About the Course
Q: How long will it take me to learn the guitar?
Firstly, it depends on your God-given gifts: body shape, DNA, hand-eye coordination, ear for music, talent, learning style, passion, persistence etc. Secondly, it depends on your musical history; what you have been exposed to, your culture, your education and what you listen to etc.. Thirdly, some believe you never really learn music as it is an ongoing, evolving process where you are always learning.
Too Zen?
A: Four Weeks
Well, here I present to you a four week guitar starter* course to get you up and playing in the minimal amount of time. By focusing on essential fundamental information you will know how to avoid those bad habits limiting your ability to play freely, by establishing sound technique right from the start. Tension inhibits movement, and to play the guitar requires a subtleness and flexibility with the hands which must be recognized and practiced to master.
What every guitarist must know
As a beginner there is a certain amount of need-to-know information to give you the best opportunity to progress. Though mastering may take years of practice and persistence, the earlier you understand the concepts the better. This course reveals this information in a practical manner, demonstrated by classic beginner guitar repertoire with practice exercises that use your time efficiently.
Get off on the right foot
Some learn the guitar and miss out on vital basic information. In many cases they play the guitar very well, but feel they have hit road blocks and are not improving. It is much easier to learn the right techniques first-up than to unlearn bad ones developed over years. This is where a grounding in first principles can be invaluable. The four week guitar starter* fills gaps in knowledge and gives the beginner a clear pathway to get up and running quickly. The tools and techniques learnED facilitate students to progress to more advanced topics as the principles provide a foundation of knowledge to build on.
Topics you will learn:
- Guitar anatomy
- The string names
- How to tune your guitar
- How to hold the guitar correctly for your body shape and style
- Roles of the right and left hand
- Left hand position
- Right hand
- Plectrum basics
- Fretting strings with the left hand
- Basic strum with the right hand
- The Chord Chart Notation
- One finger chords
- Timing bars and beats in 4/4
- How to use a Metronome
- Strumming 4 down-stroke beats to the bar
- The cheat’s G-chord
- The one finger E-m7th chord
- Changing chords with the left hand, eg G to Em7th or C to Am7
- Coordinating changing chords and strumming simultaneously
- How to read Tablature
- Left hand position for single notes plucking single notes
- Introduction to the Guitar Riff 101
- Introduction to Articulations
- Introduction to Improvisation The concept of a Moveable Shape on the guitar
- Left hand guide fingers
- Chord Anatomy - introduction to the Triad
- Introduction to the Guitar Lick 101
- Basic Movable Constructs of the guitar
- More spicy chords, minors and sevenths
- Re fingering the E chord as a movable shape
- Making the barre The E shaped Barre Chord - Your first barre chords
- Moving the barre chords
- Alternate picking
- More guitar boogie guide fingers in A
- Discovering your own style
- Throwing it all away and starting again!
Lesson Format
Currently the course is run as weekly private lessons that run for approximately 1 hour over a 4 week period. Whilst lessons are structured with set amount of information to be covered each week, they are personalized and focus on the individual.
Where
Lessons are conducted in Essendon. Walking distance from the Strathmore train Station.
Cost
$220 for 4 Private Lessons Booking lessons is a matter of availability.
