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Sumatra Jungle Jam
“Without music life has no soul”
Earlier this month I spent 2 weeks having a break in the Sumatran jungle in Indonesia. The main reason for the trip was to check out the wildlife including elephants and orang-utans. However the bonus fun activity was the nightly jamming and singing sessions with the local guides in Bukit Lawang and Tangkahan. The trip was organised by friends who are regular visitors to the region. They run an organisation The Tangkahan Effect which helps to support wildlife and local eco-tourism. Before we left we were informed that there are nightly jungle jam sessions with singing and guitar playing. Read More
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8 Great Rhythm Guitar Jam Ideas – Part 1
Have you ever found yourself in a jam with other musicians not knowing what to play? In this guitar lesson you will learn how to create rhythm guitar ideas over a simple groove. These 8 great rhythm guitar ideas should kick start your imagination and help you to develop your own ideas over other grooves and chord progressions.
The groove used here is based around the drums playing quick 16th notes on the hi-hat. The chords are A minor with a little bit of C D and G major. So the key is A minor meaning that you can improvise using notes from the A minor pentatonic, A blues scales and the A Dorian mode. Read More -
Guitar Gods Quotes
What can the guitar gods teach as lesser mortal guitarists who are looking to improve on our instruments? Here we will see what they can teach us with some of the best quotes for guitar players and students.
“How can you learn to play lots of great fast notes when you can’t make a few slow ones sound good?” – Gary Moore
Gary Moore is spot on here. There is no sense in trying to play fast if you can’t play slowly well. When soloing its essential to know the right notes to play. Some of the best players don’t need to play a lot of notes to sound great.
Just listen to BB king and jazz trumpeter Miles Davis for examples of great soloing with minimal notes. Read More -
How To Perform Like a Pro – 13 Top Tips
In the past month I’ve been busy gigging with the 3 bands I play guitar (Deuawd) and bass (BLTs and Trumpet) in plus putting on my mid-year student concert. This is one of my excuses for not writing an article for a while. However this period of busy gigging has given me the inspiration to give you 13 top tips on how to perform like a pro whether it be at a festival in front of 1000s or at a small café/coffee shop.
Before The Gig
Turn up early
Apart from making it less stressful for you it shows to the venue and any fellow performers that you’re organized and respect their time.Check All You Gear
Before leaving home check that you have everything you need including e.g. Read More -
A Musicians Review of Whiplash
Warning this movie review contains spoilers!
I recently watched the award winning critically acclaimed movie Whiplash and as a musician it was a fascinating movie to watch. While overall it was a good movie there were a few things within that didn’t sit quite right with me from a musicians and music teacher’s perspective. However on the other hand it also made me review some issues that it raised regarding music education, practice and being a musician itself.
The main character in Whiplash is an aspiring jazz drummer Andrew. Attending a prestigious music school he gets chosen by respected but aggressive and intimidating professor/band conductor Terence Fletcher as the drummer for his highly rated big band. Read More
