guitarlessonsbybrian.com Blog

Learning to play a musical instrument is like taking a very long trip. When taking a trip we make plans. We spread out a map and chart out a path that helps us reach our destination. Learning a musical instrument is also like any craft. To do a job well, the craftsman needs the correct tools. This website gives you a map and the tools to reach your destination and hone your craft as a musician.

With guitar goodies, you’ll learn the essentials such as scales, chords, and arpeggios. But more than that, you’ll learn how they relate to one another and how they are used to make music. The worksheets on this site are a culmination of Brian Turner’s studies that have resulted from over 30 years of teaching thousands of private guitar students. You’ll learn not only how to play scales, chords, and arpeggios but you’ll learn the theory behind constructing them. For example, after studying the lessons, you’ll understand what the m7b5 in Cm7b5 means. You’ll be able to construct the arpeggio and chord because you’ll understand music theory. What you won’t find is thousands of chords such as you see in chord encyclopedias. Music is a language. To think we can learn a language by simply looking through an encyclopedia in a foreign language is absurd. Scales, chords, and arpeggios like words in any language must be understood in proper context. Also, you won’t find countless scales that you will not use. Instead, you will find the essential scales that you need to be the musician you desire to be.

Click here for guitar goodies

The ability to visualize intervals on the neck of the guitar is essential for the serious guitar student. The following exercises will help you become acquainted with essential chord fingerings and intervals.

Check it out:   Chords and interval maps in every key

There are three forms of basic barre chords. In the exercise below you will find them in all 12 keys.

Check it out!

Basic Barre Chords

Knowing the notes on the guitar fret-board is like driving a car in your hometown. If you need to go across town, you jump in the car and cruise with ease taking the easiest path knowing all the short cuts and back roads. On the other hand, if you are driving in territory you are not familiar with, you may be lost and frustrated after making the first turn.

If you know the notes on the fretboard it will make everything else you do on the guitar much easier. Below are four methods I use to teach students the guitar fret-board:

Notes on the guitar fret-board

Here is the index of guitar goodies, tons of free resources for the guitar student:

Guitar Goodies

Have you ever wondered how to play a  song in the key of Eb (E flat)? When using a capo it is as easy as playing in any key. If you study this one small page you’ll always be able to play songs in any and every key easily.

Check it out!

Easy chords and the capo

I have reviewed some of my favorite guitar method books. You can see the reviews at:

guitarlessonsbybrian.com/book_reviews/index.htm

A friend once told me the best way to get familiar with the jazz standards is to buy the complete recordings of Frank Sinatra. Frank has recorded most of the jazz standards, or the songs that have become known as the Great American Song Book. About once a year I splurge and buy eight to ten cds in one day. I had one of these flings recently. I bought three cds by Steve Tyrell, one by John Pizzarelli, three by Pearl Django and the Frank Sinatra box set titled A Voice In Time.

My student, Matt Dunn, came to class yesterday with two giant binders. He had printed out all of the guitar goodies posted on my web site. There are over 300 pages of work sheets I use to teach guitar. We are walking through them one page at a time. I encourage students to do the same. They are free and there for the taking. You can find them at http://guitarlessonsbybrian.com/guitar_lessons/index.html

The C chord can be embellished by adding the 2 interval creating the C sus2 chord. The sus2 (suspended 2) is a beautiful chord and  is used in contemporary music and ballads extensively.

C

C sus2