[Loraine]

@KnottyJim I have to agree that angling it more as a classical guitar is held and played should be much more comfortable and will bring your arm in and will be closer to your body over all.

[Loraine]

@pbisharkgmail-com Welcome to the TAC community!! You sound like you’re having fun and doing well. None of the lessons are meant to be perfected. It is all about progressing and continuous movement forward. You will get better just by doing a minimum 10 minutes a day on a regular schedule.

I love hearing the stories of others that are just starting their guitar journey in their older years (not elder). You can do it. It is a process, and it takes time. Keep having fun, and don’t be a stranger in the forums.

[Loraine]

@DrewBeckett It is a matter of what works for you. Typically a thinner pick is used for beginners, because they tend to death grip and strum to hard, but as your strumming becomes more fluid and you’re able to play a more quickly, you need a lighter grip and just brushing the strings. At this point, many go to the thicker, more rigid picks. It gives a more tonal sound and yiu don’t hear the slap of the pick, and you get more vibrato from the strings from a heavier one.

As for latpicking, I tend to agree with @Moose408 that the thicker, heavier ones are better. It’s easier to go faster, for accuracy, and to really get the sharp, vibrant sound from the individual strings.

When I first started playing, I bought so many varieties of makes and thicknesses. I still have most, untouched. I used the lighter

Picked for a bit, and I gradually moved up. I used <.50 for quite a while. I then hung out at around .50- .60, and at 4 years went up to around .80 – 1.00. I like a slight flex still in the pick.

[Loraine]

Lecassamdra, you do have a beautiful voice. I’m like a truck driver, and you’re a sweet songbird. I understand that raw emotion of the song, because I’ve had to deal with a lot of loss of some very special people to me. The grieving and the love bolster the beauty and emotion of a song like this. I began playing during Covid, in order to save my life and to deal with the isolation of being a caregiver to my mother with Lewy Body dementia. It was the saddest thing I’ve ever witnessed and experienced. It was the loneliest I think I’ve ever been. I had to buy keyed locks for the inside of the doors. I wore the key around my neck , so my mother couldn’t get out and get lost, fall and get disoriented. It was for her safety. She sundowned, and I had to be up all night to make sure she didn’t get hurt, and then I was up all day working, and being a full time caregiver. I became so depressed and I picked up guitar as a means of survival, and because music brought me to my happy place.

• This reply was modified 10 months ago by  Loraine.

[Loraine]

@rah714hotmail-com In the beginning, it is a catch 22. You want to play so badly, and you’re having a blast, and then bam! You slice a finger, or your fingers become so tender that you can’t play. We all build our calluses the same way, and that is by playing; and yes it does hurt in the beginning, but don’t give up. Within a month, you should be on your way. It may still be slightly painful, but even those veteran players can get sore fingers if they play too long. Take it slow. Play 10-15 minutes for a day or two, then increase the time by a few minutes. And just keep at it. Just remember, the pain is temporary, and you will realize in short time that it wasn’t so bad.

They sell some type of finger covers. I think they’re rubber or acrylic. They can be worn occasionally if the fingers are that tender, or if you have a cut. I wouldn’t become too dependent on them. We need to feel the touch of the strings, in my opinion.

[Loraine]

I haven’t heard this song in quite a while. Probably since high school. Brought back memories of my mom playing it on the 8 track player or phonograph haha – can’t remember which.

[Loraine]

Hi Ron

if I’m understanding your question correctly, I believe you’re referring to the Pentatonic scale shape that’s taught. The shape or pattern of the scale is the same. It is just the placement of fingers in relation to the Key note that is different. .

It is the same shape, but your hand position, in relation to the Key note. The major scale begins with the pinky on the Key note, so your fingers are going up towards the headstock. You begin the scale with your index finger. 3 notes from the Key note. The Key note will be played with your pinky in this instance.

The minor scale uses the same Key, but you place your index finger on the key, and the rest of your fingers travel down the neck, towards the body. You begin the scale with your index also, with the first note of the scale being the Key note. .

I hope this answered your question. If not, hopefully someone else will pipe in.

Hope this answers your question.

[Loraine]

@Fletch @JulieI Beautiful. We don’t get to hear Julie sing often, at least not in the forefront. Very refreshing. Did @stevep cringe and run when he heard it was a love song?! Haha. Anyway, I don’t recall making that comment Fletch, but it’s highly likely that I did. You did a beautiful job with this. I’ve been on an Elton John, John Hyatt and John Fogelberg kick, so if an artists name begins with John, I’ve probably given their songs a go. Have you met Julie and Steve in person? That would be so cool. If not, tell me when and where, and I’ll meet up with ya. 🙂 Great to hear from you. It’s been a while.

I met Krozz & his wife Lorraine, from Nova Scotia, a couple of weeks ago. They were visiting another TAC member’s home, and it was so cool to tak to them in person and listen to some stories. They were headed to some type of song writing camp in WV. Cathy B was going to be there too.

[Loraine]

Hey @mikemelr1966gmail-com Welcome to TAC and the forums.

The so try to determine how much time and effort it will require for you to go through fretboard wizard and understand the material. So, the answer to you question is, it depends. Every person is on their own personal guitar journey. However it’s important, in my opinion, to still play your guitar on a daily basis for at least the minimum 10 minutes a day that is suggested may not seem like if those 10 minutes are going to help you continued on a forward momentum in your journey I didn’t do the daily challenges when I took fretboard wizard but I did take some individual skill courses I felt it was less pressure and stress to take them I think I took the jumpstart courses for strumming and finger picking and who is one other I can’t remember but to me they weren’t overly difficult to wear it with interfering with me also taking prep wizard and I wouldn’t spend that much time and I’d go through one lesson and practice and I might take a couple of days for that one lesson but that’s only because I wasn’t putting in a lot of time practicing it at the time

The first time I went through FBW, I was a very new player I had never played guitar before and I was not prepared for it and I did rush through the course, and I simply wanted to play the guitar at the time. I think it was a disservice to myself to 1) take it too soon, and 2. to rush through it, just for the sake of completing it. You own it for life, so what’s the rush? If I could focus (have a lot of stress in my life right now) I would definitely go back through the fretboard wizard and take my time and really try to absorb the material and the theory, etc. But I would also still pick up the guitar every day and do something just to continue that momentum I mentioned. Now, to be fair, I did learn a lot, as I’ve moved forward in my journey a lot of it clicked into place just through my lessons here attack and out in a real world playing and it’s just all of a sudden you have that moment of clarity and understand something that was taught. I do believe that fretboard wizard is something that you don’t complete. It is meant to be taken again and again, and everyone says they pick up something new every time they go through it. Many people go back to it annually I’ve been back to it one time since I still have issues focusing so I just figured it wasn’t time for me to really dive into it when I did. I was taking guitar lessons for a while, and we did some theory, which I loved.

[Loraine]

I was so pleased I watched and listened. Stew, this was the best performance of yours to date. I’m so impressed with your fingerstyle. It was so fluid, and clear. Your vocals were the strongest I’ve ever heard. And the inflection and you were feeling the music and let the lyrics guide your emotions. Absolutely loved it!!

What did you use for instruction? Was it another website, book etc? If it was another site, can you message it to me (not courteous to Tony to mention competitor sites in the forums). Or if you have the printed tab or chord sheet, can you share it with me? What was your pick pattern?

[Loraine]

Hi @PaulabMoore It is a great question. The way Tony teaches imorovisation is by teaching you a scale, which is typically individual notes. The improv would be trying to find something on your own by playing the backing track and playing the notes from the scale however you like. Whatever sounds good to you flies. You can embellish it however you like. Iff you see an improvement from Charlie D, take a look and listen. Look at how he incorates the scale, but then he adds to it.

I suggest keeping it simple at the,beginning and try to just use the scale. You can play notes in whatever order you want. You can repeat notes or patterns that sound good to you.

Another great way to practice improve is to use the pentatonic scale in different keys. If you play in the key of C, go to YouTube and search Key C backing track. If you are I. The key of B, you do the same, but search for backing track in that key. Play around and do minor scales and major scales. Just make sure you say major or minor or when searching for a backing track. Then just relax and start with different notes from the scale. If it sounds good, it is good. Hope this helps. 😉

[Loraine]

Power cords can actually be a really really good tool for certain songs more along the rock genre, but acoustically too. I prefer the two finger power cords versus a three finger. Which is what i# taught by Tony only because it’s easier with my hands and fingers and how small they’ are; much smaller than Tony’s ha ha?

To practice spreading your fingers I was taught to start on the high E, which is called the first string, and go up to say the 7th fret or even further down, such as the 8th or 9th fret. Plant your pinky and keep it on that fret, and then take your ring finger and place it on the fret next to it, lift up your ring finger spread it to the next fret and so on, all the time keeping your pinky down do it. Don’t overdo it, because you can actually hurt yourself. I did that once by stretching and straining to play a Chor that really required acrobatics to play it. I pulled tendons in my arm and stop immediately and ice and rest your hand. I went to an acupuncturist and a to take several months without playing. Never pla6 through pain. , and I was out of commission for months then put down your ring finger on the same thread that your pinky had just been on and do your pinky down the starting you know let’s say you’re on the seventh fret with your ring finger do the pinky on the eighth done the ninth if you can stretch it to the tent and then go back and keeping your ring finger there on the seventh do your middle finger on the U fret lift it up do it on the fifth fret, and just try to get it to stretch as much as possible teach threat and then do the middle finger down and do the same thing with the ring in the pinky going you know down the fretboard and then go back and do your index finger moving up you know on the sixth and the fifth if you can’t the fourth and keep doing it and you’re stretching the width of your fingers and then what’s gonna happen as they will get more flexible then you will be able to move further up the neck and stretch it a little bit more doing the same process on a fifth fret you know when that eventually on the third. Just keep at it. You’ll be surprised one day to realize that your finger stretched so much further than you ever thought possible I still have difficult times with certain cords and there are ways to modify them to where you can still play them but possibly not with all the single notes in that cord or there’s another fret that you can make the same cord on that’s different. You’ll learn that just as you move through your guitar journey.

Good luck and keep us posted on how you’re doing.

[Loraine]

This is a common issue amongst newer players (meaning upwards 2-3 years, and sometimes longer). There are several things to do, but the absolute easiest way to learn finger placement and transitioning more quickly, in my opinion, is to set a metronome for 4/4 and at the. Speed of 40 or even lower, if needed. Take the first 2 chords in a scale or a song. On Beats 1, 2, 3 get your fingers placed properly for the 1st chord; Then on beat 4 strum down 1x. Then take the next 3 beats to get your fingers properly placed for the next chord; then on the 4th 1strum. Go back and forth. When you can do it 10x in a row without an error, then increase the speed by 5 beats; repeat strum down once, then back to the 1st chord. this back and forth between chords. Because the small increments in speed, you won’t feel the difference in speed. You’re building strong muscle memory. Before you know it you’ll be well above 100 bpm. Then go to the 2nd chord and choose the next chord next to it, and start afresh with that combination, and so forth 7ntil you’ve done every c9mbinati9n next to one anothe4..

[Loraine]

Thanks so much Mark. It is long, but I absolutely love the verses in this song, and it’s fun to play. Thanks for listening and commenting. I really appreciate that.

[Loraine]

Mine is November too so yay all the birthdays this year for 64 woo hoo!!