Scales-chords Article Directory

Use Songs You Know to Learn Your Musical Intervals
One of the most difficult elements of both sight reading and ear training in music is the mastery of intervals. Once you know your intervals, almost no piece of music is out of your ability, and you will soon be able to sight re ...
Learning the Guitar: The Eclectic Approach
The guitar is a cultural icon in American music. It helped free African American slaves and end the Vietnam War. You've decided to add your name to the hall of fame of great musicians, and become a legendary guitarist. The great ...
Why Scales are Important
Many piano students question the wisdom of practising scales and arpeggios. Practice sessions begin with what seems to be a frustrating waste of time, a reluctant run through mechanical, repetitive and frankly boring exercises w ...
Learn To Play Slide Guitar
Slide guitar is a way to play guitar using what is known as a slide. This object is generally made of glass or metal, and each type creates a different tone. Get a slide at a music store to get started. You can also use a lipstick ...
Playing Guitar (15 articles) more ...
The Advantages of Taking Acoustic Guitar Lessons
Many young people dream of learning to play the guitar but delay it off because they have not decided on the style they want to learn. There are so many great guitar players, so much wonderful music. How do you go about choosing ...
A Free Acoustic Guitar Lesson

Here are some tips that will help you to begin playing acoustic guitar using a plectrum. This guide is for the novice guitar player who wants to achieve both emotional fluency and technical precision.

Do You Need A Thumb Pick To Play Acoustic Blues Guitar ?
A thumb pick is a plastic plectrum that a guitarist fits onto the thumb rather than holding a flat pick between thumb and forefinger. This gives the player freedom to use the forefinger to pluck the strings in unison with, or se ...
Blazing Pentatonic Guitar Licks
The minor pentatonic scale is extremely common. It is used extensively in American blues music and other cultures around the world employ it frequently as well. Personally, the minor pentatonic is one of my favorite scales and p ...
How to Read a Guitar Chord Diagram
Guitar chord diagrams show you how play chords. At first they can look like confusing grids of lines, numbers, and circles. Soon, though, they become useful tools for learning and writing down finger positions. This artic ...
12 Tips for the Self Taught Guitar Player
Whether it's around the campfire, with family, or a personal jam session, playing the guitar is a fun and wonderful hobby to invest in. As a beginner, however, you'll need some tips to help you get started. Use these to help pre ...
How to tune your Guitar
OK, so you’ve bought your first guitar and already your mind is dreaming about rock superstardom. Pretty soon you’ll be joining the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Jimi Page and Jack White in the pantheon of all-time rock gods. There ...
Why Learn The Violin?
If you're thinking of learning an instrument, consider the good, old, traditional violin. Take a minute to reflect on the unique combination of qualities this beautiful instrument has to offer. Some people will tell you the viol ...
Music Theory (10 articles) more ...
Pentatonic Scales - Tips and Tricks
The pentatonic scales are the most important scales to learn for evolving guitar steps. The pentatonic scales are used in all styles of music, especially pop & rock. They serve particularly as a special gift for amat ...
Acoustic Blues Guitar Basics
Despite the inroads made by the electric guitar into every area of modern music, acoustic blues guitar playing still has the power to stimulate the interest of audiences all over the world. The origins of this style of music lie ...
Chord Harmonization over major scales
Chord harmonization over a scale is a fundamental tool to understand the correct use of harmony in a theme. It is a concept that many hobbyists do not know, but they are doing it unconsciously when they are "searching" for a chord ...
Chord Harmonization over Minor Scales
If you need to remember what chord harmonization is visit our page on harmonizing chords over major scales. Although there is only one Natural Minor scale, there are two other Minor scales that are also widely used: The Harmoni ...
Music Trivia (4 articles) more ...
Let's Learn to Play Rock Band Guitar on Medium
Playing Rock Band on easy difficulty just isn't as difficult as it used to be. Impossible songs like "Caprici di Diablo" and "The Trooper" are more of a yawn than they are a challenge. And let's not get started on the easier son ...
Learning to Play Rock Band
That was a cool party you were at yesterday. All of your work buddies and friends gathering together to share a couple of drinks and have a good time. Then someone mentioned playing Rock Band. That didn't sound so bad. Except wh ...
Musicians Christmas Gifts
Musicians can sometimes be difficult to buy for when the holidays roll around. People will avoid buying any kind of musical gift for fear of getting something the musician will not like or be able to use. But there are certain g ...
The Acoustic Guitar Buyer’s Guide
Whether you’re a beginning guitarist or a long-time expert, shopping for a new instrument is likely to inspire giddiness that can’t be replicated anywhere else in life. The difference between a novice’s shopping habits and ...
Music Gear (2 articles) more ...
4 Tips to Make Your Guitar Amp Sound Great
A good guitar amplifier is one of the most important parts of making your instrument sound great. However, it is not enough to just have a good amp. You must also know how to get the best possible sound out of your amp. Let's ta ...
DW Smart Practice Kit: A Great Way to Practice Drumming
Sometimes, you just don’t have enough space to set up a full drum kit. Maybe you’re traveling, or you moved into a college dorm for your freshman year. It could also be that you want a small, inexpensive set of pads so that ...
How to Tune a Bass Guitar
Tuning is a very simple process, but a requirement for any rehearsal, show or recording that - believe it or not - can often be overlooked. Depending on your instrument, you may even need to tune between songs at a show. ...
Tips for Playing Rock Bass
Rock bass-guitar players incorporate numerous musical styles to create powerful bass lines that match the intensity of the drums. If you are a beginner bass player, find a music instructor who can teach you the fundamentals of b ...
Playing Piano (2 articles) more ...
Buying a Piano: How to Choose the Right Model for You
The piano is a beautiful instrument with a long history. First developed in Italy by inventor Bartolomeo Cristofori in the early 18th century, the pianoforte was a keyboard instrument based on the older harpsichord. The pianof ...
Slash Chords: How to Play Them And When To Use Them
Have you ever been scanning through a chord chart, only to come across two chords separated by the forward slash (/) symbol? Whether you’re a self-taught beginner or a classically trained performer, you’re bound to run ...
Music History (2 articles) more ...
A Brief History of Heavy Metal
While his vivid and manic description of the effect of Heavy Metal music looks somewhat disturbing, there is no doubt that when Halford emphatically answers his own rhetoric question, “What do you want?” with “Heavy metal! ...
Jazz - America's Art Form
Although jazz music today is played and enjoyed around the world, it originated in the United States over a century ago. It has been described as the only art form unique to the United States. Although most of us know jazz music ...
How to Write a Children's Song
If you think writing songs for children is an easy option, think again. Children’s songs may not contain the sophistication of other forms of music, but they still present many challenges to the composer. In fact, their simpli ...
5 Tips to Make Your First Tour Work
First, the cold, hard truth: your first tour is not going to make you famous. Your first tour should not be six weeks of hardcore driving and shows. Your first tour will probably break up your band--that is, if you don't do it ...
 
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