Learn Guitar Online
Learning guitar can be a scary thing - especially with a new teacher. Learning online using Skype can be a cost-effective & super convenient way to learn.
Introduction
The option of learning guitar online has been around for many years but there are still many people that are reluctant to learn using this method, preferring instead to go it alone or learn in-person with a tutor. Years ago I too thought that learning online wasn't really possible but I was wrong.
The event that changed my mind occurred when I was on tour in the middle east several years ago and I needed to learn a fairly complex guitar solo with extremely limited time to do so. Under normal conditions I would've taken a couple of days to learn it by ear but in this case I had less than 12 hours to try to nail it. I was trying to think of an easier way to get it done and I thought of YouTube. I typed in the name of the song and voila - there was a lesson for it! A kind person had posted it on their channel and it took me about an hour to get it all down. Needless to say after that I was hooked and I realised that learning guitar from an instructor on a screen was an entirely valid option. I had learned guitar stuff from the Hotlicks range of videos that were popular prior to the internet so learning from a screen wasn't totally foreign to me but with YouTube & Skype there's a difference and that difference is the ability to interact and receive feedback. The old school instructional DVDs and videos were a strict one-way affair.
The new age = Interactivity
YouTube opened doors with comments section. I have no doubt that most of you that are reading this post have come here because you've watched one or more of my tutorial videos on YouTube. You'll notice in the comments section on my videos that there are tons of questions and I answer them all. This is the wonderful opportunity that online guitar learning offers - interaction with the tutor in the video. The downside with YouTube is that some of the creators that post content don't respond to questions for various reasons but you may (if you're lucky) receive feedback or an answer from someone else. Sadly, though it is hit and miss.
Fortunately, Skype lessons can give you that much needed feedback or answer to that question. The downside with Skype guitar lessons online is usually the price. YouTube is 100% free whereas a private lesson with a guitar teacher online could cost anywhere from $5 to $200 for an hour and a private one-one-one lesson in your home or studio could be even more expensive. You'll also need a decent internet connection, a webcam, and a microphone, and somewhere peaceful to do the lesson and that can be an expensive outlay for some although a smart phone or tablet has all of those features and they're usually within the grasp of most people.
I would say if you are really serious about learning guitar definitely consider online guitar lessons as a viable option. It can also be a great option for those that have hit a plateau and need some assistance or advice to overcome that plateau and move forward.
Let your fingers fly!
Andres Segovia - Segovia at Los Olivos Documentary
Enter Andres Segovia - monster player + total badass.
Introduction
Today's post is about the most famous of all classical guitarists - Andres Segovia. I've been watching a few videos that are floating around on YouTube and despite his popularity and influence on almost all classical guitarists I discovered that I hadn't seen his documentary 'Segovia at Los Olivos'.
If you have a spare 50 minutes or so I strongly suggest that you sit yourself down and take the time to watch it. For a start you get to see the absolutely massive house that Segovia commissioned for himself and his wife to live in and you get to see a somewhat forlorn donkey meandering through an olive grove oh and you get to see & hear Segovia jamming a few tunes in the comfort of his own pad - that in itself is pretty awesome. For those of you that still have VHS players you can purchase a tape here instead of watching it on YouTube:
Watching this video triggered my memory of an Andres Segovia cassette tape that I would listen to many years ago.
The tape is long since gone but the memory of the extraordinary sound and musicianship lingers on. I do remember that the tape had the infamous Johann Sebastian Bach 'Chaconne in D-minor' on it. At that time I couldn't really appreciate the sheer domination of technique, memory, endurance, and musicality that anyone would need to possess to play this piece.
The Outspoken One
I must admit to moving away from listening to Andres Segovia recordings after hearing John Williams express his opinions about Segovia's domineering personality many years ago in his documentary 'The Seville Concert'. Segovia's masterclasses also seemed to show an intolerance of alternative interpretations of his transcriptions. I remember him mercilessly chastising a wonderful guitarist for playing one of his transcriptions of Bach's Fugue in E minor for using his own fingerings rather than Segovia's.
However, I find that I have put this to the side and returned to just kicking back and listening to some of the most beautiful classical guitar music that you're ever likely to hear. Los Olivos seems to show a different side to the larger-than-life legend.
Watching him petting a dog, enjoying a cup of tea with his wife, and telling his story of how his relationship with the famous Ramirez guitar makers began was awesome. Amazingly it was Segovia's first summer in 35 years that he spent at home just chillaxing rather than being out on the world stage in some far away exotic land mesmerising people with his personality and his playing.
Anyway that's all from me today. Time to start on the Chaconne... after a cup of tea! Now it's time for you to go and check it out but before you do I should mention that the opening piece is 'La maya de Goya' and I'll have a tutorial and classical guitar tabs and classical guitar sheet music available on the website very soon!