Indice dei contenuti per July 2024 in Guitar Techniques

Today I’m going to bring you another insight I gathered from studying Brazilian jiu jitsu, and I think many of you will find the principle very useful in your guitar study. In BJJ there are positions that occur regularly from which we study defences and attacks. When we are taught new techniques, each person will find certain skills that resonate more strongly than others, and these would become part of one’s ‘game’. But over time, it’s very easy to forget techniques that are not being used regularly, and recently I find myself in positions thinking “I’ve studied an escape from this, but damned if I can remember it!”. The last couple of weeks I’ve been reviewing my lesson notes and compiling mind maps showing the possible moves from all the…

This string bending idea uses A Blues scale: A-C-D-Eb-E-G. After a three-note pick-up the next line involves playing the entire scale by only fretting two different notes. All others are played using string bends from the second note. So after the root (A) you play the b3 (C), bend up C-E (3rd), C-Eb (b3rd) C-D (2nd), and lastly a‘slightly sharp’blues bend from the C to just short of C#. After another short pick-up lick to end bar 2 the same bending idea repeats an octave lower on the third string before ending with a couple of quarter-tone bends and a b7-root (G-A) bend. It's a great way of honing your bending but be careful, as it can be difficult to perform the big bends, particularly on the third string. For…

ABILITY RATING Moderate/Advanced ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Info https://bit.ly/3vVtyrs Key E Major Tempo 70bpm Will improve your… ✓ Three-part harmonies ✓ Fretting-hand trills ✓ Hinge barre usage Johann Sebastian Bach is a towering figure in the world of classical composition. Such was his legacy that the entire Baroque era came to be defined by the years of his birth and death (1685-1750). That’s not to say there were no other notable composers of the Baroque style during those years, as there were of course many others that are almost as well known. Just think of Joseph Haydn, Antonio Vivaldi, Henry Purcell, and George Frederic Handel, to name but a few. However, what set Johann Sebastian Bach apart was the unbelievably prolific nature of his genius. He could improvise…

ABILITY RATING ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Moderate / Advanced Info Key: E Minor, E Minor, F# Tempo: 170bpm, 160bpm https://bit.ly/3vVtyrs Will improve your ✓ Palm muting ✓ Pinch harmonics ✓ Sliding sequences Pantera began life in the early 80s as a glam metal band, before recruiting Phil Anselmo on vocals and becoming the much heavier band that forged the groove-metal genre. Much of the band’s weight can be attributed to Dimebag’s rhythm guitar work. His combination of aggressive tone along with precise muting made way for tight, powerful phrases. To fill out the sound, Dimebag interjected high melodic motifs and low, chromatic power chord sequences alongside the main riffs. This brought variety to his rhythm parts while giving the impression of a second guitarist filling in the gaps. “Dimebag…

ABILITY RATING ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Moderate Info Key: Various Tempo: Various https://bit.ly/3vVtyrs Will improve your ✓ Blues phrasing ✓ Bending technique ✓ Grasp of 12/8 pulse Peter Green was the founding member of Fleetwood Mac and having put the band together was generous enough to name it after the drummer Mick Fleetwood, and bass player John McVie, both stalwarts of the 60s British blues scene and John Mayall alumni. Green followed Eric Clapton in Mayall’s Bluesbreakers, a tough gig to take on, but BB King was famously quoted as saying that Green was “the only one to give me the cold sweats”. A master of Chicago blues and also an innovator as a composer, Green was responsible for a number of imaginative hit songs, including The Green Manalishi,…

ABILITY RATING ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Intermediate Info Key: Various Travis picking Tempo: Various Carter picking https://bit.ly/3vVtyrs Will improve your Playing in open tunings Carter picking Playing in open tunings This month we’ll look at the folk-blues fingerpicking style of Elizabeth Cotten, and revisit Maybelle Carter’s famous ‘pick and flick’ approach. You’ll discover how folk legend Pete Seeger translated banjo techniques to the guitar, and then learn how the great Chet Atkins built on the Travis picking style to make it his own. To be a well-rounded Americana guitarist it’s essential to have all these techniques at your disposal, along with a good knowledge of the most commonly used tunings. This means drop D, D (D-A-D-F#-A-D) and G (D-G-D-G-B-D), so we’ll work on exercises featuring each of these tunings.…

FEATURE 2 VIDEO GO GLOBAL! Six Exciting Scales To Learn Jamie Humphries takes a musical trip around the world to add intrigue, mystery, and flavour to your lickbag. CLASSICAL VIDEO ALONSO MUDARRA Fantasia X Declan returns with an arrangement of this gem from the pen of the 16thcentury Spanish priest and composer. FEATURE THE CROSSROADS Five Ultimate Blues Rhythms John Wheatcroft reveals some cool blues rhythm ideas sure to bolster your accompaniment abilities. Get close up and personal with 12 licks from... MATTEO MANCUSO When the incredible fingerstyle jazz-fusion guitarist visited our studio we simply had to get him to show us how he creates those amazing licks and runs using classical fingerstyle technique. We recruited our classical maestro, Declan Zapala to unravel the mystique. Crack the secrets of Matteo’s…

GT: Do you have a type of pick that you can’t live without? BF: Recently I’ve been using a pick made by Nik Monnin. Apollo Picks. He makes them out of unusual materials. I’ve been using just this one pick for months and months now. If I don’t lose it, it’ll probably last me for the rest of my life. GT: If you had to give up all your pedals but three, what would they be? BF: This is a fairly easy question. Lately I’ve been using only three pedals. The Jam Pedals Rattler, Line 6 DL4 MkII, and Strymon Flint. I also use a TC Electronics Polytune mini tuner and a Strymon Ojai to power everything. If I had to reduce things down to one pedal, the Strymon Flint…

ABILITY RATING Moderate/Advanced ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Info https://bit.ly/3TvS8gf Key Various Tempo Various Will improve your… ✓Use of scales ✓Alternate picking ✓Use of rhythmic subdivisions In this feature we present the brilliant Iranian acoustic guitarist, Ardeshir Farah. Ardeshir has recorded no less than 21 albums as a co-composer and guitarist in the acoustic duo Strunz & Farah, alongside the equally fantastic Jorge Strunz, an acoustic master from Costa Rica. Strunz & Farah were nominated for a Grammy and blend together Latin, jazz-fusion and Middle Eastern sounds to create their influential style of acoustic magic. In this month’s video Ardeshir demonstrates six of his favourite nylon-string examples at both fast and slower tempos and we have provided full tab for you to learn from. Closely watching Ardeshir play…

Brought to you by… ABILITY RATING ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Moderate Info https://bit.ly/3vVtyrs Key: Various Tempo: Various Will improve your ✓ Gospel licks ✓ Double-stops ✓ Chromatic runs It is a great shame that Sister Rosetta Tharpe seldom receives the recognition she deserves, especially considering the role she played in the development of popular music. Dubbed The Original Soul Sister and The Godmother of Rock And Roll, her innovative blend of gospel, blues, and more not only captivated audiences but also laid the foundation for future musicians. Born Rosetta Nubin on March 20, 1915, in Cotton Plant, Arkansas, she exhibited an exceptional talent for music from an early age. Raised in the church, Rosetta immersed herself in the soul-stirring melodies of gospel music, which would later become the…

NEVER MISS ANOTHER ISSUE Time to subscribe! JUNE GT361 THE BEATLES ROCK OUT! Lennon, McCartney and Harrison had three distinctive electric guitar styles. We reveal how the Fab Three rocked! Plus: T-Ride video lesson; Keith Richards acoustic, Nita Strauss, David Gilmour, Tarrega classical, Dean Brown & more! MAY GT360 COUNTRY ROCK Learn how Albert Lee, Joe Walsh, Brent Mason, Dickey Betts and others blend scales to create new sounds. Plus: Modern Legato, Allan Holdsworth, Eric Johnson, Ulf Wakenius, Muddy Waters, Metallica, Bob Dylan, and much more! SPRING GT359 JUMP, JIVE & WAIL Learn from Jump Blues’ most important players, and add swinging jazzy lines to your rock and blues. Plus: Martin Miller and Matteo Mancuso videos; Robin Trower, KW Shepherd, John Mayer, Iron Maiden, Johnny Cash & more! APRIL GT358…

ABILITY RATING Info Key: Various Tempo: 124 bpm https://bit.ly/3uvNmB6 Will improve your Fingerpicking technique Writing with a drone string Using parallel movement This month we’re going back to the ‘flower power’ era of the mid-late 1960s with a singer-songwriter guitarist who would have an influence on some of the world’s best loved musicians. Scotsman Donovan Phillips Leitch was born in 1946 and found fame in a decade when using just your first name could carry you all the way into the mainstream. He emerged from the British folk scene taking a solid grounding in acoustic guitar fingerpicking and combining it with the psychedelic and jazz influences that inspired so many musicians of his time. By 1965 he was already finding fame through hit records and appearances on iconic TV…

Brought to you by… Syncopation is a musical term directly associated with rhythm. In short, syncopation is where rhythms tend to fall on and utilise the off-beat, rather than landing on the stronger on-beats. This approach helps to create interesting rhythms, adding musical tension to the flow of a piece of music. One genre of music synonymous with syncopation is funk, where 16th-note patterns are used to create rhythmic displacement and interest. The use of 16th notes, or semiquavers as they are commonly known, give musicians an extra palette of beats to exploit. Rather than having eight beats to play with in each bar, counted as 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + within a regular bar of 4/4, further subdividing these into 16ths creates a feel of 1e+a,…

In recent years, the enthusiastic concert-goer may well have observed a growing trend. Namely, the opportunity to watch movies whose original score is performed by a live orchestra on stage, while the action plays out on a giant screen suspended overhead. Ironically, it’s a scenario that Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd would have recognised over a century ago, notwithstanding that technology has advanced exponentially from the Silent Era. There’s nothing new under the sun, eh? Or the screen, to be fair. Which leads me to Paddington Bear, the eponymous 2014 film. Titter ye not. I am here to report that it’s a wonderful example of a work that operates on two levels and explores themes (immigration, prejudice, acceptance, and inclusion) that are as relevant today as ever. All…

VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/3vVtyrs ABILITY RATING Moderate ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Info https://bit.ly/3vVtyrs Key Various Tempo Various Will improve your… ✓Fretboard navigation ✓Scale knowledge ✓Use of effects The guitar is one of the most popular instruments of all time. Ever since Les Paul and Leo Fender put their names on some of the first ever solidbody electric guitar lines in the 1940s and ‘50s, the instrument has become a huge part of pop culture, and maintained this status ever since. Along with the development of amplification and effects, the electric guitar is one of the most important developments in 20th century music. Amplifiers allowed guitarists to step out of their traditional accompaniment role and provide solos and riffs that could cut through the band with ease. Since…

ABILITY RATING Advanced ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Info https://bit.ly/3vVtyrs Key D Minor Tempo 190bpm swing Will improve your… ✓ Advanced harmonic ideas ✓ Chromatic tension and release ✓ Technical fluency and articulation Everyone at GT was saddened to hear of the recent tragic and unexpected passing of Sylvain Luc, virtuoso jazz guitarist, legendary figure in France and acclaimed international performer. Sylvain was a sensational musician, equally at home on electric, nylon or steel-string acoustic guitar, in full band context with the amazing Trio Sud, as a duo with gypsy genius Biréli Lagrène, or in a completely solo setting. Luc’s playing was exhilarating, intelligent, beautiful, with stunning improvisational flair, plus a remarkable touch and tone. Born and raised in Bayonne in the Basque country and the product of a…

ABILITY RATING ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Moderate Info https://bit.ly/3vVtyrs Key: E Minor Tempo: 94 bpm Will improve your ✓ Melodic lead playing ✓ Spacious rhythm work ✓ Music theory The Black Keys were formed in Ohio, USA in 2001 by the duo of Dan Auerbach on guitar and vocals, and drummer Patrick Carney. They came to prominence during the era that alternative acts such as The White Stripes were popular, and also paved the way a few years later for acts like Royal Blood. These were minimalist groups where for the most part two band members took care of guitars, drums and vocals and often bass was played either using octave effects, or sometimes by a session bass player, particularly in a live setting. Auerbach and Carney were…

ABILITY RATING ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Advanced Info https://bit.ly/3vVtyrs Key: Various Tempo: Various Will improve your ✓ Alternate picking ✓ Fretting accuracy ✓ Hand synchronisation Born in New Jersey in 1954, Al Di Meola is a bona fide guitar legend. At the age of just 19 he was chosen by the great Chick Corea to fill the guitar chair in Return To Forever, with whom he recorded three albums. Alongside this, Al was producing his own albums, which combined jazz, latin and rock into brilliant compositions showcasing his fiery, articulate and powerful alternate picking style. Al was also part of the famous Friday Night In San Francisco acoustic trio alongside John McLaughlin and Paco de Lucia. The live album of that legendary night in 1980 sold more than a…

ABILITY RATING ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Moderate/Advanced Info Key: C Minor/E Minor Tempo: Various https://bit.ly/3vVtyrs Will improve your Alternate picking Economy picking Speed and fluency We’ve all been there... you spend hours, even days, perfecting a really impressive technique, but when you start recording a video or jamming with mates, your glistening shred precision just crumbles into a sloppy mess. The problem is almost always that our techniques work brilliantly in isolation, but fail when we transition between phrases with different technical requirements. It’s understandable: we’re so often inspired by players who are elite specialists, and we want to emulate them. However, for the vast majority of musicians, it’s far more important to be flexible and reliable. “We’re so often inspired by elite specialists, and we want to emulate…