Free Online Video Guitar Lessons

When you start to look for guitar lessons on the web the first thing you realize is that you have a lot of choices. There are DVDs for sale, there are web sites with video lessons at first and then they want you to buy DVDs, you will find web sites and DVDs dedicated to electric guitar and the same for acoustic. Some lessons start from the beginning and other teach nothing but songs, the later would be more for the student that has some experience. Some of the web sites will tell "you can play your favorite songs tonight", some say "you be playing in a couple of days" and my favorite " Play Now, Learn Later". Most people when beginning to look for guitar lessons are looking for a bargain if they can find it and I certainly don't blame them. Many web sites offer free lessons which show you how to hold the guitar and give you the name of the strings but don't really show you how to play the guitar until you begin to pay for the lessons. However one of the best places to find free instruction on the guitar is http://www.youtube.com/ here you will find all kinds of different ideas, songs and styles to choose from and they are all free.

I would like to introduce you to Music Ala Carte, video online guitar lessons. The first information I want to give is that learning guitar is not an over night process, it takes time to strenghten your hands, learn techique, develop your rhythm with the guitar and just get comfortable playing your guitar. I teach on the acoustic guitar but the beginner lessons will work for acoustic or electric.

The Guitar Lessons start right from the beginning; the introduction lesson shows you how to hold the guitar, talks about the music staff and the names of the lines and spaces, shows what time signatures mean and how to count them, introduces the parts of the guitar and much more.

The first lesson is on the notes of the 1st string in the first position and includes 3 exercises to work on and the second lesson is the notes on the 2nd string and 3 exercises to go with it. All the lessons have easy to follow videos and printable resources to read as you go through the lesson. As you go through the lessons if you find that you need more work on a certain part of the lesson you can go back to any part of the video and go over it again until you feel comfortable with the information.

All three of the first three lessons are offered in the Free Lessons at Music Ala Carte, you can go there, start you guitar lessons and take your time as you go. You can go the the web site and the free lessons any time 24/7 when it's good for you. These three lessons could take a month to accomplish but you will get a good idea of what it will take for you to learn the guitar. Also on the Free Lessons are examples of the Song Lessons and the NEW 2 Minute Songs for you to take a look at and see the other fun you can have with your guitar.

I hope you stop by Music Ala Carte for a look around,

Bob Swinton

Guitar Lesson Studio on the Web

Hi,
      I designed Music Ala Carte, video online guitar lessons, to simulate the experience of being in a private studio for guitar lessons. I crafted the "Guitar Lessons" videos exactly as I teach in my private studio, in fact, I use the web site videos at my studio. I find the web site Guitar Lessons an excellent course and the perfect practice tool at home. The videos help the student practice properly and allows the parent the opportunity to share in the experience of learning to play the guitar.
In the "Learn Songs" section I crafted the lessons to be learned by players from beginner to intermediate and beyond. I tried to target the player who wants to play along for their own enjoyment or relax with friends and share some new songs with each other. I use most of these songs in my own performances so I recommend these song videos for those at the performance levels also.
Once you Log In to Music Ala Carte you can use the "USER MENU" which has many functions. I want to point out the Ask a Teacher" button, when you click here you are able to send me an email with any and all questions or comments you may have. I will answer as quickly as possible creating an on going dialog between student and teacher. I feel this is critical when teaching an instrument.
I hope you will stop by Music Ala Carte at http://www.gtrteacher.com/ and take a look around, give the Free Lessons a try and see if video online guitar lessons are right for you.

Thank you,

Bob Swinton

Learning Songs

One of my students recently asked for advice on learning songs. Her question was if learning one song at a time would be best or should she work on several all at once.
I thought this was a very good question so I wanted to share my response;
We all search for our own best way to practice. We want to find the best way to use what we know to learn what we want. However it is also a good idea to create avenues to further learning which can lead to the opening of more opportunities for new music. I suggested to start with a couple of songs with possibly the same or similar chord patterns but with different strum patterns. For example if you go to www.gtrteacher.com 
and click on the
Free Lessons tab
then scroll down and pick out the songs "Under the Board Walk" and "When the Sun Goes Down",
download the song information and listen to the videos you will be learning 2 different styles of songs but with similar chord patterns.
As you learn more songs you will become comfortable with the chord and strum patterns you have learned so when you choose a new song with similar patterns the learning will come much easier. At this point it's time to choose some thing new to begin to work on,  possibly a new chord pattern.
You will also find "Let It Be" at http://www.gtrteacher.com/ under the Free Lessons and here there is a new strum pattern along with the new chord pattern. Again, download the song information and start to work with the videos. Some times the new songs takes a little more work but this is how we learn and expand our playing and our song list.
Don't be afraid to try some thing new and if you have questions or just want to comment please let me know.

                 Six String Music is Good for the Soul
                                  Bob Swinton

Two Minute Song-Brown Eyed Girl

I had fun with the last 2 minute song and had many people comment that they enjoyed it. So I thought why not try another one. This time I chose Brown Eyed Girl and old Van Morrison favorite. I included the strum pattern, the intro musical phrase and a short practice session to work on the information I gave you. Not only is this a good way to learn the basics of the song but I believe this is a great way to share a new song with a friend or you can work on it together. Music is always more fun when you can share it with friends.
I will give you a link for the video and for the complete chords and lyrics;

http://www.screencast.com/users/guitarzan6/folders/Jing/media/bfc4b2b7-7662-48fe-adb7-87be966b150f
                                                                        Chord & Lyric Sheet
I hope you have a good time with this 2 minute song lesson and if you have a chance let me know what you think.

Bob

Two Minute Song

I have heard from some of my students, other guitar players and read on the Internet that some of you would like to learn to play guitar a little faster. I guess we would all like some things to go a little faster but learning guitar is not an over night project. However this gave me an idea to try and make some learning a little faster. I wanted to try and give you some songs that I could show in 2 minutes. I decided to use "When the Sun Goes Down" by Kenny Chesney as the first selection. Let me know what you think of this idea.

download complete chord and lyric sheet

http://www.music-ala-carte.com/images/stories/songs/sungoesdownchordlyric0001.pdf

If you have some ideas for 2 minute songs please let me know and I will give them a try.

Hope you enjoy my 2 minute songs.

Bob

Get Started Learing the Guitar for Free

Some times the best intentions create their own stumbling blocks. Many of you have said to yourselves, "I really want to learn to play the guitar" or "this summer I will start to learn to play the guitar". May be not exactly these words but some thing along those lines. And I believe you meant every word but things can get in the way; not enough time, I don't have a guitar, where do I find a guitar, where do I go for lessons or it's a little to expensive. All of these points are quite valid and I understand any or all of them can get in the way of what you would like to do. So, at http://www.gtrteacher.com/ I have tried to help out with some of these obstacles.
At Music Ala Carte I have online video guitar lessons, 24 hour access, you can learn and practice your guitar at any time. All videos are easy to follow and all exercises can be printed out any time. I also have a bargain box on the home page of  http://www.gtrteacher.com/ where you can find good deals on solid beginner guitars along with sites for other guitar accessories. The expense of musical instrument lessons has always been intimidating, the the guitar is no exception but at http://www.gtrteacher.com/ if you look under the FREE Lesson tab you will find beginning lessons and songs you can learn if you already know some chords or just want to try them on for size. I stronglyy recommend a visit to http://www.gtrteacher.com/ to take a look at learning the guitar online.
Please stop by and register so I can keep you updated on the news at Music Ala Carte.

Bob Swinton

First Performance

I woke up this morning remembering my first performance some 50 years ago. It was a state wide contest for strings; piano, violin and guitar. I was 10 with one year of classical guitar lesson under my belt and the ages of the contestants ranged up to 18 years old. My teacher told me that just learning a piece was just the start of the preparations for this performance, practice and repetition were the keys to a good showing at the contest. Well I learned the piece, Tempest, and I still play it today, I practiced over and over but I still remember feeling it was just not good enough for the contest. One day while practicing in my living room I began to imagine I was performing in front of a large group of people in a concert hall and a feeling came over me that I never felt before. All of a sudden I felt it very important the the song was played just right; the notes were correct, the phrasing was as I wanted, the intonations were all there and my technique was as it should be. I knew my concentration and effort needed to be at their peak and I had to be in control of the performance of the song. I have never forgotten that feeling and constantly strive for it in my performances today. My performance went well at the contest and I took 2nd place, I remember that performance as one of the best experiences of my childhood.
I hope you will get a chance to have a First Performance for yourself someday.

Six String Music is Good for the Soul