Don’t go too far, you can accelerate your guitar playing but you won’t be playing way better by tomorrow… this is the third part of the 20 tips to improve your playing. (To read Part 1 and you can also read Part 2)

How do you get to places that you wanna go? Yeah, you get in the car or take the bus, or even walk… you move forward to where you ARE WANTING TO GO. So, in other words, you have a goal, you know what you want or where that thing is that you want and you go towards it.

Learning to play the guitar and accelerating your guitar playing is no different; you can make it but you have to know what you want to achieve. Yes, I know, we all want to play the guitar better, but what do you need in order to achieve that goal? Think about it… All the things you need to achieve in order to learn to play the guitar better are your goals.

So, to make this clear let’s name a few things that you need to achieve in order to play the guitar better:

  • Play chords
  • Know the main notes on the fretboard
  • Music theory – knowing how chords are formed
  • Scales
  • How to use a pick
  • Technique

and some more…

Accelerating the process.

So once you have determined your objectives, you will need to think about how to approach them; keep in mind that these objectives may change as you progress. Have you learned to play chords? Well, now focus on how to change chords and so on.

Accelerating the process of learning is easy, but it requires maximum concentration and knowing exactly what you need to work on for the different steps of learning the guitar.

You can start by forming good study habits, if you need some help with that, make sure you check out the 7 tips for positive practice habits and discipline in practice.

In six steps, what really accelerates your learning is:

1. Lay out your work routine. This can be done by planning your practice routine, for example: 15 minute warm up; then play a couple of easy songs you have learned, then learn new chords, scales, techniques.

2. Avoid distractions. Forget about T.V. while practicing the guitar, you do not exist to the rest of the world for at least 20 minutes.

3. Make sure you feel comfortable and don’t practice when you’re tired. You’ll only end up feeling worse for it. This one is pretty obvious, but basically don’t push yourself too hard.

4. Environment. Do you have enough lighting? Maybe you are in a noisy environment? Your practice space is like your temple; decorate it, put posters on the wall if you want. The main thing is to make it yours.

5. Is your workplace big and comfortable enough for you. Similar to number 4, but this one focuses more on the comfort of the space rather than on the look or feel of it.

6. What materials do you lack? Lessons, courses, materials, DVDs, CDs… you name them.

Can you tick all of the above? If so, you’re moving in the right direction… If you are missing something, work on it. To be honest, it is not that hard to accomplish these six steps and believe me, you will feel way better when playing and learning the guitar. If you do so, you will start speeding things up. Hang in there, you’ll see!

 Accelerate your guitar playing

Luis Tovar

My beautiful Jamorama followers… How is everybody doing with the guitar lessons? Practicing much? I don’t know about you but I am feeling very inspired today and to be honest I don’t know why, in fact I should be feeling very upset as I am not playing music this weekend because a gig I had this Saturday has been postponed… it sucks, but anyway, here I am and what I want to say is that talent is everywhere!

If you walk the streets you will find some amazing artists doing excellent things on every corner in the city; it can be a circus guy, a guitarist, a trumpet player, a drummer, etc.

And the best thing is that seated in front of a computer we can find talent from all around the globe, isn’t that fantastic!? Remember, talent is everywhere and inspiration comes from it.

Are you in need of some truly talented guitarists, someone just like you or me who plays super well but is not a Rockstar just yet? Well, check these guitarists out!

Let’s start with this street guitar player who looks like some Viking playing a mix between Classical guitar and Speed heavy metal, check it out:

Now let’s jump to the North Island in New Zealand to calm things a bit and hear a well known street muso called Andy Blue, playing on Wellington Streets:

And this guy, Estas Tonne, who seems to be quite popular plays the classical guitar like no one else! A bit modern, a bit classic and a lot of Flamenco guitar going on here:

Amazing stuff isn’t it? If you’re wanting some more melodic and rhythmic patterns, this street musician is Brisbane, Australia is definitely something you need to check out:

And to wrap it up, a guitarists from Africa that a good friend of mine shared with me a couple of days ago:

I think you’ll agree with me about talent is everywhere… don’t forget about the talent you have inside you, that talent that only needs a bit of work to pull it out… practice, more practice and a little bit of more practice is the only thing you need.

What are you waiting for?

 Talent is everywhere

Luis Tovar

So the new sensation is here and it comes from a chunk of maple called Skateboard. In fact it comes from broken skateboards… I couldn’t believe it at first, but it is more than real, it is now POPULAR!

I mentioned in another post that I had found a number of well-known and respected Argentinian Luthiers and I want to talk about one such man, Ezequiel Galasso.

Galasso guitars are really well known not only in Argentina, but also in the rest of South America, the U.S., Europe and even Asia.

Galasso has made some great guitars, ranging from classical guitars for Lito Nebbia (an Argentinean blues guitar player and singer); electric and mind blowing guitars and bass for a great Argentinean band called PEZ (link to myspace site or other informational site), and even a gigantic double guitar for the guitar virtuoso David Fiuczynski and more lately, the famous Skate guitar.

skate guitar 1 300x225 Galasso guitars

skate guitar 2 Galasso guitars

skate guitar 3 Galasso guitars

skate guitar 4 Galasso guitars

I was impressed when seeing the Skate Guitar in action not so long ago when watching a Pearl Jam show on the T.V; it was in the hands of Mike Mccready when playing a Ramones cover during a music festival in Buenos Aires. Well it was straight to google to find some more info about the guitar and I found out that it was build by this guy Ezequiel Galasso, a luthier I know about thanks to a good friend of mine.

The next morning, the skate guitar was all over the place, facebook, youtube, google+ and even newspapers.

Galasso has been a busy luthier making guitars for many artists (well known and not so), receiving emails from all over the globe, so if you are wanting a customized guitar to be made for you, Galasso is a great option but you better act quickly because this guy is gonna get super busy, if he isn’t already.

For the skate lovers: If you’re interested in the Skate Guitar, the price starting point is the $1,000 USD + shipping.

If you want to check Galasso’s work, have a look around the following sites – prepare your eyes to see some amazing stuff.

Galasso’s Behance profile and Galasso guitars on Facebook.

Would you like to see the Skate Guitar in action on the hands of Mr. Mike McCready from Pearl Jam, check this video out:

Another video here of the Skate Guitar:

And something that CANNOT be missed is the guitar that Galasso made for David Fiuczynski:

david fiuczynski Galasso guitars

So, now you know… Galasso guitars are going to rock the world!

 Galasso guitars

Luis Tovar

The innovative, virtuoso and seated guitarist – pioneer of avant-garde rock.

robert fripp 300x199 Robert Fripp
It is kind of hard to explain or show the life of an amazing guitarist who has pioneered not only a music style but also a particular way of playing the guitar – not referring to the fact that Fripp has been playing seated for almost all his career, but referring to the atmospheric-soundscapes that only he can create.

Two big names, previously mentioned on this blog: King Crimson and Adrian Belew along with Robert Fripp are some of the biggest pillars on the progressive rock history. Belew and Fripp are the masterminds behind King Crimson; but Fripp is the main one as he has been the only band member who has remained in the band since 1969.

Robert Fripp is probably best known for his work with KC, but he started his vast career with “The Cheerful Insanity of Giles, Giles and Fripp” in 1967 with only 21 years and having only 10 years of playing the guitar in his pocket.

Fripp also collaborated on Peter Gabriel’s first solo album. In 1977 Fripp worked with Brian Eno on David Bowie’s hugely successful album “Heroes” and since then Fripp has been involved in many different projects with some great and talented musicians like Peter Hammill, Jerry Marotta, Phil Collins and Andy Summers from The Police – to name a few.

Other important projects in the life of Robert Fripp includes “The League of Crafty Guitarists” which evolved from a job offer in Claymont Court, West Virginia in 1984, as teacher at the American Society for Continuous Education (ASCE).

His Frippertronics looping system which evolved from a recording sessions in the 60s and made popular by Brian Eno, and the unforgettable contribution with David Sylvian (singer-songwriter for english avant-garde band Japan) which feature some of Fripp’s most exuberant guitar playing.

If you are intrigued by Fripp’s music and what he has been part of, I recommend you check out his discography on a Wikipedia article.

Showing you every piece of music Robert Fripp has created could take a couple of weeks, so I will do my best and provide you with what I think can will help define exactly what Fripp’s magic is about!

Soundscapes and scary sounds with KC – Frippertronics in use!

Then you have “Fripp and frippertronics” from 1979 – A must listen!

The Robert Fripp and The League of Crafty guitarists:

And something more recent from a collaboration between Robert Fripp, Mel Collins, Jakko Jakszyk, Tony Levin and Gavin Harrison – “A scarcity of miracles”

A very interesting fact: If you are a Windows Vista user, you probably hear Fripp’s sounds every time you start and/or turn off your computer. Fripp worked at Microsoft’s studios to record new sounds and atmospheres for Windows Vista.

Well folks, I hope you have enjoyed this article about Robert Fripp! A very highly recommended artist!

 Robert Fripp

Luis Tovar

jon Five questions by the Jamorama team

Jon Coursey

See what you think about this… 5 simple, easy, but personal questions to be answered by each Jamorama team member.

This could possibly become some sort of weekly or monthly interaction, perhaps something to start implementing on our Facebook page… five simple but powerful questions that won’t do anything but to get to know each other.

This time is the turn of Jon Coursey, RSR´s managing director to get into the confessional and tell us all his secrets! Let the game begin!

So tell us Jon:

1. How do you discover new music?
Back before the Internet revolutionized everything, I’d spend hours down at my favorite music store, flipping through the cd’s and listening to them on the ‘listening post’. While I feel a certain amount of nostalgia for those days, I love how the Internet has made finding new music so much easier.

These days I mostly use grooveshark.com’s similar artists feature to find music that suits my tastes. It’s a great tool because it gives pretty good matches to what you are listening to, and gives you the ability to listen to the artist’s music for free in your browser. I’ve found a lot of great new music this way.

I also check out the indie music site pitchfork.com on a regular basis. There are always new artists coming up there, and the site provides free streaming songs so you can discover music you like.

2. What is your dream guitar?
I don’t really have one, but I love the old National tricone resonator guitars. If there was one must have guitar it would be one of those.

3. What was the first album you ever bought?
Dire Straights – Sultans of Swing, on cassette tape. My first cd was Guns n Roses – Use your illusion I and II.

4. When did you start playing/learning music?
Piano was my first instrument. I started learning around the age of 13. At age 15 I picked up a cheap drum kit and decided I was going to become a ‘drummer’. At age 19 I bought my first guitar, an acoustic Fender Balboa, and have loved every minute I’ve spent playing guitar since.

5. What band you most want to see that you haven’t seen yet?
Easy, Jeff Buckley circa 1994. You didn’t say they had to be living right?

So there you have! Interesting way of discover new music, taking advantage of technology on the era we are living – I totally agree on that one!

Next time, another Jamorama team member will be chosen to answer these 5 questions! BUT, We also want to know you… what are your answers? Heaps of space to write them out on the “comments” section!

Thanks for sharing them!

The team!