Saturday, 6 November 2010

Empower Girls With Daisy Rock Guitars

Daisy Rock Guitars has made guitars with girls in mind. Up until now, guitars may seem cumbersome and awkward for girls go play. This may cause feelings in the girl that they are not capable of learning to play guitar. Thanks to this guitar line, things are different now.

The Daisy Rock guitars are made with sleeker necks and slimmer bodies which make playing easier for girls. They are lighter weight, but still made with high quality.

Being a mother of 2 daughters and a musician, I am happy there are guitars made to inspire my girls to play guitar and to learn music. Music helps develop the brain for math and sciences. It is related to critical thinking and problem solving. And, of course, makes a wonderful creative outlet so they can express emotions in a positive way.

These guitars were inspired by female musician, rocker and music lover, Tish Ciravolo. She combined her love of music with a desire to "level the playing field" for girls who want to learn to play guitar as well as dedicated female musicians. Tish began the Daisy Rock Guitars in 2000 with a dream that "every girl who wants to play guitar is welcomed and inspired to do so."

These instruments are not only for the beginner guitarist or young girl, they are used by professional musicians as well, both male and female. Some names you might recognize that use them are Joan Jett, Ann and Nancy Wilson from Heart, The Go-Go's Jane Wiedlin and Kathy Valentine and Vicki Peterson from the Bangles.

You will also find some men who use the Daisy Rock Guitars because of their uniqueness. Some musicians include Robert Smith of the Cure, Chris Stein from Blondie, The New York Dolls Sylvain Sylvainand and guitar player for Norah Jones, Adam Levy.

If you decide to check out the Daisy Rock guitars, keep in mind there are two lines; the Debutante line by Daisy Rock and the Daisy Rock line by Daisy Rock. Both high quality, but for two different players in mind.

The Debutante line is set at a smaller price scale and geared toward the younger and beginner female player. The guitars are smaller and you can even find a "short scale" guitar for even smaller bodies. These guitars come in both electric and acoustic guitars with beautiful designs to inspire the younger girl to want to play while maintaining quality.

The Daisy Rock line is geared toward the more seasoned player and musician. This line comes in a variety of electric guitars, acoustic guitars, bass guitars and even electric/acoustic.

Both lines come with the slimmer and narrow neckline easier for smaller hands to play. You will find humbucker pickups for multiple tones, pick-up selector switch, and master tone control and most have set-neck construction for durability.

If you are looking for a gift, check out the guitar packs. The acoustic guitar pack is called the Daisy Rock Debutante Junior Miss Acoustic. You get a smaller and more lightweight guitar with a slim neck, a tuner, guitar picks and guitar strap. The colors vary from Bubble Gum Pink, Cotton Candy Blue and Popsicle Purple.

The electric pack comes with the guitar, gig bag, electronic tuner, strap, picks, string winder, and polishing cloth. The guitars come is a variety with the most popular being the pink electric guitar called the Daisy Rock Debutante Rock Candy Princess in Atomic Pink. But you can also find this pack with the Heartbreaker Short Scale guitar (shaped like a heart) and the Debutante Butterfly Short Scale Guitar.

If you want to inspire your girls to learn music and play guitar, start with a guitar from this line that will inspire them to play. I know my daughters love their guitars and one of them walks around with the guitar strapped to her whether she is practicing or not. As a mom, this makes me happy and I know my girls will have an easier time sticking to their practice schedules. A big thank you from me, to Daisy Rock Guitars.

By: CJ Papp

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Sunday, 6 June 2010

Learn Guitar - 3 Deadly Guitar Practice Mistakes and What to Do Instead Learn Guitar - 3 Deadly Guitar Practice Mistakes and What to Do Instead

How do you get better on guitar, just keep practicing right? Wrong! If you want to improve your guitar playing you have to do more than just practice you must know WHAT to practice and HOW to practice.

There a lot of 'old wives' tales and myths floating around about practicing music that basically goes like this "if you lock yourself away for a couple of hours a day you will become an accomplished player!"

The real world version goes more like this "if you lock yourself away for a couple of hours every day without a definite practice strategy and clearly defined goal(s) there's a good chance your guitar playing could be going around and around in circles, you may loose your enthusiasm and motivation and possibility give up guitar and music altogether". It's true and unfortunately it's already happened to thousands of players.

I don't agree 100% with the "practice makes perfect" phrase, rather...

"perfect practice makes perfect!"

Mistake 1: To just keep on practicing - You know the old saying "if you find yourself in a hole the best thing to do is stop digging!" Good advice but something that is not often applied to guitar practice. If you find your guitar playing going nowhere I recommend you stopped doing that and take the time to get
your playing back on track.

Solution: STOP! whatever you are going on guitar and take out a blank piece of paper draw a line down the middle of the page, on the left hand side of the page make a heading "things to work on" then on the right hand side of the page make a heading titled "why".

When you have finished your page should look like this:

Things To Work On | Why

The idea is for you to (a) identify the areas of your guitar playing that need work and (b) have a reason for working on these problems.

Once your brain has something definite to work on your whole body will take on a different attitude to practicing and playing the guitar and you will find yourself moving towards your goals rapidly.

The trick is to write things down on paper so you can look at the problem without the guitar in your hands; otherwise there's a good chance you will send a lot of time working on aspects of your playing that actually don't need work, so essentially a lot of practice time is literally thrown out the window, it's wasted time, once you get a laser beam fix on your targeted 'problem' areas you will soon overcome your guitar playing obstacles.

Mistake 2: practicing too fast - everyone does this but only the best players learn how to control and discipline themselves to overcome this hazard.

Solution: Understand that "speed comes as a by-product of accuracy" not the other way around. It's not an achievement to say that you are a "fast and sloppy player" there's no great skill involved there, in fact anyone could do that... you could give your guitar to the postman and he could run his fingers up
and down the strings as fast as he could but you wouldn't call that a memorable musical experience would you... of course not!

Write that down in BIG letters and carry it with you in your guitar case "Speed is a by-product of accuracy". Learn to practice everything in s-l-o-w motion in the same manner as people practice the martial arts.

Mistake 3: not making the distinction between data and motor skill practice.

Solution: Before you begin a practice session be clear which type of practice session is required to achieve your current musical goals. Basically there's two types of guitar practice:

Data memory training - this is where you are learning something new; these sessions must be kept short 2-5 minutes maximum.

Motor skills training - this is where you are practicing something you already know; practice sessions are typically 20-30mins in duration

It's possible to learn something wrong and practice it until the mistake becomes ingrained and very difficult to re-learn, often the player lacks the sheer determination to overcome the musical 'banana-peel' and the mistake becomes a fatal one.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Mike_P_Hayes

Wednesday, 2 June 2010

Chord Inversions

When you actually get to look at the succession of chords in a song, it can be pretty intimidating when you see the inversions come up. Chord inversions are something that seems to be really intimidating for most beginner guitar players. And there are a lot of guitar players who just shrug off the learning of chord inversions just because they think that it is difficult to learn and that they will be able to become really successful guitar players without even learning these inversions. What you might not know is that the chord inversions could be something that you really need to learn for you to be able to get the exact chord that would fit the song.

Chord inversions are chords made in the same bass chord. The lowest note of the chord is the tonic. When you execute the chord, you will maintain that lowest chord. Every time you execute a chord in the root or the tonic, this means the chord is an inversion. In the case of a C chord for example, any chord executed with C as the bass is an inversion of the C chord.

Most of the time, chords are played with about three or four notes fingered on the guitar. This means that you might be fingering two or three notes on the bass position. In a C chord for example, you need to finger C, E and G. On a Cmaj7, you have a C, E, G, B.

There are three types of chord inversions. They are respectively and aptly called first, second and third inversions. The first inversion calls for the 3rd of the chord on the bass note. This gives the term for it. The first inversion of the chord requires the 3rd of the chord be the first note after the root. The second inversion, now, has the 5th of the chord on a bass position. The terminology is derived from the idea of the 5th of the chord being the second tone after the tonic or the bass. And as you may have realized by now, the third inversion requires having its 7th as the bass. You get the drift, don't you?

Let's take for example a Cmaj7. The chord is played with a C, E, G and B. On the first inversion, you will be getting an E, G, B and C. Of course that would be too difficult to perform in the exact order. So you would have to rearrange the notes in such a ways that your fingers will be able to accommodate the notes. This process is known as the drop-two voicing. The new arrangement will be E, B, C and G.

When you actually think about it, it's not really that difficult. Here is a list of the steps you need to take in order to create the inversions:

1. Take note of all the notes used in the chord according to the root positions.
2. Take the first note and place it in the last position or at the back of the line of chords.
3. The second note follows suit, taking the last place.
4. Finger the new chord out on the fret board.
5. Repeat the steps this time using the notes from the first inversion.

It's not too difficult after all, isn't it?

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Harvey_Mosley

Friday, 28 August 2009

Buy A Used Guitar: Is It Smart For A Beginner To Buy A Cheaper Used Guitar?

A person who has just begun to learn how to play a guitar should own one. There are two options to own a guitar. The beginner can purchase a new guitar which is more costly or they can opt to buy a used guitar. Beginners are often advised to buy a used guitar just to get the hang of guitar-playing. They can purchase these in pawn shops and garage sales. They are also offered in various sites on the internet. However, it is advisable to purchase one from a pawn shop or online since the quality of the used guitar is often guaranteed since they won’t be available for sale if they were damaged.

There are many advantages and disadvantages involved when a person decides to buy a used guitar. Most involve the quality that the used guitar comes in. Others think about the additional expenses needed for repair. Whatever the pros and cons, the beginner should think carefully if the guitar is right for him or her.

The most obvious reason why people buy a used guitar is the cost. It is a known fact that new guitars are more expensive to own. Used guitars are often cheaper. However, it is important to examine the guitar before deciding to buy it because the guitar may have a few dents and scratches which would explain the low price. There is also the question of the quality of material that the guitar is made of. The guitar may be cheap because it is of low standard. That may also be the underlying reason why the previous owner decided to sell it in the first place. It is also important to do some research on the various used guitars out in the market. If you’re just going to use the guitar for practicing purposes then a used guitar is more practical.

In examining the guitar, since the beginner may not know how the guitar should sound in perfect or almost-perfect condition, it is important to bring along someone who does so that the person can be the one to test the guitar. Again, it is important to test the guitar since the quality may not be worth its price.

The cost of repairing the guitar is also something worth considering. You may end up spending more than you bargained for. Bring the guitar to a music store or to a place that repairs guitars. Have it estimated. If the cost of repairing the guitar costs more than purchasing a new guitar then opt for the new guitar instead.

A new guitar doesn’t come cheap. Oftentimes it is expensive to purchase one. This is why most beginners prefer to buy a used guitar. Since they are still at the early stages of learning, they don’t really have to purchase a new guitar. What they need to concentrate on is the guitar lessons themselves. Once they have mastered the guitar then they can think of purchasing a new guitar.

Tag : guitar,acoustic guitar,guitar lesson

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/music-articles/buy-a-used-guitar-is-it-smart-for-a-beginner-to-buy-a-cheaper-used-guitar-793238.html

Monday, 17 August 2009

Should You Take Private Guitar Lessons Or Buy Guitar Lessons On DVD?

Some good reasons for taking guitar lessons with a private teacher?

Before there were guitar lesson CD's, one could buy videocassettes to learn to play guitar, and before that there were a choice of books.
The other more expensive option was to enlist the help of a guitar teacher. Personally, I am all for the idea of going to a guitar teacher for lessons.
When I first began to play guitar, the choice of learning materials where books and private tuition. I used both.
There are a number of good reasons to choose a private guitar teacher, amongst other things,
a guitar teacher will give you lessons to complete before your next class. This is good for discipline, so you don't goof off.
A good guitar teacher is great for motivation, especially when you get a positive response for the work you've already done.
Sitting with a guitar teacher for an hour, while you run over the lessons, can give you more than just the lesson itself as often they have great advice to give.
When you develop a positive relationship with a teacher, your desire to please them can have a good effect on your performance.
Another good thing is that any questions you have during the week can be answered in your next lesson.

Some facts about famous guitarists, and how they learnt to play guitar.

Many famous guitarists are self taught, sure there's guys like Steve Vai, Paul Gilbert etc, who went either to the Berkley school of music
or the Guitar institute of technology (GIT), but there's also guys like Eddie Van Halen who learned by slowing down old Clapton records and learning the licks.
I must say though that the guys who taught themselves how to play, seem to have a more distinct and recognizable style.
The list of guitarists who are self taught reads like a who's who of rock guitar legends, however, there are many excellent guitarists who went to schools.
Steve Vai, oddly enough, was a student of Joe Satriani. Who's a better guitarist? I'll let you decide.

Guitar lessons, who needs them?

The short answer is that you do. You see, all these famous self taught guitarists had to learn something from somewhere, whether it's Eddie working out those Eric Clapton solo's or a fully fledged and technically capable guitarist like Steve Vai, they all needed the right information to work with.
Somebody had to show them something.
If you want to learn guitar, the safest way is to get the right training. It's something we all instinctively know.
Those guitar greats are very talented people, and you may be one too, but they all had to learn their scales, chords, basic music theory etc.
To cut a long story short, everyone got guitar lessons from somewhere.

My heartfelt recommendation.

As I mentioned earlier, I personally have used both guitar instruction media and private tuition, but to be perfectly honest, my greatest advances as a guitarist have come from self-tutoring via books and video.
My guitar teacher taught me for six months, but I was hungry for knowledge and needed to learn what I specifically wanted to play. I was starting a band and didn’t have time to wait, while going along with lessons that weren’t tailored to my specific need.
The cost of a how to play electric guitar DVD (or acoustic guitar for that matter) is way less than one would pay for a few private lessons, and covers a heck of a lot more.
The interactivity of computer CD roms and DVD’s make learning the guitar so much easier nowadays, and successfully emulate the presence of a live teacher.
So there you have it, learn from them both.
By the way, you never stop learning how to play the guitar, you just rest in-between lessons.

One of my very good friends is a full time guitar teacher. When I asked him whether he felt threatened by all the guitar instruction media that’s available, his reply was “not at all”. He understands the value of his service, and supports the idea of people learning from other sources as well.

Tag : guitar,guitar lessons,bass guitar,guitar hero

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Andrew_Gavin_Webber

Friday, 14 August 2009

Classical Guitar - Is Playing The Classical Guitar More or Less Difficult Than A Regular Guitar?

The classical guitar is a difficult instrument to learn how to play. Purchasing a classical guitar can be a difficult task particularly if you are not yet an accomplished player. As you take guitar lessons either on your own or with a help of a professional guitar player, you are most likely to encounter guitar sheet music.

Instead of giving the guitar player in your life cash to go towards the lessons, you can contact the teacher and pay for the lessons up front, or have them give you a gift certificate. Guitar lessons are a great gift for the guitar player in your life because you can take them no matter which level you are at. A little discipline, regardless of whether you have an inborn talent or not for playing the guitar, can better your chances of becoming a good guitar player.

Have Discipline - The most important thing you have to do in order to advance in your skill with the classical guitar is to practice regularly. It is important to make sure that your equipment is in good order and that your guitar is tuned properly. The one drawback to online guitar lessons is that you don’t have a teacher right there in the room with you to help you place your fingers on the right strings and show you a specific chord.

However, while you can learn how to play the guitar quickly and easily on DVD, some would argue that it cannot compete with a private teacher. I don’t like to make the learning curve any harder than it is already and try to make life easier for myself so I find learning how to play the guitar DVD’s definitely make the learning process fun and entertaining. An important thing to remember when learning how to play guitar chords is that the movement of the right hand is as important as the movement of the left hand.

Aside from learning basic guitar techniques, these are the three most important things to work on to improve your guitar skills. This being the case, a guitar “course” must have several key elements, among them, short, well defined lessons that teach achievable and measurable skills, be tied to a computer, interactivity, have video content, and be fun with specialty games and exercises. These guitar tips will give you a headstart but remember that to play the guitar well it requires lots of practice and whatever you do, don’t give up.

Playing the guitar requires more than the requisite musical ability, dedication and practice. One of the most important aspects of playing the blues guitar is the ability to feel the music come from your soul and pour out through the guitar. A great way to holistically grasp the basics of electric guitar playing is to listen to great electric guitar classics.

Tag :guitar,guitar hero,guitar classics,guitar lesson,guitar picks


Wednesday, 5 August 2009

Effective Tips To Learn Guitar

Do you harbor a secret dream of one day becoming a great pop icon even it you have laid your hands on a guitar for the first time. Do you want to impress your friends by your progress on the guitar? Do you want to grab attention by playing simple guitar songs at a party or in social function? If you want to succeed at learning guitar, your dream may come true as these days learning to play the guitar is relatively easy.

Technology has revolutionized the world. There are thousand ways you can learn how to play simple guitar songs. If you are not confident of learning to play by yourself, seek professional help. You can take lessons from a local tutor. This has one very great advantage. It gives you personal guidance and your teacher will be able to correct your mistakes as you go along. Thanks to internet it is now possible to take guitar lessons online. But you have to practice as much as you can. However, no matter how much you practice, you might not be getting the full benefit of the time you are putting in. Most beginners understand that practice is the key to learning how to play the guitar like an expert, and the more practice you put in the better you will be, but there are ways in which you can make that practice more effective.

There are plenty of websites offering lessons on guitar on the net. You should choose the website from which to seek guidance with care. The website should be one which adds new songs regularly. With their help you can learn to play a large number of songs. Today a plethora of DVDs are also available which will help you to learn the right songs.

Learning from a video on the Internet is both cheaper and more forgiving than learning from a private teacher. Because there is usually only a one-time fee associated with online resources, the amount of bang for your buck is much greater. You have the freedom to learn on your own time, and progress at your own speed. This fact alone makes it a lot easier to stick with your guitar, rather than giving up.

There is plenty of other guitar knowledge that you should build up to facilitate your progress in playing the guitar. Typically, learning guitar online with the proper resources can really give you a head start since you would be able to learn at your own pace and time. A final piece of advice, always remain positive and stay focus when learning something new. A proper mindset in learning will enable you to overcome challenges in playing the guitar.

Tag : guitar,guitar hero,learn guitar,guitar lesson,guitar picks

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Saturday, 1 August 2009

Select the Right Guitar Camp For Your Child With These 10 Tips

If you have a child between 8 and 14 years old who plays the guitar, chances are he is asking to go to Guitar Camp this summer. With all the guitar camps to choose from, how do you know which camp is right for YOUR child?

1. Why does your child want to go to guitar camp? If your child is participating in a beginner guitar camp to see if it is something she likes, think about the potential "next step" after camp. If you might want to continue with guitar lessons after camp consider a guitar camp that is managed by a local business so that your son can continue learning from the same teacher(s) he got to know in camp. If she is going to guitar camp because she wants to play in a band, does the camp offer a year-round program with a performance component that she could enroll in after camp?

2. Type of music. There are many different genres of music. One guitar camp may focus on jazz guitar while another focuses on rock music. Be sure you ask. If your daughter doesn't like jazz music, she won't enjoy the experience.

3. The staffSome teachers are educators. Others are musicians. Musicians tend to have more "street cred" with the kids. Will your young musician enjoy guitar camp more with teachers or with musicians and how does that match up with the background of the instructors?

4. Accountability Does your child want to learn something at guitar camp or is it just something to do during the day while you work? Whichever answer it is for you and your child, be sure that matches up with the expectations of the camp.

5. Individual attention. Individual attention is critical for a student's ability to learn as a musician. What is the student-to-teacher ratio in the guitar camp you are considering? Also ask if the instructors are with the campers at all times. I know of one guitar camp that has the kids work together in a group for hours at a time with no teacher in the room because the instructor is going from room to room and group to group.

6. Skill level required to participate. One of the most frustrating experiences for a young musician is to be in a group with other kids who are at a different level of experience. If the guitar player is a beginner and there are more advanced kids in her group she feels like she's holding the group back. If the guitar player is advanced and there are beginner guitarists in the group, he gets bored. Question how the campers are grouped in any guitar camp you consider.

7. Academic approach or playing approach? Some guitar camps teach through a music education curriculum which means your child learns the elements of playing a guitar before actually playing a song. Others teach the elements through teaching songs from the beginning. Neither is right or wrong. It's simply which style is best for YOUR child.

8. Who runs/owns the camp? Some guitar camps are "traveling camps" which rent space in your town and hire local people to run the camps. Other guitar camps are offered by established music schools in your community with their year-round teachers running the camps. I believe there's more accountability with the latter. After all, you can't "return" your camp experience if your child doesn't like it and chances are you won't be able to get into a different guitar camp that same week if your child is having a less-than-desirable experience.

9. Time commitment to Guitar Camp. Are you looking for a one- or two-week camp? Are you looking for an all-day or a half day guitar camp? If camp is over before you get off work, what arrangements can you make for your child to stay at camp until you are finished working?

10. Specialization Are you looking for a guitar camp, specifically, or a music camp which includes guitar? Both have their benefits. I believe specialization is the way to go for beginners because everything discussed at camp helps them learn how to play the guitar. Specialization is also valuable for those young musicians wanting to significantly advance their guitar playing ability over the summer. If the kids are going to guitar camp to meet other musicians that they might form their own band with or just to be able to play music at the level they already play at, then the multiple-instrument music camp will be sufficient.

There are no right or wrong answers. The thing that makes it "right" is how it matches up to what you and your child are looking for. Selecting the right guitar camp for your child can mean the difference between a lifelong interest in playing a musical instrument and never picking up an instrument again. Learning is supposed to be fun.....especially when learning to play the guitar.