Part 2 of “The Mother of All Major Scale Exercises” will be a little harder than Part 1. (Make sure you check out Part 1 before diving into this.) Now we limit the exercise to two strings at a time, …
The Mother of All Major Scale Exercises – Part 1 of 4
A few years ago, I developed what I call “The Mother of All Major Scale Exercises.” It’s divided into four parts. In the video above, I walk you through Part 1. (You can see a brief explanation of the whole …
The World’s Most-Used Guitar Scale: A Minor Pentatonic
The A minor pentatonic scale is probably the most-used, most-heard, most-seen, and most-demonstrated scale in the rock guitar world. Video instructors use it constantly as the launching point for demonstrating all kinds of pentatonic scale ideas. A minor is a …
Grip Strength Training for Guitarists
One of the surest ways to make guitar playing easier is to supplement your practicing with grip strength training. There are several popular methods for improving your hand strength, and they’ll all help your guitar playing in subtle ways no …
Discover a Guitarist: Nels Cline
This is the tenth installment of the Discover a Guitarist series. How I Discovered Nels Cline I can’t remember how I first heard of Nels Cline (b. 1956). It was probably around 2004, when I played in the jazz band …
Practice What You Love
You know what you ought to practice. Maybe you have a short list or a long list. My list would last me several lifetimes if I had them. But do you love practicing what you “ought” to practice? Or does …
The CAGED System
The CAGED System for guitar is a method for understanding the fretboard by dividing it into five overlapping chunks. Its name is derived from the five basic major open chords: C, A, G, E, and D. (I’ll explain why they’re …
The Magic Guitar Position
If you’re new to the guitar, you’ve probably been frustrated a few times trying to stretch your fingers out to fret the different notes in a chord. Over time, your fingers will improve at doing this, and those chords will …
31 Ideas for a Guitarist in a Rut
Every guitarist lands in a rut once in a while. While disciplined diligence might allow some people to work their way out, there’s always an easier path. Try some of the ideas below, and you might skip the giant staircase …
3 Books Every Intermediate Guitarist Should Own
I love guitar books. I have about 50 of them lined up on in a bookcase in my teaching studio. I acquired them over the last 12 years, and I have twice that amount sitting in my Amazon wish list. …