Whether you're just getting started at the guitar, or you've already got some playing abilities and you're looking to advance your skills, the most important question is, "What should I practice?"
A lack of balance and structure is the number one deterrant for beginners learning guitar, and probably the main reason why more advanced players sometimes give up on playing the instrument.
Self-taught guitar players often make progress in one area, but then lose traction. Players in this situation have encountered a common obstacle. The brick wall.
That's why I developed my Guitar Modus--a unique and systematic approach to learning the guitar.
The MODUS is split into 5 volumes, and each volume has 5 levels inside. All students at Boston Guitar Lessons receive a free copy of Volume 1, which contains explanations and illustrations of all of the concepts. It also comes with a CD with 5 backing tracks that you can play along with at home to be sure you're absorbing the material.
In each level, you will work on four key areas of study that will aid you as you propel forward on your journey towards eventually mastering the guitar.
Guitar knowledge focuses on the awareness of patterns and forms of the instrument. This includes chords, scales, arpeggios, and 'shapes'.
Musical knowledge helps build an understanding of how music works and why some things sound good while others don't.
Technique involves a series of specially developed exercises to teach your hands how to gain control of the instrument.
Musicianship helps you develop as a musician, learning skills that will help you to infuse your playing with distilled beauty. These skills include having a strong sense of rhythm, good ears, and musical self-expression.
Vol 1 - Beginning
Upon completion of the Beginning volume, the student will have acquired the musical skills necessary to learn and play almost any popular song on the radio. The student will have experience with playing rhythm as well as improvising (lead guitar), and will possess a basic understanding of musical notation, rhythms and the major scale.
Vol 2 - Intermediate
Upon completion of the Intermediate volume, the student will have further honed their skills and feel increasingly competent to play popular songs. The student will have learned to improvise with the major and pentatonic major scales, and will have learned to play nearly any song in any key using barre chords. The student will also have begun studying how the guitar fretboard works, and will understand how and why chords work inside of a given chord progression.
Vol 3 - Advanced
Upon completion of the Advanced volume, the student will have gained command of several advanced concepts, including playing and understanding seventh chords. The student will understand how chords are built and experience greater ease with the instrument. This volume especially emphasizes understanding and playing in minor keys, including the harmonic minor.
Vol 4 - Expert
Upon completion of the Expert volume, the student will have learned advanced picking techniques, left-hand muting and advanced harmonic concepts including secondary dominant chords and deceptive resolutions. The student will be able to comfortably play and improvise in a major key, a minor key or a blues and will have much greater understanding of the neck than ever before.
Vol 5 - Master
Upon completion of the Master volume, the student will have clear understanding of the modes and how to use them in composition or improvisation. A deep understanding of the guitar will be accomplished through the study of various advanced chord voicings and formulas. Greater musical creativity will be achieved through the creative and expansive use of simple triads. Advanced harmonic concepts including subdominant minor ("borrowed" modal chords) will be explored. An emphasis is placed on hearing and self-expression.
Don't wait! Lesson spaces are filling up fast, and lesson times are not always available, depending on the season. Please Contact us today to set up a free introductory guitar lesson!