As some of you know, earlier this year I decided to take up learning the Electric Guitar. I have always fancied learning - but never actually did anything about it.
I am now getting proper lessons from a professional musician / session player / established teacher - and although i have only had a few lessons - and I am totally crap (but enjoying it) - the advice has been fantastic.
However, I have become aware, on my internet travels, of a great deal of guitar-bollocks being touted that may require a skeptical response (hence this discussion being here).
I wonder where one would stand if you paid good money on the "learn to play like hendrix in 5mins" - type claims, if after you have parted with your cash, and spent 5mins - you still sounded like a goose farting in the fog.....[note - luckily my skepticism has prevented me from parting with my cash....)
On a serious note - there seem to be hundreds of websites out there - some good, some less so - but many making quite odd claims. Jimi Hendrix could not play like Jimi Hendrix after 5mins so the rest of us are stuffed as far as that claim goes. However, is there an issue here for a skeptical take on this? Should we be bothered in the same way we are about other bogus claims?
From what I can tell there is no short cut and it all comes down to practice, practice, practice - even for the greats. There are no 'secret' techniques, no mysteries, no real shortcuts......but many of the websites border on the woo in terms of their claims. Any thoughts? 8) Are some of these wbesites not being slightly predatory? Maybe it's not worthy of a response as no one is dying here......but there may still be a principle here.
Last edited by Dr B; 6th May 2008 at 01:31 PM.
Who plays real guitar anymore?
You want Guitar Hero's III Legend of Rock on the Wii.
I guess as far as a skeptical take on the claims, would it not be the same as for any scam? Some will apply common sense and realise that the claims are bogus, some will spend money and be disappointed. The best anyone can do is to educate people. Different type of scam, but I get a warm fuzzy feeling in spreading the word of 419eater.
Dr B, I'd be interested in seeing any specific examples of these sites and their claims.
I think there is validty in shooting down such claims, for many of the same reasons as those of a Sylvia Brown or a Colin Fry.
Certainly, as a player of many years I totally agree that 90% of it comes down to practice.
Of course, learning from an experienced teacher or, as I do, closely watching a talented player and discovering new techniques that way, expands your repertoire much faster and more reliably than simply teaching yourself. But yes, there is no "play like Hendrix - QUICK" system that can possibly work, ever.
Well that's my excuse and I'm sticking with it.Marge: [referencing Lisa playing the saxaphone] Do you think she could be a professional someday?
Li'l Ludwig's Music School Teacher: Oh lord no!
Lisa: But I'll practice every day!
Li'l Ludwig's Music School Teacher: Yeah well I'll be frank with ya Lisa and when I say frank I mean, you know, devastating. You've inherrited a finger condition known as stubbiness, it usually comes from the father's side...
You, nor nobody else will play like Hendrix in 5 minutes from scratch. If you already can play guitar, and have good ears, you can "see" what Hendrix is doing to the fretboard "with your ears". Its a hard concept to explain but you basically know where the notes are, and how the progressions advance, and you can replicate it yourself (if you have sufficient skill to begin with).
What can you actually learn in 5 minutes? I would say probably only finger placement for a couple of chords.
There are however ways to "cheat" using a guitar. You do need to be an established player before you can implement them however. After a while you realise quite a few musical pieces are based on simple progressions, or slightly alternative riffs etc. When you know what these are you will begin to recognise them everywhere. Like the Memphis scale etc.
Learn to play guitar in 5 easy lessons! And 18 hard ones.
You won't get anywhere in only 23 lessons.
I don't know, I've never had any lessons and... oh, right.Originally Posted by Mojo
I'll teach you how to play better than Hendrix in five minutes...
I'll teach you how to play the bassoon, admittedly, but I'm pretty sure you'll be better than Hendrix ever was on it by the time we're done.
sorry bob, but i play guitar just like jimmy hendrix when he had been playing for 5 mins.You, nor nobody else will play like Hendrix in 5 minutes from scratch.
seriously though i have been playing guitar on and off for 25years and am still rubbish, i think the real players are born with talant.
I think if you played for an hour everyday for a whole year instead of "off and on" you would make a lot of progress.sorry bob, but i play guitar just like jimmy hendrix when he had been playing for 5 mins.
seriously though i have been playing guitar on and off for 25years and am still rubbish, i think the real players are born with talant.
However, I think natural talent helps the better players. (not me)
I think there is cause for a skeptic look at the mystique surrounding the vacuum tubes used in guitar amplifiers.
Some "golden ears" say that 50 year old NOS valves sound better than any currently produced.
There are also valves that have had cryogenic treatment and some with gold pins etc, etc.
Do these really make an audible difference?
valve amps do seem to be better than electronic solid state versions. They have a primative fuzziness which reminds the user of the classic tunes that inspired them to learn the guitar in the first place. It is like the difference between .wav and .mp3 I think (analogywise). The wav can preserve the hiss and click, the mp3 removed all noise it considers "fluff" to reduce filesize. The valve amps just seem to have more "presence". Technically though the solid state versions are vastly superior in almost every way. Infact I have a Trace Elliot Super Tramp Twin Reverb unit with twin 12" Celestion Speakers (In a very sleek british racing green)
Its solid state btw, not valve.
There are endless discussions on what I will randomly call the tube effect (and many other audiophile subjects) over at JREF.
This one seems most appropriate for the current discussion...
http://www.randi.org/forumlive/showthread.php?t=96521
valve amps do seem to be better than electronic solid state versions. They have a primative fuzziness which reminds the user of the classic tunes that inspired them to learn the guitar in the first place. It is like the difference between .wav and .mp3 I think (analogywise). The wav can preserve the hiss and click, the mp3 removed all noise it considers "fluff" to reduce filesize. The valve amps just seem to have more "presence". Technically though the solid state versions are vastly superior in almost every way. Infact I have a Trace Elliot Super Tramp Twin Reverb unit with twin 12" Celestion Speakers (In a very sleek british racing green)
Its solid state btw, not valve.
I'm not questioning valve amps.
I have a valve amp too and I think the tone of one is superior to solid state.
What I'm talking about in my previous post is about differences between valves themselves.
Oh, sorry. I misread your post. No I dont think there is any noticable audio difference between basic new valves and classically old ones. Cryogenically frozen, gold pinned variations just seem a bit silly to me. Like those $7,500 cables that provide "improvimocation" for your audio
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