Take Free Online Singing Lessons

Augmented and Diminished Chords

Want to Learn Guitar? Start With the Basics

Music Exams: Preparing for Success

Why Johnny Struggles With Piano

The Benefits of Collective Music-Making for Youth

Discover How a Pianist Can Connect With The Audience

Have you ever listened and watched a pianist play and been completely mesmerised by them and almost drawn into what they are playing. This is all to do with the connection between the pianist and the song, and how they feel about the piece of music that they are playing. It's all to do with how they portray the song, and getting this reaction and link across to the audience.

As a pianist the one rule you need to remember is that you are a pianist BUT also a performer. If you keep these thoughts in set into your mind, then when you go to perform a piece of music whether it be a solo performance or as part of a group, the chemistry between yourself and the piano will come across to the audience.

Some advice on turning your favourite song into a fulfilling performance is to do the following with your song once it's prepared: -

Make use of dynamics - dynamics are one of the most important factors into bringing your music to life, you need to tell a story through your music, and dynamics will help you to do so. Below are a list of the main dynamics and their meanings, which you should always use when performing a song: -pp -Pianissimo, which means play VERY SOFTmp- Mezzo Piano, which means to playMODERATELY SOFTLYp - Mezzo Piano, which means to play SOFTLYmf - Mezzo Forte, which means to play MODERATELY LOUDf - Forte, which means to play LOUDff - Fortissimo, which means to play VERY LOUDCrescendo - Gradually get LouderDimuendo - Gradually become Quieter

A little guide to how a song could be played using the above dynamics is to start the music quite quietly, so moderately soft, then when you are approaching the next section i.e. from the intro into the verse use a crescendo to gradually get louder. Play with volume level of moderately loud, keep this level consistent throughout the verse, but remember to accentuate certain notes. Maybe at the start of each Bar you could just push into those notes a bit harder, just to give it some versatility.

Then on to the chorus. This really needs to build up and be quite dramatic, so another crescendo will be required, so you are playing the start of the chorus loud, and then build up again to play the song very loud.

This will put emotion and feeling into your music. Once the chorus is close to the end, use a diminuendo to gradually become quieter to lead the song back into the verse. Try not to be too sudden with this and fade in and out gradually.

This will really turn your song into a performance and help engage the audience into your music.

This article has been viewed 3 time(s).
Article Submitted On: April 12, 2011

Easy Acoustic Guitar Songs

Learning To Read Tablature For Home Study

Drum Kit Rudiments

There are 40 rudiments that anyone could practise anywhere with their hands, feet or a combination of both.

Rudiments are the building blocks of drumming, a foundation on which we build our grooves and drum fills as we advance.

The Single Paradiddle is one of the most common rudiments to practise as it contains both single and double strokes. You could start off by playing a simple rudiment such as a single stroke roll or single paradiddle, then make it more complicated by adding the bass drum.

Muscle memory, Over time, will make it easier to increase the speed of rudiments around the drum kit and you can substitute some beats with the bass drum.

You don't have to practise all of the rudiments to be a great drummer as you can make rudiments sound really good by mixing them in a fill. After a few months of practising rudiments you should be able to do play some complicated stickings using the whole kit sometimes not thinking about what you are doing that much, again due to muscle memory.

You may want to start to practise a rudiment on the snare drum first before practising around the drum kit because it will be easier as only one sound source will be heard.

To make it simpler and easier to practise try using a metronome so you can keep the same exercise going at various tempos, it will also help you keep the timing exactly right and solidify your internal body clock. You can buy metronomes from between ?5 and ?100's from all good drum stores.

Drum books often have the rudiments in them to work from as a reference, the official rudiments can also be download from the percussive arts society website and other drum related websites such as the vic firth (drum stick manufacturer) website.

Rudiments should be practiced not only at various tempos but in many different ways such as on a practice pad and on the drum kit, when on the kit it would be a great idea to play the hi hat with the foot on the quarter note or 'on the pulse'.

Playing a specific sub-division to start with i.e. sixteenth notes and then changing sub-division to triplets, quintuplets, septuplets, demi semi quavers etc to get used to dividing the pulse into various amounts of notes and gaining the feel for playing as many rudiments through these sub-divisions as possible.

How To Clean Your Guitar Without Ruining It

Important Guitar Tips For Beginners - How To Do It Right From The Get-Go

By Remy Moz Remy Moz
Level: Platinum

Remy Moz is the Editor-in-Chief of ReviewMOZ.org. At ReviewMOZ.org readers can "Learn, Compare and Save" by reading professionally written product reviews, comparisons, and customer feedback ...

Learning the guitar seemed easy enough to me then because almost everyone I knew at that time seemed to know a few chords and so I thought, "How hard could it be, right?" Boy, was I ever wrong. If you aren't determined enough, you could just easily ditch the whole thing. But if someone told you what you should expect, wouldn't you be more prepared and more ready to see yourself through all the challenges? Learn and Master Guitar by Steve Krenz does just that and so does this article.

The first challenge you'll ever run into when learning the guitar is dealing with the pain of training your fingers to be nimble and strong enough to hold the chords. Learning how to position your fingers might look easy but it can be a pain. However, you can make the pain all worth it if you know the right technique from the get-go and if you learn a few exercises to warm-up and strengthen your fingers. Buy Learn and Master Guitar if you want to go and learn techniques from the pros as early as now. The more you've trained yourself to do it right the first few tries, the easier it will be for you as you progress.

So how do you position your hands? First, you need to focus on training your left hand before you move on to the next. Learning one at a time should make it easier. Your left hand should be positioned in a way that no sound will be muffled when you pluck or strum with your right and in order to do that you need to start with the proper positioning of your thumb.

The thumb is often ignored by most first-timers because when you're on your first learning session, you really just want to be able to play the song you've chosen, paying little mind about technique. I understand. I've been there. And like I said, you do not want to build a habit that'll impede your playing later on and that will be hard to break. In any case, your thumb should be planted firmly against the back of the neck of the guitar and should be at least halfway down, with the left thumb pad the only part touching the guitar. Don't bend your thumb or curl it. You also want to make sure you keep your wrist bent in and never out or backwards. For diagrams on this and for other proper hand and finger positioning, go to Learn and Master Guitar Reviews. You may also compare this program with other learn guitar programs by checking out general review sites like ReviewMOZ.org.

Before you purchase any online product, go to ReviewMOZ.org and take a look at the Product Reviews, comparisons and user ratings of a wide variety of consumer products and services. Check out Learn & Master Guitar and Learn & Master Blues Guitar by Steve Krenz, Jamorama Guitar, Guitar Maintenance by Greg Voros, Guitar Super Stars and other music learning courseware at ReviewMOZ.org.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Remy_Moz

This article has been viewed 9 time(s).
Article Submitted On: April 07, 2011

You Can Learn to Play Guitar Online!

The main advantages of choosing to learn guitar online are convenience and cost. You can schedule your lessons around the time you have available and avoid having to travel to the location of a tutor every day. You also save a lot of money based on the fact that you are not paying for individual attention of a one-on-one tutor.

In fact, you can learn quickly with an online tutor as you might with an online or disk-based language tutor. Of course, some online guitar courses are better than others and so you might want to take a bit of time and care in choosing the best one for you. That said, a steady schedule and an efficient tutor coupled with a fast Internet connection will make the learning process both rapid and enjoyable.

You can choose between online lessons from an established guitar school or specialized instruction from tutors on the social networks like FaceBook and My Space. My recommendation is to pay for lessons from an established, online school because you will get consistent, rapid results from carefully tested video modules. There are "free" lessons online but, as the old saying says, "You get what you pay for."

There are also online "master" classes where you can learn innovative techniques and improvisations. You can choose between pre-taped tested lessons or two-way interaction with a class. If you attend an online class, you will probably have to have a web cam and wear a headset with a microphone.

The main advantage of going the class route is the fact that you get feedback and progress monitoring by a professional tutor at a fraction of the cost of private lessons. As you are, no doubt, aware, practice makes perfect. Regular practice of at least 20 minutes a day is a must if you are to be a successful guitar student.

In the beginning, you will be devoting most of your practice time to learning chords and scales. While this is nowhere near as much fun as playing songs, it is a necessary precursor to that. You will learn the C, A, G, E and D chords and then branch out into variations of those basic chords.

Learning to play the guitar can be a bit painful at first. You need to learn to press down on the frets with the ends of your fingers (not the pads) and until you build calluses, the strings may feel like steel cables pushing into the ends of your fingers.

Where you press is very important to the sound you will be creating. If you hear a buzzing noise included in the sound of the note, that's your clue that you are not pressing down in exactly the right place. As I said, practice makes perfect, so stay with it though the hard part and you will earn yourself the gift of a lifetime: musical self-expression.

? 2011 Robert M. Gillespie, Jr.

The Three-Step Guide on How to Teach Piano

It is undeniably true that music is food to everybody's soul. For some, music isn't only a food to their soul - it is that thing which brings food to their tables.

Teaching to play the piano isn't as easy as what we see with our eyes so to actually earn a living out of it is yet another challenge. Piano teachers shouldn't only be good and skillful but patient enough to aid students' learning. To be an effective piano teacher, take note of these easy steps on how to teach piano lessons to your students.

Step 1: Decisions to be made

Together with your student, decide on how many piano lessons you want to teach and learn together. Usually, each session is up to thirty minutes a day especially when the student is a beginner. Decide how much you will charge your client. If you are new, it is recommended that your charge will be lower than what other piano teachers are offering. Another essential thing to decide on is the venue for the lessons. You may do it in your place or in your student's place just as long as there are minimal disturbances as possible.

Step 2: How to teach Piano without being hard on students

First meetings can be awkward to both teacher and student so take time to build rapport and earn your students' trust - this will pave the way to easily get the desired results and will surely ease the steps on how to teach piano to students. Be sure to keep reminding your students these essential things to ease the way to learning to play the piano. Before actually teaching the first piece, let your students be familiar with the keyboard - let them know the names and the location of each note. And then teach them the right way to aesthetically maneuver their fingers on the keyword for them to look pleasing while playing the piano.

Step 3: Don't rush!

Above anything else, keep encouraging your students to practice every day and give them enough time to learn. Different students have different pacing so don't be hard on your students and just be patient.

To be gifted in playing a musical instrument is good but to be able to earn the skills on how to teach piano is better - you don't merely teach music but you provide music as food to another person's soul.

Drum Lessons for Children, Things That You Should Consider

There are a number of things that you should consider before your child begins taking drum lessons. It is important that you start your child's drum lessons right because how your child begins to take lessons determines whether he or she will be interested in continuing. You have to remember that drum lessons not only teach your child how to play different techniques but they also help them develop their own style.

Aside from the lessons you have to consider the kind of drums your child wants to play, or what kind of drums he or she is going to need. You also have to consider the teachers and the number of times he or she attends drum lessons per week. Here are a couple of things that you should consider before you child starts his or her drum lessons.

What type of drums to buy? Before you buy a drum set, it is best if you let your child attend a lesson or two first before purchasing one. You sign up your child for lessons in a music school or with a teacher that has drums available so you don't have to carry your own set or have to buy a new one before the lesson starts. It is also advisable that you buy used ones first before buying a new one. He might lose interest in drums after a couple of sessions and might shift to another instrument.

There are three main types of drums that your child could choose from; there is jazz, rock and big band drums. It is great if your child already knows which ones they want to play with. If he still does not know which ones he wants to learn how to play, the music teacher could help lead the child on which instrument is best suited for him. The different kinds of drums requires many types of lessons, like how to read a music sheet (for jazz and band drums) but all drums involve learning the basic concepts of music and drumming.

Next is the music teacher. In finding the best music teacher that best fits to your child's schedule, needs and your budget, you have to do a little bit of research. Finding the best teacher would require a little bit of work on your part but it would also mean getting the right one. Ask around, from friends whose kids are also enrolled in music school, check online and see if there is an available school near your home. It is advisable to register with an established school for the best lessons. They have experienced instructors and probably have a roster of teachers (so, no miss lessons). Most of the established schools also have the necessary equipment that would aid in your child's training. Also, a great thing about enrolling in an established music school is that your child will be able to interact with many kids with the same interest as him.

Number of lessons a week. The number of lessons your child gets in a week would greatly depend on your child's schedule and the music teacher's availability and suggestion. That is why where you sign up for music lessons is important. More established schools have a wide array of different schedules that would suit your child's schedule and your own. They also have a time-tested schedule and methods on the frequency of the lessons needed in order for a child to be proficient in playing his or her desired instrument.

The Perils of the Classical-Only Music Education

Why Should We Give Guitar Lessons To Young Kids?

Bass Guitar Tuning - A 'Note' On Intonation

You have tuned your bass properly and the open strings are perfectly in tune, but why does it sound slightly out of tune when you play certain notes on the fretboard? If the strings are not old or stretched, then it's probably time to adjust the intonation. This is a very important adjustment that you need to make so your bass is in tune everywhere on the fretboard. Many people either do not understand the importance of doing this, do not know how to do it, or they simply take for granted that it was done at the factory before sending the instrument off to the store.

Although it is true that most quality instruments are properly set up at the shop before leaving, it is not a bad idea to check and see if everything was properly set up on your instrument anyway. The intonation of your bass guitar is no exception. All you need to be able to do this is, of course, your bass, a screwdriver (Phillips no. 1 or 2 usually) and a good instrument tuner.

The best device you can use for this operation is, without a doubt, a true strobe tuner, but these precision tuners can cost up to $900, or more! Because not everybody has that kind of money lying around, you'll probably have to settle for a good quality analog or digital model.

Now, assuming that the truss rod and the string height have been properly adjusted beforehand and that the bridge of your bass guitar has a screw to move the saddle forward or back when tightened or loosened, you can now proceed with the intonation of your bass guitar by following these simple steps:

STEP 1
Plug the bass into the tuner (making sure it is set for bass tuning) and start at one end, tune the string as perfectly as you can to the note (low E on the 4th string, for example).

STEP 2
Now, play the note on the 12th fret of that same string and see if the tuner still reads the same note exactly (E in this example -although one octave higher).

STEP 3
If the tuner reads the exact same note, there is no need to do anything and you can move on to the next string. If the note produced there is slightly lower than the open string note, you need to turn the screw so that it moves the saddle towards the neck of the bass (1/4 or 1/2 turn to start). If the note produced is slightly higher than the open string note, the saddle needs to be moved away from the neck.

STEP 4
Re-tune the same string again and compare it to the note on the 12th fret again.

STEP 5
Repeat steps 3 & 4 until both notes are exactly the same, then move on to the next string.

After you've done the last string, go over them as many times as necessary until you have achieved the perfect intonation for your bass guitar.

I Can Play Guitar, That Means I Can Play Bass Too, Right?

Learn To Master The Guitar Easily

Do you often find yourself awestruck whenever you see your favorite artist play the guitar so good? Do you feel inspired to play like your favorite star? If you are, then look no further, you came to the right place. Follow the steps that are outline below and you will be certainly the best guitarist you can ever be in no time. They're all so easy anybody can do it!

1. Own a guitar. You have to have your own guitar.

2. Start with the basics. Whenever we know the elements of music by heart like:

* Timing. Always consider the duration and tempo of your notes to keep you from playing a premature or a late chord.

* Volume. Pay attention about the loudness of your music! Even though how good you are, if it's inappropriately loud or it's too soft, it won't be appreciated.

* Range, pitch and tone; melody, and harmony. Do your best to play your chords precisely. It is very crucial to get this right.

3. Choose a genre. Since music is a broad subject, you need to train your ear and accustom yourself to a particular style. Some of a few suggested these genres for beginners are as follows:

* Rock

* Acoustic

* Jazz and;

* Country

4. Choose a learning method. You can

* either: Hire a music teacher. Hiring a teacher usually helps you to keep motivated and focused. Your schedule is more regular and you are mentored in real time. The best part is that you can directly ask any inquiry without delay.

* Self-help books and instructional videos. The advantage of these is that they are cheap and you can learn at your own pace without pressure. They are also always available in contrast to a teacher.

* combination of both. If you have a lot of time and really determined to learn as quickly as you can, then you can complement your training with each other.

5. Observe the fundamentals. Now that you are knowledgeable on the concept of music and guitar, you should now direct your attention on the mechanical basics of playing the guitar. Always watch and try to visualize in your mind what you learned from your instructor or have watched from the videos.

* Strumming. Many people who play the guitar (or never learned to play one) claim that this might be the most challenging task in learning a guitar. Be mindful of how you strum according to timing and tempo. Relax your shoulders and be sure that your strum is hinged at your wrist, not your elbows.

* Good posture and form. To minimize strain on the neck, back, and shoulders. This helps to keep you practicing longer and better.

* Memorize the basic chords. No, there is no way you can skip this step if you want to play the guitar like a pro. Start with the basic chords like A, B, C, D, and G. If you think you've mastered these, memorize more chords. The more you know, the faster your exercises will be.

* Start with an easy piece. You really want to play a piece because it is your favorite, but you often find yourself in hindered progress. If this frequently happens to you, it would be better if you played simpler songs instead to produce more satisfactory results.

* Practice. As the common meme goes: genius is 99% perspiration and 1% inspiration. Never give up just because it gets harder; instead, use the challenge as an inspiration to grow and improve. There are really few things you couldn't do if you put your mind on it and learning to play a guitar is not one of them.

Lastly, be patient with your drills and remember to always stay positive and the rest will follow.

Understanding Tempo

As you are getting to know how to read sheet music it truly is important that you fully grasp the simplest way to determine the speed of a piece. The pace of the beat (or pulse) in the music presents the heartbeat of a musical piece. This is easy to fathom if you consider the human heartbeat - anytime we're sad or relaxed or napping then our pulse is slowed (hence if music is depicting one of these feelings it usually will use a slow speed). In the instance that one is furious, stimulated or perhaps in a combat situation then the heart beat is usually elevated (accordingly a faster speed is routinely employed).

The way to calculate the velocity of a composition in ordinary notation is easy to figure out. It is usually specified with Italian words and phrases written just above the stave. These are described as tempo markings. Here is a shortlist of the most frequent tempo markings you may find:
Adagio signifies slow

Andante means Walking Pace

Moderato denotes Quite Quickly

Allegro signifies Fast

Presto denotes Very Fast

Remembering these phrases will help you considerably when figuring out how to read sheet music.

On the other hand, in recent times the pace of a piece has more commonly been supplied with an indicator of the beats per minute. You may see a note value (eg a crotchet) then "=120bpm". This would indicate that the crotchet beat of the composition is going to be 120 beats per minute. This means that there are 120 crotchet beats in a minute. This is referred to as a metronome marking. (A similar indication may be created using a quaver, semiquaver, etc..)

Subtle modifications in tempo help you to breathe life into a piece of music. These can be shown by way of the word accelerando (accel.) for accelerating or rallentando (rall.) or ritardando (rit.) for slowing the speed. Following one of these markings, the expression "a tempo" can be written to inform the performer to go back to the original pace.

Knowing these few relatively easy expressions will benefit you when making an effort to work out the speed of a composition when you're learning how to read sheet music. If you take the time to try to commit these words and phrases to memory then you will not have to look them up every time you look at a new piece of music. For very little effort you will find that determining the tempo of a piece becomes easy.

Beginner Acoustic Guitar - Your Ultimate Guide

What You Need to Prepare Before Starting Your Cello Lessons

The cello is a beautifully hand crafted music instrument. Compared to other stringed instruments such as the violin or viola, it produces a warm tone. Now that you have decided to learn to play the cello, you will need to consider the following before you start your cello lessons:

1. Buy or rent a cello

Before you start your cello lesson, you will need to source for your cello. You have the choice of buying your personal cello or renting one. Some students are not very sure if they like to play the cello and only wish to do a trial lesson to test this out. In this case, my advice would be to rent one. Typically a fine quality cello which is properly set up for best tone quality would cost approximately one hundred dollars to rent for a month. You will be asked to put up a deposit to the value of the instrument with your local cello shop. This deposit is fully refundable upon return of the cello, cello bow and case in good condition.

If you are very sure that you love the sound of the cello and will enjoy your lessons with the cello teacher, then go ahead and purchase one. Visit several reputable music instrument dealers located in your city and test out as many cello as you wish. Most importantly, select your cello based on your budget and tone quality.

2. Select a suitable cello bow

Aside from the cello, ask your local music instrument dealer to select a suitable bow for your music instrument. Different cello bows produce different tone on the same music instruments. So select this wisely.

3. Music scores and music theory books

You will need to purchase a good guide book so that your cello teacher can guide you through your first cello lesson. The Suzuki cello book (volume 1) is a very good choice to start with as this covers the basics such as right posturing, how to take care of your cello and how to read notes.

Your music instrument teacher will need to cover basic music theory with you. The ABRSM series of theory books are the best choice in this aspect.

4. Buy a music stand

Some students neglect getting a music stand as they feel this is not essential. Actually, the music stand is important as it ensures that your posture is correct when you play on your cello. The music stand props up your scores and books, while you practice on your music instrument. There are many brands of music stands available. Pick one based on the budget you have.

The above form the basic starter kit before you start your music lessons. Once you have acquired these, go ahead and enjoy your cello lessons!

How To Find Keyboard Chord Notes For Any Chord In Seconds

You can learn how to find keyboard chord notes for any chord in seconds using a few simple formulas. No matter what key you're playing in, or what the chord symbol, these simple chord templates will be all you need to build any chord from scratch, quickly and easily.

First, we need a couple of definitions: half steps and whole steps.

A half step is the smallest distance between any two keys on the piano. It can be between two white keys, or between a white key and a black key (but not between two black keys). If you pick any key on the piano, the note 1/2 step above (to the right of) that key is the key immediately to the right of the current key.

For example, if you play a C (the white key to the immediate left of any of the groups of two black keys), 1/2 step above C is C#, the 1st of the 2 black keys in the 2-black-key group. The note 1/2 step below C is B - it's the white key immediately to the left of C.

A whole step is simply two half steps. So, the note a whole step above C is the first white key to the right of C, which is D.

With those definitions out of the way, here's how to build any major chord:

1. Play the root of the chord - for example, play a C note.

2. Play the note 4 half steps (2 whole steps) above that note - in this example, that would be E, the note two white keys to the right of C.

3. Play the note 3 half steps (1 and 1/2 whole steps) above that last note - in this example, that would be G, the note 2 white keys to the right of E.

When you play those 3 notes together, you will be playing a major chord, also know as a major triad (3 notes).

This works for any beginning note. For example, if we start with Ab, the black key in the middle of a group of 3 black keys, the next note up would be 4 half steps above that, which is C. The third note is 3 half steps above C, which is Eb. So, Ab major is Ab - C - Eb.

To build a minor chord starting on any note, simple "switch" the top two intervals. In other words, start with any note - for example C. Next, play the note 3 half steps above that root, which is Eb in this example. Finally, play the note 4 half steps above the last one, which is G in this example. C minor is played as C - Eb - G.

Once again, we can use this structure starting on any note. For example, starting on F, we have F - Ab - C to make an Fm chord.

To build a diminished chord, start with the root note, then play the note 3 half steps above the root, then another note 3 half steps above that one. So, Cdim (C diminished) would be C - Eb - Gb.

Finally, to build an augmented chord, start with the root, then play the note 4 (1/2-steps) above the root, then the note 4 (1/2-steps) above that one. So, C+ (C augmented) would be C - E - G#.

There are other chord modifications and extensions, but these are the formulas for the foundation chords, so you won't need to look up the basic chords any longer.

How To Play Piano - Learn to Play Music With Lessons For Beginners - 2

I guess every body at some time in their life thinks about how cool it would be to play the piano. Well it is cool and you can, this article is the second of seven, they will help and give you to a firm grounding to go on and teach yourself how to play. If you remember your school days when you had music or piano lessons the one thing you probably recall, my guess is that FACE represents the names of the notes in the spaces of a line of music; and Every Good Boy Deserves Favour represents the notes on the five lines of the piece of music. This is so, if you read from the bottom upwards.

But it does not stop there; the notes carry on down to the bass lines, which also have five lines and four spaces. The bass line and the treble lines are separated by one imaginary line. There used to be a line many eons ago but nowadays it is omitted, but the note that this missing line represented still exists it is C, usually called middle C; therefore the notes either side of this imaginary line also still exist and they are B, and D,

This leaves us with the bass lines G, B, D, F, A, and our bass leger line spaces A, C, E, G, Now these sets of notes also have a memory aid, probably not known as well as the others, they are for the spaces of the bass "All Cows Eat Grass" for A, C, E, G, and for the lines of the bass, "Grizzly Bears Don't Fear Anything" first letters of which represent G, B, D, F, A, Like the treble lines these are read from the bottom upwards.

You can now see that if you start at the bottom of the base lines from G, alphabetically obviously G, to G, to G, and onwards you can read right to the top of the treble lines to F, Naturally as you will have seen with more complicated music scores you can go higher and lower with the use of leger lines, these are a little line added to the note, through it, above or below it.

With that I should tell you in case you are a complete beginner that the left hand will play Bass and the right hand will play treble, which should be obvious as soon as you sit down at the piano, this is also why it is important to have a reference point " middle C," Left of middle C, left hand, Right of middle C, right hand although there will be times when you cross over. This note is usually slightly left of centre of your keyboard.

To play the piano with both hands is quite an achievement for the beginner but not that difficult, play and practice slowly, although I say practice slowly you try to keep your rhythm and beat, for instance if you are playing a song and you know the words, if you sing them slowly and deliberately, you can play along and still keep your rhythm, it also helps if you tap your right foot to help with your timing.

I would like to mention here again for the beginners sake, when you take piano lessons you will need to know what numbers are used for your fingers, simple enough, start with the thumb as One the index finger as two the middle finger as three, the ring finger as four and the little finger is five, that is the same for both hands. Ok, techno wise you should be in good order to start your lessons.

Next question, should you go online or offline for your lessons, what do you go for? My own view is, that it would be great to have a local tutor that you could call on day or night whenever you had a problem or a thought that you needed to get clear in your head. But being practical that's not going to happen, unless you live with your tutor. Which usually leaves you pondering until your next booked lesson? Whereas with online lessons you will have a well programmed course, videos, e books and help anytime from wherever you are at home or on holiday, anywhere where there is a computer. So in my opinion, I recommend buying a course of lessons online, another point is that you also learn at your own pace, no pressure, no set time limit, you choose your own pace. Make it fun.

My name is Ken Aindow I am, like you, a budding keyboard player, and singer LoL. If you would like to see more and progress in a similar style, read my other articles to and learn how to Teach Yourself Piano, you will find an amazingly easy, quick and extremely enjoyable method. In fact it's notably called, The Ingenious New Way to Learn Piano and Keyboard. I have it and I recommend it highly. See you in my next article.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Ken_Aindow

Music Piano Theory: Major Piano Scales

Before learning the major scales or any scales for that matter, it's important that you have a basic understanding of what "half steps" and "whole steps" are. I don't know about you, but I'm a huge fan of simplicity. So, simply put, whole steps SKIP a key and half step DON'T. For example, if you started on C and went to D, that would be a Whole Step because you skipped a key (C# / Db). Now if you started on C and went to the black key C# / Db that would be a half step because you DIDN'T skip and keys. So, again, Whole Steps= Skip a key. Half Steps= No Key Skip.

Now it's your turn. If you start on E and go to F...is that a whole step or a half step? If you said half step then you nailed it. Why is a half step? Well you know that there was no note that was skipped! Well done.

Now that you know how to find a whole and half step, you can now play a major scale. The formula for any major scale is R W W H W W W H (Root, Whole, Whole, Half, Whole, Whole, Whole, Half). The root is the first note that you're starting on. So if we started on C and wanted to play a major scale using the formula above, it would look something like this: C (root), D (whole), E (whole), F (half), G (whole), A (whole), B (whole), C (half). Ta-da!! You can use this formula for any key you pick. Now, try it. Just pick a random key and use this formula.

Now that you have the formula down, lets focus on how to play the Major scale smoothly so you can play it fast without tripping over your fingers. So, assuming you have five fingers on your right hand and not six, your fingers are going to be coded as follows: Thumb=1, Pointer=2, Middle=3, Ring=4, Pinky=5. This will apply to BOTH hands. When you're going from E to F, you'll need to tuck your thumb (1) under your middle finger (3) to make it a smooth transition. There we go! Go ahead and bust out this formula with the right fingers for both the RIGHT HAND and the LEFT HAND. You'll be speedy in no time!

R W W H W W W H

RH 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5

LH 5 4 3 2 1 3 2 1

Until Next Time,

Dale Jessee

Guitar String Notes and the Basics of the Guitar - Getting Ready to Learn

When I started with my first lessons I realised that I was entering into a world that I knew very little about. I had never really given any thought to the instrument other than loving the sound and wanting to be able to play like Bob Dylan. I knew nothing about guitars or guitar strings and had absolutely no idea about how to play the guitar.

The word guitar covers such a huge range of models and styles that it is difficult to know where to begin. Different people each have a different idea when they hear the word - maybe they think of Eric Clapton or Jimmy Hendrix or perhaps they have more of an image of a gypsy jazz guitarist playing in the open air whilst the colourful gypsy dancers click castanets. Do you think of Ralph McTell perhaps singing folk songs, or some delicate classical picking? The list is endless but the instruments remain very similar.

There are the two basic categories - acoustic guitars and electric guitars. Their names really are all that you need know to be able to tell them apart. Acoustic models are usually hollow bodied so that they are more resonant but that is not to say that all electric guitars are solid bodied! That would be too easy! The majority of them are solid bodied though, and it is just a small proportion which, often called semi-acoustic, are hollow bodied but still use an electric pick up to relay the sound through an amplifier.

When it comes to strings, you will find that most guitars, not bass guitars, but just regular ones, use six strings. There are twelve string versions where the strings are duplicated. This gives a bigger sound and is usually played by strumming rather than picking as is the case with a mandolin, which also has duplicate strings.

The body is nearly always made of wood. Solid for an electric and hollow for an acoustic and this is often the difference between an expensive and a cheaper instrument. The type and quality of the wood can make a big difference to the resonance and quality of the sound produced.

The neck, where you will find the frets, is also usually wooden and marked with raised frets marked at semi tone intervals. This is where the pitch of the note is altered by using the fingers to hold down a particular string at a particular point on the fret board.

As you can imagine, electric and acoustic guitar strings vary in their design. The first will nearly always use steel strings and the latter either nylon or a mix of nylon and steel. One thing that has to be understood by anyone learning to play is that these do not last a life time and will start to show their age and wear and tear takes it's toll. When this happens you will notice that they give a much duller sound and sometimes buzz. This is when they need to be changed.

You can buy guitar strings online but if you are unsure about changing them then you may be best to take the instrument to your local store to have them changed. There is sometimes a small fee for this but it can make a lot of difference. Anyone more experienced will know that you can get cheap guitar strings from the internet as they will know exactly what they are looking for.

I spent many hours re-stringing my guitar in the beginning and it never actually occurred to me to ask the shop to do it for me! I also spent a lot of time thinking that I was a "natural" and obviously would not need any lessons! I could have saved a lot of time and energy.

You can find out more about playing the guitar at the GuitarStringNotesInfo website.

Joanna is a mother of two adult daughters and is now working with children in Paris, France. She has worked as a freelance writer for many years and now contributes to the new website I Have Very Tired Parents! http://www.ihvtp.com/ Here you can find a growing number of articles regarding all aspects of child care and parenting from pregnancy and infertility right through to teens, as well as some great deals on a variety of childcare related products.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joanna_Chambers

Enrolling in Ableton Production Courses

If you are interested in digital audio music production then you will be interested in Ableton production courses that are offered by many online schools. Anyone who is looking to work in the music business or is interested in the production of digital audio music will be interested in attending some online courses that teach how to use the Ableton production courses. Ableton has been in the music software business since 1999. There are several different software programs that teach digital audio music but many people rate the Ableton courses as some of the best in the business.

When you are talking about Ableton production courses you are most likely referring to digital audio workstations. This is all about the business of music production in the 21st century. When you are looking at this subject you are also speaking about electronic music which is where the music business is at. When you look at the various classes offered by online schools you will need to consider if the offer the full range of Ableton classes so you are immersed in this method of music making.

There are many classes offered and they range from lectures both online line and at a selected meeting place, many of the user classes are easy to use and you should look for that feature when you sign up online for one of these courses. There are also various price points for these classes depending what is offered and how extensive their instruction online interaction is. Many of the courses will offer some live instruction, plus downloadable audio resources plus various course notes. A nice feature of many of these online classroom situations is that you may have access to the online class resources for a year or perhaps more depending on the course.

The latest version of Ableton is version 8.2. When you become familiar with the Ableton courses you may also get involved with Ableton Live which is for live music performances. There is also the Ableton Suite with a complete software package of digital audio studies. When you take one of the online courses you will have the guidance of one or more instructors who are proficient in this type of music production.

Digital audio production provides creative ways to create digitized sound production including all of the tools and technology of this digital audio production. These may include sampling, field recording, sound editing or multi-track mixing all of which are used in electronic music today. As the computer industry increases computer abilities the corresponding software programs used for the online courses also improve and evolve. Ableton and others create these updated software programs for making electronic music in all of its forms.

DAW or digital audio workstations are music sequencers which are computer programs for recording, editing and playing back of said music in digital audio. There are many components such as looping where you take a small sequence of music and continually loop it for a musical effect. This is way you need online courses in electronic music.

What Is The Best Keyboard To Learn Piano On?

The answer depends on a number of factors, and some of your own preferences, as well as your goals as a keyboard or piano player. It's also heavily influenced by a person's preconceived notions about piano lessons and what they will need to do to learn piano.

Let's start with the most important question first - why do you want to learn to play piano? Is it for your own enjoyment only? Do you want to play piano professionally someday? Do you currently own an acoustic piano and want to use a keyboard to practice late at night or in a space with very thin walls, where the piano might disturb others?

Do you currently play or would you like to play the keyboard in a band? Do you want to test out your ability to learn piano on a somewhat inexpensive keyboard first, before making the investment in a more expensive acoustic piano?

There should be a common thread in these answers should be somewhat obvious once you spend a little time thinking about your motivation for learning piano.

It's very easy to spend as much or more on a keyboard than you would spend on an acoustic piano, but you can also find keyboards that sound and feel better than acoustic pianos. I never thought I would say this, but if I were just starting out and didn't already love my acoustic piano as an instrument and piece of furniture, I would probably lean towards a keyboard for learning and practicing piano.

In fact, as a professional piano player, I play and practice almost exclusively on digital pianos all the time these days. And most of the time, that's on a Yamaha CP33 Digital Stage Piano.

The "action" (feel and response of the keys) on this $1000-or-so keyboard is simply amazing, it's relatively light at about 50 pounds, and the piano sounds are excellent. There are a number of other sounds and functions, but I honestly just use the piano sounds about 95% of the time.

As I said before, you can easily buy a used piano for less than $1000, but it will need tuning every now and then, will be affected by humidity, and will be a lot bigger and heavier than the CP33.

If you want to pay about half that much but still have a keyboard with great action and sounds, I would recommend either the Yamaha P95 or Casio Privia or CDP-100 keyboards. The action is not quite as great as the CP33, but is still very nice, and these are all very light, portable keyboards.

All of these keyboards have the full 88 keys, by the way.

Roland also makes some great digital pianos, but you will probably pay more than $1000 for them. However, if you're serious about getting a great digital piano, you should definitely try them out before making a final decision.

These are the keyboards I'm most familiar with, and I would not recommend buying models with less than 88 keys, or non-weighted keys, because the real piano feel is just not there, and if you do want to move to piano one day, it may be a little extra work for you.

Can Anyone Learn To Sing Well?

It is said that good singers are born, not made. Many singing experts would disagree. While talent is a plus, it is not the only factor in determining a really good singer. Even the most popular singers in the world can tell you that anyone can learn to sing! The answer to the question, "Can anyone learn to sing?" is a resounding yes.

Hiring costly voice coaches are not musts in learning how to sing. Ask the famous singers and not all of them went to singing lessons when they were starting in their careers. Aside from talent, and practice, confidence is very important.

Shows like American Idol, while very popular, do not really mold excellent singers. The candidates are selected mainly for entertainment purposes only and the ones who win are chosen by voters not by a panel of experts.

Another myth about singing is the one about majority of the populace being "tone-deaf". Being tone-deaf means that one is singing too loud, off-key and off pitch. In reality, less than 2% of the people are tone-deaf. Those who find it hard to sing simply need ear training. Through a singing tutor or a learn-to-sing program, tone-deaf individuals would be a thing of the past.

Can anyone learn to sing? Of course, but not all are suited for every type of music. Our voice is very much like a musical instrument that should be used according to what type of music it is suited for.

In singing the right way, you have to choose what song matches your voice. A soft and gentle voice that tries to sing powerful Mariah Carey or Whitney Houston songs is not a wise move because it will surely strain the vocal cords and may damage it.

A very important tip is to keep your voice within your vocal range. The quality of the voice is better than the hitting the high notes. Billie Holiday is a good example of successful singer with only an octave range.

Mimicking your favorite singers is not a bad thing but having your own style of singing definitely makes you a better singer. The reason why pop stars became famous is that they usually have developed a unique style of singing.

Aside from a unique style, you should also learn to breathe the right way and add dynamics to your singing.

Finally, singing would be nothing if you do not enjoy doing it. The important thing is to believe that you can sing and the question on can anyone learn to sing would be moot and academic.

What The Heck Is A Music Sequencer? Is That How You Make Beats?

Confusing as heck eh?

I know it's hard to explain easily so let's do it like this. Most beat makers start at a 4/4 with 1/16th quantizing default. This means that for every bar of music, the bar is split up into 4 small pieces, and in each of those 4 pieces, there are 4 slots open to drop sounds into on the grid.

So one bar has room for 16 sounds (4/4 at 1/16th) that are played in 'sequence' one after the next along a time line. If you filled up all 16 slots you'd simply have a machine gun sounding repetition. If you placed a sound on every fourth slot, you'd get a house music thump (assuming you used a drum sound)...

Now picture one of these 'bars' sitting on a stack of 16 layers of bars in an interface where you control each layer and bar, and they all overlap each other.

So each layer has its own 16 slots per bar - and each layer has its own sounds. One layer can be a kick drum, and the next layer can be a snare or a highhat.

Now imagine if on each of those 16 layers you can open up a separate panel where you get 10 more layers for the bar, this is commonly known as a drum kit, where there are a collection of 10 (or more/less as it ranges per software) sounds that compliment each other well.

This drum kit is one bar, on one layer, but it has 10 layers within it - so in total you have 16 slots going horizontally (1/16th quantizing), and 10 layers going vertically (10 sounds per kit). That gives you a grid of 160 spots to place sounds, and when you arrange them right, and choose a proper tempo, you can achieve pretty much any music you want with the drum kits.

Now picture the 10 drum sounds being OTHER sounds, not drums but voice effects, alarms, samples, quick scratches, beatbox sounds, etc. You can start to see how versatile this grid pattern can be.

Incase that confused you here's a recap - you have 16 layers in your main interface. On each layer you place a bar, in each bar you have 10 more layers.

The main interface simply acts as a shell for most sequencers, and once you place a bar into any layer, and assign your kit, that's when you open your drum or instrument panel and start to make your patterns.

So technically, if you filled up all 16 layers with drum kits, you have 160 layers to work with. It would sound like MUD if you did this without being smart with your patterns, however that shows you the possibilities of just the drum kit layers.

Sequencers also utilize keyboard simulation, where instead of having a 'kit' with 10 sounds/layers, your 'bar' opens up a keyboard panel and this time you have 16 slots, and 4 octaves to work with.

Mathematically this is huge, and the grid turns into 12 x 4 (12 keys per octave, 4 octaves) = 48 keys x 16 (1/16th quantizing = 16 spots per note) = 768 spots on your grid for ONE bar alone. Again this is with the grid going 16 spots horizontally, and 48 spots vertically now with one note scale per each of the 48 'layers'.

With sequencers you can usually draw in 2 bars at a time, or 4 or 8 or as many as you want, and when you open the panel the grid will look insane and not be easy to work with.

This is why most producers like to work with 1-2 bar chunks at a time and arrange them in interesting patterns for their chorus/verse/chorus2/verse2/bridge/outro/etc.

So the keyboard, unlike the drum panel, triggers the same sound, and scales it up and down the keys, just like a real synth/piano. If you assign instrument sounds or record your own on a C note and import them, you'll also be able to manipulate them on a real piano like scale, including sharps and flats.

This also means you can assign DRUM sounds, not KITS, but individual sounds to your keys. So instead of choosing a 'piano' category, and scrolling through piano sounds until you find one you like, you scroll through a drum kit (as a category) and pick a drum you want to scale up or down the keyboard. This is how the wicked drops and build ups are done, where you hear the snare go crazy building up and dropping in pitch or climbing in pitch until the main beat drops in, otherwise simply known as a 'complex fill'.

When you combine both features together:

You get a 16 layer grid and each layer can be a drum track, OR a keyboard track. You can use the drum sounds on the pads OR on the keyboard to change their pitch. And you can assign keyboard instruments/sounds like pianos and saxes to the drum pads as well.

Basically you can interchange the kits between panels, import your own sounds into EITHER part of most aps, and create your own kits out of drums or instruments or voices or scratches or any samples you want!

WICKED!

The only thing left, and basically what makes or breaks most beat makers and sound sequencers - is the default sound kits that come with your audio workstation. While you can get VST's and you can import your own kits or even buy them, it's pretty much all the same at the end of the day - you have a grid, you have layer types (drum vs keys) and you have sounds to put in that grid.

If you start with amazing samples, the patterns you create won't matter as much it will still sound amazing (within reason), and with wack basic flat sound kits it won't matter what patterns you make or how complex your performances are it will sound flat as heck.

Good kits are well mastered with tweaks and tails and panning so when you combine and overlap a performance of even just a few layers, it sounds beautiful. If you notice, the better beat maker software sequencers usually have amazing default sound libraries.

Having great kits is indeed important, however the sound TYPE is more important. Meaning you must be able to build your patterns and performances AND export them to.WAV first, not.MP3 or anything less than STEREO 44.1.WAV. The same standard studios use when making their beats. From there you have a.wav master and you can convert it into an mp3 or other file type(s).

Now that you understand how the grid/matrix system works with sound sequencers, imagine each layer being able to do more than one bar, imagine 32 bars (a verse).

Or....

Imagine 64 bars, double timed...

Lost?

Ok example - Most hiphop beats are around 90bpm.

If you can't change the quantizing from 1/16th (so 16 spots fit in one bar) to 1/32 (so now it's broken up into 32 note spots), then you can trick the system out by simply making your tempo 180bpm (2 x 90bpm). So your beat will play twice as fast, and you'll have to build twice as slow (meaning you'd draw TWO bars, and consider it one, and now you have 32 spots to fill).

Sequencing isn't a toy, or a game, but damn, it keeps you SHARP!

You're learning math, complex problem solving, tons of tweaks and pattern recognition scenario's, and most importantly you're being creative and working your right brain along with your left without even knowing it.

It's a mix of relaxation type therapy i.e. playing piano at the end of your day, and adding a splash of crossword puzzle like situations - but with sound; that when placed in appropriate code like patterns make BEAUTIFUL music, beats, sound beds, audio-scapes, and more.

You are at it's core, creating vibration combination patterns (sound), that the human ear/mind/soul respond to in ways that.... well that make you want to dance, vibe, lounge, get naughty, sleep, get tranced out to, rock out, drive faster, etc etc.

Music and vibration is how the planet even started but that's for another day...

...Once you get good, the beats and pattern making becomes easy, and you simply start to add your emotion and flare with creative sounds. Or import your own to create blissful like soul healing music, or do what most do and start selling them to artists, studios, and whoever needs audio production done right! It's 'art meets science' in a fun environment. Almost like a game but you're in total control of the stage, the orchestra, and the final cut.

...If you've never tried one or found the bigger tools too difficult to get a grip of - you should check out the new age online and desktop sequencers out there like http://www.cybersequencer.com/ - I think you'll find it much easier to get into, and making your first few beats happens fast. Enjoy!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Drake_Dunwell

Violin Lessons for Kids: What You Need to Know

All parents want the best for their children. On top of achieving academic excellence, many parents encourage their kids to take violin lessons. There is scientific proof that a child's cognitive develop is accelerated when he is exposed to music instrument lessons from a young age. Singapore is one of the countries where music education is emphasized. There are many music schools which cater to the demand for music education here. In this article, I will cover some things you need to keep in mind when checking out violin lessons for kids.

1. Determine your child's level of interest

First of all, be certain that your child is interested in learning to play the violin. I run a music school in Singapore and have come across many cases whereby the child is very determined to learn to play the violin. Your child may pester you for many months to buy him a violin, or he may play make belief and pretend to be playing the violin with some other items as substitute. All these indicate very strongly that your kid is very keen to take violin lessons. If you're sure, then do go ahead and look around for suitable violin lessons for kids.

You should never force your child to take music instrument lessons. Anything that is forced will produce the exact opposite result. Your child will become resistant to the idea and never acquire a love of classical music.

2. Be aware of your child's attention span

Secondly, children in general have shorter attention span compared to adults. As such, start with violin lessons which are at most half an hour long. After one month, you can discuss with the violin teacher to determine if your child is ready for longer violin lessons of forty five minutes long.

3. Individual or group coaching

Thirdly, decide if you wish to enrol your kid for individual violin lessons of group violin lessons. There are pros and cons to each. Individual coaching will accelerate your child's progress since the violin teacher's attention is focused on one child. In group lessons, the teacher cannot give undivided attention. On the other hand, group violin lessons can be fun for your child as he views this an occasion to socialize with kids his age. No matter your decision, if you decide to go with the latter choice, ensure that the number of students are capped at five.

4. Sit next to your child during the music lesson

Fourthly, select music schools which allow parents to sit in with their children during the music lesson. Some music schools do not allow parents to be next to the child during lessons. The reason cited could be the claim that the parent will distract the child, However I do not agree with this rule.

Very often, young children have very short attention span. If they start music lessons without the comfort of their parent next to them, they may get anxious and lost focus. In addition, if you sit in during your child's violin lesson, you will be able to track the progress made by your child. You will also be able to practice playing the violin at home with your child.

5. Select a good quality violin for your child

Finally, you need to buy a good quality music instrument for your child. Children's violin come in many sizes ranging from one sixteen size to three-quarter size. Your local violin shop will be able to measure your child properly to determine which size violin your child requires. Then you will need to pick the violin with the best tone quality.

Learning Guitar Chords for Beginners

A very important skill you must develop when learning guitar is mastering all your chords. There are hundreds of different chords and it can be overwhelming for beginners. My suggestion is to learn one or maybe two chords at a time in the beginning. For example you could start with a common chord like C major or G major then add a new chord each week. Do this routine until you have all the major, minor, and 7th chords. This will take most people some time to get down.

Take some time to learn about keys which are very important to know about also. A key is three chords played together that have good harmony. Take the key of G for instance, it includes the G major chord (AKA the root chord), then the fourth chord from G which is C major and finally the fifth chord from G which is the D major chord. The way to figure out what chords go in the key is to count from that root chord to the fourth and fifth chord. For our example of G major you start with G is 1st, A is 2nd, B is 3rd, C is 4th, D is 5th, E is 6th, and F is 7th. So as you can see the root G, the fourth is C and the fifth is D. To give you some comparisons look at the key of D. The D is the root chord and if you count to four you'll end on G. If you count from D to the fifth chord it will be A. So the key of D is D major, G major and the A major.

When learning chords on the guitar you should get familiar with the terms for strumming and rhythm patterns such as up stroke, down stroke, finger picking, etc. The person who plays the chords in a band is called the rhythm player, however when there is no lead parts both the rhythm and the lead players play rhythm. Then when a lead part comes up in a song the rhythm player keeps playing the chord progression while the lead guitar player plays the solo.

Another important skill to learn is how to count beats and keep time. This is a critical part of learning to play rhythm. If you can not count beats and keep time you will never be a good guitar player. Don't be discouraged because it took me a while to get my rhythm but I never gave up, and now I am pretty good at it. Most of the time the quarter notes are on the down strokes and the eighth notes are on the up stroke. To get familiar with counting beats study some music theory and it will all become clearer to you. You will learn a whole lot more than counting from learning music theory.

When I browse the internet I look for all type of information on guitars and playing guitars because it is a passion of mine. I run into a ton of information for beginners but there is one resource that I think is the best by far. The best part is you can learn how to play guitar at home without taking lessons at the music store. Just go on over to http://www.learn-guitar-at-home.com/ and give it a try. You'll get six lessons free just to try it.

You can learn guitar with out ever leaving your house and now learning guitar online has never been easier!! Let's get you started right away! Get 6 Guitar Lessons Free when you try it. the site is called http://www.learn-guitar-at-home.com/. Start your guitar journey today!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Max_Powear

How to Become Excellent at Guitar

Most people out there would love to play an instrument, most specifically the guitar. Most people aren't willing to do the work. You don't get good at guitar over night, and for those of you out there who have tried and have given up, chances are you didn't try hard enough. I'm here to shed some light on effective guitar habits. If you're an advanced guitar player, chances are you've applied most, if not all of these habits.

1. Practice makes perfect - I've seen a lot of people that play. I've heard people that are amazing, and people who are not so great Most people associate excellent playing with "Natural Talent" which I disagree with. I've heard people who have a natural talent, that don't play very well. So, my first tip is: Practice at least once a day, for a MINIMUM of a half hour. This doesn't mean once a week, or once a month. This is every single day. I can attribute my success with guitar to countless hours of practice. I would play for 10+ hours on some days. But the bare minimum for me, was 1 hour every day. I became very good, very fast. Better than everyone I knew in 1/10th of the time. Why? Because I put in the hours. I know some of my friends that are alright, but usually would practice once a week. They would get jealous because I was better than them, and played far many years less than them. It was all because I put in a consistent amount of effort in, on a day-to-day basis. So, for starts, practice every day, and you will get far better. The more practice you put in, the more results you'll get out.

2. Practice efficiently - This goes hand in hand with the above rule. If you practice every day, make sure you're practicing correctly. If you practice playing sloppy, than you will get better at playing sloppy. You might sound better than before, but you will hit a spot to where you just don't get much better. This means try and play with the least amount of force and effort possible. Don't push so hard, (literally) and when you practice your chords or scales, make sure you start slowly and work your way up in speed. If you practice something you don't understand or have down yet fast, then you're just practicing sounding like crap. I start very slow at first until I can clearly see what I am doing, than I gradually increase speed. Make sure you are practicing and doing the motions correctly before you progress in speed or complexity. A great habit to get into (or out of) is pushing very hard down on the frets. If your action is too high, get it lowered, and it will work wonders. You shouldn't be pushing as hard as you can. If you ever watch the legends play, they seem to be floating across the fretboard, ever wonder why? Countless hours of efficient practicing habits.

3. Speed will come - START SLOW. Most people ignore this rule, they want to sound good fast. Sorry, it don't happen this way. USE A METRONOME. You will benefit GREATLY if you utilize this and practice for at least 1/2 of the time you practice using the metronome. You don't need to use it all the time, but get in the habit early on and your playing will eventually be naturally on time. I use it almost every time I practice. You can hear when a drummer uses a metronome, and you can hear when they don't. They sound choppy and off beat. The good ones ALL use a metronome. Pros use it, so should you.

4. Figure out what you're trying to accomplish - If you just want to learn cover songs, than go out and learn how to play covers. If you want to play originals, start practicing making up riffs. This is as easy as it sounds. At first, they might sound like garbage, but after a while, you won't need to think to make up a tasty lick. Practice makes perfect. AND REMEMBER TO NOT FORCE.

5. Get over the hump - This is only for beginners. I always tell everyone who's brand new, that most likely they're going to sound like crap for the first 3 months. Once you get over this hump, you will start to get better at a faster rate (Especially if you follow these steps). Most people give up if they don't learn a song in a week. They fail to realize that their fingers and mind are tied together, they need to separate their hands from their minds to effectively learn any music at all. Keep with it, and I promise you will get better.

6. Talent does exist - there are those out there who just are amazing at guitar no matter what they do. Don't get stuck in it, you can get good too if you follow these steps. Talent does exist, but talent is only 1/5 of skill. The other 4 are practice and good practice habits. Trust me on this. I've seen people who suck at first with no talent at all become very good guitar players, because they stuck with it, and kept practicing. Like I said previously, if you're a beginner, just plan on not wooing the ladies off the bat. Eventually, your time will come my friend..

7. Play along with your favorite songs - Just start fiddling around. This is as simple as it gets. Play along and listen to see if the notes you play sound good with the song. If they don't, chances are they aren't the right notes. Simple as that. Find the key of a song, and then go online and find a scale in that key. Play around until you get comfortable learning where the notes are. You will constantly see the fretboard differently as you progress..

8. Listen to those who are great - I'm not talking the guitar gods (even though they do have video lessons), I'm talking about your friend who plays and rocks. Ask him what to do at first. Even if they aren't the greatest teachers, some of the advice they offer will be good advice. Listen, and learn.

9. YOUTUBE - YouTube is the greatest guitar resource I've found so far. It simply has so much material that's free that you really can't have an excuse as to why you aren't learning anything (aside from not having a computer). Check out a bunch of videos, find the ones that are watched a bunch, and learn from them. Sometimes the information you get might not make sense, so start out with beginner lessons. Eventually those lessons will start to make sense.

10. IF ALL ELSE FAILS - Or if you just want to improve. HIRE A GUITAR TEACHER. This is the most ignored deal of all time. It's only 15-35 a week for a lesson. That one lesson will shoot you light years a head of your time. Guitar instruction (from good teachers) is simply put, one of the greatest ways to get good fast. They will point out bad habits, and correct them. They'll offer soundless advice that will improve you dramatically. Try it out, and find the right teacher for you.

Follow these, and you will become a far better guitar player. If you're a beginner, you're even better off than someone who can play. It's hard to break bad habits, so it's better to start out with good habits, and you'll be on a great roll. Rock on everyone.

Learning Guitar: How Do I Begin Learning Guitar?

Minor Key Signatures For The Advancing Guitarist - Establishing Minor Tonality 201

In a previous article, I explained the Pure Minor Scale in both relative and parallel position. I shared my favorite scale positions along with the resulting tonalities. If the reader has not yet read that particular article, I urge him/her to do so now before exploring my next few articles about minor tonality.

In my opinion, the language of music is every bit as important as the mechanics of music. Understanding the theory behind one's musical movement is essential to the tonal quality of the movement itself. When performing, outcome is everything. It's all about the sound and how all the melodic and harmonic structures work together within a given tonality.

Very rarely in years past, have Pop/Rock players utilized the advanced principles of traditional minor key signatures. This is primarily due to the more simplistic tonalities used in Pop/Rock, i.e., triads, power chords and the almost exclusive use of diatonic major key signatures (of course, Jazz and very progressive music is exempt).

By understanding and utilizing minor principles, the guitarist will develop a much broader canvas on which to paint a musical picture. Therefore, this particular article is preparation for future articles. In the next few articles we will utilize the Natural Minor Scale (NM, sometimes referred to as, the Pure Minor Scale), the Harmonic Minor Scale (HM), the Melodic Minor Scale (MM), and the Jazz Melodic Minor Scale (JMM), and more. All of these scales, as well as several variations, are utilized in minor key signatures. We will also utilize specific harmonic structure (chords) that are specific to each minor tonality along with special usage chords, altered chords, and extended chords. Needless to say, a good solid mechanical facility is necessary in order to voice these scales and chords.

There are two very important issues which must be addressed when approaching the subject of minor key signatures.

First, an essential goal of a minor key signature is to differ or contrast with a major key signature. A minor tonality, in my humble opinion, sounds best when removed from any resemblance of its corresponding major key signature.

Secondly, deciding which scale to use (MM, HM, JMM, NM) and whether or not to play in Relative or Parallel minor is an important decision to make. For example, if a player was instructed to play in the key of A Minor, Relative to C Major, which scale would he or she use? HM, MM, NM, or JMM?

To make matters even more complicated, each scale individually has its own unique tonality (specific chords, etc.) The same potential problems pertain to Parallel Minor keys.

The next few articles contain language, theory, and mechanical demands that presume your knowledge of related subject matter. If the reader does not understand the basics of this subject matter, then please learn it.

In summation, each major key signature has two minor key signatures: Relative Minor and Parallel Minor. Any of the scales; HM, MM, NM, or JMM can be utilized in both Relative and Parallel Minor. Each scale, whether played Relative or Parallel has its own unique tonality (chords, chord groups, scales and scale formulas). Until next time practice, practice, practice.

2011 Michael E. Fletcher. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

http://www.ultraguitarmethod.com/

Ultra Guitar Method is designed to place years of professional playing experience under your fingers in a very short amount of time thus, placing you light years ahead of the competition. All theoretical, technical, mechanical, and application principles contained in the method are designed exclusively for the guitar. Learning is made exciting and fun.

Visit the Ultra Guitar Method website today. Your future is now.

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Practicing And Playing Guitar While Looking For Perfection

Practicing and playing guitar are not the same things. Both are important. To play a song is fun and probably your ultimate goal, but practicing chords and timing will help you play better.

Some people fail to practice timing. They don't understand the value of a metronome. They think it is something only a piano player would use, but good timing is an important part of playing music of all kinds. It is particularly important if you eventually plan to play with a band or a singer.

Some people fail to practice the chords. While you can learn to play a few songs by ear in a very short time, you will never be a true guitarist if you cannot play a song by reading music. In order to do that, you must practice the chords. It takes time, but if you have talent, it will eventually come naturally to you.

Another thing that many people fail to do is to listen to all different kinds of music. They stick with one genre and that's all they can play. Again, those folks are not real guitarists.

Listening to and learning to play different kinds of music will help you become a better player and give you ideas for writing your own music. If you are just starting out with some easy guitar lessons, you might have no intention of writing. But if you play a lot, you could soon become bored with playing other peoples' songs.

The best guitarists develop their own style by learning to play what they like and then changing the piece in some way to make it their own. They might change the tempo or play the tune backwards. There are any number of ways to make a piece uniquely your own.

If your goal is to play fast, you have to start out slowly. Some easy guitar lessons emphasize the importance of playing well over playing fast. Others start out emphasizing speed. You will be better off if you learn to play well very slowly and then gradually increase the speed.

You can expect your fingers to become rough and callused. Soft hands and guitarists do not go together. You can use an emery board to smooth out rough spots that can interfere with your performance. But you will eventually learn to take pride in your calluses.

Playing guitar is a lot of fun, but learning can be frustrating. When you become frustrated, it's time to take a break, but don't give up and smash your instrument. With practice and regular playing, perfection is within your grasp.

Enrolling in Ableton Courses

Ableton AG is a Berlin based German company that began in 1999. It was started to create music software. Ableton courses are courses that are offered by online schools that may or may not be accredited. Many people will attend an online school or take one of the Ableton courses in order to receive scholastic experience which may include actual hands on experience or to complete a music engineering degree. Much of today's music is digital audio so knowing just what is out there and what is available is required by a potential DJ or anyone interested in the music industry and must have this type of knowledge.

As with any online course or series of courses that may include Ableton courses or some other format of software digital audio course study you have to decide which online course offered is the best fit for you. This type of software program can be used by a professional already in the business to expand their knowledge and learn new techniques or it can be attended by someone desiring to enter the music business or by someone who is interested in making their own music and getting a demo together to present to a station or some other venue.

This type of course is all about making music. It may be composition, song writing, and recording, beat making, production, remixing and live performances. Anyone who is interested in this as a career or as a professional hobby will need to understand just what all of this is about. Digital audio is how music is created today. This includes loops and pre-recorded loops and this type of software program have loop band software. A loop is a sample in electronic music that is continually repeated. It may be one to four bars and it is not just any loop but one that bears repeating. Learning what works and what does not can be learned attending one of these courses or a series of these courses.

When you attend an online school offering any online classes you need to make sure it is a reliable online school and will it be there for as long as you need to attend the classes. You can check the credentials of any online school and search the net for recommendations and attendee feedback. You also want to make sure that they are still in business so you can get all of the instruction you require to complete the coursework or get a degree. Not all online schools offer degrees they may simply offer a series of courses to achieve a course certification that you actually completed the course of study.

If this is an area of interest for you then you need to find an online school that offers a progressive series of these courses so you acquire all of the knowledge you can so you are successful in this profession. Some of the online courses mix actual face time in a classroom or studio with online teaching programs.

Recording Tips For Guitarists

Recording music is a totally different beast from playing live. And whether you're going into a big studio or doing it on your own with a laptop and a DAW, there's a few guitar-specific things you can do to make the whole process go faster and sound better.

1. Use new strings - You want your guitar to sound it's best even if you're working with a off-brand copy of Korean knockoff of a Strat. And new strings are the easiest way to improve things. They'll give the engineer a good bright sound to work with. Make sure they're good and stretched out so they don't go out of tune in the middle of the song. I usually put my new ones on the day before recording. If you're doing a lot of recording on a regular basis, make sure to change them every one to two weeks. Otherwise you can end up with different sounding strings on different takes of a song, making it more difficult to edit later.

2. Tune before every take - On a similar note, you should tune your guitar before every take. I'll admit I'm they guy the engineer is always yelling at tune before takes. Extra weird when I'm recording at home. Your guitar probably won't be that out of tune, but keeping it fine tuned will, again, make editing takes much easier later on in the mixing process.

3. Pre-Production - Pre-production is a fancy word for "practice before you get there". You have some leeway here if you're working in a home studio. But if you're paying for studio time, you want to get in and get out as fast as possible. That means having your parts totally down before you step foot in the place. And that means making sure your bandmates have their act together too. And I always recommend playing the song live a lot before recording it, if possible. It will make the arrangement tighter and let any natural changes happen so you can get the best performance possible on tape. It's like letting the song marinate before cooking it.

I made the mistake once of recording a whole song in the key of G. Then finding out that I couldn't sing it in the key of G. We had to record all the pitched instruments again in the key of F. You can bet that cost me a few extra bucks. Learn from my boo-boos young padawan.

What about guitar solos? If you're the type that likes to compose your solos, make sure it's done before getting in the studio. If you like to let 'er rip of the fly, that's cool too. But be sure that you've improvised your solo on that song at least 100 times before recording. If you have to do more than 3 or 4 takes to get a solo you like, you're blowing cash.

4. Leave off non-essential effects until mixing - The cleaner the signal going into the board, the more leeway you have to make changes later during editing and mixing. You want to have a good basic sound recorded and you can add all the gooey reverb and delay you want later on.

So, what's considered essential? Maybe your overdrive or distortion if you're working with a good amp and you want to capture that amp's sound. A real Marshall still sounds better than any Marshall-style plugin. If you're using a wah pedal, that should probably be in the original signal as well since it's a real time effect. In fact, anything that you have to control in real time should be used during tracking. But ditch the reverb, delays, phaser, flanger, and other such things. That all gets layered on later.

Though I will say if you've got a particular pedal that you don't have a matching plugin for, you'll have to record it on the original signal. But, also record a totally clean version of the take with no pedal in case you don't like it later. You can do that either by splitting the signal before the pedal to two tracks. Or you can just play it again.

5. Keep the overdrive/distortion down - Crunchy is good. But when you've got your distortion jacked up too high it will sound like white noise when you record it. It will also sound thin and get lost in the mix. Drop your distortion to half of what you use for live performance. Start there and record some sample takes to see how it sounds. A corollary to this is, let the engineer guide you. Especially if you're new to recording and you can afford an experience engineer, use his expertise and let him help focus your guitar tone.

6. Small amps can sound great too - You don't need a wall of Mesa Boogie stacks to get a great guitar sound when recording. Some of the greatest sounds on tape have been done with tiny amps. Giant amps are used for giant volume. And you don't need that in the studio since you're mic'ing and mixing. If the amp sound good by itself you can work from there and still get a huge sound.

If you are using a larger amp, like a 4x12, mic only the best sounding speaker. Placing the mic closer to the center of the speaker cone gives you a brighter sound. Moving the mic towards the edge mellows it.

7. Use two mics - One close, one far - If you're in a good sounding room or studio, this will give you a nice natural reverb you can mix with the dry signal. Place the second mic about 5 feet from the amp. If your room doesn't sound so hot or you just don't like the sound of it, you can always trash that extra reverb track later.

8. Double track to thicken - This is the studio equivalent of a wall of Marshalls. If you want a big thick sound, double track your guitar parts. While you could just cut and paste the track, it's the tiny variations in performance of multiple takes that really work nicely to beef it up. Do at least two tracks. Or go whole hog with the old Metallica trick of layering 30-40 tracks of the same guitar part. Just make sure the rest of the instruments don't get lost in the mix. You and I both know the guitar is the most important but sometimes your bandmates thing they deserve to be there too. (wink)

Learning to perform in a recording studio has a learning curve just like learning to play live. These tips will give you a good start to getting your hit song recorded so the whole world can hear it.

The Steely Dan Mu Major Chord (And Beyond) for Guitarists, Part One

In doing some musical web-surfing I've stumbled upon several articles regarding the Steely Dan Mu Major chord. Being a big fan of the Dan, and a jazz guitarist, it's certainly a harmony I'm familiar with, yet I find it fascinating that a cluster of notes commonly found in jazz years before Can't Buy A Thrill should garner such interest, particularly from guitar players. Perhaps it's because rock guitarists need to re-think their approach to voicing these chords.

Let's look at the characteristics of rock guitar chord voicings. Be they common bar chord forms, power chords, major and minor triads on sets of 3 or 4 strings or 1st position voicings using open strings, rock guitar chord voicings almost always contain a root and 5th, with one or both often being doubled [or even tripled]. Even 7th or 9th chord voicings include the root and, sometimes, the 5th.

Essentially, the Steely Dan Mu Major chord, as found in their earlier work [up to and including Katy Lied], is a major triad with the major 2nd added and voiced closely with the 3rd. The inclusion of this major 2nd interval poses fingering problems for guitar players. If we think in terms of reducing these to 3 note voicings, however, the mu major not only becomes playable [with a finger stretch], but opens us up to many other harmonies.

Let's take, for example, a simple G major triad, voiced G B D from low to high, on strings 4, 3 and 2. By stretching the 4th finger to A on the 7th fret [replacing G] we have a mu major root position voicing minus the G root. This voicing can also be played on strings 3, 2 and 1 [10th position].

It is possible to voice these mu major triads in first and second inversion. In first inversion, on strings 4, 3 and 2 [B D G], replace B with A, D with B and retain the G. In 2nd inversion, same strings [D G B] replace the G with A. Root position is the voicing we typically find in the music of Becker and Fagan, however.

These 3 note voicings are extremely versatile. As we're now relying on the bass player to sound the root of the chord, our voicings can serve different functions. For example, our root position G mu major chord functions as the Imaj chord in the key of G when our bass player plays G. However, with E in the bass, it can sound like Em11 [E A B D]. In fact, this chord can assume different functions with almost any bass note in the key of G, and with some non-diatonic bass notes as well.

We can extend the Steely Dan Mu Major Chord concept to minor triads as well. In part 2, we'll examine the evolution of this concept in Steely Dan's later work, and explore other ways of voicing these and other jazz-influenced chords used in the music of Walter Becker and Donald Fagan.

If you like the sound of the Steely Dan Mu Major chord, and are interested in hearing music with jazz-influenced chord changes, Peter and the Wolves are offering a free single for download, entitled Love/Hate Thing. It's pop music with jazz influence. Check it out at http://www.peterandthewolves.ca/.

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About Pitch

Pitch is about how high or low a note is. The most important component of music is sound. Without the notes of different pitches, we couldn't have music.

When you hear two different sounds produced by a musical instrument, let's say a piano, then you'll hear one of the sounds as being higher or lower than the other.

Now sounds are not high or low in the sense that we're speaking about different heights but rather sounds that give a feeling of highness and lowness in relationship to each other.

When children hit two sticks together, like a drum, they do not hear a pitch that matches a certain note. They can create very interesting patterns and cool rhythms with drums but kids can't play a tune like "The Farmer and the Dell" or any other song.

Wind instruments come in different sizes with each playing at a different pitch. To make it easier for players to change from one to another, each written note is played with the same fingering on each instrument but sounds a different pitch.

To understand more about pitch, let's begin with the names of notes. Musicians use seven letters of the alphabet to name pitches: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, but there are many more pitches than just seven. There are low Cs and some very high Cs.

So this depends on the octave where they are located. As you play all the Cs on the piano ascending to the right, each note becomes higher and higher in pitch. When you play the black keys on the piano, they will have different pitches, too.

Some folks can immediately name the notes they hear. We call this perfect pitch. When folks with the gift of perfect pitch look at written sheet music, they can hear in their mind what the pitches of the notes are.

Mozart was one who had perfect pitch. He could listen to a performance of a rather long work and then later right down every note. He could immediately name any note played on the piano without looking at the keys. I am a huge fan of ear training. Test yourself by having someone play a note, perhaps a major or minor chord and guess what the name of the note is without looking. Pitch will always vary according to the frequency of vibration.

The Notation of Pitch (The way music is written down.)

Five parallel horizontal lines with intervening spaces are used to notate the pitch tones. We call this a staff. So the staff is used to notate the property of sound called pitch. Written on the staff, with notes fitting in on the lines and spaces, you read the notes from left to right. As the notes go toward the top of the staff their pitch gets higher.

Our system of notation originated many centuries ago in Europe when tonal materials were much simpler than now. Modern notation is an imperfect, but nevertheless effective, visual representation of the "high" and "low" effects produced by tones of different pitch. Rewriting music at a different pitch is called transposing.

Many songs are made up of notes of different pitches. You can tell the pitch of the note by the way its written. Others that have perfect pitch can see the written note and hear its pitch in their head perfectly.

Basic Tips When Teaching Yourself to Play the Guitar

Learning how to play the guitar is not as hard as one might think, because the guitar is a very versatile instrument it can be taken almost anywhere with you. Also since the guitar is a fun instrument to play the enthusiasm people feel often helps you stay disciplined. So with that in mind you may just end up taking it with you to some places you wouldn't take a piano or drum set.

When trying to learn how to play the guitar you must set aside some time for practice, you will need to spend a fair bit of time playing to become great, however you can get quite good with just 20 minutes every second day, but only if you're organized and ready to practice. Online guitar courses are great for quick lessons, and you can repeat the lessons over and over again if necessary.

Strengthening your fingers is a very important thing to do when trying to learn how to play the guitar. Your fingers are basically the most important thing so you should work on different exercise techniques to keep them loose and agile, thereby increasing your speed and dexterity. You will also need to build up padding on the end of your finger tips, and the only way to do that is to practice on a regular basis.

Learning the names of the all the chords and notes is not necessarily a requirement at first. When starting out just focus on a few chords and get used to where your fingers go for each one. Focus on changing between these three or four chords first. You will be amazed how many songs are just a three of four chord progression.

Playing by ear is a good thing to learn and it can help you if you plan to perform in front of people or when you're ready to start ad-libing. A great online guitar course I tried had a fun software that helped you learn what notes where being played, it made the learning fun. I can image how tedious it would be to have an instructor teach you how to play by ear.

It is very difficult to not get frustrated when your just starting out, remember you will not become a professional overnight. As you practice you will start to notice that certain things just get easier, you will begin to surprise yourself and do things you could not do the last time you practiced. It will take time but, you will get it. Getting guitar lessons online is one thing that could help you a great deal by watching an instructor play notes on screen that you can review and replay as many times as you want is fantastic. Keep yourself motivated by setting certain goals and when you make them set new ones.

Using the internet to help you learn how to play guitar is great. There are online e-Books that are great and there are online guitar courses that you can go to when you need help. So now, go learn how to play the guitar and remember to keep practicing. Practice will make perfect.

Learn Guitar

Learn guitar today and play it like legend. It will be the best decision you will ever make, because you can have so much fun learning to play it. If you really want to learn the guitar here is some good advice for you. To learn guitar in no time, you need to own a guitar or borrow a guitar from a good friend to see if the instrument is meant for you or not. The guitar is the easiest instrument to learn to play music on in the whole wide world.

So many styles of music can be played on that special instrument. There's so many different examples, you will never get bored with your guitar. Remember you need to put effort and time to achieve your goal, so don't give up!

You can play the guitar in so many ways, for example you can sit and play it, or standing. Whichever is comfortable for you. Hold the right tabs on the guitar to hear the right notes playing. By holding your instrument the right way, you will keep your back in the right position so you won't have any back pain. If people sit while playing the guitar, they rest the guitar on their leg. People tend to change legs to rest the guitar on, when they play different music styles.

For example if you are playing classical music, rest the guitar on your left leg, but if you play jazz music, rest it on the right leg, this is how other people do it. If you choose to stand while you are playing on your guitar, I would advise to put the shoulder strap on it.

Make sure you are comfortable when you play your instrument. If you made the effort and took the time to learn guitar, it's better if you sit, to avoid any pain. To learn guitar it is very important to be in a comfortable position to avoid any future pain. It can be drastic.

It's important that you don't push the neck of the guitar with your thumb to hard because you're going to mess up holding the tabs properly and it can cause pain in your wrist and hand. Use your fingers to hold the tabs while you strum or pick the guitar with the other hand.

If it's easier for you to use a pick, hold the pick between your index finger and your thumb. With a lot of time and effort you will be an awesome guitarist. Just go and start to learn guitar today and don't ever give up.