PhilBarru
Forum Replies Created
-
Your challenge is an excellent one if it spurs you to commit more music and things to memory. I don’t make all the open mics due to work, family, etc. But I participate as often as I can because they are an absolute hoot! The variety of music that is shared is amazing and most of the players are very talented. Friday VOM is my most consistent one to attend so that is probably why I don’t think of you as a regular player.
I am not sure if you already do this but start a 3 ring binder to keep all your song lead sheets in. There are lots of folks that try and manage this electronically, but I think the binder is the easiest, best and most accessible way to go. Over the years I have learned most of my songs by ear, trial and error, etc. I write down the words and create lead sheets by writing the chords over the words where the chords change. I have checked out Ultimate Guitar and even Tony’s Song Vault (no longer part of the website) and I find that others don’t play the songs the way I hear them anyway. And the shortcuts seem to be a hindrance to my learning style. By learning this (hard) way a lot of the memorization is already ingrained. And when I took up guitar again after roughly 35 years off I still had my trusty binder with 50+ songs in it all ready to dust off and start playing and singing again. It didn’t take long to commit many of them to memory again. When I play for the VOM I usually have my lead sheet open on the music stand but only for occasional reference if I get fuzzy on which verse goes next, etc. I am, after all, a geezer. But I don’t play while reading the lead sheet. It is just a kind of security blanket that is easy in a VOM.
My long winded point is that if you are not working on a songbook, I strongly urge you to start today!
-
Hi Michelle. This is the first one of your 100 day challenge posts I have caught and my first reaction is you sound pretty darn good for what you describe as an off day. Not a perfect performance but mostly good to excellent chord transitions – including the barres! Your singing is wonderful and well synced to your guitar rhythm. In fact, most of your challenge seemed to be in remembering some the words and a couple of the chord changes. You sound much better than you give yourself credit for! I’ll try to tune in and catch a few more of your posts. PS. You should try to play at least one song at every VOM you attend. That will build your confidence more than you know!
-
That’s great. Lighter strings are great to build finger strength and speed. Always more fun when you can control the strings better.
-
Another great VOM. THANKS for hosting Vic, Carol & Brian. Sorry I came late but always such a pleasure to listen to live music.
-
Great evening of music. Thanks for hosting Sherpa and Bob. Very laid back and fun. I will attempt to edit my profile again and will check back if I change anything before I receive the link to my performance. For now I am Phil B and I haven’t been successful uploading my picture yet.
-
Thanks Mike. I am a true believer in the TAC method. I have been so impressed I became a life member in my first year. For me I started out trying to recapture long lost skills on the guitar. But over 15 months I have begun to develop many new skills also. I do go back and rework some of the lessons, especially the speed challenge warm ups. But mostly, I spend between 10-45 minutes on the daily challenge each weekday. I get as far as I can in the amount of time I have available and then mark the complete button and move on. Then I work on learning new songs or just playing and singing songs I enjoy for fun. The most important thing for me is having fun with my guitar every day. Building the skills is a wonderful bonus!
-
I agree
-
Yes, indeed.