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August 19, 2014 by Paul Bright

Playing With Other Musicians

Jamming with other people is one of the very best ways to improve your playing, not to mention it’s also one of the most fun things any musician can do! You’ll gain confidence and learn how to read other people’s subtle cues; some things just can’t be picked up in solitary practice sessions. Don’t take my word for it, though, Marty Friedman – one of the greatest players of all time – once said in an interview: “Bands are where it’s at… The more you play with your band, the more identity you will have as a guitarist.” You don’t necessarily need to form an ‘official’ band, but even a regular jamming group will do wonders for your playing and musicality.

When should you start jamming?

Right now. In fact: the worse you think you are, the more important it is to find people to play with. The more people you surround yourself with who just blow you away, the more you can learn – you’ll learn faster, too. It’s easy to get trapped in the cycle of telling yourself you’ll find people to play with when you’re “good enough” but then moving the bar again when you get there. Sure, you’ll be nervous and might feel embarrassed that you make a couple of mistakes, but that’s good! No one ever got anywhere by just thinking they were the best. Being confronted with a situation that puts you out of your comfort zone is the number one motivator to get better ASAP. It’s not all scary though, this is just preparation for your first few experiences; any new situation is going to cause some nerves, especially when there’s pressure to do something related to a skill. Once you have some experience under your belt, you’ll learn to appreciate the feelings of excitement leading up to playing with musicians who are better than you – you’ll know exactly how much you have to gain!

Who should you look for?

It’s probably a good idea to first look for a friend or a friend-of-a-friend who plays guitar to just jam the blues or some songs you both like with. First, it helps guarantee your first experience won’t be with someone who has an attitude or is rude. Most of my experiences playing with new musicians have been great, but now and then you run into a jerk and you don’t want this to be your first experience. The reason for it being a guitarist is two-fold: first, it means you can get together just about anywhere unlike if you found a drummer straight away and second, it only makes sense to start jamming with someone on the same instrument because you can learn the most directly from them. You will learn lots from any musician, but you’ll learn specialised things about guitar from other guitarists – even down to little tricks on maintenance and instrument care that come up in personal conversation that you may not easily find somewhere else! Once you’re comfortable playing with others, it’s time to expand – one of the best things you can do is to find is a drummer who has practice space, so you don’t have to rent.

What should you play – and how?

You should play anything and everything. The playing itself is more important than what it is being played – this isn’t about starting your dream band (although things can turn out that way unexpectedly!), it’s about developing your skill as a player. Forming a band for commercial or artistic purposes is a whole different ball of wax! Just go along with what other people like and they’ll be more receptive to your styles… You might even find out that you really like something you haven’t tried before. As far as how you should play the music, you need to learn to listen instead of just hammering on like you would on your own. If you’re playing with a drummer, being in time isn’t being tight to what a metronome would be playing. In a live situation, the beat is decided by the drummer and he/she is never wrong. You have to learn to listen to them rather than anticipating the beat. The same goes for other musicians when you don’t have a drummer but you’re going to have to pick who’s deciding the pulse and follow them. Maybe you’ll have the chance to lead!

How can you prepare?

I said you should start jamming right now, but there are a few things you can do beforehand to help yourself have an easier start. You can make sure you’ve memorized some major and minor chords – if you’re jamming with another guitarist they’ll be able to help you, but it won’t hurt to have some familiarity. You can plan some tracks to play with other musicians beforehand; even if you’re going to be riffing around, it helps to warm up with familiar tunes that you all know and get comfortable for the jam session. It also works as an ice-breaker with new people you haven’t played with before. Finally, the simplest tip that applies to any playing situation with other people, make sure you have a tuner and some extra strings!

 

 

image source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/bnsd/

Filed Under: Guitar Q&A, Guitars, Music

August 13, 2014 by Paul Bright

It can happen for any number of reasons, on any type of guitar. The only thing that’s always true is that buzzing sounds bad! Does it sound like an angry bumblebee appears every time you try to strum a chord? You’ve got a buzzing problem!
While this article covers a remedy for an issue you may not currently have, you’ll probably find yourself dealing with it at some point. It’s worth reading even though you won’t be following the steps as you read – you’ll probably remember the guide later, when you do have a problem! You may even want to bookmark this page in your browser.

When tackling buzz, there’s a priority list to check along. The idea is to check the easiest to change things first and then the hardest to change things last; the checklist methods means that the sooner you hit something that works, the easier it is to do and you won’t end up doing something you didn’t need to. The first point in the list isn’t even attached to your guitar!

You are the number one cause of buzzing. Not you personally, but you as in the guitarist and not the instrument. The vast majority of minor buzzing issues are down to playing technique and fiddling with your guitar won’t help you. The two main checks for this are to check each fret with your strongest finger to make sure you aren’t just pressing too lightly and allowing the string to rattle against a fret and to make sure that, when you press down, your finger’s right behind the fret itself. If you check this and the buzz still occurs, it’s time to move on; it isn’t your fault this time.

The next step will set you on a branching path – you need to figure out where the buzz is actually happening. The simplest method is to just make the buzz happen and listen, if the buzz happens with open strings it can be quite easy: listen at the nut, then at the bridge and finally just to the fretboard. If it happens only with fretted notes, do the same but also check up and down each string – especially if you are checking an electric.

If the buzzing is happening at the nut some things to try are: using a different gauge of string, using fine grit sandpaper on the nut slots in case it’s become rough against the strings and using some sort of lubricant like nut sauce.
If the buzzing is happening at the bridge it can be for some different reasons depending on what kind of guitar you play. On an acoustic, common causes include loose pins that need to be pushed in more firmly, too much or too little water content causing issues with the top if it’s solid wood – there are many humidity regulation solutions on the market – or a loose saddle that needs to be glued in or replaced. On an electric you don’t need to worry about humidity but sometimes low quality saddles can corrode and cause buzzing, saddle may even be set wonkily and shake where they are. Corroded saddles can be filed or replaced and wonky placement can be fixed with an Allen Key.

Easy fixes so far, but now we’re moving into territory where you may wish to take your guitar to a tech or luthier. I’ll start with the few remaining easy fixes but the last couple include a very strong warning to go to a professional if you have any doubt.

Buzzing that originates from the fretboard itself tends to be a bit trickier; a fingerboard is less replaceable than a saddle or nut! As always, we start with simple options. On an acoustic, just like with some bridge issues, humidity can be the culprit – it can cause the action (string height) to lower and skim frets, solve this in the same way as previously mentioned for humidity affecting the bridge position. It’s essentially the same problem, just with the buzz happening somewhere else. On an electric you want to check if the buzzing is only on one or two strings, if it is then your life probably just got easier: you just need to raise the bridge or individual saddles until the string no longer buzzes against frets.

If neither of these options are it for you, it may be a case of grooves in certain frets making the string rattle. You could hypothetically deal with this yourself but you’ll probably do more harm than good without experience – I wouldn’t try it, myself. You should bring your guitar to tech with positive reviews either online or from friends you trust. They can replace or file and refinish frets to eliminate issues.

The last main possibility is neck relief. If your guitar’s neck is made of wood (Some aren’t! I have one made of solid aluminium) it’s probably going to move. When the wood of your neck shifts, your neck curves and can either bend outwards or develop a hump. Curving outwards is a problem too, but what causes buzz is a hump. This is what your truss rod is for; you can turn it one way or the other to force your neck to shift back.

Warning: You can destroy your guitar messing with this. Do not do it if you aren’t confident you understand, take it to a tech instead.

If you’re comfortable that you can do it and have done your research, make sure to only make quarter turn adjustments at a time and allow it to settle, eyeing the neck in between changes. If this was your problem it will be sorted in no time and everything will feel better when you play.

Hopefully any buzz you face is due to an easier issue. You can probably see why you should check if it’s something simpler first!

Image Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/ju-x/

Filed Under: Guitars, How To Play Guitar

November 9, 2013 by Paul Bright

Signature Guitars are pretty snazzy. Namely because someone pretty good at Guitar-playing has decided that said Guitar is worthy of their name. It makes sense I guess.

Here are some signature guitars I recommend checking out…

Brian May Signature Guitar

BRIAN MAY

This classic rock ‘n roll Guitar is almost 1950’s-esque! Complete with a Mahogany Body and 2-piece scratchplate, this 24-fret Guitar includes a custom Tremolo Arm for all your Queen solo needs!

Van Halen Wolfgang Signature Giutar

VAN HALEN

Ah Eddie Van Halen, it doesn’t get much more Rock-Star Virtuoso than this. His signature Guitar is named: “Wolfgang”, which is also what he named his son. To be fair- “Wolfgang Van Halen” is literally the coolest name ever, and anyone who argues with that is wrong.

The signature Wolfgang series features a 22-fret Maple Neck, as well as custom Humbuckers for smooth pickups. For the true 80s Virtuosos- we also have Fine Tuners and a Floyd Rose Bridge to play with- everything you’d just about expect really!

Steve Vai Signature Guitar

STEVE VAI

Steve Vai has always had a good little relationship going with Ibanez. It should come as no surprise- then- that Ibanez also make his signature Guitar range!

The Ibanez JEM505 features a fine Maple neck with a nice Basswood Body. It also features an Edge Tremolo Brisge for the classic Vai tone. Its quite aesthetically pleasing too- which some interesting hand-grip designs built into it (you’d have to see it to understand).

Paul Gilbert Signature Guitar

PAUL GILBERT

Another Ibanez fan, Paul Gilbert gave his name to the Ibanez FRM100- and it’s all about the pickups with this one. Guitar enthusiasts around the world were pleased to hear of Gilbert-approved DiMarzio pickups being included on this Guitar, as well as DiMarzio Injectors on the neck/bridge and around the middle. From what I can gather- Paul Gilbert just really likes DiMarzio. The Mahogany/Maple set-in neck makes for a lot of free playing space and a sturdy build.

Kurt Cobain Signature Guitar

KURT COBAIN

Nirvana led the Grunge movement, and this Guitar is evidence of it too! The finish has been made to look distressed and worn on purpose, to match how Kurt’s used Guitar looked. This one is a Fender one, called the Fender Jaguar (a re-hash on the 1950s Jaguar). The Maple neck contains a 22-fret Rosewood fretboard, as well as Dual Humbuckers, which seems strangely.. ermmm… good… for a Grunge Guitar I mean.

Angus Young Signature Guitar

ANGUS YOUNG

I hear a chordy riff! Must be Mister Young prancing around in his schoolboy outfit and playing that blasted Guitar. Of course Angus Young’s signature Guitar is simply one of the most well-known ever and it would be shameful to not know it.

It’s only the bloody Cherry Red Gibson SG! Complete with devil horns and everything. Young’s “Thunderstruck” model is of course a clear choice for those influenced by Classic Rock. The solid Mahogany top is lightweight which makes it an ideal choice for energetic players or those that just prefer a lighter Guitar. The neck is also narrow and extra slim- Angus doesn’t seem to like unnecessary clutter on his Guitars. The pickups are 1957 humbuckers, and just when you thought it couldn’t get any cooler- the fret inlays are lightning bolts! Clearly the best thing ever made.

So there we have it! A list of some signature Guitars I recommend playing! There are plenty more good ones out there of course- so look around and see what’s right for you.

Have fun!

Filed Under: Guitars Tagged With: guitars, guitars to buy, recommended guitars, signature guitars

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