i hate the Mel Bay book

Help!I'maRock!

Help!I'maRock!

Mediocringly Derivative
5 years ago i took guitar lessons for a few months. guy made me get the complete Berklee Guitar Method, which is 3 books in one volume. we started on it and because i really couldn't read music, we went back to Mel Bay. i got to page 18 before i told him to stuff it.

a month ago, i got a new student who had been with another teacher. he started her on the Mel Bay book so i feel like i have to stay the course until she's done with it. she's pretty good at it.

so now i have to go back to the stupid thing and learn it. fortunately, i have the expanded edition with the cd and dvd, so i have some guidance. but it makes me want to kill.

mad0
 
When I took guitar in college we used the Berklee book. I already knew music notation thanks to two years of piano lessons, but learning to read on the guitar seemed a lot harder to me for some reason, so I only lasted one semester in lessons...
 
denverdave said:
When I took guitar in college we used the Berklee book. I already knew music notation thanks to two years of piano lessons, but learning to read on the guitar seemed a lot harder to me for some reason, so I only lasted one semester in lessons...
Click to expand...

i don't think it has anything to do with reading music, and everything to do with how the guitar is just plain different from other instruments. its more work to make a sound come out, sound good, and be played in-time.
 
Yep.

Keep in mind that the Mel Book was originally released in 1948 and not updated too much until recently messedup0

My old boss actually had an original book that he kept on display and it was funny how similar it was to the (then) current edition. I haven't seen one in about 5 years, though...
 
markwein said:
Yep.

Keep in mind that the Mel Book was originally released in 1948 and not updated too much until recently messedup0

My old boss actually had an original book that he kept on display and it was funny how similar it was to the (then) current edition. I haven't seen one in about 5 years, though...
Click to expand...

i have a really old one. its frighteningly similar.
 
helpimarock said:
markwein said:
Yep.

Keep in mind that the Mel Book was originally released in 1948 and not updated too much until recently messedup0

My old boss actually had an original book that he kept on display and it was funny how similar it was to the (then) current edition. I haven't seen one in about 5 years, though...
Click to expand...

i have a really old one. its frighteningly similar.
Click to expand...

People still buy it because it exists.
 
markwein said:
helpimarock said:
markwein said:
Yep.

Keep in mind that the Mel Book was originally released in 1948 and not updated too much until recently messedup0

My old boss actually had an original book that he kept on display and it was funny how similar it was to the (then) current edition. I haven't seen one in about 5 years, though...
Click to expand...

i have a really old one. its frighteningly similar.
Click to expand...

People still buy it because it exists.
Click to expand...

i've decided that this girl is not only going to continue on the Mel Bay book, but after that she'll do the Berklee book.

i have another student that's 9 years old. he came in with an old Peavey shredder on the first day. his brother has been teaching him Sunshine of Your Love. he's going to get Foundations tomorrow. i'm not even starting him on Mel Bay. your book better work!
 
Make sure you walk him through the quizzes and boring stuff at the beginning.



Here are some video lessons to go with the first few sections on rhythm skills...pretty much how I would teach the pages in a lesson

Time and Rhythm Pages 14-15

http://markweinguitarlessons.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=96&Itemid=35

Rhythm Exercises #1 Page 17

http://markweinguitarlessons.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=97&Itemid=35

Eighth Notes and Subdivision of Time - Pages 22-23

http://markweinguitarlessons.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=98&Itemid=35

Strumming Eighth Notes - Page 24

http://markweinguitarlessons.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=100&Itemid=35

Let me know how it goes!
 
I started taking lessons at around age 15 or so. My first teacher was gone after 6 weeks or so. My second teacher was a younger guy, and when I showed up for my first lesson at the store with him he said "Ahhh, I see you're using Mel Gay!"


I will never forget it as long as I live. We continued in the book for a while, until he realized I barely even looked at it between lessons.
 
ChihliDog said:
I started taking lessons at around age 15 or so. My first teacher was gone after 6 weeks or so. My second teacher was a younger guy, and when I showed up for my first lesson at the store with him he said "Ahhh, I see you're using Mel Gay!"


I will never forget it as long as I live. We continued in the book for a while, until he realized I barely even looked at it between lessons.
Click to expand...

:facepalm:

But now you do this: Totally_jammin_out
 
markwein said:
ChihliDog said:
I started taking lessons at around age 15 or so. My first teacher was gone after 6 weeks or so. My second teacher was a younger guy, and when I showed up for my first lesson at the store with him he said "Ahhh, I see you're using Mel Gay!"


I will never forget it as long as I live. We continued in the book for a while, until he realized I barely even looked at it between lessons.
Click to expand...

:facepalm:

But now you do this: Totally_jammin_out
Click to expand...

Chihli is left handed?
 
I never understood why that smiley was a lefty, i guess its hendrix. biggrin
 
helpimarock said:
markwein said:
ChihliDog said:
I started taking lessons at around age 15 or so. My first teacher was gone after 6 weeks or so. My second teacher was a younger guy, and when I showed up for my first lesson at the store with him he said "Ahhh, I see you're using Mel Gay!"


I will never forget it as long as I live. We continued in the book for a while, until he realized I barely even looked at it between lessons.
Click to expand...

:facepalm:

But now you do this: Totally_jammin_out
Click to expand...

Chihli is left handed?
Click to expand...

I guess this is more like it:

electricguitar054
 
Hahahahaha actually I AM a lefty, but learned to play righty due to the suggestion of my cousin. He told me tab was hard for lefties, and it was even harder to find a guitar as a lefty, so I learned righty.
 
That interesting. I think im a lefty too, but really i only write, eat, and throw a frisbee with my left hand. Everything else i do right handed.

I can throw a ball and stuff left handed, but i can throw farther right. But from the time i picked up a guitar, its always been right handed.
 
Unless someone sits down with a guitar and holds it "up side down" I usually suggest that they play right handed. You have two hands that are basically learning two completely new and different sets of motor skills and I don't think you "dominant hand" really plays much of a role in the learning process.

Some people are just oriented that way and if that is how they are comfortable then by all means they should find a left handed guitar.

My Dad was a leftie and I'll always remember his stories of the teachers in school (1930's) hitting him with a ruler if he tried to write left handed messedup0
 
My drafting started on vellum and drafting table, (yeah i think im the oldest one here) hahaha. So my printing is very nice. I can't imagine if i had been forced to go right handed.
 
Actually thats how I learned to draft in high school.

CAD was still a novelty in the 1980's smi
 
Yep, in fact my first job was a drafter. No CAD in sight. I kinda miss it, it was almost art.

I kept some of the better ones.
 
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