 sj |
||
|
||
Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric?
|
|
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Nick Date: 13 Feb 09 - 09:53 AM >>What a pleasant piece to come home to! Thank you for sharing that. How old is he now? He was 17 last Saturday. >>if I can convince my son to take the bit harder road for a while (classical guitar and the techniques that go with it) I reckon the knack is that he convinces himself. The desire to do it for himself is the thing. When my son got his last exam result he was pleased (of course) but he then disappeared off to his room and did his usual practice to improve his technique. His friends say - 'ah but it's easy for you...' but they don't see the practice. He sees it as fun. Motivation in music is enormously self generated. I pick up and play guitar or mandolin every day but am pretty undisciplined in my practice but I guess he has grown up in a world where there is always some sort of music going on and always an instrument to hand to play and I find it hard to walk past a guitar without picking it up for at least a few seconds. My other son was different. He became interested in music after we watched the Sound of Music and I showed him how to play Doh a Deer on the piano. He went on to learn to play the piano to a decent standard and can still sight read a piece of music really well but he got bored at some stage. He didn't want to do grades and he got tired of playing classical tunes. He had a period of time when he learned some jazzy tunes and other things but then just stopped. He'll never forget how to play but I doubt it will be a part of his life in the same way as his brother. I guess it's the difference between being playing music and being a musician. Hope your son gets the pleasure that mine has. |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Stilly River Sage Date: 13 Feb 09 - 10:57 AM He has been gripped by the Villa Lobos piece. Clearly he enjoyed the sounds he was making and immediately began practicing more to improve the sound. He already does the same thing with rock pieces on the electric guitar, but I think now the classical has gained more traction with him. It took reaching a level where the music can pull him along. My son will be 17 in three weeks. SRS |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Stilly River Sage Date: 01 May 09 - 12:23 AM Villa Lobos Prelude #1 now--he's once again engrossed by the feel of playing and the sounds and it is such a pleasure to listen to him practice. He memorizes the music and then as he practices he works on parts and learns to make the sounds correctly. I had such a difficult time memorizing music when I was taking piano lessons--I am in awe of his ability to do this, but I won't say anything, because I don't want to jinx it. Meanwhile, with birthday cash he bought a big electronic pedal of some sort for the electric guitar, and I've walked in at his dad's house to find him lounged on the floor, in the dark, totally engrossed in making amazing sounds come out of the electric. What a rock star. . . Paying for these lessons has been difficult. My bank balance would be healthier without the monthly expense, but this is easily the best money I've spent over the last three years, to hear him totally engrossed and entertained by the process of learning is what every parent can only hope for. I've thought about Nick's recording of his son's work. Until my son is ready to start recording things himself, I won't try to record anything for playing here. When he's ready, we'll know. But I would love one day to have recordings of his playing just for the pleasure of listening, so I hope that day comes sooner rather than later. What a musical adventure this has become! SRS |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Midchuck Date: 01 May 09 - 08:31 AM I've only played an electric guitar once... As I began to covet the guitar I was playing....I sobbed a mighty sob, then gazed at the skies and cried out, "Get thee behind me, Satan!!" and put the guitar down! Wow! That was a near thing! I had exactly the same experience just a couple of weeks ago, but it involved a "banjitar" (6-string banjo tuned as a guitar). Power corrupts. Peter |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Don Firth Date: 01 May 09 - 03:00 PM Wow! Dylan must be coming along right well! "Clearly he enjoyed the sounds he was making and immediately began practicing more to improve the sound." The mark of a musician! Villa-Lobos Prelude #1. Too bad the sound quality of this clip is not better (at points, it sounds a bit like a tape that's running unevenly), but John Williams is a superb guitarist, and there are some good close-ups of his hands. I learned this back in 1964 when I was taking lessons from Bob Flanary (a former student of Aaron Shearer, who wrote a bunch of classic guitar technique manuals). That is, I used to be able to play it. I think I'll dig out the music and see if I can re-up it! I've never had the privilege of meeting Dylan, but I think he's inspiring me! Here's another Villa-Lobos piece, Choro #1, played by another excellent guitarist, David Russell. I've just finished reading Practicing: A Musician's Return to Music, by Glenn Kurtz. I found it downright agonizing to read. One of the many ideas he highlights is that it's one's perpetual failure to achieve the perfection one strives for that keeps one practicing and reaching for that unattainable perfection. Without that, there is no progress. Yet, like the arrow in Zeno's Paradox, it never reaches its target. Agonizing, yes, nevertheless, it was a very inspiring book. It got me to thinking about my own musical career, what I did right, what I did wrong, and what I would do if I had the chance to do it all over again. In a way, I was luckier than Kurtz in that he focused entirely on the guitar, whereas I took up the guitar as an adjunct to singing. But then, that gave me two areas of music in which I would never achieve that sought for perfection. But—one does what one can. And what one must, Glenn Kurtz was interviewed on NPR by Scott Simon some months back. CLICKY. And Maggie, one can not say enough about the importance of a supportive parent in the development of talent. As long as we were serious about something, my sisters and I always had the support of our parents. With the financial support of my father and the hard work of my mother (playing chauffeur, taking care of costumes, the protective instincts of a mother bear, and dozens of other things), my sisters both became national figure skating champions. When I started classic guitar lessons and I didn't have enough money to buy my first classic guitar, my mother consulted with my teacher, then bought the guitar for me (a Martin 00-28-G) and said, "Think of it as an early birthday present. And Christmas." I don't know, but I think there are sainthoods given out for that sort of thing. Good on ya!! Don Firth |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Stilly River Sage Date: 01 May 09 - 03:46 PM Don, there are some very nice recordings of this piece on YouTube. I did listen to the John Williams one first--it is an old recording. When I was poking around I evidently clicked on the playlist for someone who included this piece and had a nice hour or so listening to a sequence of wonderful guitar pieces. It might have been the Vojislav Ivanovic performance in Sydney, Australia, that set it off. After the first piece I wasn't watching the browser window, but I let it play in the background. I have good speakers on my computer that makes this work. My office computer has tinny little flaps of vibrating paper in the monitor frame that sound cartoonish in their renderings. :) SRS |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: katlaughing Date: 01 May 09 - 11:48 PM That is awesome, Maggie! |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Stilly River Sage Date: 18 May 09 - 11:44 PM Recently sighted on the facebook page of a certain 17-year-old: "(His Name) is infatuated with the double harmonic scales." :-D |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Stilly River Sage Date: 02 Oct 09 - 02:05 PM I've been hearing some wonderful classical pieces coming out of the classical guitar, including an increasingly good rendition of the "Malaguena." But lately I've heard some good classical pieces coming out of the electric guitar. The presto movement in the Summer portion of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons is really intense when transcribed and played on electric guitar. Isn't this interesting? To see what a kid can do when he asks for a guitar and lessons? If you follow on his facebook page you see that he's into the rockers who really know their theory and have a classical background. His latest remarks have to do with one I don't know (that isn't suprising) called Yngwie Malmsteen, from Sweden. His Wikipedia page shows some interesting work:
SRS |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: GUEST,Guest John Hartford Date: 02 Oct 09 - 02:53 PM hi It seems as if this thread has got a little side-tracked from the original question. In trying to get back to advice on what type of guitar to buy for a beginner - : many ideas have been expressed above and most of them have some merit. However I believe that it is all-important to learn music in the way that it is most enjoyed by the beginner. I would advise that the novice finds out what other young bands are around and what they play and try to get involved in some way with them. This will point the boy at where he wants to go. It will become natural for him to decided what type of guitar he wants to play. At this stage IMHO it doesn't matter whether it is accoustic or electric, if he gets good enough it will be easy to move between instruments. He will learn the rudiments as he goes alaong and as he does so he will indicate his keeness to continue. At this stage it would be in the parents' interests to consider finding and funding a good teacher - there are many around. Any good musician will tell you that at this stage there is no substitute for PRACTICE. My guitar tutor told me many moons ago when I asked him if he could teach me to play. He replied no...but that he could teach me how to practice how to play...the rest was up to me. Happy Learning John |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Stilly River Sage Date: 02 Oct 09 - 04:30 PM Thank you! One reason it has seemed to get side-tracked is because I've been reporting in the last couple of years the progress of the boy, now a very tall young man, who initially asked for the guitar and lessons. This is the follow-through part after the initial research and help from Mudcatters. I will admit, that I still kind of forced the issue, in having him start with classical even though he thought electric was the best guitar around. He bought an electric after the first few months of lessons and didn't mention it to his teacher, but I finally did, because I want him to know we all think both are okay, we just wanted him to start with classical; lessons include both classical and electric now. A little over three years ago to the day, my son started classical guitar lessons with Michael Dailey of The Guitar Studio in west Fort Worth. He teaches there plus lessons at several area colleges and universities, and is well-respected in his field. He used to front for a couple of rock bands, but he mostly teaches classical guitar. It's pretty thrilling for a parent to listen to the stages, to have heard the moment when the classical music turned the corner from being an exercise to being a passion, and it's interesting to listen to the process of parsing rock and classical sometimes, and merging them at others. We've tended to go the reverse direction of what John H. recommended, but I think it is a typical route to follow and one that Dylan might have done IF I hadn't grown up with a father who studied classical guitar (with Don Firth) as he was toward his interest in being a folksinger. At this point, my imput is to pay for lessons, to drive him over, and on occasion remind him if he of it if he hasn't taken one or other of the guitars over for a lesson in a while. The rest is up to him. SRS |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Jack Campin Date: 02 Oct 09 - 05:55 PM There is some contemporary art music for electric guitar. Try Frank Martin's "Trois poemes de la mort" and John Buller's "Proenca". There's more to it than rehashing Vivaldi. |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Stilly River Sage Date: 03 Apr 10 - 08:49 PM Last Thursday my son was hired by a co-worker to play background music during the opening minutes of a reception in the library where we work. It sounded great and he stopped when the talking got really going. And today he went to his first master class, with Rene Izquierdo, who was here in town performing last night for Guitar Fort Worth. Here is his myspace page http://www.myspace.com/reneizquierdo. He was very good, and addressed each student at their level, but the information was useful for all, I am sure. What an amazing process. My son played a Villa Lobos etude. And among other things, learned about how to precisely trim his nails to get the best sound on the strings. It's really interesting, the upkeep of a guitarist, as well as the technique and learning the material. Each student got nearly an hour (there were 4 of them). This has been such a fascinating process. This son, who graduates from high school in June, will have a free ride at the University of Arizona in Tucson, primarily because his teachers nominated him for the Hispanic Scholar Program award. Two schools offered full scholarships, and Arizona is a Tier 1 school. He may well end up in computer engineering or a technology or science field, but I suspect he'll pursue guitar all the way through college. Izquierdo recommended a professor in the program at UA (Patterson). So we will check it out when he makes a campus visit soon. What an interesting process this has been. And his grandfather (John Dwyer) would be so proud of him! Maggie |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Nick Date: 04 Apr 10 - 05:56 PM Glad to hear his progress and that he's playing and doing well - it's nice to have a thread that spans some years with the same people in it and what has happened over that time. I'll fill you in on mine as he is not to different in age. My son has been accepted at college in London to do a BMus degree and play his guitar for three years and then hopefully find his way into the music industry either as a session musician, band player, teacher or whatever. Having recently joined a new band myself we may look to include him in our band between now and when he goes off to college. It would give me huge pleasure as I really enjoy playing live with him when I get the chance. He has been asked to play in a jazz band recently, still plays a range of music and still practices and plays as much as he can. All the best. |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Stilly River Sage Date: 04 Apr 10 - 10:52 PM If you haven't read any of them, you need to check out Jed Marum's threads. His son plays with him on a regular basis, I think. Maybe years from now, when they're both famous and respected (and one would hope rich, but at least, comfortable!) musicians, they might stumble across this thread. :) SRS |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: GUEST,paul delean Date: 05 Apr 10 - 01:07 AM im gonna be 14 on may 21 and its april i stated playing the Electric when i was about 11 and now i join a high school band with 16-19 year olds(about 6 of them my gf 1 other girl and the rest guys). i play lead and i did awesome. but after a while i got a girl friend and i made a song for her but the bad part is that i need to learn the Acoustic so i spent about 2 months and i've mastered it so like i said start out with the Electric and switch about 2-3 years later and incase u don't believe me i was born in 1996 in romania (south east Europe until i was 3 than we moved to kent washington(near seattle)and thats pretty much it. and the awesome part my gf sings shes a year older and plays piano,guitar(both kinds), and drums! god i love my life Paul delean from Make it ot break it! |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Murray MacLeod Date: 05 Apr 10 - 03:06 AM "...i need to learn the Acoustic so i spent about 2 months and i've mastered it..." well done that man. some people, it takes them three, or even four, months to master the Acoustic ... |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Nick Date: 05 Apr 10 - 06:56 AM Two months is about 1464 hours and that's a reasonable amount of practice time to get you on the way. "Guitar (both kinds)" - ? Left and right handed? Strung and non strung? In tune and out of tune? Plastic or wood? Cheap and expensive? Loud and quiet? Probably like me when I say I play music (both sorts). |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Stilly River Sage Date: 05 Apr 10 - 06:23 PM Around here, "both kinds" is classical and electric. Definitely a relative term. :) Good luck with the acoustic. And I grew up on the other side of the lake from where you are now. SRS |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: GUEST,Guest from Sanity Date: 06 Apr 10 - 02:14 AM Flat out..get both! GfS |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Stilly River Sage Date: 06 Apr 10 - 11:13 AM Why stop at two? |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: Stilly River Sage Date: 22 Apr 10 - 10:48 PM We have traveled full-circle with this thread. A few weeks ago a co-worker arranged to have my son perform during the early minutes of a champagne reception in the university library where I work. The conversation reaches a dull roar after about 20 minutes, so he didn't play long, but I was so proud of him, and glad that co-workers could see how grown up and talented he is. Fort Worth Star-Telegram Click! section where I sent photos of events in the library. Of course I included one of the the musician! He has decided to attend the University of Arizona in Tucson in the fall, where he has a full scholarship (based upon receiving the Hispanic Scholar Award Program scholarship that UA offers recipients of this award). His father is Puerto Rican and his teachers nominated him for this award. It led to 2 full scholarship offers. Lucky young man! Lucky parents!) My son participated in a master class in early April, and the performer and teacher, Rene Izquierdo (TwitPic of class), spoke highly of Patterson in the UA Guitar program, so I emailed Patterson before we left. Dylan will major in computer science, but Patterson arranged for one of his students to meet him during the orientation. I wanted D. to see the school, and imprint on it, but I also wanted him to know that there is a good guitar program. He can change his major if he wants, but even if he doesn't, guitar will always be important, and I think that helped make the decision easier. I'm sending him two states away to go to school, but I have a small network of friends out there, who met him during our trip. The most important part of this is that he be happy with the decision, and it was his to make. So, mom is finished with her teaching and nudging and cajoling and whatever maneuvering one needs to go through to get a kid to the jumping off place. Soon enough he'll be out there without a net. But I think he'll be fine. SRS |
|
Subject: RE: Learning guitar: Acoustic vs Electric? From: GUEST,Guest from Sanity Date: 22 Apr 10 - 11:16 PM BOTH!!!! GfS |
| Share Thread: |