Sometimes you just gotta go back to lessons!
mantis
Posts: 17,201
So here is the long short story of my Guitar playing.
I started back in 1979 when I was 9 years old. My grand parents got me a 1970 used Fender American Stratocaster in off white with a White pick guard and a Fender Champ amp.
I was way cool with that and my parents put me in lessons. Well after about a year of lessons, in the mean time we moved into another house which was further away from my teacher and over time my parents got sick of taking me and at that time I was cool with it as I was already getting pretty good and could play all the songs I wanted to at that time.
So years later I put together a cover band and we rocked for a few years. members came and went and then when we graduated High School and went off to college, the band broke up. I put the guitar down and then sold all my stuff.
Fast forward many years later to 2005, I was driving by a Sam Ash Music store in NJ and decided for the sheer hell of it go in and just look around and see whats going on. Well they had a 2005 Jackson Soloist SL3 that I saw on the wall and the salesman saw me eyeing it up. Said do you want to play it? I resisted for a few seconds but figured what could it hurt, I don't play anymore and why not touch it.Well I played for well over an hour on it and then purchased it on the spot.
Needless to say for the next few years I was damn rusty. I didn't practice no where near as much as when I was young. I played for hours every single day and since I started playing again, I might practice a hour or so a week. Which honestly isn't no where near enough to 1 get back what I lost from not playing and 2 can't get anywhere.
So a friend of mines Brother was giving lessons which lived around the corner from me and I went to him for about a month or so. He over booked a few of my lessons and gave that time to the other person 3 times. He said sorry man I forgot about our lesson and over booked myself.
I let it slide the first 2 times and went home but when it happened a 3rd time I quit going to him. That last time I waited for the person who had my time get done and then I got my lesson after sitting the 1/2 more then I expected to wait.
Fast forward a few years and here I sit with the burning desire to ramp up my practice time and want badly to sharpen my skills and mover forward. I tried some of the online stuff but honestly it's no where near the same to me when your sitting in a room with a teacher.
So I found this guy who works at a music store near me and he just so happens to be a Metal head like me. So I went for the free first lesson and then joined up.
So I'm back in lessons and I feel over time I will get back everything I lost and move forward with my studies. I have so much to learn and I'm so willing to give a go at this again. Once a Musician always a musician. I can't escape it and it consumes me like home audio video gear does and probably worse. I much more enjoy creating music then just listening to it.
I started back in 1979 when I was 9 years old. My grand parents got me a 1970 used Fender American Stratocaster in off white with a White pick guard and a Fender Champ amp.
I was way cool with that and my parents put me in lessons. Well after about a year of lessons, in the mean time we moved into another house which was further away from my teacher and over time my parents got sick of taking me and at that time I was cool with it as I was already getting pretty good and could play all the songs I wanted to at that time.
So years later I put together a cover band and we rocked for a few years. members came and went and then when we graduated High School and went off to college, the band broke up. I put the guitar down and then sold all my stuff.
Fast forward many years later to 2005, I was driving by a Sam Ash Music store in NJ and decided for the sheer hell of it go in and just look around and see whats going on. Well they had a 2005 Jackson Soloist SL3 that I saw on the wall and the salesman saw me eyeing it up. Said do you want to play it? I resisted for a few seconds but figured what could it hurt, I don't play anymore and why not touch it.Well I played for well over an hour on it and then purchased it on the spot.
Needless to say for the next few years I was damn rusty. I didn't practice no where near as much as when I was young. I played for hours every single day and since I started playing again, I might practice a hour or so a week. Which honestly isn't no where near enough to 1 get back what I lost from not playing and 2 can't get anywhere.
So a friend of mines Brother was giving lessons which lived around the corner from me and I went to him for about a month or so. He over booked a few of my lessons and gave that time to the other person 3 times. He said sorry man I forgot about our lesson and over booked myself.
I let it slide the first 2 times and went home but when it happened a 3rd time I quit going to him. That last time I waited for the person who had my time get done and then I got my lesson after sitting the 1/2 more then I expected to wait.
Fast forward a few years and here I sit with the burning desire to ramp up my practice time and want badly to sharpen my skills and mover forward. I tried some of the online stuff but honestly it's no where near the same to me when your sitting in a room with a teacher.
So I found this guy who works at a music store near me and he just so happens to be a Metal head like me. So I went for the free first lesson and then joined up.
So I'm back in lessons and I feel over time I will get back everything I lost and move forward with my studies. I have so much to learn and I'm so willing to give a go at this again. Once a Musician always a musician. I can't escape it and it consumes me like home audio video gear does and probably worse. I much more enjoy creating music then just listening to it.
Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time.
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time.
Comments
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Awesome story, I myself hear that call to "just pick it up and play again"..
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I'm curious what one pays for steady guitar lessons, in general.afterburnt wrote: »They didn't speak a word of English, they were from South Carolina.
Village Idiot of Club Polk -
old rocker wrote: »Awesome story, I myself hear that call to "just pick it up and play again"..
I think once you become a musician , its extremely difficult not to pick it up again. It's like a burning desire inside that needs to be satisfied. In some ways I wish I could go back and change the decision to put it down. Also would love to change the decision to sell off all my gear back then. I had a really nice American Strat that I loved along side a very incredible Charvel Model 3A.Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time. -
I'm curious what one pays for steady guitar lessons, in general.
Well where I'm studying at is $88 a month. Which is a great deal if you ask me.Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time. -
I hit a wall hard with my playing.Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time. -
Remember Youtube is your friend! Once you get back into the swing of things with lessons you'll have every lesson you can think of on Y-Tube. Taking a Theory class too doesn't hurt. Lessons are great but, it does start to get expensive over time.
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I know what you mean, Dan. I started playing in H.S. or college? I can't remember. My father used to play and I learned through watching him for many years. Never had a lesson. I also used my "ear" to figure out what to do, to mimic styles, songs I liked. But now, I RARELY, pick it up. And don't have the kind of knowledge I'd like to have about music, since my "formal" training was in elementary school and Jr. High on the clarinet which allows me to read music for that B flat single note instrument, but limits my understanding of chords, rhythm, and so on. So I'm sitting here with some manuals that I'll probably try to work through that explain the basic theory and lay out the chords in a comprehensive manner. It goes without saying that I'll also be focusing on SCALES/KEYS because when I was playing by "ear" I realized that that's what I was doing without even knowing it? lol
If you can afford lessons and you have a gifted teacher. Go for it!Currently orbiting Bowie's Blackstar.!
Polk Lsi-7s, Def Tech 8" sub, HK 3490, HK HD 990 (CDP/DAC), AKG Q701s
[sig. changed on a monthly basis as I rotate in and out of my stash] -
Lessons are 22 Bucks a week. I find that very affordable. Do you guys think thats expensive?Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time. -
Really hard to get anywhere on your own. I looked at the You tube videos and learned a few things but it's not the same when you have a teacher in front of you pointing out your mistakes and things you do well.I know what you mean, Dan. I started playing in H.S. or college? I can't remember. My father used to play and I learned through watching him for many years. Never had a lesson. I also used my "ear" to figure out what to do, to mimic styles, songs I liked. But now, I RARELY, pick it up. And don't have the kind of knowledge I'd like to have about music, since my "formal" training was in elementary school and Jr. High on the clarinet which allows me to read music for that B flat single note instrument, but limits my understanding of chords, rhythm, and so on. So I'm sitting here with some manuals that I'll probably try to work through that explain the basic theory and lay out the chords in a comprehensive manner. It goes without saying that I'll also be focusing on SCALES/KEYS because when I was playing by "ear" I realized that that's what I was doing without even knowing it? lol
If you can afford lessons and you have a gifted teacher. Go for it!
Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time. -
How much time is that? Seems like a very reasonable rate to me. Checking Denver Craigslist I found $20/30 minutes and another $30 per 45 minute lesson.afterburnt wrote: »They didn't speak a word of English, they were from South Carolina.
Village Idiot of Club Polk -
30 minute lesson
Dan
My personal quest is to save to world of bad audio, one thread at a time. -
Really hard to get anywhere on your own. I looked at the You tube videos and learned a few things but it's not the same when you have a teacher in front of you pointing out your mistakes and things you do well.
That's how I feel about it too. I'd learn way more from an actual lesson in person than I would on my own watching videos.
afterburnt wrote: »They didn't speak a word of English, they were from South Carolina.
Village Idiot of Club Polk -
When you hit that spot, crank it up and know that some old rocker kinda guy in rural Indiana is banging his head..
