Members axegrinder Posted July 3, 2006 Members Posted July 3, 2006 I apologize in advance for a lengthy post, but here goes: I am starting private guitar lessons tomorrow and meeting the instructor for the first time. It's a long story how I came to be taking lessons, but let's just say it's at a small music school where my 5 year old daughter is taking piano lessons. This schoold takes people from ALL levels for many types of instruments. SO that is the set up. I signed up wanting to gain some more skills, but I don't know what to tell the guy when I meet him tomorrow. I've been playing for 20+ years and even have a minor in music where I studied some classical guitar (the only time I've ever had private lessons). I am NOT a sight reader, and my knowledge of theory is chock-full of holes. I never learned how to shred or play any jazz and I have been on a development plateau for a long time. I aspire to do many things (like everything) but I am afraid without a focused plan I will be wasting his time, my time and my money. I am sure tomorrow he will want to focus on learning what I do know, but I expect he will want to know where I want to go also. Have any of the teachers around here had students who wanted to learn but had no particular direction they wanted to go? Has anybody gone into a lesson situation with no particular direction in mind? I don't want to be this wishywashy guy, and I can't help but think this is NOT a normal feeling I have. Any advice will be appreciated.
Members lazaraga Posted July 3, 2006 Members Posted July 3, 2006 i try to get people to tell me what songs they would like to play then we learn to play them, and i sneak in bits of theory and technique here and there you say this is a small music school... do they do recitals/concerts? maybe your goal should be to play in front of an audience. i have adult students who aren't really that driven to learn a particular something- i guess they love music and just want to dedicate part of their week to learning,playing, and discussing music. works for me! for your lesson you may want to have something that you can play to show your teacher where you are at, and maybe a couple songs that you aspire to perform. good luck and have fun! peace
Members axegrinder Posted July 3, 2006 Author Members Posted July 3, 2006 Originally posted by lazaraga i try to get people to tell me what songs they would like to play then we learn to play them, and i sneak in bits of theory and technique here and there you say this is a small music school... do they do recitals/concerts? maybe your goal should be to play in front of an audience. i have adult students who aren't really that driven to learn a particular something- i guess they love music and just want to dedicate part of their week to learning,playing, and discussing music. works for me! for your lesson you may want to have something that you can play to show your teacher where you are at, and maybe a couple songs that you aspire to perform. good luck and have fun! peace That's a good idea, focusing on songs. I will discuss that idea with him...maybe pick a couple to work on...something jazz which I know nothing about, and some technical rock song I've always liked but never took initiative to try to learn to play.Sadly, I don't even know if the school does recitals...my wife found it for the piano lessons, but I will find out.Thanks for the help!
Members StratKat Posted July 3, 2006 Members Posted July 3, 2006 Actually, this is my stong suite in teaching! People who already know how to play. Here are some things for you to keep in mind. They may be right, wrong, stupid, dumb, etc... But you asked. First off, you are going to him/her. So in their minds they are important to you. When you seek someone else to teach you you are saying that you think they are better than you and you need help. Be humble... Second, expect that if the trianing they teach is formal, you will have to learn it that way. Few schools teach just want you want to learn and dump the rest. Third, whatever they teach you, learn it whether you like it or not. It will pay off down the road. Fourth, be patient. Expect that you are not going to get what YOU want quickly and then cut and run. For them to give you the knowledge you desire and the skill set to go with it may take time and unlearning things you are very comfortable doing right now. Now then... When i teach guys/gals who are adults, and have been playing for years, i lsten to what they want. Then i listen to how they play. Then i find a way to show them how to get from where they are to where they want to go. Most formal schools of music dont do that. They take what you know apart, discard whats wrong, and then retrain you their way to do things right. Sometimes from the BEGINNING with notation, tabs, theory, BEFORE you actually do guitar neck exercises. Its a long process, but in truth it pays off down the road. And as an adult they expect YOU to work your butt off doing what they recomend. I on the other hand take people who have been playing for years and just want bits and peices of the scene and help them understand and fill in the blanks (so to speak.) My lessons (free online-download the pdf file version from my site) takes players and allows them to choose what they want to learn, teaches the ears to hear what they are doing, and that allows them to be able to hear something and understand how to replicate it. Its not formal at all. Its called pattern playing. You learn patterns to play and train your ears to know what that pattern sound is called (Major, minor, etc...) SO when you hear a solo your ears HEAR what scale is being used and you can disect it. What theory i talk about is small and hopefully digestable. For those who want full instruction i send them to schools and formal instructors. For those who just want bits and peices i say look for people who give that. There are tons of free lessons online. Each is different in some way from the others. But when you bring another person onboard with you to teach you in person you run the risk of having to do what you really dont want to do to please them. In any event, try to come away from the lesson with a feeling that regardles of what you learned you are making the effort to improve yourself. And dont be afraid to leave and find someone else that better suits your needs. Just be polite and honest.
Members gennation Posted July 3, 2006 Members Posted July 3, 2006 As long as you're wasting your money, you're not wasting his time That was a joke...lessons are never a waste of money from a good teacher.A "beginner's teacher" is not going to ask a lot of question, they are going to teach a cirriculum basically.An "advanced teacher" is going to asked many questions. He's not going to start you at the beginning...except to maybe get terminologies straight before plowing into things, but they are going to be able to start at a specific place before too long.Even if you don't really have a destination so to speak, he should be able to see where you are at and move to the next level without any input from you...or help you get a better grasp and put some organization around what you do know.But, it is your job to not let things go on if you're not getting anything out of them...if you can't give him direction, at least let him know if he's going in the wrong direction with you.So, sit back and learn...if you don't think your learning the right stuff..bring it up and discuss it...it'll help you get on track pretty quick.
Members axegrinder Posted July 3, 2006 Author Members Posted July 3, 2006 Well thanks for the advice, guys. At least I can go in there with some clear thoughts on the subject (establishing curriculum). Hopefully we will work together well at making me a better player.
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