Dominant chords are foundational elements in music harmony, creating tension, expectation, and resolution. Whether you're playing guitar,...

Recently we discussed note values and how we could benefit from understanding them better. It will take a long time and lots of practice...

Chord scales, a cornerstone of jazz music , are a set of notes intended to be played over a single chord in a chord progression. They...

It has been a while since the last post I made about album recommendations. I always encourage my students, and anyone that will let me...

A beginner guitarist trying out her new nylon string, "classical guitar". There's a unique thrill that comes with picking your first...

You often hear it said that you should never meet your heroes, and I can only imagine this is because you stand to be thoroughly...

As a guitarist, understanding chord progressions is like learning the alphabet of music . They're the building blocks that form the...

Guitar chord voicings can seem like a labyrinth of strings and frets, but once you get the hang of them, they open up a world of musical...

Smooth jazz is a divisive subject, and one that hardcore jazz gatekeepers detest. Some simply dismiss the genre as cheesy, and nothing...

Music, a universal language, is fundamentally built on harmony and melody. Chords, which form the backbone of harmonic progressions, can...

As a musician, I think it is incredibly important to form your own personal opinions on a piece of music. I don’t really believe in the...

Explore the power of pentatonic scales—learn the theory behind major and minor pentatonics, their origins, why they’re essential for guitarists, and how to use them in solos and improvisation.

In the vast and colorful world of music theory , certain chords possess a mystique that sets them apart. One such chord is the "minor 7...

This is another tuning that really steps into its own in the realm of alternate tunings, along with open C tuning. It is simply referred...

One of the main things a guitarist could tell you about guitar-centric music from the 1980s is that it was a period of blistering...

A Listener's Guide to Jazz Music : How to Listen to Jazz Jazz music , with its rich history and complex, soulful sounds, can be a...

The ukulele is a charming and accessible instrument that has found its place in a wide array of musical genres. Whether you're enchanted...

Let me preface this entire document with a short disclaimer. This blog post is entirely my view, and any similarity between other...

The art of creating a piece of music is an alluring prospect for many musicians. Some people are not that interested in writing songs,...

While reading music can be a useful skill, it’s not a prerequisite for learning to play the guitar. In fact, many famous guitarists started out without any formal music training. Here are some tips for beginner guitarists looking to start learning without traditional music notation. 1. Start with the Basics Before you dive into playing songs, it’s important to familiarize yourself with the guitar. Learn the names of the parts of the guitar, how to hold it properly, and ho