Modes are really quite simple but can also be confusing. In simple terms its like this. In music there are 7 alphabetic letters. A to G. In the key of C the notes are C, D, E, F, G, A & B. The C major scale consists of these 7 notes. A mode is…
Do you wish you had more time to practice guitar?
Well here is some simple advice. Do it anyway. Stop using the excuse of time. We are all busy these days and yes time is our most precious commodity. Well so we believe. If time is so precious why does the average American household watch more than 6 hours of TV a day? How is…
The Voice guitarist Michael Dolce shares his own musical journey
Michael Dolce is one of Australia’s busiest session guitarists who is currently part of the ‘The Voice’ band while also touring with top selling artist Delta Goodrem. I was fortunate enough to catch up with Michael on his current tour with Delta last week and we did a video interview back stage. Some great insights from Michael…
Is taking a break from Guitar a good idea?
I will be the first to say that taking holidays are great and are arguably an important part of life. Holidays are essentially about taking a break from your everyday life to recharge. Holidays give our bodies and brains a chance to consolidate and can even act like markers that indicate the start and end…
The benefits of Music – The Swiss Study.
The benefits of learning music are well documented. Children who learn music often do better in many subjects such as maths and languages but also in other areas. In Switzerland they conducted a study where 1200 children in more than 50 classes proved scientifically that playing music does improve a child’s reading and verbal skills…
Tomorrow never comes. Start your guitar practice now.
Lets be honest here. When we procrastinate promising ourselves that we will start guitar tomorrow the odds are we will just find another excuse tomorrow. We are all busy these days and time is our most precious commodity. Well so we tell ourselves. If time is so precious why does the average household watch more…
How to get your child to practice guitar
Many parents worry that they may be too strict with their children when it comes to learning guitar. Their main fear is they will turn them off music forever. We have all heard stories of adults who say as a child they were forced to learn a musical instrument but many of these examples do…
“I cannot get her to practice at ALL. Help!”
I received this email from a parent regarding practice. “HI, My five year old began guitar (acoustic) lessons approx 4 months ago. She begged for months and was very excited when she got her guitar. She does well in her lesson and seems to enjoy her hour w her teacher. I cannot get her to…
The Idol delusion – Overstating your ability
The TV show American Idol has revealed a well known condition that we all suffer from to some degree in one area or another. That is we believe we are better than we actually are. When we watch Idol and see wannabe singers stand up and audition with no obvious training or natural we can’t…
4 Ways To Leverage Your Guitar Practice
Why is it that some people seem to achieve so much in so little time while others struggle? After all we all get the same amount of time right? Working with guitar students they would often say they don’t have time to practice and I knew early in my career that my response to their lack of time claims…
Should you look at your fingers when playing guitar?
This answer is yes and no so let me explain. The goal is to be able to play guitar without looking at your hands. There are several reasons why you will want to learn to play guitar with out looking but lets begin with when to look. The time to look at your hands The…
Finding a great guitar teacher. 5 tips.
Finding a great guitar teacher is difficult for several reasons. Firstly they are very rare. Secondly great teachers rarely have vacancies. Lastly teaching guitar is an unregulated industry so anyone can teach guitar which means you need to go through a lot of teachers to find those few exceptional ones. The question is how do…
G4 GUITAR Blog 