CLEANING YOUR GUITAR

Even though I was busy last week with all the holiday preparations and wasn’t feeling well, I finally got around to cleaning my guitar and changing the strings- and what a difference it made!

Did you know that some guitar players actually recommend that you boil your guitar strings! They claim that it will help preserve their longevity and make them sound brighter. I don’t know about you, but I have a hard time imagining six (or twelve) guitar strings poking out of a large pot of boiling water like some strange type of spaghetti. Perhaps I’m lazy, but strings aren’t that expensive, so I personally prefer buying a new set when mine begin to sound dull and show signs of wear. It might be an interesting experiment, however, to see if boiling your old guitar strings will make them sound as good as new.

But one of the quickest and easiest things you can do to keep your guitar looking and sounding good is to clean it with  guitar polish every so often. As the oils from your finger tips accumulate on the strings they will begin to lose their brilliance and sound dull. Applying some guitar polish to a soft, clean cloth and wiping off the neck, will losen the dirt and clean the strings. You can also use the polish to wipe off any smudges that are on the face, sides and back of your guitar to keep it looking nice.

I can’t stress enough the importance of making sure you use a polish that is specifically made for guitars.  Regular household products can damage your guitar, so be careful! There was a student of mine who once used furniture polish to wipe off the neck of his guitar. The strings and guitar were brand-new, but he thought it would be a good idea to keep the wood oiled so it wouldn’t dry out. After he applied the oil, the strings were useless and ruined. Thankfully, the guitar itself was okay.

If you wish to do a real thorough cleaning, then I suggest you remove all your stings first.

Learn how to change your guitar string here

By removing the strings you will find it easier to wipe down each fret and get any grime that has accumualted around them. This will also make it easier to clean around the head and the tuning keys of your guitar. Then, if you want, you can replace your old strings with brand-new ones to get an extra bright sound.

Taking care of your guitar with regular cleaning will make you feel better and keep your instrument in good condition for years to come. Now is as good a time as any to get started. Plus, it’s fast and easy to do. By simply wiping off your guitar you can make it sparkle and shine almost like new! So why not do it today?

Learn how to establish a good guitar care routine here

Until next time…

Keep Practicing!
guitarcoach

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TEARS IN HEAVEN – The Story Behind the Song

Being that Thanksgiving is just around the corner…

I’m thankful for songs like “Tears in Heaven” because of the comfort and healing they provide when times are hard. When my mother died in 1997, I found myself playing this song over and over on my guitar and it helped me process through my grief.

As you may know, Eric Clapton wrote “Tears in Heaven”  after his 4½-year-old son, Conor, fell 53 stories from an open window. 

     Eric & Conor

Eric was interviewed about this tragedy  in 2003 where he said:

“I almost subconsciously used music for myself as a healing agent, and lo and behold, it worked”

Clapton also said:

 ”I have got a great deal of happiness and a great deal of healing from music.”

Will Jennings collaborated with Eric in the writing of “Tears In Heaven”, but he was reluctant to do so at first. He explained the situation this way…

“Eric and I were engaged to write a song for a movie called Rush. We wrote a song called ‘Help Me Up’ for the end of the movie… then Eric saw another place in the movie for a song and he said to me, ‘I want to write a song about my boy.’ Eric had the first verse of the song written, which, to me, is all the song, but he wanted me to write the rest of the verse lines and the release (‘Time can bring you down, time can bend your knees…’), even though I told him that it was so personal he should write everything himself. He told me that he had admired the work I did with Steve Winwood and finally there was nothing else but to do as he requested, despite the sensitivity of the subject. This is a song so personal and so sad that it is unique in my experience of writing songs.” – Will Jennings

Conor’s life may have been short, but it was not insignificant. Eric used Conor’s death as an example to help create greater public awareness for children’s safety, as you can see from this statement he made during a public service announcement…

“Use guards on windows and safety gates on stairs. It’s easy, and it could prevent a terrible tragedy. Believe me, I know”

So, I’m also very thankful that good things can come out of tragedy and misfortune. This not only provides us with hope for the future, but it helps us to persevere through difficulty.

If you would like to learn how to play this song, just click the link below. It’s free.

Tears In Heaven

Have a blessed Thanksgiving.

Till next time…

Keep practicing!
guitarcoach

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HOW TO RESTRING YOUR GUITAR

When I am doing a lot of performing I tend to re-string my guitar a minimum of every few weeks, otherwise I do it less frequently. I can usually tell when it’s time to put a new set on however, because the strings begin to show signs of wear and the tones don’t blend as well as they should. It can definitely take the joy out of playing when your guitar doesn’t sound very good!

Here’s a great guitar tip that’s guaranteed to double the life of your guitar strings…

 How To Re-String Your Guitar And Double It’s Life

If you’re finding yourself constantly breaking strings and having to change them every time you play — here’s an awesome trick to make your strings last 3 times as long!

When you re-string your guitar, most people simply thread the string through the tuning peg and start to tighten!

This is great — if you want to HALVE the life of your strings!

The trick is all in the threading! When you simply place your string through the tuning peg hold and tighten, you have just created the highest tension, eliminated any form of slack and doubled your chances of snapping the string when you go to break it in.

Give this a go…

The trick is not to thread the string through the tuning peg on the first thread. What you do is gently wrap the string around the tuning peg 3 or 4 times over — THEN thread the string through the hole.

By doing this you allow more slack in your string, reduce tension and literally double the life of your strings. It provides your guitar with a heavier grip on the string which also prevents your strings going out of tune easily.

Here’s what I mean…

…see how the string is wrapped several times around the peg before threading it through the hole. This is how you make your strings last longer!

Pretty simple trick — but give that a go next time you re-string your guitar and I guarantee it will last! ~ written by Elmore Music

Learn the Acoustic or Electric Guitar in 30 days! Highly recommended! Check out: http://www.guitartips.com.au

Until next time…

Keep practicing!
guitarcoach

GUITAR MODES

Have you ever wondered about guitar modes? The term reminds me of something you might have with ice cream… how about a luscious piece of  guitar a ‘la mode?

But, seriously speaking, modes are simply a variety of scales that musicians use to achieve more creative expression.

There are 7 Basic guitar modes.

1. Ionian
2. Dorian
3. Phrygian
4. Lydian
5. Mixolydian
6. Aeolian
7. Locrian

Each of these modes are based on a different degree of the major (Ionian) scale. For instance, if you were to play the notes of the C major scale by starting and ending on the 2nd degree (the note D), you would have a Dorian Mode.

Dorian Mode in the Key of C:

D E F G A B C D

This will give you a minor scale.

Likewise, if you were to play the notes of the C major scale by starting and ending on the 3rd degree (E), you would have a Phrygian Mode.

Phyrigian Mode in the Key of C:

E F G A B C D E

This is also a minor scale.

Continuing on in this manner, using each degree of the major scale, will give you a different type of guitar mode…

KEY OF C:

1. C = Ionian -> major scale
2. D = Dorian -> minor scale
3. E = Phrygian -> minor scale
4. F = Lydian -> major scale
5. G = Mixolydian -> dominant scale
6. A = Aeolian -> minor scale
7. B = Locrian -> half-diminished scale

By applying this information to all twelve Keys, you can easily see how it quickly expands the fretboard and your range for expression on the guitar.

You can learn more about guitar modes by watching a video called:

Modes No More Mystery

Until next time…

Keep practicing!
guitarcoach

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