guitarhabits

photo by Tiny Froglet
My daughter is now 20 months old and our second child is on the way. I love spending time with my daughter and I very often do, but as parents know children have a tendency to occupy all your time.

When I play guitar, my daughter wants to play guitar also. I bought her a little guitar of her own, but she wants to play on my guitar when I play it. That is just great. :) I don’t mind, but my practice workouts become a little difficult this way. Therefore and for a lot of other reasons I designed the Zen Guitar Practice Workout.

Zen is more and more finding its way into the western world along with minimalism and new lifestyle designs.

A major benefit for all who are seeking a different and more effective way to self improvement and development.

Zen is also very good to apply when it comes to guitar practice.

Guitar practice is in itself a form of meditation. You need to stay focused on what you practice and not let your mind wander.

It is about concentrating on your fingers, your technique, letting go off tension, recapturing yourself, letting it happen, continually shaping and getting back to the essence of your practice.

Zen Guitar Practice is a way to combine the rules of Zen Buddhism and the rules of guitar practice into your workout.

Here are the steps to benefit:
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photo from Flickr
Blues is one of the most important things to learn when you want to become a rock - jazz - metal - country - all round guitar player All these genres are related to or arisen from the blues. There is also a lot of blues in the songs you hear on the radio without even realizing it.

It’s hard to be a great rock n’ roll guitar player without learning the blues first. Okay maybe you can, but you will probably sound like crap. :-) Blues is what makes your guitar cry, shiver and scream. It’s got anything you need to express your feelings. Besides that there are so many cool blues songs, progressions, licks and tricks out there that will ensure you have a great time practicing and will really improve your playing a lot. So sit down, read through these essentials, get your guitar amp all cranked up, plug in your favorite blues guitar and let’s get down to serious business.

Here are the 6 essentials to master the blues. Check it out:
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                                             photo from Istockphoto
We are all emotional beings. The emotions we feel will either get us motivated or not. I can’t always put my finger on it why it’s there or why it’s not. Often I wake up euphoric and everything just seems so easy (and it’s not always because the sun is shining or because I had a good night’s rest) and some days I feel tired, lazy and unfocused. (and not because I had to much wine). It’s just the way the we are and we have to deal with it. So we have to learn how to trigger motivation and inspiration. Ultimately it is up to us to change that emotion, to get back on our feet and start playing and creating beautiful music.

So here are 11 tips to get you motivated and inspired:

1.  Experience life. Do things you normally wouldn’t do, things that make your heartbeat go faster. Meet new people, go places, challenge yourself, go out with friends, talk to strangers and listen to their stories. Experiences are great for inspiration.
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                                            photo from Istockphoto
Wouldn’t it be great if you could figure out the chords, the melody and the rhythm of a song on your own because of the lack of sheet music or just because you needed or wanted it right away?

Of course that would be awesome!

Well, it’s happening…
Right here, right now!

The key to becoming an amazing guitar player and musician is transcribing music.

Here are 12 ways to develop this wonderful skill. Read, listen and learn:
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                                            photo from Istockphoto
One of the things I have always had a hard time with is memorizing lyrics. I see this in people around me as well; finding it difficult to memorize chords and chord progressions. So based on my experience and some research I’ve done I give you some tips to overcome this obstacle.

But why do we need to memorize and remember lyrics and chord progressions? What’s the use of that?

Well, let’s say one of these days you’ll have to perform in front of an audience somewhere, somehow.
Maybe with a band or on your own…

• or a friend asks you to perform a few songs at his wedding or birthday party…
• or you would like to accompany a singer…
• or you want to play some nice songs to entertain a few people on a holiday in the south of France while drinking a cold beer…
• or just to try out a guitar in the guitar shop in town.

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