Moose408
Forum Replies Created
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I joined TAC 9 months ago today. I can’t say that there is a direct correlation between learning from TAC and me now being a guitar player because 6 months ago I started supplementing TAC with another guitar course. Together they have made me a better player. A lot of times when a topic comes up in the other course like palm muting, hammer-ons & pull-offs, scales, double-stops, I am super comfortable with them and they are easy because of my exposure here at TAC. One thing TAC has definitely helped me with is improv. It now comes easy to me.
TAC doesn’t really teach you a song, it might teach you Tony’s interpretation of a song, but I’ve always felt like I had to go elsewhere to actually play songs, which is really the point of learning guitar.
I’m not sure I really answered your question. But I feel better.
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Technique – Light My Fuse – https://tonypolecastro.com/lessons/light-my-fuse/
Lick – Layin’ it Down – https://tonypolecastro.com/lessons/layin-it-down/
Improv – That Funky Sound – https://tonypolecastro.com/lessons/that-funky-sound/
Rhythm Guitar – Hoochie Koo – https://tonypolecastro.com/lessons/hoochie-koo/
Chord Progressions – Spread the News – https://tonypolecastro.com/lessons/spread-the-news/
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Just to clarify there are four benchmark songs that are presented one per month and appear quarterly. The other daily challenges repeat but less frequently like every 8-9 months.
The four benchmark songs are:
1. Aint No Sunshine
2. Wagon Wheel
3. Hotel California
4. Old Man -
The daily challenges disappear at the end of each month and you can’t easily go back to them unless you have saved them in your favorites or copied the URL into spreadsheet (which is what I do). They do come around again in a few months.
That being said I don’t actually learn any songs here on TAC. The songs I learn are from other sites. TAC teaches me great techniques but the songs are often lacking.
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Two things. The thought on the Daily Challenges are that you spend at least 10 mins on them each day, but that you don’t perfect the technique the first time through. You get exposed to it and give it a try. It will come back around again in several months and you will get further through the lesson the next time as your skills improve. You may feel like you aren’t making progress but then discover you’ve come a long way when the challenge comes along again. It’s an interesting approach to teaching guitar.
I supplement TAC with another online guitar course that has an actual teacher that I can interact with and ask questions. It is a very structured course that teaches the 7 fundamentals of guitar. Some I find quite easy because of the things I’ve learned here on TAC and others Tony never covers (like reading notes, and aural training). It’s been a good compliment to TAC. Personally I would be hesitant to purchase a book to teach me guitar but that’s more because of my learning style, I’m more of an aural learner and don’t learn as well from books.
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I would probably wait until Monday and start fresh with next week’s challenge. If you want something to work on on Sunday then go back to last week’s challenge and give it a try. There aren’t really any rules to how you approach it. Just that you try to practice on a regular basis for at least 10 mins.
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There is nothing special about a capo and pretty much any will work. I have a Kyser which was recommended by two different instructors. But I’ve also used a Velcro strap I had lying around and it worked just fine
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I would caution against comparing yourself to others in how long it took them to learn to play songs. Everyone has a different path, some practice 10 mins a day, some practice 1-2 hours a day. The important thing is to be consistent and focused in your practice.
As to what I think you are asking, if you practice multiple days a week (doesn’t have to be every day but that’s ideal) you should be able to play songs with your friend by summer. Ed Sheeran says he knows 3 chords (he actually uses a lot more in most of his songs) so if you learn the basic open chords you will be able to play a lot of songs.
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There is a Quick Start guide on the main sidebar that will answer a lot of questions. Here’s the link
https://tonypolecastro.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/TAC_User_Guide-v5.pdf
You should work you way through the 30 Days to Play before attempting the Daily Challenges. The idea is to spend a day on each video. Many people spend longer in an attempt to perfect each lesson but Tony preaches consistently over perfection. Meaning show up everyday for at least 10 mins,
Welcome to TAC, it’s a great place to learn.
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1. “lol, I read through this list of guitar techniques and laughed to myself because I had no clue what you were referring to “palm muting, hammer-ons & pull-offs, scales, double-stops…etc”. I am still trying to learn the C and G chord lol.”
These techniques are taught as part of the daily challenges, and come up often in the challenges, the repetition helps.
@BryanDean has some great comments. You shouldn’t really compare yourself with others. Everyone learns differently and devote different amounts of time and energy to it. I spent a lot of time studying how people learn and perform a lot of those techniques to maximize my practice (spaced practice, selectively applying focus, slow motion learning, visualization, etc). So my progress is going to be a lot different from people who practice daily without these routines. That’s neither good or bad, just a different approach.
I also use the Andante app to track my practice and find it keeps me motivated to practice everyday and keep my minutes of practice up. It’s like trying to get the high score in a game for me.
2. “What supplementary program did you use to help you play songs? Did you also let TAC know that was a limitation of the TAC program so they can improve it for all of us?”
For actual playing of songs use Ultimate Tabs which is a very popular site/app for showing the chord progressions for a song. I’m not really comfortable promoting another online course here on TAC.
Tony’s teaching style is unique and proven. I don’t expect or even want him to change it. I get value from it even if I do feel the need to supplement the training. That is more about me than a reflection on Tony’s method.
I understand what @BryanDean is saying about taking multiple course but disagree. I would get bored with just TAC but it does take effort to implement a practice routine the utilizes multiple courses. I use an app called Modacity to plan my weekly practice sessions so I stay on track and focused. Without that plan I’m lost and don’t maximize my practice sessions.
3. “Also, can you go into a little more detail regarding “helped me with improve”? What type of improv are you referring to and what did TAC teach you that helped with improv?”
In the Daily Challenges almost every Wednesday Tony teaches improv. That weekly repetition has been great for improving my improv skills. In my other course the other participants all struggle with improv and I find it easy because of my exposure here at TAC.
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Tony advises moving on. Progress over perfection.
Spend at least 10 mins, give it a try, simplify it or only do a portion of it if it is too complicated for you and then move on. You are learning even though it doesn’t always seem like it.
I’ve been with TAC for 8 months and there are still some daily challenges that I can’t do. But I find myself getting further on them each time they come along.
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I too find it difficult to get finger position from the video and always have the TAB open at the same time.
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When I first tried guitar I lasted 6 weeks and quit in frustration. I came back to it a year later with the attitude that I suck at guitar, I’m going to suck at guitar for a long time and this is OK. This attitude has served me well. I still get frustrated at times, but just have to step back and realize that I’m learning and these things take time.
Just like golf, I wasn’t able to make par on any hole my first month, I don’t expect to be able to play the guitar in a few months either.
There is a GREAT book that explains how the brain learns and it has helped me tremendously in my guitar journey. It’s called, “The Laws of Brainjo” and I highly recommend it.
https://www.amazon.com/Laws-Brainjo-Science-Molding-Musical/dp/139350776X/ref=asc_df_139350776X/
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If it helps. As of today I have 171 hours of practice time and I can play dozens of songs, and could play a lot more if I tried. It was around 80 hours that I felt pretty good playing a few songs.
I think hours practiced is a better metric than days/weeks/months, but again everyone is different and learns at different speeds. Comparison is almost always demotivating.
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Yep, that’s the one.