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Share Your Stories, Photos, and Videos!

Monday, April 8th, 2013

student spotlightWhether you’ve been playing music for one month or several years, recognizing and celebrating milestones along the way is important!

Our students inspire us every day – so we want to hear your stories, and share them with the TakeLessons community! Did you perform at a recital, talent show, or open mic night? Did you ace an audition, or get accepted into a prestigious music program or school? Maybe you mastered a difficult song quicker than you expected.

Whatever your story is, let us know and you might be featured on our Facebook page! Every Friday, beginning April 12th, we’ll select one student to shine the spotlight on.

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How to Set the Right Goals for Learning Guitar

Monday, April 8th, 2013

learning guitarLearning the guitar is a great goal in itself – but you’ll need to get more specific if you want to truly make some progress! Read on as Hillsboro, OR guitar teacher Geoff A. walks you through the goal-setting process…

 

For Beginners
The first goal is getting the fingers of the fretting hand to cooperate in forming chords. I begin with E, A, G, C, B7, and D chords. Practice ten to fifteen minutes twice a day and understand: your fingers will hurt a few weeks until calluses form, depending on how much you practice.

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5 Reasons My Guitar Might Be My Best Friend

Monday, March 25th, 2013

guitarMusic can be a very rewarding experience – and a personal one, at that. Most musicians spend a LOT of time with their instrument, often baring their souls in the form of melodies and lyrics. If you treat your guitar like part of the family – or your best friend – you’ll relate to what Gresham, OR guitar teacher Ed P. has to say here…

 

Did you know that some of the old blues players named their guitars?  Some of them were even rumored to sleep with their guitars.  I’m not saying that I have done any of these things myself, or that you should, but I can say here are five reasons this guitar (see picture to the left) might be my best friend.

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Video: Guitar Fretboard Exercise

Monday, March 4th, 2013

Knowing your way around your guitar fretboard means more than just memorizing the notes. Working on specific exercises for speed and dexterity – combined with a basic knowledge of music theory – will help you create awesome solo runs and licks, which definitely adds some personality to your guitar playing. Check out the video below for a quick tutorial and fretboard exercise from Moorpark, CA teacher Bill W.:

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