhyphenVAwl_LTPXE4UAI6o6Sub5O/s200/Bill+Swick+Method+Cover.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 200px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 181px;" />The music is pretty simple because it's early in the year, it's middle-school and most kids don't have their own instrument at home. Therefore, all the practicing happens in class. I introduced all the pieces we'll be performing about three weeks before the concert.<br />
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We're doing trios from Bill Swick's <em>Beginning Guitar Class Sumplementary Materials </em>and <em>Yamaha Band Ensembles </em>(Alto Sax edition)I use. We're also doing a couple of arrangements from <em>Everybody's Guitar Ensembles</em> . (Purchasing through the links provided supports my blog. Thanks. )<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=1569397368&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=B002ABMR6M&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><br />
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All the notes from the Swick book and <em>Everybody's Guitar Ensembles </em>are on the first three strings and are pretty simple; simple whole, half and quarter note rhythms. The Yamaha ensemble book is mostly on the first three strings when played on the guitar and is also very simple. Although, one song has some eighth notes.<br />
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Here is the program:<br />
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<strong><em>Lightly Row </em></strong>- from the Bill Swick book<br />
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<strong><em>A Wrinkle in Time</em></strong><br />
<strong><em>Shadow of the Bull</em></strong><br />
<strong><em>Marianne</em></strong><br />
These three are also from the Swick book. My 1st, 3rd and 6th period guitar classes will each be playing one of these as a class ensemble. These are simple to learn and I thought this would be a great way to fill a concert program without everyone having to learn a lot more music.<br />
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<strong><em>My Dreydl </em></strong>- from <em>Everybody's Guitar Ensembles</em><br />
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<strong><em>Up on the Housetop </em></strong>- from the sax ensemble book<br />
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<strong><em>Joy to the World </em></strong>- This one is my ensemble for my more advanced students. These kids have some band or piano and/or have taken my class in a previous year. (I don't have a multi-year program at this point.) The piece is from volume 2 of the sax ensemble book. It has low and high F# but is otherwise on three strings. It also has dotted eighths and sixteenths in the rhythms.<br />
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<strong><em>O Come All Ye Faithful </em></strong>- from the sax ensemble book<br />
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<strong><em>Jingle Bells - </em></strong>from <em>Everybody's Guitar Ensembles</em>. This one is probably the most "arranged" sounding of the pieces and part one is simple enough that most of my special ed students can play most of it.<br />
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I know that this sounds hillarious, but I'm hoping that this program will run about 30 minutes. Most of these tunes are only about 16 to 20 measures each. We're doing a repeat on everything just to make them a little longer. I figure that if I talk a little between a couple of these that we can stretch it into a 30 minute mini-concert.<br />
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I really <em>do</em> think that it's important for them to have the opportunity to perform during the first semester. With my choirs, it's pretty easy for me to take them to a nursing home or hospital to sing during the holidays, but it's much more difficult to squeeze 50 guitar players into a venue like that. I think we will probably go play at the elementary school down the road the following week just to give them another performance opportunity.<br />
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One thing to note, I used a lot of different sources for ensemble music. It's really difficult to find holiday music arranged for beginning guitar ensembles. There were other arrangements of Christmas songs in the Jerry Snyder ensemble book, but they're a good bit more difficult. They might be more suitable for second year students or high school.<br />
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Well, the concert is scheduled for December 1st and we just got out for Thanksgiving break. So I'm looking forward to some family time. Then, when we get back we'll have two school days to set up chairs and rehearse a little more for the concert. I'll try to post some pictures and video after the concert and let you know how it went.</div>Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-4771560809796736332009-08-31T18:04:00.000-07:002009-08-31T19:32:18.941-07:00Guitar Curriculum.com and the Austin Classical Guitar Society<a href="http://www.guitarcurriculum.com/"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 70px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5376318609467134658" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1vsGQJ06T2niyPt7BDK_GqNoY67NzfjhlwagRgxr0Ju9w36BwHQ9kWejrbfyS1thZr_Wqpk3AVB0B5zBRBCtLxTd0xg-1Q00s1OhZcJsIev76a99t8VRG9xMhLJ-PsCu8tG39UW00ec3t/s200/guitar+curriculum+dot+com.jpg" /></a>Several weeks ago a friend of mine referred me to these guys when we were discussing guitar curriculum. They're with the Austin Classical Guitar Society and have put together a killer website. They've started from the ground up and have written a comprehensive classical guitar curriculum. It's got <strong>daily </strong>lesson plans and a whole repertoire of graded music. The site is pretty new and they're still adding to it, but already it's really an overwhelming amount of material.<br /><br />This method takes highly inovative approach to teaching in the classroom setting. First of all, they start with ensemble playing on the first day. (Dude, I know!) They divide the class into three sections like a band or chorus and teach the "set up" for classical sitting position. Then the students learn basic right hand free strokes on open strings.<br /><br />Ah, open strings... This is where I start glazing over in the Noad book and think, " I could never do this for weeks with Middle School kids", but here's where I think they're onto something. It's ensemble music. The teacher teaches simple parts by rote, incorporating a couple of left hand notes and the kids are playing an ensemble. This first song is called Spy Tune and is a great first day guitar class activity whether or not you are sold on the whole ball of wax. The best thing is it's really fun.<br /><br />The first few weeks are focused on the right hand and learning to read the open strings. The curriculum maintains interest by emphasizing dynamics, rhythm and mixing in some left hand notes which are taught by rote.<br /><br />I think the repertoire alone is worth looking at this program, and if you're like me and have tried this thing on your own for a few years and really want to get down to the technique stuff that you may already teach private students, this is a great place to start.<br /><br />In the past, I've always thought, "I can't wait until we learn enough notes to play some ensemble music". Consider that in band methods students learn 5 or 6 notes and immediately sound like an ensemble of some kind just because of the different registrations of the instruments. Well, with the guitar, you can get two full octaves if they're playing arrangements using the six open strings. Why didn't I think of this?<br /><br />Starting with the open strings and focusing on the right hand is the consensus in the standard classical methods. Because of the technical nature of classical playing there's really no way around it. They're just really repetitive and may lose high school (and especially middle school) students' attention quickly.<br /><br />Not only does this method put great ensemble music in your hands for even the most beginning groups in guitar class, but it uses this element, combined with emphases on dynamics, rhythm and percussion effects to combat the tedium of most classical methods' early and lengthy focus on the right hand.<br /><br />You should know that this method is very detailed and comprehensive. Without training or some private lessons, it may be inaccessible to teachers who have no previous classical experience. A year or two ago, I read an article at the Guitar Foundation of America's website that stated the serious need to do more in the area of pre-college training for classical guitarists. I think this program addresses that need pretty well.<br /><br />Guitar classes in general are increasing in popularity at a rate that is really exciting. So a method that seeks to make <em>technical study</em> fun? That could be really cool.<br /><br />Right now they're offering the curriculum as an annual subscription. You can click "Contact" on the <a href="http://www.guitarcurriculum.com/">Guitar Curriculum home page</a> for more info.Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-45498137949728962012009-08-24T17:32:00.000-07:002011-04-06T11:44:15.852-07:00Guitar Storage and Maintanence IssuesI now have 18 classroom instruments and I'm trying to figure out how to store them. I went down to the 'unclaimed furniture' room at our school and got a couple of small tables to get all of the instruments off the floor. I've got three full-size guitars coming from the music store later this week. So I need to have a place to put everything.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_RL81VFgYH5xgUS-1EXUrQMcukOhedkplIk-Zq0pVmacA16DnA0eaJ8A52bGlhXx5EYW2NEeO-VCIqirh6Ct7KPImx_63vexBZJAAyDyrDddcy2ucSF10auTc5p_938YCSXjKmFFrEy65/s1600-h/IMG_1363.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5375363532442753058" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_RL81VFgYH5xgUS-1EXUrQMcukOhedkplIk-Zq0pVmacA16DnA0eaJ8A52bGlhXx5EYW2NEeO-VCIqirh6Ct7KPImx_63vexBZJAAyDyrDddcy2ucSF10auTc5p_938YCSXjKmFFrEy65/s320/IMG_1363.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 160px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 197px;" /></a><br />
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Until I can get more permanent cases for the guitar I'm taping the boxes they came in. I've always used clear packing tape for this but have recently decided to give duct tape a try. After seeing a couple of duct tape guitar straps, and a duct tape cowboy hat and wallet, I figured that duct tape would work for taping these boxes. I'm taping the edges and corners where they usually tear up first.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYTwNELc3xZaeEUWddGdjE-wcB4zf4JTBQxyG2YTsFiZyJep6Xp7lChPGNwaBuTVmpHdCh18RKfrPhGefoVMLeCmWQD998kwWoT5-K9pPl9T76aX9Ro2_Qb7hgf8YfIDNAQsbRyzBJ5I9p/s1600-h/IMG_1362.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5375366266686823602" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYTwNELc3xZaeEUWddGdjE-wcB4zf4JTBQxyG2YTsFiZyJep6Xp7lChPGNwaBuTVmpHdCh18RKfrPhGefoVMLeCmWQD998kwWoT5-K9pPl9T76aX9Ro2_Qb7hgf8YfIDNAQsbRyzBJ5I9p/s320/IMG_1362.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 156px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 220px;" /></a><br />
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The main issue is finding the time to do all of this maintenance. Well, I was passing by study hall today and noticed kids in there doing nothing and thought, "dude!". I got about five girls and trained them in the delicate art of taping guitar boxes. We implemented the Bush Doctrine and taped up the three newest boxes first. I'm really curious to see if this slows down the classic box deterioration.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgELoh13BMAozJdzF_2AMkMBB-7LTPB9lTVh_L-ZZQ0IayUguNFTiBOhZpMEFPIOeSPImCg7VsEFGfYR9VfG_XM7AV4_PxyZuUSxBSFbQJkj36We8Z-y0zdh1ywvYnue3ds6kSrahK8jwWM/s1600-h/IMG_1361.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5375364631908672610" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgELoh13BMAozJdzF_2AMkMBB-7LTPB9lTVh_L-ZZQ0IayUguNFTiBOhZpMEFPIOeSPImCg7VsEFGfYR9VfG_XM7AV4_PxyZuUSxBSFbQJkj36We8Z-y0zdh1ywvYnue3ds6kSrahK8jwWM/s320/IMG_1361.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 165px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 232px;" /></a><br />
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I've also got four 3/4 size guitars that I got from the elementary teacher. These came in gig bags and sit on a multi-guitar corner stand. This is pretty convenient for storage, but would be hard to use with the humidifiers I make for the guitars. If I could get some smaller guitar humidifiers, gig bags and some hangers, this gig-bag and stand/hanger combination would be really appealing. Right now, I use home-made guitar humidifiers that go in the boxes and they'd be a tough fit in the gig bags. Probably the best long-term option would be to have a system to accurately control the room humidity.<br />
<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=B0002II99O" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=B000BUBHMY" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><br />
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It's important to control the humidity in the winter months when you start running the heater. If you live in a dry climate such as Arizona, this is not just a winter issue either. Right now I'm using home-made guitar humidifiers using the instructions that I found here: <a href="http://www.thepodium.com/t-makinghumidifier.aspx">http://www.thepodium.com/t-makinghumidifier.aspx</a><br />
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If you can afford it, the Oasis humidifier is probably the easiest to deal with. It's easy to use, small enough to fit in a gig bag and doesn't drip. <br />
<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=B0010XSZ3A" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=B0002GLCRC" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><br />
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For the guitar I play in class I've got a String Swing hanger. These are really handy, and I use it during the school day. However, as I said, I don't hang guitars overnight out of the case in the winter months. I live in Mississippi, and when the heat is off it's actually good to have them out on a stand or hanging. Do some research on humidity and guitars for your climate. A couple of years ago, I found out (the hard way) why it's important.Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-58441803885863644922009-08-21T03:47:00.000-07:002011-03-09T12:19:23.660-08:00Beginning of the School Year Two-week UpdateWell, I've finished two weeks of school now and things are going well. I've got classes that are a good bit larger than last year (20, 21 and 23 I think). I've got my room rearranged kind of like a funky orchestral/band setup accept it's with my little desks. Music stands are next on my list.<br />
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We've got three 3/4 and three full-size classical guitars ordered and the music store has now received them. He's setting them up today for me to pick up after school. Woo hoo! I've had quite a few kids playing baritone ukes the last 2 weeks.<br />
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This year I've also started out the year exclusively playing guitar. I usually do a lot of theory worksheets and more General Music type stuff. When I first started I just didn't know enough to do guitar all period and keep them focused.<br />
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<strong><u>Footstools</u></strong><br />
I started the year off making my students use a footstool and sit in classical position. I did this just because I was inspired at my summer workshop and "wanted to get my life right" as the preacher would say. I expected to see some long-term pay off for this later on in the year. But honestly, I've been shocked at what a difference it has immediately made.<br />
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Everything is better: left hand, right hand, not bending the neck to see the fretboard. It also makes it incredibly easier for me to see what they're doing because their left hand is not behind a desk/music stand.<br />
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<u><strong>Set-up </strong></u><br />
I've set up my room with a couple of risers at the front of the room. One of them is pretty high, and I can actually sit on it and show them how to adjust their sitting position. From this higher seat I can play, see what their hands are doing and point at my posters behind me (my rubric and 3 ft. high Scott Tennant "3 points of contact" poster), all without leaving my seat. Sweet! I've also got my dry-erase board right there within pointing distance. The Scott Tennant illustration is from his Basic Classical Method 1. <br />
<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0739033891&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm19WezSSqPGw0ZeFyvMLJRHCjKWMHH_ZgtO7QMXdmGZtSig8-Ll5-5N2nt6FL5-4P-5SxsGBqwIjnzdNHmhmVTrYyGGj9IK4cuDoRJF3o0PYq1mD-AO5teRHpd7SlRXLPqKYc44hBor5S/s1600-h/IMG_1358.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5375368421995703458" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm19WezSSqPGw0ZeFyvMLJRHCjKWMHH_ZgtO7QMXdmGZtSig8-Ll5-5N2nt6FL5-4P-5SxsGBqwIjnzdNHmhmVTrYyGGj9IK4cuDoRJF3o0PYq1mD-AO5teRHpd7SlRXLPqKYc44hBor5S/s320/IMG_1358.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 150px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 191px;" /></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRzLS2wt6LHLxlBVeeNN9rIFnw_xKlFK5pa1r1fzp0vbYKn010myC52EYQbwCFud4XGJ-xl1jTYPd0TqlmtxKaBWi02NHwqume-CWGn9xUmwq6kyqsZJq_aoUY8hnlXnG48oxFvm4P5AZ3/s1600-h/IMG_1360.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5375369389233974754" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRzLS2wt6LHLxlBVeeNN9rIFnw_xKlFK5pa1r1fzp0vbYKn010myC52EYQbwCFud4XGJ-xl1jTYPd0TqlmtxKaBWi02NHwqume-CWGn9xUmwq6kyqsZJq_aoUY8hnlXnG48oxFvm4P5AZ3/s200/IMG_1360.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 200px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 150px;" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlNaEOrnY7GXWO02dd1XfzApesWGLJGsP9wtsULYJnmkACA5YYXJ4l62vCLChuQDBUe7guxVyHPZD14XBqbvHkqhKXGXxVT6OVvZIAbjJzOX9CAkhCDMPHcOuyYPoYo3mSxxbSMpvGWa2M/s1600-h/IMG_1359.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5375368956534914978" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlNaEOrnY7GXWO02dd1XfzApesWGLJGsP9wtsULYJnmkACA5YYXJ4l62vCLChuQDBUe7guxVyHPZD14XBqbvHkqhKXGXxVT6OVvZIAbjJzOX9CAkhCDMPHcOuyYPoYo3mSxxbSMpvGWa2M/s200/IMG_1359.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 150px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 200px;" /></a> <br />
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<strong><u>Methods</u></strong><br />
I've learned a lot about doing this at the classroom level from experience over the last 3 years, but I've got to say that a lot of the big improvements this year came from my week at the GAMA workshop this summer.<br />
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Besides the footstool idea, I picked up on a lot of simple phrases and ways of teaching things that have made my life easier. Probably the biggest one is to not stopping playing everytime you want to tell the kids something.<br />
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This really worked well yesterday when I was working with 4 or 5 Special Ed students in one of my classes. We just started picking E quarter notes. Then, I'd say something like,"Now, when I say 'ready, go' we're going to put our first finger on the first fret and say 'F'. Remember to play with the tip of your finger. Ready, say 'F, F, F, F'."<br />
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While picking F I'm talking them through G. "Now, we're going to put our third finger on the third fret, bird-man in the air, skipping over the second fret. Lorenzo, bird-man in the air, skip the third fret."<br />
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Before I would have stopped and moved fingers. Gotten everyone adjusted and then tried to start over. This simple technique really works great. I probably worked with those kids for 3 or 4 minutes and you wouldn't believe the looks of relief that they were actually getting it because they were completely lost with the general class instruction. If you worked with Special Ed students you know that look of frustration.<br />
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Just the phrase "bird-man in the air" is beautiful. I've probably said, "This is the only class where it's OK to have the bird-man in the air" probably a hundred times this week. But if you've taught any amount of guitar you know how hard it is to get some kids to not play G with their second finger. This phrase has ended all of those lectures.<br />
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<strong><u>GAMA Teaching Guitar Workshop Plug</u></strong><br />
By the way, all of this came from Jim Nancey at the workshop in Atlanta. This is from a guy who is a piano player with a background in choral music who couldn't even play guitar much until <strong><em>he </em></strong>went to a GAMA workshop. I gained a lot and I've played and taught private lessons for 20 and 10 years respectively.<br />
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Bottom line: anyone could learn a lot from the workshop, even if it's just a few teaching ideas or phrases from seeing other people teach. Get to a GAMA workshop. You won't regret it!Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-1876952579180843822009-08-13T17:46:00.000-07:002011-03-10T07:17:16.697-08:00Working on sitting positionI took my home-made footstools to school and have introduced the students to a classical playing position. This has been very difficult to do in a large class setting. This year all three of my classes are over twenty kids. You quickly realize how much more difficult something like this is when you see 24 middle-school students in front of you doing it incorrectly.<br />
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<div><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369621900987986114" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizvzjZ2-ntRn8cffszKraHtxDjlhJmFSVJJ1jk6uVoCQ9Wuahk-io-r4abJrV1rNIylM_QO-XluaTUB2sqqziGl0WRb35kwlvwSnnkkqUe5zkCpqWGJdyYSRRC7kkjVoiSd4K66StH_p2I/s320/Classical+Guitar.jpg" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 227px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 166px;" />I thought, "Now, what?". I really struggled with this yesterday and couldn't quite figure out what the problem was. I finally realized that most of the problems were coming from the students trying to sit so that the guitar and both feet were facing forward. If you're holding a guitar correctly in classical position the front of the guitar is basically facing the direction of your left foot, but your hips and other foot are facing a different direction.</div><div>This was easily resolved by simply getting them to turn their chairs at an angle and point their footstool toward their music stand. This way they could more easily visualize the sitting position and face their music. This is just one of many things that you never think about in a private lesson. You simply have the student make a couple of adjustments. But when there are twenty people in front of you doing it incorrectly, you really have to think about what it is you actually do. </div><div></div><br />
<div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtw8wH2BdgBtA2k0gDUMPs8z_3WoYzScZ2PqINdlEOah8rTfc3NND_EEt-ITbwnZwFKI4Er_i7dcAGwswRykVbNO2PxL7BfPy3siY1PV1trNVYX96bZlLH8aKDIutInZRiJaYs3CbzDf9z/s1600-h/IMG_1357-1.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5375377089067868962" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtw8wH2BdgBtA2k0gDUMPs8z_3WoYzScZ2PqINdlEOah8rTfc3NND_EEt-ITbwnZwFKI4Er_i7dcAGwswRykVbNO2PxL7BfPy3siY1PV1trNVYX96bZlLH8aKDIutInZRiJaYs3CbzDf9z/s200/IMG_1357-1.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 200px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 152px;" /></a>I've also made a huge poster of Scott Tennant and his "3 points of contact" from his sitting position diagrams in his method book. I made it using Publisher. It's pretty funny to walk in and see a 3-foot Scott sitting there. It's really good way of simplifying the process and talking about it during class. "Sternum, inner thigh, leg", I think it is. Also, "the weight of your left arm holds the instrument in place". That's another book we got at the workshop. Nice, Scott. It's called <em>Scott Tennant's Basic Classical Guitar Method</em>. <br />
<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0739033891&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=B000CD1R7K" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYg2Ti1POHK9ERSyEdHKTAA_ilsFe9rTRiJb8IqHmxlyjuu_HaHG0K34xxG9MpTzJAwVOIXWHzhc1x-LhXVcwGuXvuqRg27G8e-BgAcHMjDwlN31FucxqF0yJbtWFHNJIVhkd20EQiFSGY/s1600-h/Scott+Tennant+method.jpg"></a></div>Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-85066161743803988032009-08-09T18:29:00.000-07:002011-03-12T15:13:31.987-08:00Make Your Own Guitar Footstools<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM_UZ2f5FbUE7huNVX3Wr55W8exIyP1MLszBjJBtU-tWeitZAPJplp4WAMaYLPuV4hPq9srsTYuQVdxRzC8qe3amopGWFOcZpOGHB3RwK33WRXqzv__r9ePTCnV_lov4AP48dCrsRi03Ur/s1600-h/IMG_1186.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368144699631802850" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM_UZ2f5FbUE7huNVX3Wr55W8exIyP1MLszBjJBtU-tWeitZAPJplp4WAMaYLPuV4hPq9srsTYuQVdxRzC8qe3amopGWFOcZpOGHB3RwK33WRXqzv__r9ePTCnV_lov4AP48dCrsRi03Ur/s320/IMG_1186.JPG" style="cursor: hand; float: left; height: 320px; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 240px;" /></a> This weekend, my 17-yr-old and I made 27 footstools for my guitar classes at school. This simple and economical design is based on an idea I got from Suzanne Shull at the GAMA Teaching Guitar Workshop in Atlanta a couple of weeks ago. The most basic design is 3 8-inch 2x4's screwed together. This makes for a foot stool aproximately 6 inches tall.<br />
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If you turn it on its end you get a footstool that's approximately 8 inches tall . So you have two heights in one footstool. I also used some extra wood to make about five of the footstools 4 blocks high. This is a little more stable than the 3 blocks turned on end.<br />
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I also made one footstool that's a 4x4 block with a 2x4 attached. I only made one of these. The 4x4 is what we got at the workshop one day as our footstool. I just screwed a 2x4 to it to make it a little taller.<br />
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This year I'm going to have my students actually sit in classical position with footstools. I haven't in the past because I didn't have a way to purchase footstools for an entire class. I thought the wood block idea was pretty good and it's inexpensive. So, I'm giving this a try.<br />
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The total cost for the lumber and a box of screws was just under $25.00. Sweet. It also helps to have a teenager to help put them together. Thanks, Matthew!<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRKrna4bqmiwMr2ab2BQuYRp8xkQCncRomqJBkYbBGmpMbwSyqviEQ_dm9wQ4ZiHrCKllPKyZWtk8zxXyyPM0sAI3nWx4fx2OwKpY-iCOL_Bu3TGQD-TW6mHfsQW2Ji2F_Q9k7TumXTxnE/s1600-h/IMG_1182.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRKrna4bqmiwMr2ab2BQuYRp8xkQCncRomqJBkYbBGmpMbwSyqviEQ_dm9wQ4ZiHrCKllPKyZWtk8zxXyyPM0sAI3nWx4fx2OwKpY-iCOL_Bu3TGQD-TW6mHfsQW2Ji2F_Q9k7TumXTxnE/s320/IMG_1182.JPG" style="clear: both; float: left; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px;" /></a><br />
August 18: Since I posted this, I've had the opportunity to use them in class for about a week. I think the flexibility of the 3-block high version is great. Four blocks is too high for many of the taller kids playing the full-size instruments and also for smaller kids with 3/4 size guitars. <br />
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I like the both-sizes-in-one flexibility of the 3-block. I don't have to swap footstools out. I have three different classes and I need both height options at each seat. I'm thinking about taking a board off the 4-block version. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgVOmTAGWwSc38xdPm13ukpg7jyqVhdiXPndZkbiGfesTyTT5d5SWKZEDJgW0rtp1xBdjk1b3-WWmz13OOxZqyQPmITcrBNcuTtJjBjtW1pkbitepWolYwiyXXvlLcfOPJ70S5FD1doV4l/s1600-h/IMG_1183.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgVOmTAGWwSc38xdPm13ukpg7jyqVhdiXPndZkbiGfesTyTT5d5SWKZEDJgW0rtp1xBdjk1b3-WWmz13OOxZqyQPmITcrBNcuTtJjBjtW1pkbitepWolYwiyXXvlLcfOPJ70S5FD1doV4l/s320/IMG_1183.JPG" style="clear: both; float: left; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px;" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKBPjfcKL7w-jAhY5lNqZAZnCJeoYyVewtj_JSSPxGKvXLlEI73b5JuzuoP5p_X5GYMMLv7axndXYswJ4j9GEASEaeBC0IjHwTO1Vhd-WlEqHr25zg6zcsxsq5yCcAaDWb1aEet0iN7Ebf/s1600-h/IMG_1180.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKBPjfcKL7w-jAhY5lNqZAZnCJeoYyVewtj_JSSPxGKvXLlEI73b5JuzuoP5p_X5GYMMLv7axndXYswJ4j9GEASEaeBC0IjHwTO1Vhd-WlEqHr25zg6zcsxsq5yCcAaDWb1aEet0iN7Ebf/s320/IMG_1180.JPG" style="clear: both; float: left; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px;" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfDzvuB_9bq_P_F0uRDQDVS8eb3ARs5uz7SuWg4QFCdVac63zTDnU__RXPMwGKF_k2SD4rp6EGfMfaiZAYQKTyf_xiyEwU01QHf-gmC34YuSJn3b8ZKBhbYCJrGVu0Qj1GRvXOE99XFKNG/s1600-h/IMG_1184.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfDzvuB_9bq_P_F0uRDQDVS8eb3ARs5uz7SuWg4QFCdVac63zTDnU__RXPMwGKF_k2SD4rp6EGfMfaiZAYQKTyf_xiyEwU01QHf-gmC34YuSJn3b8ZKBhbYCJrGVu0Qj1GRvXOE99XFKNG/s320/IMG_1184.JPG" style="clear: both; float: left; margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px;" /></a><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=B000CD1R7K" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe>Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-11574972177181609092009-07-28T18:09:00.000-07:002011-03-09T12:24:01.942-08:00GAMA Teaching Guitar Workshop: Day 5 and Workshop ReviewFriday morning we were all getting ready to leave. I know that everyone had at least one extra load to carry with them because of all the stuff that we got. A few people in our group were flying or driving to other destinations and had to have their stuff shipped. But what a great problem! Thanks again GAMA members for the donations.<br />
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We had a morning session where we worked the barre-chords some more. "Sittin on the Dock of the Bay" I think and some other things that I don't remember because I didn't have my notebook. it was packed up already.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCKv6aoNy0BYT9uKag2c7t3XeR0gdnXSYB4VEzOKR-Z9iIMUVbtd5X190EuoDGHsD9281nTaCeSDY1JYCrF0ZMigece4wRqXzP6THsHTYQcOd7MlvMaKdeOsBZebzLhbYHc5vUirJVrrPx/s1600-h/H.o.t.+ensemble.gif" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363692341267680402" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCKv6aoNy0BYT9uKag2c7t3XeR0gdnXSYB4VEzOKR-Z9iIMUVbtd5X190EuoDGHsD9281nTaCeSDY1JYCrF0ZMigece4wRqXzP6THsHTYQcOd7MlvMaKdeOsBZebzLhbYHc5vUirJVrrPx/s320/H.o.t.+ensemble.gif" style="cursor: pointer; float: right; height: 188px; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; width: 147px;" /><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0739033891&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe></a><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=1569397368&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe><br />
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We went over to Spivey Hall and performed our ensembles with our groups. It was really nice. The Spivey hall folks set up the stage for us between groups and dimmed the lights when a group left the stage. It made you feel like a pro. It was a lot of fun. My group, "Kathy and the Boys" performed "Some Kind of Sunset (Tango)" and "St. Joshua Infirmary" from the H.O.T. and Jerry Snyder ensemble books. Actually, "St. Joshua" was a medley of our own making because we liked "Joshua Fit the Battle" and "St. James Infirmary" so much. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuwKi4jjDlmpUpSHecmuxNPHw74cQtgtHLlUHqUx1kn8ZgZ4FnOMvVGozq34aavFxfss9O533IekQBejR6N1Lc3LOF6SmB7SobiZyWFL9B4UfhmRB76gqVABJfMOTj7nLRCAXKjcy4-70W/s1600-h/aurora.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363693177117545362" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuwKi4jjDlmpUpSHecmuxNPHw74cQtgtHLlUHqUx1kn8ZgZ4FnOMvVGozq34aavFxfss9O533IekQBejR6N1Lc3LOF6SmB7SobiZyWFL9B4UfhmRB76gqVABJfMOTj7nLRCAXKjcy4-70W/s320/aurora.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; float: right; height: 320px; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; width: 290px;" /></a><br />
Afterwords we took the workshop photo on the Spivey Hall staircase with our guitars and headed back to our classroom one last time. We packed up our stuff and wrote thank you letters to GAMA and to a manufacturer. I wrote my manufacturer letter to the company that makes Aurora strings. They're multi-colored. Your female students will think they're really pretty and I think that they have a lot of potential as an instructional aid for beginners.<br />
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Overall, I thought that the workshop was fantastic. I've played the guitar for 20 years, taught private lessons for 15 and taught classroom guitar for 3 and I still had plenty to learn. Teaching guitar in the classroom setting is just a different beast. It was great to have a week of just seeing what others are doing.<br />
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If you teach a guitar class already I think you'd get a lot out of this workshop if only to preview and play through all the guitar books we received. If you don't play guitar yet but would like to teach it in your classroom, then this class is especially geared toward you. A large portion of the workshop is focused on getting inexperienced teachers some guitar skills.<br />
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I never found much on the web about the workshops except for their site. So, I tried to be pretty thorough with my review. If you have any questions about the workshop feel free to comment below and I'll try to get back to you.<br />
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Suzanne, who is the workshop chair, said they're working on revamping the website. It's linked <a href="http://guitaredunet.org/">here.</a> They are also forming groups on facebook and myspace.<br />
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In my future posts I'll review some of the books we got at the workshop.Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-34950866654378720442009-07-28T07:11:00.000-07:002009-07-28T18:09:51.425-07:00Gama Guitar Workshop Day 2, 3 & 4On Tuesday we arrived and there was a stack of 4x4's cut into 8" sections. These were our footstools. It wasn't really high enough for me but it gives you a good idea as to what you can do with some homemade foot stools. Suzanne told me she usually does them in 3 different heights. She takes 2x4's and cuts them into 8" sections. Then she screws two of them together for some and three together for others. She then has 4, 6 and 8 inch footstools because the stacks of 3 can be turned on their sides to give you the 8 inch height.<br /><br />Suzanne also overheard Thad and me playing jazz in our dorm room Monday night and asked if we could play for the group. Thad called it jamming. I called it a lesson from Thad. I have never actually played jazz in front of anyone. We set that up for Thursday around lunch time.<br /><br />During our afternoon break-out session with the high-school people we talk some more room set-up. Hand sanitizer is <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">necessary</span> for kids using school instruments. One of the guys mentions that Finger Ease is good for "acid hands'.<br /><br />We do more methods stuff with Suzanne on rhythm strumming. We start with the Left Hand muting and working on "missing" strums to create different rhythms. Jim introduces new chords. (He calls D7 "Dog Seven" to not confuse it with E7 when he says it over students' playing.)<br /><br />He introduces the idea of "divide and conquer". Some of us are having trouble changing chords. So he divides us up into 2 or 3 groups. "You guys make sure you cover this chord every time. If you can get some of the others great, but make sure you're covering this chord". We learn that "guides slide".<br /><br />We work power chords, root-5th bass patterns, pima, rest strokes and free strokes. Suzanne introduces Travis picking and teaches us "Dust in the Wind". We work E-form and A-form barre chords and learn the "Chaconne" (Am G F E).<br /><br />After class we all went to Guitar Center because a <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKfzSfR_Dz5b4SThyTBbIzEm19Bxc4abBHklwoOfemD_9rODXroDJH0dEqYAldtUR_hb4OcYW4pkM-RqSmOu2sbyS5VNKWmlA37mYEqltq7olEy3qs8Tao62wSvZUpepYuFvzNhj51eXz7/s1600-h/maplestreet_logo.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 95px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKfzSfR_Dz5b4SThyTBbIzEm19Bxc4abBHklwoOfemD_9rODXroDJH0dEqYAldtUR_hb4OcYW4pkM-RqSmOu2sbyS5VNKWmlA37mYEqltq7olEy3qs8Tao62wSvZUpepYuFvzNhj51eXz7/s320/maplestreet_logo.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363523385367204018" border="0" /></a><br />lot of the folks in the class had never been to a guitar store. Then we went to Maple Street Guitars, the place to go if you're ever in Atlanta. They're much smaller but have a lot of great guitars and sheet music. We finished up Wednesday with a meal at California Pizza at the mall in town. I ordered the Jamaican Jerk pizza.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT4RFUv7UlhDvxorK60yXL-H58JQAixdIyIZ72lj0dYDV_YrbEQAHTuYJ1M84pTm6p6SRzRrkuzx52bSk7ly4vvCPHxXrLng7Mf4Mi9QnZEn3kqFc9oPwZH02GLbp8vB1j3nWLa0Dh7msb/s1600-h/Maple+Street+Guitars.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 126px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT4RFUv7UlhDvxorK60yXL-H58JQAixdIyIZ72lj0dYDV_YrbEQAHTuYJ1M84pTm6p6SRzRrkuzx52bSk7ly4vvCPHxXrLng7Mf4Mi9QnZEn3kqFc9oPwZH02GLbp8vB1j3nWLa0Dh7msb/s320/Maple+Street+Guitars.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363523100023459490" border="0" /></a> Good Stuff!<br /><br />I got to meet my dad for lunch on Thursday. Then Thad and I played Autumn Leaves, Black Orpheus and Pride and Joy by Stevie Ray Vaughn in Spivey Hall for our group. We also had Mike, a Jazz woodwind instructor from a college in NC play tenor sax and flute with us. His wife was in Atlanta taking the class with us. Both of these guys are pros and I was glad to get to play with them.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9Rlzg1IRD8jzN9YwxE0VWw5Lo5GhwcYkJLrrJ1qNW5_w4MD6dzLwefcMwBudmvfLJ9HkTypw_v3nmZNcE10yCrqYDDhUjzp0kgAuUhOmObh3GDBG5O7GiQKk3ulsrIyuKsG2SpdW-n5uB/s1600-h/spivey.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 258px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9Rlzg1IRD8jzN9YwxE0VWw5Lo5GhwcYkJLrrJ1qNW5_w4MD6dzLwefcMwBudmvfLJ9HkTypw_v3nmZNcE10yCrqYDDhUjzp0kgAuUhOmObh3GDBG5O7GiQKk3ulsrIyuKsG2SpdW-n5uB/s320/spivey.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363524288771336530" border="0" /></a><br />In the afternoons Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday we worked on our ensembles. We were preparing for a Friday mini-concert in Spivey Hall, a very nice concert hall at Clayton State. The groups were supposed to be of mixed ability levels and our was pretty well balanced. I had Gene and Kathy in my group. Kathy had a good bit of experience growing up with guitar but had not played in a while. Gene was pretty new to the guitar.<br /><br />I'll try to close out the week in my next post.Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-82718227440298913392009-07-27T18:19:00.000-07:002011-03-09T12:35:35.361-08:00GAMA Workshop Day 1 continuedDay 1 consisted of our getting a 1-foot high stack of books and being asked to choose a guitar to try out. They told us that the guitar raffle would happen at the end of the day and at each break we would put back the guitar we had been using and choose another. By the end of the day we had used 5 or 6 different instruments. Then we each took a number and when our number was called we got the pick of the guitars that were left. All of them were nice instruments.<br />
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There were four or five sessions each day, and for each session, we played through lessons in several books. The taught us in the same way that they would teach beginning students and many of the teachers <span style="font-style: italic;">were</span> beginners. A portion of every segment was aimed at working on the guitar skills of the workshop participants, but it was still great to see other people's methods for introducing things and the kind of terminology they used to teach.<br />
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There <span style="font-style: italic;">was </span>a little bit of time when others were practicing their skills and those of us that were already players had to find something to do. There was one participant who has a couple of studios full of students in private guitar lessons back home. He was the real player. Then there was me and a band director who played pretty well already. There were others who had varying degrees of experience in playing. Overall, I was very pleased with the methods content and my fears that most of the workshop would involve teacher's skills on guitar were unfounded.<br />
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Later in the week, Suzanne told a great story of a workshop participant who was a professional classical player who brought a left-handed guitar and learned to play that way to avoid being bored and learn from a beginner's point of view. Now why didn't I think of that? She said he also performed with his ensemble right-handed-upside-down. I generally tried to save these times for questions I had wanted to ask about the instructors' programs or how they approached particular problems. I also played some chord melody, combined parts, played in higher positions and improvised. This was encouraged by the instructors and was a lot of fun.<br />
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On Monday Jim gave us a segment introducing chords. Jim's predominating phrase in this segment was "keep strumming". This quickly became the recurring joke during the week, but it really is genius. He would say things like, "I'm going to move my fingers down a string, but I want you to just watch while you stay on the chord your on now. ....and your going to do what? That's right. Keep strumming!"<br />
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This seemed crazy at first but, then I started thinking about how much time I spend saying, "Put your guitar in resting position.", "Your hands should not be on the strings while I'm talking" and similar phrases that I use while I'm talking. Maybe one way to to deal with kids not stopping is to have them not stop as often. He might have something there. Jim kept talking and we kept strumming as we learned new chords. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Hmmm</span>!?!<br />
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</div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrpRA1Dkqva70vFUdfUtBh3xl9XjFljPZ8lcf1f0tNB8DXQ0TUNi5HbI0UxdnTrHwxc-bccRCMb1poCSUMDq5wGMG4uFYTSGB2G_oJZwnLsXrkw8WKRJzMhdGuWhotdbOgPHIzny7FXYnR/s1600-h/hot+guitar+cover.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; height: 218px; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; width: 152px;"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363325443626003602" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrpRA1Dkqva70vFUdfUtBh3xl9XjFljPZ8lcf1f0tNB8DXQ0TUNi5HbI0UxdnTrHwxc-bccRCMb1poCSUMDq5wGMG4uFYTSGB2G_oJZwnLsXrkw8WKRJzMhdGuWhotdbOgPHIzny7FXYnR/s320/hot+guitar+cover.jpg" style="float: right; height: 208px; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; width: 143px;" /></a>I was also very interested in Jim's <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">philosophy</span> for introducing groups of chords. He groups chords by fingering similarities rather than by key. He teaches Em first; then Am and E because they have what the H.O.T. (Hands-On Training) books call "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">EZ</span> movers; fingers that easily move from one chord to the next. Then he teaches the easy move from Am to C; then Am to D7; from D7 to G and so on.<br />
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=as_li_qf_sp_sr_tl?ie=UTF8&keywords=h.o.t.%20guitar&tag=adventure0f8-20&index=aps&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325">H.O.T. books at Amazon</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="https://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=adventure0f8-20&l=ur2&o=1" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; margin: 0px;" width="1" /></div></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"><br />
</div>All the while he's using the "bun" technique. Begin with an easy chord, introduce something new and back to the easy one again. (The meat is the new material you want to introduce.) Cool. <br />
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We had sessions with Suzanne on playing 'bass' where we played along with popular songs on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">CD's</span> using notes on the 5<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">th</span> and 6<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">th</span> strings. These are fun for students and introduce notes on these strings that will later be used for power chords and barre chords. We also introduced note-reading and improvisation. Suzanne taught a blues segment and explained why she prefers using closed position minor <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">pentatonics</span> because A-blues shuffle patterns and chords are easier to play and because the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">improv</span> pattern is <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">movable</span>. She also stated that she thinks not having open strings is somehow less confusing to younger students.<br />
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Then we had break-out sessions with elementary teachers going with Suzanne and High-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Schoolers</span> going with Jim. We talked curriculum, class-room set up, tuning guitars and other mundane but necessary things to know about in teaching large numbers of guitar students.<br />
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When I got back to my suite at the dorm in the evening I discovered that my buddy Thad from the workshop had moved into one of the rooms. This was the beginning of a week of jamming, as Thad is an <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">excellent</span> player in a variety of styles. He also is a private-lesson instructor with a ton of students. So we had plenty of great conversations about that end of things too.<br />
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In future posts I'll wrap up the week and try to do some reviews of the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">excellent</span> classroom guitar books that we received.Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-12477334747578156392009-07-27T11:28:00.000-07:002009-07-27T12:21:37.058-07:00GAMA Teaching Guitar Workshop: Arrival and Guitar RaffleI've decided to post a day-by-day description of what we did because it was a week long and I think that will be the easiest way to get my head around it.<br /><br />Sunday, I drove out to Atlanta from Oxford, MS right after Sunday morning services. On the way, I had to stop and change a fan belt that went out. I just happened to pull into a gas station across from an O'Reilley's Auto Parts store. After 45 minutes I was back on my way. The rest of the trip went smoothly.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVQBp1oLA9lwtACAXpxvgAOpDGqc4Hv3OiZO0R1un2xiO1gdBW2hqEgfd6SShn1cEN7145EL8LoitRArLNmQPePhlTO6h4uM0mmNCF2vJtgkS67XLTizjNMp51lodX7Gsn9Md1qP3IwBmp/s1600-h/Clayton+State+pic.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 81px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVQBp1oLA9lwtACAXpxvgAOpDGqc4Hv3OiZO0R1un2xiO1gdBW2hqEgfd6SShn1cEN7145EL8LoitRArLNmQPePhlTO6h4uM0mmNCF2vJtgkS67XLTizjNMp51lodX7Gsn9Md1qP3IwBmp/s320/Clayton+State+pic.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363220206082725634" border="0" /></a><br /><br />In Atlanta I was set up in a nice suite at Clayton State University's new dorm. Very nice and $35.00/night. I had a whole suite to myself which I didn't really like because I like to go to things like this to meet people. When I went back to the room later, I found that I had acquired a new suite-mate. He is a monster guitar player and plays jazz really well so I got a lot of jam time with him during the week.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Day 1</span><br />Our class was to start at 8:30 and I arrived a few minutes early to check out the "stuff". I had heard that there was going to be a lot of material for us and that the guitars would be given out in a raffle. So I kind of scoped out what I wanted so I'd be ready when they called my number.<br /><br />There was a wide variety of guitars from different manufacturers. Off the top of my head here's what I remember being available: There were 2 baby Taylors and two 2 baby Martins. All 4 had nice gig bags. There were three silver Fender acoustic-electrics with strat-style headstocks. I think these may have come with gig bags as well. There were entry-level Breedlove and Tacamine acoustic-electrics; one each, with a nice hard-shell case. There were 3 Aria steel-strings with nice hardshell cases, a yamaha nylon-string with hard case, an Ibanez electric with practice amp and a Hohner steel-string acoustic. I think the Hohner was the only one that didn't have any kind of case, but besides the babys (and maybe the Breedlove) it was the only one with a solid top.<br /><br />A lot of very nice choices. My number came up late in the raffle. There was still a baby Martin and a couple of the Arias left but I decided to go with the electric because I've been borrowing my son's nappy old one for to long.<br /><br />We met our instructors for the week, Suzanne Shull and Jim Yancy. (Sorry, Jim. I feel like I probably called you Tim a couple of times.) I thought it was interesting that both of them come from a choral background. It gave them a great perspective to teach from with an "anyone can learn to teach this" mentality. Jim was kind of interning and Suzanne has tought with the workshops pretty much from the beginning. Suzanne has taught guitar in the middle school setting for many years and now volunteers at a local school. Jim has built a successful program out in Phoenix that has outgrown his choirs, and has had a group perform at a national convention.<br /><br />More to come...Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-37779135376968505202009-07-24T20:23:00.000-07:002009-07-24T20:24:26.755-07:00GAMA Teaching Guitar Workshop MaterialsWell, I said I would give an update on the Teaching Guitar workshop in Atlanta. I'm back and will post more later, but here's a quick look at the sample materials and gifts the manufacturers provided for us.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipyJ5R-T5vqGxnXVG_rprFH8PmA4N_exWzMNzDU-JC9XoPsHQH4_-V4kQo2DhZja4lgCC7R8GBwQPqi8ynb8GJPFLFQMgk3Xiwk4oYeFTKSPb1VI2Z6ipKAuo-KBy52x97m3gZoFuhKkFq/s1600-h/IMG_1048.JPG"><img border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipyJ5R-T5vqGxnXVG_rprFH8PmA4N_exWzMNzDU-JC9XoPsHQH4_-V4kQo2DhZja4lgCC7R8GBwQPqi8ynb8GJPFLFQMgk3Xiwk4oYeFTKSPb1VI2Z6ipKAuo-KBy52x97m3gZoFuhKkFq/s400/IMG_1048.JPG" /></a> <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikC2F2AIaycwCQwaPjlxkIn4aXavc59ueo17tabi0Om_fM2jCQnfxbzZuKpWl6wR1rf8pugOdyN1jp01zZ3RAir6xT3BmoJwLIUD2yLROuFz7G_zzRZgzMMBK1ew6mZzIeFQB1DsHJRL90/s1600-h/IMG_1049.JPG"><img border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikC2F2AIaycwCQwaPjlxkIn4aXavc59ueo17tabi0Om_fM2jCQnfxbzZuKpWl6wR1rf8pugOdyN1jp01zZ3RAir6xT3BmoJwLIUD2yLROuFz7G_zzRZgzMMBK1ew6mZzIeFQB1DsHJRL90/s400/IMG_1049.JPG" /></a> <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrdwp-0cwSuG9F50VdWrA3eBihcF03yIa1BTGvsxYBVwQ8mehAF1lSuT7PmPZ5YLdp0hMYHaBF6oCgBs6Y4Lqxz5zRUIO_c9QPa06-WoNhp045rFlPPSkwx0i1fEN88W-gA4NAGV9kdNbs/s1600-h/IMG_1050.JPG"><img border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrdwp-0cwSuG9F50VdWrA3eBihcF03yIa1BTGvsxYBVwQ8mehAF1lSuT7PmPZ5YLdp0hMYHaBF6oCgBs6Y4Lqxz5zRUIO_c9QPa06-WoNhp045rFlPPSkwx0i1fEN88W-gA4NAGV9kdNbs/s400/IMG_1050.JPG" /></a> <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBMYfsl2psaNalkecGJjKULDwuF4o51KHim_L_o14lPZSOh_zVe0af1Bg6g6YeOoEGyeAywkA4_EFjMC7-LmLBv2zbbEy3FPQF0qTqAWhJwMx-xXovb-bJ2cjMTNIU8Zm507E9Ma783Y_8/s1600-h/IMG_1051.JPG"><img border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBMYfsl2psaNalkecGJjKULDwuF4o51KHim_L_o14lPZSOh_zVe0af1Bg6g6YeOoEGyeAywkA4_EFjMC7-LmLBv2zbbEy3FPQF0qTqAWhJwMx-xXovb-bJ2cjMTNIU8Zm507E9Ma783Y_8/s400/IMG_1051.JPG" /></a><div style='clear:both; text-align:NONE'><a href='http://picasa.google.com/blogger/' target='ext'><img src='http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif' alt='Posted by Picasa' style='border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial;' align='middle' border='0' /></a></div>Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-82676997256307969852009-04-25T12:03:00.001-07:002009-04-25T14:53:42.381-07:00Going to Atlanta!<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="http://www.guitaredunet.org/"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE2JR8exX-eQmDtLTi8dwDF7PewuNo-0LRT6UuobYsZHuDdlYEdzhGDoMZBj6-kmMl0sfOxzJ_aIViuYNt8alxpNyfPtbKq2MhUH5OE0iwsZ2EJWNxixHaPugex_SkoAwgJ5nWbNfHPHKD/s400/guitaredunet+pic-707300.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5328706686256536194" border="0" /></a></p>Today, I received my acceptance letter from Dusquesne University for the GAMA/NAMM/MENC 2009 Teaching Guitar Workshop. I was reading it to my wife and my son overheard the part about receiving a free guitar. He immediately started in with, "Well, if <i>that</i> guitar is nicer than <i>your </i>guitar can I ...?" I stopped him short and told him I wasn't giving him another guitar and that I had no idea what kind of instrument they would be giving us anyway.<br /><br />In addition to the guitar, you recieve 3 Graduate credits from the University, and they give you "new teaching materials and guitar accessories" with a total value of $1800.00. I'll let you know what that involves when I get there. I'm just excited about getting my contiuing education credits in something cool, this time. I'm also relieved that I can do this in Atlanta, where I have family that I can stay with and won't have to get a hotel for 5 days. There was a possibility of this location being full and me having to fly and get a hotel for the week in another location.<br /><br />I'm also taking blogger's post-by-email feature for a test drive today. I'm using it at home today but I wanted to see how it works because I can't log in from school anymore. It's a shame because that's where I take pictures of what the kids are doing and stuff. So, I've kind of layed off the blogging thing this year. I'm hoping that with this feature I'll get back in the swing of things.<br /><br />I've scheduled a bonafied guitar concert for my 30-something middle school general music students for May 4th. We're doing two easy 3-string trios from the <a href="http://www.billswick.com/prod07-Guitar%20Methods.htm">Bill Swick method</a> with everybody. The songs are Lightly Row and Ode to Joy. My special education kids can pretty easily play part 1. Then we're doing one trio from Book 1 of Bill's <a href="http://www.billswick.com/prod02.htm">Guitar Trios series</a>. I've also got a quartet playing "What'd I Say" which is my revoicing of a band arrangement. That one really sounds great. I might also get a smaller group to do another, more difficult trio, but we don't have much time.<br /><br />I really don't intend for it to be too big of a deal this year, but i felt that it was important for them to have something to showcase what they've done this year for their parents.Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-23263317193697718312009-03-14T07:01:00.000-07:002009-03-14T07:45:33.387-07:00On the Home StretchWe're approaching the end of the school year and just got out for spring break. I don't <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.8notes.com/pictures/guitar/tn_guitar2_jpg.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 86px; height: 105px;" src="http://www.8notes.com/pictures/guitar/tn_guitar2_jpg.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>remember the daylight savings switch happening the week before spring break last year. I think it just about killed me. Juvenile spring fever doesn't mix well with teacher sleep deprivation.<br /><br />I've got 4 or 5 kids who've worked all the way through the 2 quarters of Bill Swick's guitar method book. I've started them on Christopher Parkening's classical method. They're kind of ahead of the other kids I teach who are all over the place in terms of progress.<br /><br />I took 3 days off of school right after my choir got back from festival. So, I had about a week of them not really playing the guitar while I was out. It has been difficult to get them back going strong.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://tbn3.google.com/images?q=tbn:W3fLKQueQUzbjM:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/Eighth_note_run.png"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 113px; height: 74px;" src="http://tbn3.google.com/images?q=tbn:W3fLKQueQUzbjM:http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/Eighth_note_run.png" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />I also realized a few days ago that less than half of my students are at the point in the book where they're reading eighth notes. This is making teaching them Don't Cry for Me Argentina and What'd I Say nearly impossible. We're doing our crash course in eighth notes, but I don't know if we've got enough time. They're pretty big arrangements. I know that if I'd started with this method book at the beginning of the year instead of a couple of months in, we'd be rockin'. Next year I'll have a lot bigger head start with this stuff.<br /><br />At the very least I'm going to have a select group perform to open up our spring choir concert. I really think I need to have something for all of them though. They've done a lot this year and I want their parents to see their progress. I also want them to have the experience of working toward a performance again. (In December I had them perform at the Hospital.)<br /><br />Another thought I'm having at the end of the school year is about returning students. If I have several students who are wanting to take my class again, I may have the opportunity to divide them into different class periods and actually teach the more advanced students together. Exciting thoughts!<br /><br />Later,<br /><br />MattMatthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-55891362921773218442009-02-20T07:09:00.000-08:002014-06-24T14:43:07.420-07:00Teaching the Blues Part 5: Putting It All Together<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuoCh-MCwXQfTPf2YgxUTZ-cc4xoWpNB94fqyjEoP8T67fzFq0z961B71g8px_IcgeuCh9ATix3AKsBJhYqKoFOJ6ZaWdnuKikgQDie3b1-PTBp-UUIxQ_rTJUy7c5UvMIqmu9p8q7Pe-y/s1600/john+lee+hooker.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuoCh-MCwXQfTPf2YgxUTZ-cc4xoWpNB94fqyjEoP8T67fzFq0z961B71g8px_IcgeuCh9ATix3AKsBJhYqKoFOJ6ZaWdnuKikgQDie3b1-PTBp-UUIxQ_rTJUy7c5UvMIqmu9p8q7Pe-y/s320/john+lee+hooker.jpg" height="320" width="243" /></a></div>
The final and most important thing in teaching the blues is to put all the elements together while playing an actual song. "Keep Your Hands to Yourself" by Georgia Satellites is probably the definitive beginner play-along song. It's in the key of A, uses the beginner structure, and has a straight-eighths feel. Chuck Berry Songs such as "Johnny B. Goode" and "Roll Over Beethoven" also have straight eighths and a simple structure. <br />
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I'd also encourage you to listen to the Blues "greats" as a class. Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, B.B. King, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Eric Clapton are just the beginning of list of some great Blues singer/guitarists. Learn some songs in the keys of A and E to start, and then, branch off into other keys. In teaching the real songs you'll get students singing, and you'll pick up some classic solo licks and accompaniment styles. You'll also hear variations, such as blues that are longer or shorter than 12 bars, minor blues, and numerous variations in accompaniment styles and feels. Playing the form doesn't really mean anything without an actual song to play anyway.</div>
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Then, have the class write their own blues. Start with, "I woke up this morning, [insert lamentation here]". Repeat the first line, and close it out with a one-line "hook" statement which rhymes with the first line. This is just one simple example. You could have students do this individually as a project after you've done it with the whole class. One of these class creations could easily be performed at a final concert with kids soloing between verses. I promise it'll bring the house down, and Johnny's parents will be blown away that he can play an improvised guitar solo.</div>
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In closing out this conversation on the Blues, I'll throw in this bit of fun. Follow this link to <a href="http://www.sou.edu/music/pdf/blues.pdf">"How to Play and Sing the Blues"</a>. It's is a great read. Among other things it has the "Create Your Own Blues Name Starter Kit". Have fun with this stuff!</div>
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<a href="http://www.sou.edu/music/pdf/blues.pdf">http://www.sou.edu/music/pdf/blues.pdf</a></div>
Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-73705189421450132732009-02-19T07:51:00.000-08:002014-06-24T14:32:38.237-07:00Teaching the Blues Part 4: Elements of Improvisation<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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In "Teaching the Blues Part 3", I described how I introduce the pentatonic scale and improvisation on Day One of improvisation lessons. In subsequent lessons I introduce the notes on the other strings, introduce new rhythms, introduce variations to the blues accompaniment patterns covered in Parts 1 and 2 of my Teaching the Blues posts, and have them individually improvise solos for the class using the phrases we've learned so far. In the days and weeks following, I introduce new material in three general areas: melodic phrasing and fretboard positions, rhythms, and accompaniment patterns. These are built upon gradually and across all of the areas simultaneously. <br />
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For example, on Day 2 I might simply teach them that the first string fingering is the same as the second string and have them practice soloing on the second string and alternating phrases on each string. Day three might involve teaching them a new rhythm using eighth notes. In another lesson I might teach them chord or blues shuffle variations to use in accompaniment. <br />
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I break up my instruction on Melodic/Rhythmic Phrasing into two parts. I teach the class whatever new notes/rhythms I want them to learn through the call-and-response method described above. Every few days, I'll introduce a new rhythm or notes from a new string into this exercise. <br />
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Then, I go around the class and have the student individually improvise a solo. Each student gets twelve bars to solo, and I encourage him/her to incorporate the new element . <br />
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At first, they may say that they don't know what to play, and you have to encourage them by reminding them that they can simply play the phrases written on the board in a different order until they're more comfortable with the process. It's a little like paint-by-numbers, but they're learning a "vocabulary" with which to "speak the blues language."<br />
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At the same time we're working on learning the entire scale. "Second string, same as the first.", "Fingers 1 and 3 on the next three strings", and "Sixth string, same as the first". After the first couple of lessons, I usually teach them the whole scale this way. <br />
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The class plays the scale as notated in the tablature at the top of this post, but in half notes with me playing a blues accompaniment. Now the scale's a song! In succeeding lessons I have them play it in quarter notes, eight notes, and triplets. <br />
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So, each day we're doing a few things: <br />
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1. As a group, the class echos my call-and-response phrases employing whatever notes/rhythms we're working on. <br />
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2. Half of the class plays these phrases from the board, simply written as numbers as a tune whille the other half of the class accompanies with chords or a shuffle-pattern accompaniment. We switch and let each side side have a turn with the other element. <br />
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3. Repeat the process from # 2 using the entire scale as the tune while the other group accompanies. <br />
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4. Go around the room letting each student solo for 12 bars. <br />
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All of this material is just to get you started. Find some instruction books, videos, and web lessons on The Blues. There’s a ton of material out there. And listen to the blues! My next post will be on putting it all together.Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-11905074032055108902009-02-18T07:24:00.000-08:002014-06-24T14:42:38.389-07:00Teaching the Blues Part 3: Improvisation<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXWKb9hbBGWu0uv7kvvej4xN2bbcfJPvDJ3BfKunMK7wbJkino-RDYOVfSQcT8EuRc_ueh4bd2_X1sru7OtUFlTOy3eZnZGQNrYklG5yf_O4lyL7Nk50A5S9IPUUjvWJ6yXmnt1LcvTi2e/s1600/Blues+guitarist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXWKb9hbBGWu0uv7kvvej4xN2bbcfJPvDJ3BfKunMK7wbJkino-RDYOVfSQcT8EuRc_ueh4bd2_X1sru7OtUFlTOy3eZnZGQNrYklG5yf_O4lyL7Nk50A5S9IPUUjvWJ6yXmnt1LcvTi2e/s1600/Blues+guitarist.jpg" n4="true" /></a></div>
Let me begin by saying that there are a myriad of guitar lessons and articles on the pentatonic scale and guitar improvisation on the web. I'm sure many of them are more effective for teaching the adult student than my blog post. <br />
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So if you're a new guitar teacher wanting to learn the blues for yourself first, check out some of these other resources as well. The real purpose of this post is simply to present the methods I use to present this material to students of widely varying ability levels in the guitar classroom. <br />
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I begin by presenting the notes of the pentatonic scale (here in A minor) by playing something like the following for them: <br />
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Here is the Pentatonic scale presented as a guitar chord grid. (I got it from <a href="http://justinguitar.com/en/BL-019-BluesScale.php">justinguitar.com</a>. His site is an awesome resource for players at any level. Tons of blues lessons too. Check it out!) Place your first finger on the fifth fret for this position:</div>
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Then, I might play and sing some blues, inserting scale licks between the sung phrases, so that they get an idea of where we're going, but my purpose is not to intimidate or give them the impression that this will be incredibly difficult. </div>
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Next, I introduce scale notes on the first string only. I instruct them to place their first finger on the fifth fret, and we pulse that note until everyone is there. Then, fourth finger, 8th fret. Leave the first finger down for this one (at least to start). <br />
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After going over this for a couple of minutes, we do a call-and-response exercise using a simple <i>quarter, quarter, half note</i> rhythm. I say finger numbers, but fret numbers would work as well. I play and say, "One, one, one" etc. They repeat in rhythm. Then, "Four, four four". We spend a couple of minutes here playing combinations of the two notes on the first string. </div>
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Now, it's time for a break. Using this three note structure, I ask them to tell me combinations of 1 - 1 - 4 that we could play, and we'll list them on the board. I say, "The first one's '1 - 1 - 1'." Here's where the analytical, creatively-challenged kids will breathe a sigh of relief, and some of their panic will subside. <br />
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By the end of this exercise you should have something like the following written on the board:<br />
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1 1 1 1 1 4 1 4 4 1 4 1<br />
4 1 1 4 1 4 4 4 4 4 4 1<br />
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Then, we play this as a "song" with the quarter, quarter, half note rhythm I talked about earlier and including a measure of rest in between each phrase. I like to count it, "One, one, one - . Rest, rest, rest - ." <br />
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The measure of rest is key. Without it, inexperienced musicians have trouble playing anything which sounds like real phrasing. At this point, if you've taught them a 12-bar blues shuffle pattern, you can divide the class in half and have one section accompany the other. This can be pretty easily done even with very young students. <br />
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The real musician in you may cringe at the thought of breaking down blues phrasing in such a methodical way and essentially removing most of the creative aspects of improvisation, but you're not just teaching improvisation on Day One. You're teaching the scale and some basic elements of phrasing. This is their beginning blues "vocabulary".<br />
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You're also quickly getting the class playing non-notated music as a two-part ensemble. When the kids hear both parts together, they'll be really pleased with the result. Of course the most important consideration is that you can’t improvise a single note solo as a large group. This exercise gets them all playing together. <br />
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Continued in part 4...Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-91348105290287462792009-02-17T07:11:00.000-08:002014-06-24T14:31:54.319-07:00Teaching the Blues Part 2<div class="separator" style="clear: left; cssfloat: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;">
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<strong>Armadillos Taste Like Chicken</strong><br />
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Last year I had an epiphany during a morning jog. I was trying to come up with an easier way to teach the 12-bar blues structure. For me the problem is that the pattern repeats within one measure. So, it’s sometimes difficult to teach students to count four bars when they’re actually saying the fret numbers 2-2-4-4 twice per measure. It dawned on me that if I had an eight-syllable phrase to go with the shuffle that it would be easier to remember. Then, I thought, “What if it was a phrase beginning with ‘A’ for the A spot and so forth. <br />
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What I finally came up with was:<br />
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“Armadillos taste like chicken”, “Don’t you know they’re finger lickin’”, “Everybody loves to eat ’em”. If you sing it over the following changes you get the highly singable last four measures, “Everybody loves to eat ‘em. Don’t you know they’re finger-lickin’. Armadillos taste like chicken. Armadillos.” <br />
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A A A A <br />
D D A A<br />
E D A A <br />
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It makes for a great ending. It’s funny because the kids think of it as a real song. I had immediate success with this. I even taught it to a 9-yr-old in a private lesson to memorize “Johnny B Goode”. She doesn’t even practice but came back the next week still able to play it. I’ve never had that kind quick retention with a young student and the 12-bar blues shuffle. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg_GyHtL3Qy5-WKgDv36taZnr6Gc2LobtrS19k_pzrBmppGS6No6RR_cVUVUaFDDczX8K61cNNmyobrhCmM6I7Rf_RqhZNVW9bqoDnKAqkvZQ6KTWGqzLLK-5VROpYZ-A6CYRWPEOa3TQW/s1600/Armadillo+Blues+JPEG.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg_GyHtL3Qy5-WKgDv36taZnr6Gc2LobtrS19k_pzrBmppGS6No6RR_cVUVUaFDDczX8K61cNNmyobrhCmM6I7Rf_RqhZNVW9bqoDnKAqkvZQ6KTWGqzLLK-5VROpYZ-A6CYRWPEOa3TQW/s400/Armadillo+Blues+JPEG.jpg" height="400" ox="true" width="356" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0BzyLWJOv_MPyOGY2Zjg0ODAtNzY3Ni00NDFiLTk4OTktM2RhNzc3MTgwMzY4&hl=en">Here's</a> the pdf of the tune as sung while learning the pattern. <br />
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<strong>Swing and the Palm Mute</strong><br />
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I usually introduce the blues shuffle to beginners with a straight-eighth feel. Many rock and country songs use this straight feel and it’s easier to teach. However, to get a real blues sound it needs to swing. Swing is usually indicated in notation with something like this: <br />
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This is an oversimplification of what is really a “feel”, but is probably the best way to notate what is desired. Listen to some real blues music! The long-short, triple feel is a big part of it. <br />
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Another important technique for getting a good blues sound is the palm mute. <a href="http://www.5min.com/Video/How-to-Play-Acoustic-Guitar-Palm-Muting-2459012">Here</a> is a pretty good video explaining it. Pay particular attention to the blues shuffle sound he gets at the beginning of the video. That’s the muted sound you often hear with the blues. <br />
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<strong>Chords and Other Variations of the Shuffle Pattern</strong><br />
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One way to vary what you’re doing with the blues is to have some students play a chord accompaniment while others play the shuffle and improvise. There is great section on the blues in <em>Jerry Snyder’s Guitar School</em>. He introduces the basic seventh chords used to play over blues changes as well as some chord variations which can make the chords sound more like a real accompaniment. He even includes a chord shuffle pattern. Snyder’s mute-strum pattern which is taught in the preceding lessons provides a great resource for teaching a real blues rhythm feel. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Q-AKA_VlI5ASbgmujWoz8hjRAtzQWQJSfPlqM_kJqQ4b3Ue9oA5kZ09btEgNp3GracyWDniq7Ak1Ms5abdZHewB2apmbtsJUInosSEVns2z9og72DEW8rdg4IxLzUEven7iUWRU6Cpog/s1600/31bb6PZ3PZL__SL500_AA300_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; cssfloat: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><strong><iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=adventure0f8-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0882849026&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1<1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe></strong></a></div>
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He’s got versions of the 12-bar blues in the keys of A and E with standard notation and tablature. These are common variations of the really basic one in my first blues post and include a V chord turnaround. There are numerous other books on playing the blues if you’re interested in learning the many variations of the12-bar blues' structure, solo licks, shuffle pattern variations, and blues turnarounds. </div>
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<em>Jerry Snyder's Guitar School </em>is reviewed in a previous post and comes highly recommended. It has a notation section in the back, and in the front section he fully integrates rhythm playing into learning an ample number of basic/intermediate chords. This one's a must-have for the guitar classroom. </div>
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In my next post I'll discuss blues improvisation and how I teach it to very young beginners.</div>
Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6950720023596165851.post-24005958339729874852009-02-16T07:01:00.000-08:002014-06-24T14:31:30.382-07:00Teaching the Blues<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b>Teaching the Blues</b><br />
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Learning to play the blues is essential in the guitar classroom. Kids love playing it. It's easy to learn, doesn't require reading skill and easily leads right into improvisation. I have found that often kids who have trouble with note-reading, such as special education students, can have success in playing a blues shuffle and especially with the corresponding improvisation lessons. <br />
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Also, it's a great way to get everyone performing together again when you reach the point in the school year where kids are at different levels. With the shuffle and the improvisation component, there are ample opportunities for remediation and enrichment while still playing together as a class on the same piece. You can pretty quickly get three groups playing, with one on a shuffle pattern, another playing a chord accompaniment and the last group playing simple patterns which will make up the “vocabulary” for later improvisation. <br />
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Finally, it can’t be overemphasized that the blues offers perhaps the best answer to the question of what to do to keep students engaged for 50 minutes (or longer). With its simple structure, abundance of recognizable song examples and endless variation, the blues offers a fun alternative class activity. It can be used as a laid back end-of-class activity and even as a reward to encourage students to work harder on other daily studies. <br />
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<b>Basic shuffle Pattern</b><br />
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It is common practice to teach young guitarists the blues shuffle in A. The reason for this is that the shuffle patterns based on the I, IV and V chords can all be played in open position and using the same fingering. Also, a basic moveable minor pentatonic scale is easily played in A at the 5th fret. For the I Chord, which I call “the A spot”, I teach them the pattern below by rote.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSYZRQv2dYJVGW5tctaB_0lc7r1g9IoOIn1_SZpsNt2ntOJoqMFpj9Vk2uHA5YV0ms3SSnmz0rVSFT7XANahtH3HmQ7aPVuNhOV9Kd8Aja50cj3jCrdprBv4ID5AkMNSUdD_pZO75OqMvI/s1600/A+spot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSYZRQv2dYJVGW5tctaB_0lc7r1g9IoOIn1_SZpsNt2ntOJoqMFpj9Vk2uHA5YV0ms3SSnmz0rVSFT7XANahtH3HmQ7aPVuNhOV9Kd8Aja50cj3jCrdprBv4ID5AkMNSUdD_pZO75OqMvI/s200/A+spot.jpg" height="155" ox="true" width="200" /></a></div>
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Then, the two other positions, the “D and E spots”:</div>
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<b>Teaching the Structure</b><br />
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There are many variations of the 12-bar blues, but at the beginning, I usually go with one which is structurally very simple. The following is my beginner blues structure with each chord symbol representing one bar or measure:</div>
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A A A A </div>
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D D A A</div>
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E E A A </div>
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If you are a musician, this sounds a little simple, but most students aren’t as familiar as you are with the blues, and this structure is simple enough to be immediately memorized. I usually just write on the board like this:</div>
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A 4x<br />
D 2x<br />
A 2x<br />
E 2x<br />
A 2x<br />
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I strongly urge you to resist the temptation to notate all of this for students, especially if they’re younger than high school age. It’s the blues, after all. Besides, it takes the focus off of the overall structure and encourages a note-to-note perspective which may be distracting for beginners. Later, it may be helpful to have some notation or tablature when introducing variations of the shuffle. <br />
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When students are comfortable with the basic version, I introduce this common variation:<br />
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A A A A <br />
D D A A<br />
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E D A A </div>
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There are many more variations especially when you include turnarounds. It’s probably most effective to teach them in the context of songs which have a 12-bar blues structure. </div>
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In my next post I’ll discuss memorizing the structure, variations and including chords. </div>
Matthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12525215302934351464noreply@blogger.com0