Aaron Matthies' Guitar Blog

Guitar related things to do in 2012

aaronmatthies — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 09:30:15 +0000

The start of the year is a time where you can reflect on the finished year and look ahead to new things you want to achieve in the new year. As a guitarist, there are so many different paths you can take and many things you can achieve. If you haven’t already considered what you want to achieve with guitar in 2012, here’s some suggestions for you:

Try teaching guitar and earn some money
Build your own guitar from scratch (or a kit if you aren’t familiar with working with wood)
Learn to write your own Guitar TAB
Take the plunge and post a video of your playing to YouTube (turn off comments if you fear criticism)
Learn 50 basic open chords using a pack of flash cards
Write your own song and record it (remember to start simple!)
Learn to play in an alternate tuning you have never used before
Learn a couple songs in a style you would never consider (eg: Flamenco, Country, Islander, Death Metal)

If you can tick some of these items off your list you will grow significantly as a player. Many guitarists would never consider half of these ideas so if you have the guts to give them a go you will already be pushing ahead of the pack. It’s your choice. Don’t hold back. Make 2012 your year.

Any other ideas or goals for your guitar playing in 2012? Put them in writing in the comment section below, you are more likely to succeed if you actually say you will do it.

New eBook included with packs of Guitar Flash Cards

aaronmatthies — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 06:28:42 +0000

Tempo Music Cards have put together a comprehensive eBook that is now included with every purchase of their 50 Essential Chords Pack which is a pack of 50 Guitar Flash Cards to help you learn basic open chords.

This brand new eBook contains over 80 pages filled with:

9 in-depth lessons
16 specifically designed exercises for the flash cards
A 30 Day Practice Plan to walk you through effective practice sessions
Print-outs you can use to write your own music

For the next two weeks, any purchases of the new Flash Cards package will receive a discount of FREE SHIPPING worldwide. So if you have been thinking about learning guitar or have just started, this is the perfect time to get yourself a pack of Flash Cards to help you out with the brand new 30 Day Guide eBook.

Check out the 50 Essential Chords Flash Cards Pack with the brand new 30 Day Guide eBook here at our online store.

NOTE: This special offer for free shipping will only be valid until the 10th of August. So stop by the store here to place your order

Should you learn on an acoustic or electric guitar?

aaronmatthies — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 11:23:05 +0000

I have written an article at tempomusicards.com comparing the different type of guitars available and the pros and cons from each type when learning guitar. It’s so important to choose the right guitar to start on so every beginner should read the article to know what to expect from each type of guitar.

Check out the article here.

Each person will end up choosing a different type of guitar so take your time with this important decision.

Guitar lessons: learn to read and write your own Guitar TAB

aaronmatthies — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 11:19:51 +0000

Guitarists are fortunate in that we have a simpler way of writing music other than Standard Notation. Guitar Tab or Tablature is an incredibly straight forward system to learn. After spending 10 minutes learning how to read Guitar TAB you can already know enough to start learning to play songs. This is a huge advantage of Standard Notation which can take a long time to learn even the fundamentals.

To get the basic understanding on how to read Guitar TAB check out This Lesson Here. It covers the absolute basics with diagrams of the fretboard so you can compare the TAB diagrams to what is actually played on the fretboard.

If you already know a bit about how to read Guitar TAB, it might be time to upgrade your skills to be able to write your own TAB. Learning to write your own Guitar TAB is a worthwhile skill as it will help you remember riffs, licks or any ideas you come up with on guitar. If you want to write your own songs or figure out other songs by ear then being able to write Guitar TAB is something worth looking into. This Lesson Here on the Tempo Music Cards website contains basic information on the steps to take to develop your skill in writing TAB. Have a read through the lesson and apply the ideas. You will find it’s quite a lot easier then you may think. All you need to do is practice it just like any other skill on guitar.

Lessons:

Basics on how to read Guitar TAB

Basics on how to write Guitar TAB

These lessons are very basic to give you an idea on the fundamentals. Once you get the hang of that it’s pretty easy to pick up all the extra things that are included in TAB.

Guitar lesson: Learn to write your own rhythm and strumming patterns for guitar

aaronmatthies — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 11:58:09 +0000

This lesson on the tempomusicards.com website shows you in very simple terms how you can learn to write your own strumming patterns or rhythm that can be used in so many ways. The lesson will teach you the symbols for all the different note and rest types then show you how simple it is to write your own patterns.

This is a powerful skill that once learned can be used anytime you come up with an idea for a song. You could be sitting on a bus and think of a strumming pattern then properly write it down so you won’t forget it. Below is a short list showing some of the things you can do once you learn this skill:

Write strumming patterns for chord progressions
Transcribe strumming patterns from songs by ear
Learn to play along with a drummer
Give drummers ideas for beats and patterns
Add an interesting rhythm to your licks and melodies
Write riffs that are focused on a rhythm pattern

There are many more things you can use this skill for but it gives you an idea how important it is.

You can access the lesson here

Included at the end of the lesson is a blank rhythm sheet you can download and print off to start writing your own ideas down now.

Simple game to beat writer’s block and write songs

aaronmatthies — Mon, 30 May 2011 12:03:51 +0000

If you’re learning chords and trying to put your first songs together, this simple game on the tempomusicards.com website will help you do just that. On the other hand, if you’re looking for new song ideas or have been hit with the dreaded ‘writer’s block’, this game will give you a fresh way to come up with some ideas.

The game is based on the word game ‘last letter’ but this time uses guitar chords.

Check out the game instructions here.

Often the simple solutions are the most effective and this one will help you learn more about chords at the same time. Enjoy.

New guitar lesson: How to figure out the chords in a key

aaronmatthies — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 21:16:15 +0000

Basic music theory is extremely important to help you do many things such as:

Write your own songs
Figure out what chords are in a song
Figure out what scales to use in a song
Jam with other musicians

This lesson here on the tempomusicards.com website will explain in simple terms how to figure out the chords in any key. Included in the lesson are a few simple exercises that you can try out to practice figuring out the chords.

Check out the lesson here.

New lesson: Chord formulas and the major scale

aaronmatthies — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 10:34:25 +0000

I’ve written a new lesson on the tempomusicards.com website here that will teach you:

How to figure out the notes from any major scale
How to figure out any chord from its formula
The basic theory behind scales and chords
How this knowledge is useful to you

If you haven’t started reading up on music theory, this is a good introductory lesson to help you see why it’s very important.

Check out the lesson here.

Take your time reading through it and if you don’t understand the concepts at first, come back again later and it should make more sense.

New article: What to buy when starting to learn guitar

aaronmatthies — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 21:48:57 +0000

A new article is available at tempomusicards.com for anybody wanting to start learning guitar.

It covers the basics on all the gear and tools you will need to start out and why you need them. Highly recommended for anybody wanting to learn guitar or for somebody looking at buying a guitar for somebody else to start learning.

Check out the article here.

New lesson: How to memorize 50 chords in 10 minutes a day

aaronmatthies — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 03:44:56 +0000

Here’s a new lesson on the tempomusicards.com website for anybody starting to learn basic open chords. This is a method I use with my students to help them memorize chords and it’s incredibly effective. 10 minutes a day is really all the time you need to spend on it.

View the lesson here.

Included in the lesson is a PDF sheet with step by step instructions you can print out for a quick reference. Give it a go and I think you’ll be surprised how much of a difference it can make to your chord vocabulary.