Category: For Lead Guitarists

March 28, 2013

Moving Past Minor Pentatonic, One Note at a Time

by jim — Categories: For Lead Guitarists, Guitar Lessons, Intermediate — Tags: , , , , — Leave a comment

Mark Knopfler

If you’re anything like me – and probably 99% of all other aspiring lead guitarists – you started off jamming with pentatonic scales, specifically the minor pentatonic scale.

It was exciting to learn that only five notes, played in some relatively easy fingerings, were necessary to turn you into a rock guitar superstar. Add in some spicy bends and some slippery slides, and top it off with a few lightning-quick hammer-ons and pull-offs, and you’re in the land of Hendrix, Page and Clapton, not to mention Gibbons, Young, Beck, Knopfler and many more!

But after a while, even the most pentatonic-lovin’ lead guitarist starts to yearn for some new sounds and some new ways to navigate chord changes that are a bit more sophisticated than the same…old…five…notes. I get it.

And that’s why I’ve gathered you all here today. Let’s take a comprehensive look at moving past the minor pentatonic, one note at a time! Continue reading “Moving Past Minor Pentatonic, One Note at a Time” »

January 28, 2013

Guitarist, Know Thy Notes: A “How To” Guide to Mastering the Fretboard, Part 2

by jim — Categories: Beginner, For Lead Guitarists, Intermediate, Six String Theory — Tags: , , — Leave a comment

In our first installment of Guitarist, Know Thy Notes, we covered the all the basics of fretboard organization.

To recap, we started out with a comprehensive review of basic theory, including the musical alphabet, whole steps versus half-steps and accidentals. We also covered the names of the open strings and learned to name the notes along each string, using the fret markers to aid us.

It’s all critical and fundamental information, for sure. But in terms of understanding the fretboard at a pro level, the major takeaway point of that first lesson was the importance of learning the notes on strings 6 and 5 first. This is because those strings provide the starting point from which we can learn notes across the strings.

Being able to navigate the notes across the strings, rather than just along the strings, will enhance our sense of fretboard organization and make us much efficient at finding any note we wish. In Part 2 of our series, we’ll learn how octaves can help us to do just that. Let’s rock, y’all… Continue reading “Guitarist, Know Thy Notes: A “How To” Guide to Mastering the Fretboard, Part 2” »

January 22, 2013

Guitarist, Know Thy Notes: A “How To” Guide to Mastering the Fretboard, Part 1

by jim — Categories: Beginner, For Lead Guitarists, Intermediate, Six String Theory — Tags: , , , , — 2 Comments

fretboard

If you asked me to name the single most common problem among guitar students, I wouldn’t hesitate for a second.

After all, I see it every day in my own studio. I also struggled with the same issue myself for a number of years. And if the conversations on the online forums are any indication, it’s the same problem that guitarists seem to have the world over:

Guitar players, as a rule, don’t know the notes on the guitar!

Sound familiar?

This is virtually unheard of on most other instruments, but there’s a good reason why mastering the fretboard is so frustrating for guitarists: It’s extremely complex.

The complexity lies in the layout. And the number of frets. And the tuning of the strings. And the multiple ways you can accomplish the same thing. And the layout. And the…well, you get the idea.

If you’re having trouble navigating the notes on your guitar – if you look at the neck and see a blur of random frets – you are not alone! As a matter of fact, it’s a rarity when I encounter guitar students who can confidently name any note on sight, even when they have some years of playing behind them.

Here’s the cold, hard truth: you will NEVER reach your full potential as a guitarist without being able to unlock the mysteries of the fretboard. But the good news is, the fretboard holds no real “mysteries”. There are strategies to simplifying it and shortcuts we can use. These strategies must be applied consistently, however, to achieve the desired results. And I’m here to tell you that the desired result – fretboard mastery – is a beautiful and empowering thing indeed. Continue reading “Guitarist, Know Thy Notes: A “How To” Guide to Mastering the Fretboard, Part 1” »

October 8, 2012

Money Guitar Tip #2: Amazing Slow Downer

by jim — Categories: For Lead Guitarists, Gearin' Up, Money Guitar Tips — Tags: , — Leave a comment

tip jar

If learning your favorite riffs and solos by ear seems like an impossible task, then you must try the Amazing Slow Downer!

I had been aware of the ASD in the past, but recently saw some rave reviews from other guitar instructors, so I figured I’d check it out. This coincided nicely with a bluegrass tune – read: wicked fast – that I’m currently working on. The real-time tempo was entirely too quick to cop all the cool licks by ear, so I purchased the product.

Amazing Slow Downer, where have you been all my life?

Here’s the scoop: You simply load a music file (like an iTunes track) into it and hit “Play”. Unlike products in the past, which would lower the pitch as it slowed the tempo, the ASD can slow to whichever speed you prefer and maintain the correct pitch.

You can do all sorts of other nifty things with it, like change the effects or the mix, loop sections, etc., but the variable speed selector is where it’s at. Learn a riff slowly (40-50% of original tempo), and then play along at increasing speeds until you’re up to the original tempo. Genius! Continue reading “Money Guitar Tip #2: Amazing Slow Downer” »

October 4, 2012

10 “Must Know” Guitar Solos

by jim — Categories: For Lead Guitarists, Intermediate, Lists!, Songs From the Guitar Studio — Tags: , , , , , , , , , — 1 Comment

SRV

In the 70′s – the Vinyl Era – we put the needle back and tried again. In the 80′s – the Cassette Era – we hit rewind and tried again. Later on it was the Compact Disc and now it’s an mp3 file.

No matter the era, guitarists have always learned other players’ solos, whether by ear using the methods above, from transcriptions in magazines and books, or from TAB or videos on the Internet. It’s a time-honored tradition, and not only for guitarists; sax, trumpet, bass and piano players, as well as drummers, do it too.

You can learn a ton from mimicking the phrasing and note choices of your fave players. As a bonus, analyzing how and why they played their particular lines will do wonders for building your knowledge base and your vocabulary of licks and phrases.

In short, this is the fast track to soloing like a champ.

In my guitar studio, there are certain solos that are “go-to” material. I’ll list 10 of them below and share some thoughts on these classics. Let’s rawk! Continue reading “10 “Must Know” Guitar Solos” »

March 12, 2012

For Lead Guitarists: The Ten Basic Moves

by jim — Categories: Beginner, For Lead Guitarists, Guitar Lessons, Intermediate — Tags: , , , , , , — 1 Comment

Ace Frehley of KISS

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away* lived a guitar teacher who had a bright idea. Although bright ideas were not his typical thing, on that day he felt particularly enlightened.

He knew that some of his guitar students wanted to play lead guitar. He knew that they were ready to take the leap.

And from his vast experience, he knew that playing lead guitar was really just a matter of mastering a few basic moves and combining them to form seemingly complex phrases of musical genius.

[Note: Although it would have been fun to keep the "musical genius" myth going, he knew that playing hot licks and spankin' riffs was not the result of genius - after all, he had learned to do it himself. And he was no genius. Just a guy with a dream.]

So he devised a simple plan to get his students rockin’ on the right track. This plan was built on a foundation of movements that appear time and time again in the lead guitar universe. And thus was born…The Ten Basic Lead Guitar Moves. Continue reading “For Lead Guitarists: The Ten Basic Moves” »

Jim Bowley is a well-known Bel Air, Maryland based guitar instructor. Jim is respected throughout Harford County, and the MD/DC/PA region, for his guitar teaching technique of tailoring instruction for each student’s skill level — he gives lessons to beginner, intermediate and advanced adults and children.

© 2012 Jim Bowley All rights reserved.
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