More Boring Guitar Stuff

F G A B flat C D E F

Oh, hello. I hope you don't mind if I practice my scales while I post tonight. The weather's been so nice that I haven't felt like staying inside and practicing my music, so I have to do a little multitasking if I want to blog and still get in my scale work.

F E D C B flat A G B

As you know I got this book called "Beginning Jazz Guitar" so I could bone-up on my music theory, and exercise my fingers at the same time. The book is called "Beginning Jazz Guitar", by the way, and not "Jazz Guitar for Beginners" because you have to know the basics before you can start in with it. Anyways, it starts you off with scale work (the chromatic scale, for those following along at home), and the first lesson was learning the chromatic scale with what is called 6-2 fingering.

G flat A flat B flat B D flat E flat F G flat

So all last week I practiced the 6-2, and when I finally had it down I put the DVD back in the machine and played back the lesson, and, wouldn't you know it, I had been playing the fingerings all wrong. That's the problem with being self-taught; if there had been a live teacher then he/she would have pointed out the problem immediately. Instead, I went the whole week doing it wrong and now I've got to go back and learn it all over. Grrrr.....

G flat F E flat D flat B flat A flat G flat

But I really like the book. In fact it's part of a series put out by the National Guitar Workshop and published by Alfred Music. There are other supplemental books that go along with it on theory for guitar, fretboard knowledge and ear training that provide more in-depth material on the concepts covered. I got the theory and fretboard books, and I learned the best trick yet for learning the guitar fretboard.

G A B C sharp D E F sharp G

Yeah, I know, who cares, but listen, people pay 50 or 60 bucks an hour to learn this stuff, and I'm giving it to you for free. Besides, if you're learning the guitar you'll want to know this, and if you have a child that's learning then it's important for you to sit down and talk to them about this. Believe me, they'll be glad you did, and, let's face it, practicing scales gets a little boring so I need something to keep my mind busy.

G F sharp E D C sharp B A G

The concept is called the "Warped W", and it is handiest thing I've ever seen for learning the guitar fretboard. As some of you may know, because of its system of white keys and black keys, it takes about 5 minutes to learn the names of the keys on a piano. All you have to do is learn the pattern and you instantly know the name of any key on the keyboard. Unfortunately, on a guitar you don't have any white keys and black keys, so that makes learning the notes a little more difficult.


A flat B flat C D E flat F A flat

The "Warped W" is a pattern on the fretboard that allows you to visualize the notes, just as the white and black keys do on the piano. The system is easy. You start with string 6. Hopefully you know the notes going up the fretboard on string 6 just from playing your basic barre chords, but if you don't it'll only take you a few minutes to memorize them. So, you start with string 6, at, say, fret 1, which would be an F.


A flat F E flat D C B flat A flat

Now, to find the other F's on the fretboard going across all six strings you just need to know these four shortcuts: 4(2), 2(3), 5(2), 3(2), 6(2). Since string 1 is just 2 octaves above string 6, you don't really need to worry about that one. If you can find the note on string 6, you can find it on string 1. So what do the funny numbers mean?


A B C sharp D sharp E F sharp G sharp A

Well if string 6, fret 1 is an F, then to find the next F up the neck you up 2 frets and it will be on string 4, then go up 3 frets and it will be on string 2, then up 2 frets to string 5, and up another 2 frets to string 3, and finally up 2 more frets and back to string 6. If you draw that out on a fretboard diagram it will look a little like a "W" tilted to the right, hence the name "Warped W". Now, if you've got that memorized you can start to do some advanced note finding.



A G sharp F sharp E D sharp C sharp B A

For example, your playing the 6th fret of string 4, what note is that? Well, if you look at the diagram you'll see that all you have to do is subtract 2 frets from string 4 and then read the note off of string 6. In this case, 4 minus 2 equals 2, and the 2nd fret on string 6 is an F sharp, so you're playing an F sharp. With a little practice you can find the notes very quickly. On string 4 you subtract 2 frets, on string 2 you subtract 5 frets, on string 5 you subtract 7 frets, and on string 3 you subtract 9 frets. So, if your playing fret 6 on string 3, you subtract 9 frets which gives you a negative 3, which is the same as 3 frets below fret 12 (think about it) or fret 9. Fret 9 on the 6 string is a C sharp, so you know your note is a C sharp.


B flat C D E flat F G A B flat

It's sounds complicated the way I explain it, but it's very simple. Just remember 4(2), 2(3), 5(2), 3(2), and 6(2), and you'll see what I mean. It also makes it easy to do things like chord inversions because you can always find the nearest alternate finger position for any given note. Very handy, and I'm giving it to you free of charge.

B flat A G F E flat D C B flat

Sorry for such a boring post tonight, but this is what's on my mind. I feel like a kid again learning all this music stuff that I should have learned years and years ago. I even went out and bought a copy of Guitar Player Magazine the other day. I haven't read that Mag since I was about 13 years old, and it's still as useless as ever, but it's like I'm reverting back to my teen years. That's not necessarily a good thing, but it has me feeling young again.

By the way, they now have 2 versions of Guitar Player Magazine - one is the same old rock 'n roll magazine it's always been, the the other is called "Guitar Player Magazine Acoustic". The difference between the two is that the regular "Guitar Player" talks about musicians before they've entered rehab, and "Guitar Player Acoustic" deals with musicians after they've left.

It's true. You look at "Guitar Player" and it's all these rock 'n roll, party animal, trash the hotel room types, and you look at "Guitar Player Acoustic" and it has these old gray-haired guys who've showered and shaved and are into organic foods and herbal supplements.

Oh well, we all get older don't we.