Posted by: Glenelg Guitar Studio | September 7, 2020

Blow your own Trumpet

“Blow your own Trumpet” you’re thinking?

Seems a simple enough idea and who could blame you for wondering what’s he on about. Really you have to blow your own Trumpet as there is hardly the possibility of someone blowing it with you or maybe helping you blow, so here I go “Blowing my own Trumpet”.

For my younger students.
Definition of blow one’s own trumpet
: to talk about oneself or one’s achievements especially in a way that shows that one is proud or too proud. He had a very successful year and has every right to blow his own trumpet.

Firstly, let’s talk about Jazz, where Trumpet and Guitar often meet.  Don Burrows, the Australian Jazz legend, formed the Don Burrows Quartet with George Golla (guitar), Ed Gaston (double bass) and Alan Turnbull (drums). He also worked with Frank Sinatra, Dizzy Gillespie, Nat King Cole, Oscar Peterson, Tony Bennett, Stéphane Grappelli, Cleo Laine, and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra.

If your into a bit of Jazz make sure you look up this Quartet

My connection to Don Burrows could be that I have taught Jazz Guitar to lots of students during my career or it could be that…

I HAVE WON THE DON BURROWS AWARD FOR MUSIC TEACHERS IN PRIVATE SCHOOLS

The award is for Recognition of Long Service for Music tutors in Independent Schools.

Blowing my own Trumpet ? Yes I am, but I’m very proud of the acknowledgement that the award brings especially as it is from my peers, the Association of Heads of Music in Non-Government Schools.

Cheers
Leigh

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Posted by: Glenelg Guitar Studio | August 16, 2020

Learn your first guitar solo

As you start your progression in Modern Guitar you’re sure to want to learn some guitar solos that you have heard many times. I have put together a short video of the guitar solo from Nirvana’s song, Smells Like Teen Spirit.

This is a great introduction to solos for students in Grade one.

Check out the video and as always, let me know if you want to learn this solo or any other you have in mind.

Cheers
Leigh

 

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Posted in Learn Guitar

Posted by: Glenelg Guitar Studio | July 19, 2020

Too much screen time ?

Are you one of those people who are guilty of too much screen time during this COVID time ? It seems lots of my guitar students are spending lots of time on movie and TV streaming channels.

How do I know what you’re up to ?

Easy; you have been requesting lots of movie and TV themes to learn. Some of the classics have been:

Mission Impossible, Good Bad and the Ugly, Star Wars, Wizard of Oz, Dr. Zhivago, The Outlander , A Country Practice, Cinema Paradiso, Friends, Dances with Wolves and James Bond.

Great pieces to learn at various levels.

Some students have requested the theme from the movie Schindlers’ List. As you know my passion is classical guitar, so here is Schindlers’ List in a classical arrangement. This arrangement is by Adelaide Guitarist Jason Waldron. If you don’t know Jason’s achievements then get Googling to get the low down on his amazing career in classical guitar.

Did you know that Hal Leonard also puts out song book of Movie Themes for Guitar. 

I hope you enjoy this piece.
Leigh.

 

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Posted by: Glenelg Guitar Studio | April 8, 2020

Guitar vs Virus

 

We are certainly in unusual times at present with many students, both young and old, having a massive change of work and study routine due to the Covid19 pandemic. It seems that the measures undertaken in Australia are holding the spread down and we hope that this continues into the future.

I have a few suggestions to help my Guitar Students during this time. Firstly in relation to “Guitar Health”, make sure that you give your guitar a good clean. I don’t mean with soap and water or sanitiser but with one of the many fretboard cleaners available from your local music store.

If you don’t have that on hand then a simple wipe over with a clean damp cloth will suffice. Remember to wash your hands before and after the cleaning process. Also make sure you wash your hands thoroughly before and after each practice session. Covid 19 may live on surfaces for many hours so this before and after practice regime will ensure the health of your guitar and you.

Many parents of young students, now on school holidays and soon to be engaged in remote learning, have said they are grateful for the routine that regular Guitar practice brings. They have had a huge shift in lifestyle recently with the loss of sporting activities and social interaction at school. Remember to set up a regular practice time and try to stick to it.

On the subject of practice, make sure that you incorporate some fun time into each session. Don’t make it all work and no play (no pun intended). Make a list of the pieces you like best and make sure you incorporate some into each practice/fun session. Look back over your work for the last year and brush up on completed pieces. Remember above all, that Guitar practice should be fun time.

At present I am still teaching lessons on a one to one basis as normal at our Glenelg location (and via Zoom where requested) , and of course making sure that the lesson area is clean and safe. If anything changes I will let students know.

On a more cheerful note see below for my idea of the Virus Theme Song.

Happy Easter Everyone.

Cheers
Leigh

 

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Posted in Learn Guitar

Posted by: Glenelg Guitar Studio | February 20, 2020

The Times They Are a-Changing

“The Times They Are a-Changing”

So here’s a little snippet of music history for you. Many have heard the 1964 protest song, “The Times They Are a-Changing” written and performed by Bob Dylan and covered by many other bands and artists. For my younger students that haven’t come across Dylan yet, I suggest you “Google” him.

Dylan wrote the song as a deliberate attempt to create an anthem of change for the time, influenced by Irish and Scottish ballads.

This was a little before my formative years in Guitar but certainly influential for changes in music that was popular at the time. YouTube is a great source of music knowledge so consider looking up a Pat Boone ballad and contrast that with an early Rolling Stones performance to give you an idea of the amount of change. Then think about what changes have happened since!

As you probably know my passion lays in Classical Guitar, but that too has had great eras of change. One such change came about with the music of John Dowland during the renaissance era which is thought of as 1400 to 1600 AD.

Remember that the printing press was invented in 1439 and until then all music was hand transcribed and certainly not available to the masses. Music was more jovial court dance orientated which I’m sure you would have seen in many historical films.

So along comes the printing press and John Dowland (1563 -1626) who is an accomplished composer and Lutenist, the Lute being similar to a Guitar. His music was described as melancholy and often sounding like a funeral accompaniment, which was a huge change at the time. I wonder if this music was played at his funeral, on this day, 20th February, in 1626.

John Dowland’s instrumental music has undergone a 20th century early music revival, has been a continuing source of repertoire for lutenists and classical guitarists.

Here’s an early printed cover of the music and a video of my rendition of Lachramae Antiquae. I hope you enjoy the piece and think about how music changes.

Cheers
Leigh

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