Let me introduce myself. My name is Rob Thrasher. I'm currently playing in a band called Winter Street and working as the Director of Worship Arts at Salem First Presbyterian Church. I am available to give private guitar lessons in my home or yours.
I have 20 years of experience playing guitar and singing in bands. I have given private lessons for the last 6 years. I teach beginning and intermediate acoustic, electric, and bass guitar.
If you are interested in starting beginner or intermediate lessons, Please contact me at (503) 477-1984 or rob.thrashermusic@gmail.com.
Rates: $20 hr.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
How do lessons work?
I will come to you, or you can come to me. When you contact me we will will go over the options. Initial lessons will begin with a discussion of the students goals and will build from there. I've found that some like to learn every aspect of their instrument while others just want to learn chords and strum. All students will become versed in the notes and scales of their guitars along with learning songs they desire to play. While learning to play can be challenging at times, my desire is that there always be an element of FUN! I love it and hope that you will too.
Buying Your First Guitar? What to Look For
For some people, buying their first guitar is a bit overwhelming. How do I know if it's good? Does price really matter? Does name brand matter? Will it last? These are all good questions and maybe you have some that I've not mentioned. I'd like to give you a few suggestions that will help you in finding the right guitar for you and your budget. For the purpose of this article, I'll be dealing with acoustic guitars.
The first thing your will want to do is find a music shop that stocks guitars near you and go. As you go in, keep in mind that looks can be deceiving. Just because it looks sweet does not imply that it plays sweet. You'll want to spend some time holding and strumming several different types until you find one that feels comfortable. Next, while your holding the guitar, give it a good visual inspection. Look at the body near and around the bridge. Is there any bowing or cupping. If so, this could indicate poor bracing on the inside. You'll also want take a look down the neck. Hold the guitar up and look down the neck from the sound hole to the nut (the place where the strings leave the fretboard to be connected to the tuning pegs). Is it straight? Don't buy it if its bowed or cupped. It may be able to be adjusted by turning the truss rod, but you should never have to do this on a new guitar. Next, inspect the frets. Run your finger down the side of the neck and feel for any frets sticking out. They should be flush. Then look at the height of each one. They should all be the same. Next look at the action (action is how close or how far the strings are from the frets). If the strings are too close, you may have fret buzz. If the strings are to far, its way harder on your fingers and you may have some intonation issues as you play down the neck closer to the body of the guitar. Next, take a look at the tuning pegs. Are they straight? Do the tuning knobs turn smoothly? If not, they may be faulty and could cause you trouble down the road. When you've done all of that and everything checks out, play! How does is sound and feel to you? Keep in mind that full body guitars w/o a cut away will have a deeper/fuller sound than a 3/4 or thin bodied guitar. These will tend to be a bit brighter and sometimes tinny. If the guitar has electronic pick ups, you'll want to plug it in to an acoustic amp or a sound board that's hooked up to some speakers. Start with the eq flat (high, mid, low knobs or sliders in the middle position). You'll want to do the same on the amp. How does it sound? You should be able to dial in a sound that you like with a few minor adjustments of the eq's.
Now, let's move on to dollars and cents. Does price matter? Yes and no. I say yes because there are some cheaply made and cheaply sold guitars out there. You'll know one when you go through the above inspections. These are usually priced around $70-$90. Anything under that price is extremely suspect. The trouble with these is that they tend to frustrate the new player and that's never a good thing. That being said, there are some well made cheaply sold guitars to be had for around $100-$200. I believe that it's better to pay a little more and enjoy the guitar rather than pay less and be discouraged. You either give up or buy another guitar. So you may end up paying as much or more than if you saved up a little more and purchased a nice sounding easy playing instrument. Here are some brand names that I recommend for starting out. Alvarez, Epiphone, Fender, Ibanez, and Yamaha. Now, if money is not an issue, and you are the responsible sort or your son or daughter understands taking care of things, then try out the Taylor, Gibson, Guild, and upper end Martin guitars. Always remember to play and compare. I recently stopped into a Guitar Center and played a few higher priced models. I discovered that $500 Fender played better than a $900 Yamaha. So, does a higher price always prove to be better quality? I say no.
I hope that this general overview has provided some insights to you that will help you find just the right guitar for you. Happy shopping!
The first thing your will want to do is find a music shop that stocks guitars near you and go. As you go in, keep in mind that looks can be deceiving. Just because it looks sweet does not imply that it plays sweet. You'll want to spend some time holding and strumming several different types until you find one that feels comfortable. Next, while your holding the guitar, give it a good visual inspection. Look at the body near and around the bridge. Is there any bowing or cupping. If so, this could indicate poor bracing on the inside. You'll also want take a look down the neck. Hold the guitar up and look down the neck from the sound hole to the nut (the place where the strings leave the fretboard to be connected to the tuning pegs). Is it straight? Don't buy it if its bowed or cupped. It may be able to be adjusted by turning the truss rod, but you should never have to do this on a new guitar. Next, inspect the frets. Run your finger down the side of the neck and feel for any frets sticking out. They should be flush. Then look at the height of each one. They should all be the same. Next look at the action (action is how close or how far the strings are from the frets). If the strings are too close, you may have fret buzz. If the strings are to far, its way harder on your fingers and you may have some intonation issues as you play down the neck closer to the body of the guitar. Next, take a look at the tuning pegs. Are they straight? Do the tuning knobs turn smoothly? If not, they may be faulty and could cause you trouble down the road. When you've done all of that and everything checks out, play! How does is sound and feel to you? Keep in mind that full body guitars w/o a cut away will have a deeper/fuller sound than a 3/4 or thin bodied guitar. These will tend to be a bit brighter and sometimes tinny. If the guitar has electronic pick ups, you'll want to plug it in to an acoustic amp or a sound board that's hooked up to some speakers. Start with the eq flat (high, mid, low knobs or sliders in the middle position). You'll want to do the same on the amp. How does it sound? You should be able to dial in a sound that you like with a few minor adjustments of the eq's.
Now, let's move on to dollars and cents. Does price matter? Yes and no. I say yes because there are some cheaply made and cheaply sold guitars out there. You'll know one when you go through the above inspections. These are usually priced around $70-$90. Anything under that price is extremely suspect. The trouble with these is that they tend to frustrate the new player and that's never a good thing. That being said, there are some well made cheaply sold guitars to be had for around $100-$200. I believe that it's better to pay a little more and enjoy the guitar rather than pay less and be discouraged. You either give up or buy another guitar. So you may end up paying as much or more than if you saved up a little more and purchased a nice sounding easy playing instrument. Here are some brand names that I recommend for starting out. Alvarez, Epiphone, Fender, Ibanez, and Yamaha. Now, if money is not an issue, and you are the responsible sort or your son or daughter understands taking care of things, then try out the Taylor, Gibson, Guild, and upper end Martin guitars. Always remember to play and compare. I recently stopped into a Guitar Center and played a few higher priced models. I discovered that $500 Fender played better than a $900 Yamaha. So, does a higher price always prove to be better quality? I say no.
I hope that this general overview has provided some insights to you that will help you find just the right guitar for you. Happy shopping!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
