Buying a New Guitar

Someone once said to me, "We went to Toys 'R Us looking for a guitar and we couldn't find anything good". Well... That's because toy stores typically don't sell decent musical instruments. If your child decided that they wanted to play saxophone at school would you go to Toys 'R Us to shop for one? Walmart, Target, and Aldi stores also do not carry guitars that are made well enough for any kind of serious musical pursuits.

Having said that, there are basically two options: buying a new guitar, or a used guitar.

Decent used guitars can be found for sale by private sellers on Craigslist, at used music stores like Music-Go-Round, and also at large retailers like Sam Ash and Guitar Center.

New guitars can be purchased from retailers like Sam Ash and Guitar Center and also smaller shops like Lang Music or J. Thomas Davis Guitar Makers.

If you're a student of GnG Music Instruction in Columbus your best bet is to visit Sam Ash and talk to any of their salespeople. For new or used guitars they have a good selection and their people know what they're talking about. Guitar Center is a good place as well.

If you go to a used retailer or a private seller from a contact like Craigslist it is best to have an expert's help. It's really lot like buying a car and it's easy to purchase a lemon, but also, with a little research and/or assistance you can get a really good deal. It shouldn't be hard to find a friend, relative, or instructor that can help you to find an appropriate guitar.

If you have a few thousand dollars to throw around you can simply have a custom shop like J. Thomas Davis build you a guitar that fits your needs.

Guitar Hero

I, personally, have never played Guitar Hero or Rock Band. But, it seems that most of my students do and I've been asked by many people whether or not I think Guitar Hero helpful at all for learning to play the real guitar.

Guitar Hero probably helps with rhythm, and it definitely introduces kids to bands like The Police, Scorpions, and Cream that they would probably think were lame otherwise.

Other than that, the only thing that's helpful about it is that it has sparked an interest in guitar playing and I'm sure I've taught a ton of kids that I wouldn't have otherwise.

Maybe if it keeps up there will be a guitar renaissance in this country. In that case, maybe someone needs to come up with 'Real Estate Hero', and 'Stock Market Hero'. Possibly, 'Social Skills Hero'...

Every Guitarist is Self Taught

Andres Segovia, one of the finest classical guitarists of all time and a master instructor, once said that "every guitarist is self taught". It would not seem to be in the interest of an instructor to tell people that they are not going to be successful unless they teach themselves, but it's true. To each individual music is a unique universe. Instructors are great for showing the way in a confusing world of methods and techniques by helping to put exercises in the proper order and context, and also matching the right methods with the right person.

The best musicians are the ones that take the information that they gather from instructors, professors, books, the internet, etc and properly apply it in a way that allows them to achieve their personal goals.

So if you're an aspiring musician with a lot of motivation and drive don't be apprehensive about taking some lessons, and if you don't have any motivation or drive don't expect an instructor to provide it for you :)

Worst & Funniest Songs to Teach

I would like to know what some of the worst and/or funniest songs were that people have requested to learn.

I'm a 32-year-old man and I've had to teach a lot of Taylor Swift, Jonas Brothers, and even some High School Musical. But that stuff isn't too bad. It comes with the territory...

I did have a young boy tell be that he wanted to learn anything by the B52s, which I thought was a little strange. I also had a kid ask me teach him the theme song to Spaceballs, which was understandable because it was his favorite movie, but the theme is very orchestral and not something that easily translates to a simple guitar part.

How to Play Happy Birthday on the Guitar

HOW TO PLAY "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" in A major

First, you'll need to know these three chords:

E7 (020100)

A (x02220)

D (xx0232)

Start by strumming the E7 chord and sing the first "Happy" to the pitch of E. The rest should come along naturally. Keep playing each chord until it tells you to change. Strum it however you like.

(E7)Happy (A)Birthday to (E7)you

Happy Birthday to (A)you

Happy Birthday dear (D)insert name

Happy (A)Birthday (E7)to (A)you

This example is in the key of A and the chords are I (A), IV (D), and V7 (E7). Try playing it in a different key like G (G, C, D7) or D (D, G, A7).

Music Theory Jokes

Let's start things off with a couple of jokes:

Q: What chord do you get when you drop a piano down a mine shaft?

A: A flat minor.

Here's one that's a little more sophisticated:

Into a bar walks a C, an E-flat, and a G. The bartender says: “Sorry, but we don’t serve minors.” So, the E-flat leaves, and the C and the G have an open fifth between them. After a few drinks, the fifth is diminished and the G is out flat. An F comes in and tries to augment the situation, but is not sharp enough.

Then a D comes into the bar and heads straight for the bathroom saying, “Excuse me. I’ll just be a second.”

An A comes into the bar, but the bartender is not convinced that this relative of C is not a minor.

Then the bartender notices a B-flat hiding at the end of the bar and exclaims: “Get out now! You’re the seventh minor I’ve found in this bar tonight.”