| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Adam Troy |
Posted - 03/15/2013 : 10:31:47 PM
How do you learn?
The guitar is probably the most popular instrument in the world. One reason is the fact that you can pick up three chords in half an hour, and accompany yourself singing a million songs. But we are not like that, are we? In the words of Mark Knopfler, we have chosen to make the instrument itself “cry or sing.” And on top of that personal challenge, we have chosen a fretless instrument which is not much easier to play well than the violin.
I think about this question a lot because I am self-taught. There are several different approaches, all of which have their strong points. Here is what I have done; it is a process that keeps developing as I have got a grip of different techniques.
I want to play Hawaiian Steel Guitar music from the 1900 to about 1950. There were a number of old-timers playing as late as the 1980s, but the development of the style had come to a halt in the 1950s as other forms of popular music captured the attention of youngsters and took over the music business.
When I hear a piece I like, I have this strong urge to find out what it is I like about it. Usually this turns out to be some shift or cadence in the chord progression. But to me, Melody is King. So, anyway, first I have to figure out the chord progression and I don’t mind buying the sheet music if it comes to that.
Once the chords are established, I can find where the beginning notes are on the neck of the guitar. After a lot of struggles trying to figure out complex arrangements, I started writing it out in TAB and found it pretty easy to do by trial and error, especially since the advent of slow-down software and TAB writing programs. But there is nothing wrong with buying TABs and there are a lot of good sources.
But there are those hard-asses who will tell you TABs ruin creativity. They are missing the point. It is how you use TABs that makes the difference. The use of written arrangements shows you how the greats did it, and by examining this you learn one hell of lot that is not going to just appear in your consciousness unless you are very gifted.
I cannot stress enough the importance of sitting down and tabbing arrangements yourself, but it is not the TABs alone that will help you on your way. It is only a step. Work with a chord chart for the piece. Play the chords in as many inversions as you can find on the neck. That way you will understand why these guys made the choices they did in creating their stunning recordings. As you become more familiar with the changes, the TAB takes a back-seat and you find yourself working within the harmonies of the piece even if you hark back, from time to time, to one of those delicious sections that caught your attention in the first place.
Ultimately, your fluidity with the chord structure will free you to develop your own ideas. That is quite an achievement, but originality is not the point in playing music. In fact originality can be greatly over-rated as any open-mic night will attest.
So, how do you learn? I would like to know.
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| 15 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Retro |
Posted - 03/26/2013 : 09:48:17 AM
quote:
Originally posted by slipry1
We'll be hangin' out and jammin' at Folklife, and Da Oddah Guyz (me, thumbstruck, retro, no'eau, falsetto2002, and others) are playing 11:40 - 12:10 Saturday on the Fisher Green stage.
FYI - due to a conflict with another performance for a couple of us Guyz, this is likely to change - but we'll be sure to spread the word here, there and everywhere! |
| slipry1 |
Posted - 03/26/2013 : 07:29:55 AM
quote:
Originally posted by TerryLiberty
Jack:
Mahalo for the invite! I've been to Jean's a couple of times, once to hear Cyril and once to hear Keola. Bonnie and I really enjoyed it. I think we met there once but it's been a while. I have yet to make it up for the kani at neeej's place, mostly due to drive distance but I'm gathering it would be a good idea if I want to progress.
Enjoy your trip!
Ya know, I believe we met at the Keola lecture last fall. It takes a couple of passes these days to get people stored in my memory. |
| thumbstruck |
Posted - 03/25/2013 : 1:39:34 PM
Like Duke said, "Firs' da book, den no mo' book!" Playing music is about having fun and enjoying the challenge. It'll never be perfect because there will always be more to learn. With more learning comes more understanding and appreciation. And like Slipry1 says, "The more you do it, the better you get." |
| TerryLiberty |
Posted - 03/22/2013 : 1:35:11 PM
Jack:
Mahalo for the invite! I've been to Jean's a couple of times, once to hear Cyril and once to hear Keola. Bonnie and I really enjoyed it. I think we met there once but it's been a while. I have yet to make it up for the kani at neeej's place, mostly due to drive distance but I'm gathering it would be a good idea if I want to progress.
Enjoy your trip! |
| slipry1 |
Posted - 03/22/2013 : 1:03:30 PM
Oh - I forgot - I give steel lessons up here in Seattle, north of the UW. If you want to come up on a weekend, I have openings. |
| slipry1 |
Posted - 03/22/2013 : 1:01:21 PM
Eh, Terry. You should come up Seattle way and jam with us! Auntie Jean Smith, "neej" on TP, has a kanekapila 1st & 3rd Saturdays, which inludes an ono potluck (see Seattle Experiment in the kanekapila section here), the second Saturday Sapm n' Jam 9-noon at the Kona Kitchen on the corner of NE85th and 5th Ave NE. We'll be hangin' out and jammin' at Folklife, and Da Oddah Guyz (me, thumbstruck, retro, no'eau, falsetto2002, and others) are playing 11:40 - 12:10 Saturday on the Fisher Green stage. It'll be good to meet you. btw, I'll be in Hawaii from 4/2 to 5/5, so I won't be around until May. |
| TerryLiberty |
Posted - 03/22/2013 : 09:45:26 AM
Peter:
Another late night writing session! Many thanks for spending the time to share your thoughts. I'm gathering that there are four main ways to learn music 1.) From books and tabs, 2.) from knowledgable teachers, 3.) from in-the-moment performing with others and 4.) The woodshed. I also gather that all are important. After some travel in the next month or so I need to decide how much of each I can commit to with the understanding that this isn't a profession for me but that it is a passion. You also remind me that some highly skilled "old hands" are available north of here in King County or via Skype.
I appreciate your willingness to counsel a sudent with a love for the music and lot of questions.
Jack: Thanks so much for your endorsement of remote learning.
Mahalo to both of you. |
| slipry1 |
Posted - 03/22/2013 : 09:36:11 AM
I've been taking Skpe lessons from Alan Akaka since I got back from Oahu last May. If you pay for the full duplex version, there's no time delay, but who can afford that? The only drawback to half duplex is the approximately 4 second delay, which prevents the playing of duets. However, it DOES permit lessons from someone over 1000 mailes away. I recommend them. |
| Peter Medeiros |
Posted - 03/22/2013 : 12:55:17 AM
Yes, Terry,
My book can help. It's late, and I don't know if I should be writing at this hour, but my first text -- Hawaiian Slack Key: A Lifetime of Study - The Methodology -- does cover fingering and chord movement through example. It's a compilation of most what I've been teaching for the last forty years.
Book learning is one thing and learning one on one or within a group context is different. We each learn at our own pace. The learning dynamic when you are in a performance situation or a group, such as a class or a jam session or even a gig is much more intense. The immediacy of the situation demands that you respond appropriately whether you are prepared or not. A lot of musicians -- professionals and amateurs -- take the time to woodshed and hone their skill set so that they are prepared for whatever the musical situation might demand. The amount of time spent wood shedding depends on your finances, your view on entertainment as a vocation or an avocation, and if you really listened to your parents when they said "don't go into music."
Try, if you can, to meet with the guy's up at Neej's in Seattle they meet at least once a month. And then there is Slippery 1, Thumbstruck or Noeau they can show you. They are real old guys. All you got to do is ax.
If that doesn't seem like it's possible, then I can say that on my end long distance teaching is happening. Starting in April I will be using Skype to teach long distance from home. Each lesson will be limited to thirty minutes. Although I prefer Apple's Facetime, Skype is readily available for PC users. I have used Skype for the past five years to talk long distance with my kid when she was going to NYU. I have also used it for instruction and conference calls at UH where there is a lot of bandwidth.
There are several caveates to using Skype and Facetime from home that are beyond my control. Whenever long distance communications are utilized, in particular video, the participants or shall I say the end users are at the mercy of the bandwidth available. The quality of the video may deteriorate due to several factors where either the computer, web camera or router do not meet specs; the internet carrier's bandwidth is limited because too many users are on line at high peak usage hours. Then there are other factors such as the environment. The available lighting near the computer may not provide enough illumination, or background noise may interfere with the lesson. I live right next to St. Mark's School playground, so there is the ambiance of five to twelve year olds during recess, lunch and for a little while after school. Anyway that is a possible alternative.
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| ukrazy |
Posted - 03/21/2013 : 12:33:41 PM
I hope I didn't come off sounding anti-tab. Had it not been for Ozzie's book I never would have started (trying) to play slack key, and I use bits and pieces of tab learned material in most of what I play. I often use Ozzie's "Manuela Boy" note for note as a warm up song for my fingers and my brain. |
| ukrazy |
Posted - 03/21/2013 : 08:47:55 AM
The best advice I've gotten was from Kimo Hussey. He said to put away the tab until you learn to play. He taught a couple of slack key guitar sessions at a music camp I attended. I hadn't been playing for very long, but was getting pretty good at some of Ozzie's songs, and a couple of others. He had us just picking harmony over the chords while he played a little melody and sang. There was only 3 of us in the class and we were all tab bound players. We were all pretty befuddled and struggled with chords. I came home realizing I didn't know squat about slack key. I just knew little black marks on a sheet of paper. I started right away learning the chords and the inversions. I'm still working on it, but have come a long way. I can get along pretty well in the common Hawaiian music keys. I used to think taropatch was very limited but the deeper I go, the more I seem to find. I've used chord charts and online chord generators, but the way I learn the most is on a drawn out fret board chart and finding chords by the spelling.
I don't have the luxury of playing with other people very often, so that leaves me the luxury of playing what I like. I've played ukulele and sang hula tunes for several years, so that is what I work on in slack key. With the lyrics in my head and knowing the fret board pretty well, it doesn't take too long to come up with a nice sounding arrangment. At least to my liking. I like using the "He Mele Aloha" songbook, and get a lot of inspiration from watching Fran G's video's.
Some of my most enjoyable times with the guitar is just playing no particular thing. Sometimes in a noodleing session, some pretty cool stuff comes up. The other day I played something that sounded like part of Roger Miller's "King Of The Road". Off I went and probably spent 1/2 an hour coming up with an arrangment. Today I probably couldn't duplicate it but I don't care. It just fit my mood at the time. |
| slipry1 |
Posted - 03/21/2013 : 07:32:36 AM
quote:
Originally posted by TerryLiberty
Peter:
One other thought: Short of a kupuna, would your book be a good place for me to find out more?
Mahalo.
IMHO - Oh, yes! |
| TerryLiberty |
Posted - 03/21/2013 : 04:08:52 AM
Peter:
One other thought: Short of a kupuna, would your book be a good place for me to find out more?
Mahalo. |
| TerryLiberty |
Posted - 03/21/2013 : 04:03:01 AM
Peter:
Many thanks for your willingness to help a novice. There's much to chew on here and you can bet I'll be studying your words for a while. I suspect I'm really in need of a kupuna (or a "bunch of old guys" as Konabob puts it) but they're kinda rare in Olympia, Washington. The consolation is that the music is so beautiful that it touches me deeply and draws me to learn more.
Aloha. |
| Adam Troy |
Posted - 03/21/2013 : 03:01:26 AM
quote:
Originally posted by Peter Medeiros
One of the simplest ways of learning chord inversions and how to use passing notes is by breaking up the neck into three sections and identifying the I-II-IV-V7 chords in each section. What this does is force you to find the tonal centers in each section. Once you become competent, you can then move vertically or horizontally (depending on the tuning) between each section. Memorize the two note chords (slant and barre technique) And after a while you don't think about it. I believe that slack key isn't as hard as some of you may think.
Now, this is the good stuff. Thanks Peter.
Konabob, I am sure the osmosis method works for some people. But I don't think it can be relied upon. It didn't work for Charlie Parker. He totally bombed when he tried to sit in at the High Hat Club in Kansas City. He went home and wept before his mother, and is remembered to have said: "Its got to be figured out some kind of way . . ." |
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