Metronomes don’t make you faster – YOU do
Today I want to clarify a common misunderstanding among guitar players who are starting to think seriously about their technique. This is the widespread belief that “practicing with a metronome” makes you faster, or builds your technique. Now, virtually every technically-able musician uses a metronome at least some of the time, and nobody denies that the […]
Why the fretboard is hard to learn | In defense of guitar players
If you’ve ever tried to learn the notes on the guitar fretboard then there’s a good chance you’ve heard a comment like this: “You don’t find players of ANY other instruments who don’t know the names of the notes they’re playing. It’s ridiculous! If a piano player didn’t know this stuff you’d just laugh at […]
The Jimi Hendrix Chord explained – What it is, how to play it, and why it sounds so good
The Jimi Hendrix Experience in 1968 Jimi Hendrix was a one of a kind musician who revolutionised the guitar. Although he is often best remembered for his incendiary solos and lead work (and rightly so), his rhythm playing style was no less innovative and influential. Like a scientist having a new species or planet named […]
Why Drum Tab is pointless and why drummers should learn music notation
First of all, I’m not a notation snob and I’m definitely not anti-tab. Without guitar tab, myself and tens of thousands of other players would probably never have stuck with the instrument long enough to get anywhere, so I’m very grateful it exists. Tablature – known as tab for short – is a system for […]