Deeper Things

A few of you that follow my Instagram may have read a story I posted a while back. I felt it was worth a repost. In hindsight, I should have said something in addition to “I want you to be happy.” Maybe, “The work you do provides great value and I find your effort valuable”,

I – IV – V Pentatonics

The Concept A pentatonic scale will work off the I, IV, and V scale degree of any given key. If you’re in a major key, major pentatonic will work; if you’re in a minor key, then minor. Three scales, one key. All the notes will be diatonic. You can switch scales anytime—every note remains within

Do Remote Guitar Lessons Work?

After teaching guitar for fifteen years in a face-to-face setting, shifting online during the Pandemic was a big experiment for me. Given that I had little choice, I went into remote learning with an open mind and saw it as an opportunity to refine my teaching style. After some experimentation, remote guitar lessons work very

How To Choose the Right Music Teacher

After opening a Pandora’s Box with my post on if remote guitar lessons work, I wanted to share what to consider when choosing a good music teacher. Like any relationship, it all depends on how both parties get along. As a guitar instructor, I cannot speak about what it is like for other musical disciplines. Still,

Ten Weeks on the Road

Hi Everyone! Many of you know I was in Europe for ten weeks over the summer. I went to eighteen cities in eleven countries, and things were pretty wild. Instead of getting into too much detail, I’ll just share my last newsletter where you can hear more about it, here. Did I mention I have a newsletter?

Fundamentals, Revisited

I’m not the fastest or most technical guitarist, but I’m working on it. I try to remember the same approaches I teach when encountering my own challenges. Part of a solo I’m working on is quite difficult, not only for the left hand, but the speed, string skipping, hammer-on/pull-off pattern (just new to me), and—where

Why I Love Reading Music (Now)

All through music school, reading was my least favorite class. We all hated it. Some of my classmates gave up entirely, sat in the back, and shredded on their unplugged electric guitars. I ground my way through that class as a right of passage, but at the time, I was far more interested in every

The DAW 30 Day Challenge

For those of you who know me, I have struggled for ages with Digital Audio Workstations (DAWs) like Pro Tools, Logic Pro, Ableton, and many, many others. I have tried just about everything, and invested hundreds (if not thousands) of dollars over the years. Audio programs like these are super powerful, but the learning curves

Growth: Romance vs. Reality

Playing guitar takes a lot of work. Playing any instrument has challenges. Many of my students struggle with improving, even in optimal environments. They often voice their concerns in such a way that reminds me of their inner sensitivity (this is at least partially responsible for why they are drawn to the self-expression of a

A Personal Clarion Call

The best way to progress isn’t to be the most organized, ambitious, or the best planner or hardest worker. The best way to make progress is to stay focused on the work–laser-focused–to overcome the daily resistance that reduces any long-term goal to nothing more than daydreams. Resistance makes a mess of all men who do