Hi, everyone. I wanted to start us off with a comment to get the ball rolling. I would LOVE it if you could leave a short comment introducing yourself to the other members. I’m Dan Thorpe, from Birmingham, UK (not Alabama!). I love fingerpicking – Paul Simon, James Taylor, Tommy Emmanuel and about a gazillion others! My favourite thing about playing guitar is having some quiet time to play for myself (music is a great outlet for everything in life) and to jam with my 4 year old boy, Archie! I used to be terrible at guitar but after years… Read more »
Hey everyone, I would love to know what lessons you would like to learn. More on fingerpicking, Travis picking, chord changes, theory, jamming???… you name it, leave your ideas below!! This is the place to do so.
Hi Dan, I am an intermediate player, but am fascinated about finger style, and very anxious to get started. But i must admit i do struggle a bit with the dreaded Barr Chords, but am improving a bit. I am a Viet Nam vet, who suffers from PTSD, I am very private, so if you don’t hear much from me please understand. Thanks
Steve
Hi Steve, thanks for getting in touch. It`s great to have you here. Barre chords are tough but do make sure you take your time and use good technique with them.
No problem at all regarding being private and I hope you are doing well regarding the PTSD. Just know that the comments section and the mini-forum is there for you when needed. All the best.
Cool, for sure, let us know some more details. What sort of slaps and slides? The crazy stuff or solid on beats 2 and 4 type thing? What sort of guitarists have inspired this? (I ask, so I know I’m on the right path). 🙂
No particular artist comes to mind but I would say on beats 2 and 4 nothing crazy (yet). Slapping all the strings I find okay, it’s the thumb slap I have trouble with on the low E A strings.
I have come across slaps in the odd piece of music, done right sounds amazing. Just something I would like to add to my repertoire.
Ah, okay cool, thanks for letting me know. The slaps on beats 2 and 4 are very cool. The grooves these can add are great. Will get something ready on this. 🙂
If you would like to submit a video, you can add it to your comment by including a video LINK (for example, a YouTube, Vimeo, or Dropbox link). (Email Dan for help if you get stuck uploading a video)
YouTube and Vimeo links are the preferred video format. Make sure that your links are set to unlisted (not private!) and then only we will see it.
Hopefully, you have all noticed the new comments section at the bottom of each page in the DTAA! I would love for you to comment, ask questions and say “hi”!
This is the end…..but this is not the end, if that makes any sense🤔. The end of 21 days of learning and fun, but with many options ahead. The timing is great for me as I’ve got a few days off work and will use these to go back to day 0, which actually seems like a long time ago. I’ll work through the course again, pulling out and highlighting the parts that need more work. You have helped with this by pulling the main patterns from the course together in one pdf 👍. I’m super excited about the bonuses… Read more »
Thanks for the comment, Dave. Really pleased you enjoyed the course and are excited for everything that lies ahead. Your comments throughout have been great, not only for me to read but for others who take and have already taken the course these past few weeks. Very pleased you enjoyed it all and keep up the great practice. Thank you too! 🙂
I decided I wanted to try some new things so I have been playing the videos on the strumming songs and riffs pages. It will let me play a few videos or the same video a few times and then it tells me I have to log in again to see a video. Exact message is “Sign in to confirm you’re not a bot, This helps protect our community. I am logged in when it tells me that but if I log out and back in, it does fix it. I think the message is actually coming from YouTube. Seems to only happen… Read more »
Never knew these blank sheets were offered on this site. Trying to learn one of the riffs. Went and got some blank tab sheets I had downloaded elsewhere. I have always found that writing things down helps me remember and learn them better. Happy to know that these are available!
Yeah, one of the things I should mention more for users. I will add more links to these in the DTAA members. Thanks for that. Glad you found them helpful. 🙂
Pleased to hear it. That’s okay and at least you know. Keep doing as much concentrating/focusing as you can but start with very small busts (i.e. under a minute), then take a moment or two to reset. Listening goes a long way too so keep it up. 🙂
The final day, maybe, but so much learning to go back to and drill, get right, consolidate and build on. It’s been a great three weeks which promises much more to come. And what a way to finish – riffs and pumps. I enjoyed all three, not just on their own, but looking at how similar things could be applied to different chord sequences. But there is work to do to get them “locked in”. I have a few days off next week so I’ll be going back to day 1 and reviewing the whole course before even thinking of… Read more »
Thanks, Dave. Glad you enjoyed this lesson. It’s lots of fun and the more you use them and experiment with your own ideas, the more fun you will have. Sounds like you’ve enjoyed it all so far and pleased to hear it and enjoyed your comments and positive approach to learning throughout – long may it continue. It goes such a long way on the journey! 🙂
I guess it’s finally time to give focus to a weak link of mine. I have been working on fingerpick patterns, (from the bootcamp) to really get them set under my fingers, all going along fine, so i added a ‘banjo roll’ i had run across, said was a 3×2 (a simple thumb/ index / middle finger roll on strings 4, 3,2, wash and repeat) in 4/4 time over a 12 bar blues in G, i can count it out, and mostly get it right, so then i added a click and of course, …it breaks. I can go back… Read more »
It’s pretty common to lose the timing and let it drift with a click. One thing you can do is pluck notes on certain beats a little louder to help keep in time. Usually this can mean plucking beat 1 louder. It’s not a blanket fix but can help to reset the pattern each time it comes round rather than having an endless stream of notes. Of course, also take lots of breaks from the click (20 seconds or more of playing to a click can be too much for some at first).
This is a nice little piece, but I find I’m having trouble placing my right hand to mute the strings. I tend to mute the G string as well, and I end up feeling like my right hand is a claw – kind of tense and uncomfortable. Could use some advice on how to fix this.
Just to be clear there is no need to mute the strings here. Are you talking about playing this piece in a more of a “Boom Chick” kinda muted way? If so, one of the best things to do here is just work on the bass thumb plucks very slowly. Do a count of five between each pluck, relax, breathe, and try to let go of tension (which often starts in the arm or shoulder). Also, for the G string to sound clear you will need to adjust the picking hand position slightly (usually moving it up a touch) –… Read more »
That’s good – striving for better tone is something we can all do I find. Just small little improvements over time can go a long way – so many legends of the guitar talk about this sort of thing too. Good work. 🙂
Thanks Dan. I absolutely love Johnny Cash. I first came across his music when I was a young punk rocker and this opened me up to lots of ridicule 😂. But I think in his later years he became popular with nearly everyone. Anyways, I digress. I have tried this style using a pick and always seem to mess up the bass notes. I really enjoyed this lesson and am looking forward to using this fingerstyle, after more practice, on I Walk The Line 😀👍.
Yeah, I know what you mean. I was into hard rock and grunge and one of my mate’s got me into him. At first, I found it odd that he loved Johnny’s music so much but quickly realised how cool, deep, meaningful, and often fun, his tunes were. Great voice too. Great song you mention! Hope you keep having lots of fun with this technique and style. 🙂
Got through Level 1 and 3 no problem. I seem to have a mental block when it comes to the London pattern…still. So, I have made it part of my daily practice routine. 10 min. It’s a slow go. lol
Glad you have nailed level 1 and 2. There will always be one or two areas that causes more problems than most but keep focusing on it and you will nail it. A great pattern to have in the locker 🙂
My name is William, and I want to learn finger style guitar. I will try this course and decide if I shall continue after the trial period. The monthly fee is expensive so that is a major factor. Regards William
Hi William, welcome aboard, and thanks for joining us. I hope you love it here and do let us know how you get on. Would love to hear how you progress! 🙂
Front a complete stranger, the metronome has become my new friend. I really like these exercises, especially the later ones. I struggled with the rhythm a few lessons back with the 3/4 Travis style pattern and found the metronome really helpful there.
Good stuff, the metronome is such a wonderful tool. The problem is that many folk teach people to play tough stuff using one and it puts them off. Glad you are finding these helpful. 🙂
Excellent. I feel that I’m repeating myself commenting on each lesson, but I am enjoying these lessons a lot. Super fun trying out different chord progressions within the key and using different patterns. And then adding little embellishments between chords, and then trying different ones….the variations are endless….and I haven’t even got to the bonus yet 😀👍
No worries about repeating yourself. It’s great that you are enjoying it. Ha, yeah, there are so many things we can do with these techniques – it’s all very exciting, and I’m glad the course and lessons are opening up new doors for you. (You’ll love the bonuses too). 🙂
Hi, Dan. Lovely jolly piece. I’m finding it a challenge to get the thumb plucks clean. The strings are still vibrating when it’s time to pluck again, so it’s very obvious if the thumb brushes against them before/while plucking. I can avoid that by plucking a string, then immediately placing the thumb on the next string ahead of the beat, so that it stops the vibration more cleanly and is primed to pluck again. I honestly can’t tell if you’re doing that in the video, although it seems likely. Anyway, is that the right idea? And would it still work… Read more »
Hi Dawna, glad you enjoyed the piece. It’s okay if the strings are vibrating as that means the notes will be ringing out cleanly. I encourage you to only touch a string with the picking hand at the point you pluck it. If you rest on the strings it will kill off the note. If the vibration is a buzzing sound it’s likely the fretting hand is releasing pressure (get close to the frets with this hand and keep the pressure on). Palm muting does kill off the strings faster but the same principles apply. I hope that makes sense… Read more »
Thanks, Dan. The unwanted noise is from my thumb brushing against a string before plucking – either the target string or its neighbor (both are still vibrating). Guess I’ll have to work on precision! Feels like more of a swoop down from a (slightly) greater height when I get it cleaner without stopping the string, whereas the stopping motion keeps the thumb closer to the plane of the strings.
It’s an interesting one. I wonder if part of the nail or thumb is touching the string. It’s hard to say without seeing (but feel free to send me a video if you want me to look). It’s well worth isolating any technical thing like this and just practicing thumb plucks over and over, paying close attention to when it sounds/feels good or bad. Do let us know how you get on. 🙂
I just dusted off my copy of Jamie Andreas’ Principles book, and discovered Foundation Exercise #12 for the R hand (bouncing thumb with arpeggio). That felt so good that I suspect it will help somehow!
Dan, Excellent course. daily lessons are concise and supporting videos quite helpful.
just the right amount for each day. great basics with good suggestions for creativity
and experimenting. looking forward to the bonus courses. thanks
Cheers, John. Super pleased to hear you have enjoyed it and the format was a hit. Well done going through it and enjoying the process. Hope you enjoy it when you revisit it and enjoy the bonuses too. 🙂
That was an 8 minute lesson, but there was so much content within it. I found that it required a lot more concentration, presumably because I’m more used to 4/4. Level 3 was particularly challenging but like anything new will just require concentration and repetition. I’m writing this in the evening after my third visit to the lesson….it is so much fun learning all these new techniques and patterns. 😀
That’s great, Dave. Love how you are revisiting the lesson and paying close attention to it and all the details. Keep up the great practice and keep having fun. 🙂
What a fun way to actually get better at Travis picking. I love the sound of it and have worked hard at learning it. This is a great way to go from just playing the base notes and one or two melody notes to playing more melody without losing the base. Still working to get the whole thing, but the first part is coming along nicely. 10x for the win!
Pleased you enjoyed this. Love Travis picking and hopefully this shows how simple stuff can sound great. Good stuff with the progress you’ve made so far and keep enjoying it. 🙂
This is a great way to warm up hands for cold winter days. Of course, where I am we’re having this incredibly extended Indian summer. We haven’t even had a hard frost yet.But it felt good anyway!
Very cool to know. Ah, lucky you for sure! Sounds like some nice times for playing the guitar. Nothing better than doing so on a lovely warm evening in the sun, and when the frost comes you’ll be ready. 🙂
I use a metronome quite often. With my piano playing, I use it to get the tempo faster on pieces. With guitar, I use it to get my spider exercises faster. It was fun to use it with fingerpicking as well.
Glad to hear you enjoyed it. I find musicians in general tend to be good at using them but guitarists don’t get enough encouragement. The metronome is super useful and can be fun too which I know you know! 🙂
Although I have the Fingerpicking 101 course, I’ve never finished it. I think this course will give me the motivation to not only do this course but finish Fingerpicking 101 as well.
Ah, that’s so cool. One of the big aims with this course is to get people using it and finishing. Many online courses never get finished for a variety of reasons. Even Fingerstyle 101, which is well loved, doesn’t always get finished. Sounds like the structure of this course worked for you which is pleasing to know. 🙂
I have truly enjoyed this course. I can’t wait to go back and spend more time with the course, as well as diving into the bonuses. Thank you for all the work you put into this course.
Exciting? Well, yes indeed. And my review and consolidation is completed and I’m ready for a new lesson tomorrow. My method for this course has been to watch the lesson video(s) in the morning, before going to work. Then after work I print out the TAB and do the lesson. Then on Monday, which is my first day off, I review the previous lessons and post a comment if I have not already done so. I am really enjoying the variety and depth of this course. I have never really bothered with power chords, but this adds another dimension to… Read more »
That’s cool. You have a great system for using the course which is working well for you. Glad you are enjoying the variety – was keen to make it a fun and varied course as well as teaching the fundamentals. Glad you like the power chords and dyads – both are ace. 🙂
Another superb lesson and some new patterns to learn… really enjoyable using the rhythm of the strumming pattern too…but, I’ve come to a roadblock! I’m struggling with the percussive slap in the Secret Bonus lesson. So I think I’ll return to it in a few days time.
Glad you enjoyed it. The percussive hit is awkward at first. If it’s new to you, it will feel strange but with some experimenting, you will get it for sure. Do be patient though. Enjoy 🙂
Brilliant. Add this to the ever expanding list of new skills. It wasn’t easy but I enjoyed it very much, and I’m sure I’ll be returning to this lesson again. Superb Secret Bonus too.
That was awesome! So much variety and so much fun. I really liked level 2 with the pull off, something that I struggle with, and the two chords at the end. What a lovely sound. I really struggled for a long time with the harmonics before realising that I was doing it wrong. Adjustment made and yes 😀👍. I have never come across harmonics before, so add this to the list of new discoveries on this wonderful course. I love these intros and also the added practice on the picking pattern 😀🎸👍
Cheers. Happy to know you enjoyed it. Sounds like lots of fun for you here – and yeah, harmonics, they are a bit of a secret weapon on the guitar I find. Such a cool sound. Keep having fun with all these ideas and thanks for the comment. 🙂
I enjoyed this course. There is a lot of information presented in a very digestable fashion. I will be cycling back through again, to pick up on ideas I missed first time through, and really setting muscle memory, which …for me… just takes a bit of time. While i can play a piece, or an exersize, setting the muscle memory, really getting it under my fingers, makes the techniques themselves really mine. Just me, ymmv. I like the idea presented, of going through the course, then doing a bonus lesson or 2, then going back thru. Thats the path I’ll… Read more »
Thanks, Allan. Pleased you enjoyed it. No doubt the more you go through it, the more little things you will pick up on, as well as refine other things. Keep enjoying it and I hope we all get to hear more about your progress. I appreciate all the comments throughout too! 🙂
I enjoyed these ideas and can see how they can be expanded to other chords with a little bit of experimentation. This has been a fast three weeks, but I’m excited that I can go back and tighten up my technique on the earlier lessons. A few of them had things that I couldn’t do in one day. Thanks for putting this course together.
Good stuff, I like that you are thinking about using them on other chords – like you say, it requires a bit of thinking, but that is time really well spent I have found. Fun too! Super pleased you enjoyed it and are excited to keep progressing. Well done! 🙂
Really enjoying the boot camp. Enjoy having the encouragement for improvising and experimenting within the lessons. One minor problem- have not received the individual email reminders for the past 2 lessons
Cheers, John. Really pleased to hear it. Sorry about that (occasionally a few emails drift into spam or promotions folders – were they possibly in there?)
Thanks for the reply, had checked my spam folder but none there. just wanted you to be aware of it. with the access on the website i can complete the course without the emails.
Thanks, John. The issue, it appears, is that it looks like you accidentally unsubscribed to the Bootcamp email list (Google makes it really easy to do that – too easy as one click and it gets done). You can easily re-subscribe to those emails though. Let me know if you want to. 🙂
Here I am at the last lesson of this 3 week class. It went so fast.
I really enjoyed this first pass, I will be going back through to tighten up my technique, and reinforce the concepts. small bites of focus of interlocking technique is working for me, I already see improvement, now to ‘set’ the learning and get it into muscle memory.
I’ve made it through and I think this is (in my humble opinion) the best series you’ve made. Video and audio quality are excellent and so much information. I am thinking that I have to go through this a few times. It is definitely a great resource.
Would definitely recommend it.
Jim
Cheers, Jim. Really pleased to hear it. It was one of the most fun and epic courses to create and I loved putting it together. Delighted you enjoyed it all and hope you love going through it again (and again) and the bonuses too. 🙂
Great lesson! It got me more used to the index finger strum, which I was very resistant to. It actually feels much better now. I also enjoyed the bass runs. I can’t wait until I’m as fast at it as you are. I’m a big country music fan, so this adds to my arsenal.
Good stuff. Nice to learn a style you love and improve some little techniques too such as the index finger strum. Don’t worry about the speed – lots of slow and controlled “reps” will build the muscle memory and then the speed. 🙂
Hi Dan
I’ve returned to this course purely to refresh myself. Working full-time now, woop woop….
Only drawback i don’t get any spare time during the week for practice, having my dog too, I’m a very busy bee. This is good for me because all the bad habits you talk about in this course I don’t have, Thanks to your teaching.
I recently advertised one of my guitars for sale. One question i received….. Is it easy on the fingers. My reply was ” Depends how you’ve been taught. Easy on my fingers.”
Hi Angie, that’s great. Pleased you are busy and enjoying it. Great about the lack of bad habits – makes me happy to know that. Ha, love that last comment too. Have a great weekend yourself. 🙂
Staying on beat …after a bit is comes in fairly easy. Going with melody starting off beat not on 1, rather on the ‘and’ is more a challenge, but comes after a bit. Excellent exersize, this will be a regular for a while. enjoying this a lot.
Super pleased to hear it. Yeah, playing anything off the beat can be a challenge but as you say it comes after a bit. Pleased you are seeing progress with it and having fun. 🙂
Picking up where I left off in the Bootcamp on day 11. The “London” pattern. I had to go back to Fingerpicking 101 and review it. As you know, I like to find practical applications to the lessons and apply them, as it is easier to learn the pattern. You mention Paul Simon using this pattern. Are you referring to songs like “The Boxer” or ” Homeward Bound”? The pattern I use are Root and high E, then G,B,G. It may help if you associate a popular song with a particular pattern, which I know you usually do. Thanks for… Read more »
Good you’ve gone back over it as fully as you need to. Yeah, the boxer especially was a big inspiration with the pattern, and don’t forget the pattern can be varied in ways you mention. That’s a cool thing about fingerpicking – so many variations of the same pattern even if we just change one string in the pattern. 🙂
Wow! I can’t believe that it’s Day 19 already. I’ve learned a lot, but there is still so much to go back and learn. I enjoyed working with the dyads, as this is a fairly new concept for me. I’ve used the metronome a great deal – in fact, I use it daily with my spider exercises – so it was more fun for me to get to work with diads and see if I could keep them with the beat.
Yes, it’s flying by and pleased you have learnt a lot in this short space of time. That’s great – any way you can use a metronome in an inspiring and musical manner is always a good thing. Keep having fun with the dyads. 🙂
This is a lesson I’ll definitely want to come back to. I’ll want to play all the fingerpicking patterns we’ve done so far, as well add in those from the fingerpicking book. It’s time for me to haul out my Peter, Paul, and Mary book and use some of these patterns. Thanks for a great lesson.
My pleasure and pleased you’re enjoying it. Nice to recap the patterns (hint: we will be doing that soon in the course too). Hope you have loads of fun with these patterns. 🙂
Dan, Fun! Should have titled it “Trills and Thrills” I applied it to a D chord and used the trill with my pinky on the third fret of the high E string.
Ha, yes, I like that title – or “no more chills from your trills”. Yours is better! Awesome stuff applying it to a chord already – great little workout for the pinkie what you mention there. 🙂
Hi Dan, Went all the way back to breakthrough beginner as suggested, I must admit I was expecting to shoot through this in no time but decided to show some patience and not race ahead an low & behold I have learnt to major things – You are right there are no easy songs I cant believe how long it took me to learn Happy Birthday which puts everything else I have been trying to do into context and I have been strumming to hard for years especially on the up strokes which is why its sounds bad and ringy,… Read more »
Hi Peter, good stuff. So many miss the basics or gloss over them but a period of focused time on these lessons will make all the difference going forward. Glad you appreciate the patience needed – many do not. Keep the focus and patience and keep enjoying the journey. You’ll love it so much more if you do. 🙂
I just chose the G scale 1 6 4 5 pattern, its fun to listen to the different sounds from different pattens on the same chord pattern. Since it was Gmajor scale, thought I’d try intro’s with the Em scale we played with earlier in the course, since the Em is relative minor to G. Interesting, definately a work in progress, I see the light at the end of the tunnel….. (hopefuly not a Mars light on a locomotive… lol).
Great stuff, glad you are feeling confident, enjoying it, and trying different things out. Really cool to take certain things from the course and try out other things with it. Definitely light at the end of a hopefully bright and short tunnel. 🙂
Great tips Dan super duper 😀
Cheers, Angie. Glad to hear you like the lesson. Keep coming back to it too. 🙂
Hi, everyone. I wanted to start us off with a comment to get the ball rolling. I would LOVE it if you could leave a short comment introducing yourself to the other members. I’m Dan Thorpe, from Birmingham, UK (not Alabama!). I love fingerpicking – Paul Simon, James Taylor, Tommy Emmanuel and about a gazillion others! My favourite thing about playing guitar is having some quiet time to play for myself (music is a great outlet for everything in life) and to jam with my 4 year old boy, Archie! I used to be terrible at guitar but after years… Read more »
Hey everyone, I would love to know what lessons you would like to learn. More on fingerpicking, Travis picking, chord changes, theory, jamming???… you name it, leave your ideas below!! This is the place to do so.
Hi Dan, I am an intermediate player, but am fascinated about finger style, and very anxious to get started. But i must admit i do struggle a bit with the dreaded Barr Chords, but am improving a bit. I am a Viet Nam vet, who suffers from PTSD, I am very private, so if you don’t hear much from me please understand. Thanks
Steve
Hi Steve, thanks for getting in touch. It`s great to have you here. Barre chords are tough but do make sure you take your time and use good technique with them.
No problem at all regarding being private and I hope you are doing well regarding the PTSD. Just know that the comments section and the mini-forum is there for you when needed. All the best.
I would love to see some lessons on guitar slaps and slides please. That is if you possibly find time in your busy schedule.
Cool, for sure, let us know some more details. What sort of slaps and slides? The crazy stuff or solid on beats 2 and 4 type thing? What sort of guitarists have inspired this? (I ask, so I know I’m on the right path). 🙂
No particular artist comes to mind but I would say on beats 2 and 4 nothing crazy (yet). Slapping all the strings I find okay, it’s the thumb slap I have trouble with on the low E A strings.
I have come across slaps in the odd piece of music, done right sounds amazing. Just something I would like to add to my repertoire.
Ah, okay cool, thanks for letting me know. The slaps on beats 2 and 4 are very cool. The grooves these can add are great. Will get something ready on this. 🙂
If you would like to submit a video, you can add it to your comment by including a video LINK (for example, a YouTube, Vimeo, or Dropbox link). (Email Dan for help if you get stuck uploading a video)
YouTube and Vimeo links are the preferred video format. Make sure that your links are set to unlisted (not private!) and then only we will see it.
Post your video below…
Hopefully, you have all noticed the new comments section at the bottom of each page in the DTAA! I would love for you to comment, ask questions and say “hi”!
120 out of 120. Fun quiz.
Great stuff, well done! 🙂
This is the end…..but this is not the end, if that makes any sense🤔. The end of 21 days of learning and fun, but with many options ahead. The timing is great for me as I’ve got a few days off work and will use these to go back to day 0, which actually seems like a long time ago. I’ll work through the course again, pulling out and highlighting the parts that need more work. You have helped with this by pulling the main patterns from the course together in one pdf 👍. I’m super excited about the bonuses… Read more »
Thanks for the comment, Dave. Really pleased you enjoyed the course and are excited for everything that lies ahead. Your comments throughout have been great, not only for me to read but for others who take and have already taken the course these past few weeks. Very pleased you enjoyed it all and keep up the great practice. Thank you too! 🙂
I decided I wanted to try some new things so I have been playing the videos on the strumming songs and riffs pages. It will let me play a few videos or the same video a few times and then it tells me I have to log in again to see a video. Exact message is “Sign in to confirm you’re not a bot, This helps protect our community. I am logged in when it tells me that but if I log out and back in, it does fix it. I think the message is actually coming from YouTube. Seems to only happen… Read more »
It was YouTube so I went to YouTube and was able to fix it.
Okay, cool, thanks for the heads up and letting us know about that – will be handy if other members come across this issue. Glad it’s sorted. 🙂
Never knew these blank sheets were offered on this site. Trying to learn one of the riffs. Went and got some blank tab sheets I had downloaded elsewhere. I have always found that writing things down helps me remember and learn them better. Happy to know that these are available!
Yeah, one of the things I should mention more for users. I will add more links to these in the DTAA members. Thanks for that. Glad you found them helpful. 🙂
This really sounds beautiful! I’ll listen over and over. My concentration, focus is poor, but I’ll start out by listening to you over and over.
Pleased to hear it. That’s okay and at least you know. Keep doing as much concentrating/focusing as you can but start with very small busts (i.e. under a minute), then take a moment or two to reset. Listening goes a long way too so keep it up. 🙂
The final day, maybe, but so much learning to go back to and drill, get right, consolidate and build on. It’s been a great three weeks which promises much more to come. And what a way to finish – riffs and pumps. I enjoyed all three, not just on their own, but looking at how similar things could be applied to different chord sequences. But there is work to do to get them “locked in”. I have a few days off next week so I’ll be going back to day 1 and reviewing the whole course before even thinking of… Read more »
Thanks, Dave. Glad you enjoyed this lesson. It’s lots of fun and the more you use them and experiment with your own ideas, the more fun you will have. Sounds like you’ve enjoyed it all so far and pleased to hear it and enjoyed your comments and positive approach to learning throughout – long may it continue. It goes such a long way on the journey! 🙂
I guess it’s finally time to give focus to a weak link of mine. I have been working on fingerpick patterns, (from the bootcamp) to really get them set under my fingers, all going along fine, so i added a ‘banjo roll’ i had run across, said was a 3×2 (a simple thumb/ index / middle finger roll on strings 4, 3,2, wash and repeat) in 4/4 time over a 12 bar blues in G, i can count it out, and mostly get it right, so then i added a click and of course, …it breaks. I can go back… Read more »
It’s pretty common to lose the timing and let it drift with a click. One thing you can do is pluck notes on certain beats a little louder to help keep in time. Usually this can mean plucking beat 1 louder. It’s not a blanket fix but can help to reset the pattern each time it comes round rather than having an endless stream of notes. Of course, also take lots of breaks from the click (20 seconds or more of playing to a click can be too much for some at first).
This is a nice little piece, but I find I’m having trouble placing my right hand to mute the strings. I tend to mute the G string as well, and I end up feeling like my right hand is a claw – kind of tense and uncomfortable. Could use some advice on how to fix this.
Just to be clear there is no need to mute the strings here. Are you talking about playing this piece in a more of a “Boom Chick” kinda muted way? If so, one of the best things to do here is just work on the bass thumb plucks very slowly. Do a count of five between each pluck, relax, breathe, and try to let go of tension (which often starts in the arm or shoulder). Also, for the G string to sound clear you will need to adjust the picking hand position slightly (usually moving it up a touch) –… Read more »
I especially liked working on the fingerpicking tone in this lesson. I think my tone is a little weak, and I plan to work on overcoming that.
That’s good – striving for better tone is something we can all do I find. Just small little improvements over time can go a long way – so many legends of the guitar talk about this sort of thing too. Good work. 🙂
Thanks Dan. I absolutely love Johnny Cash. I first came across his music when I was a young punk rocker and this opened me up to lots of ridicule 😂. But I think in his later years he became popular with nearly everyone. Anyways, I digress. I have tried this style using a pick and always seem to mess up the bass notes. I really enjoyed this lesson and am looking forward to using this fingerstyle, after more practice, on I Walk The Line 😀👍.
Yeah, I know what you mean. I was into hard rock and grunge and one of my mate’s got me into him. At first, I found it odd that he loved Johnny’s music so much but quickly realised how cool, deep, meaningful, and often fun, his tunes were. Great voice too. Great song you mention! Hope you keep having lots of fun with this technique and style. 🙂
Got through Level 1 and 3 no problem. I seem to have a mental block when it comes to the London pattern…still. So, I have made it part of my daily practice routine. 10 min. It’s a slow go. lol
Glad you have nailed level 1 and 2. There will always be one or two areas that causes more problems than most but keep focusing on it and you will nail it. A great pattern to have in the locker 🙂
I always find myself returning to this song/lesson. 🙂 Love it.
Good stuff, it’s a classic and love the chord changes in this tune. 🙂
My name is William, and I want to learn finger style guitar. I will try this course and decide if I shall continue after the trial period. The monthly fee is expensive so that is a major factor. Regards William
Hi William, welcome aboard, and thanks for joining us. I hope you love it here and do let us know how you get on. Would love to hear how you progress! 🙂
Front a complete stranger, the metronome has become my new friend. I really like these exercises, especially the later ones. I struggled with the rhythm a few lessons back with the 3/4 Travis style pattern and found the metronome really helpful there.
Good stuff, the metronome is such a wonderful tool. The problem is that many folk teach people to play tough stuff using one and it puts them off. Glad you are finding these helpful. 🙂
Excellent. I feel that I’m repeating myself commenting on each lesson, but I am enjoying these lessons a lot. Super fun trying out different chord progressions within the key and using different patterns. And then adding little embellishments between chords, and then trying different ones….the variations are endless….and I haven’t even got to the bonus yet 😀👍
No worries about repeating yourself. It’s great that you are enjoying it. Ha, yeah, there are so many things we can do with these techniques – it’s all very exciting, and I’m glad the course and lessons are opening up new doors for you. (You’ll love the bonuses too). 🙂
These YouTube videos are wonderful. Thanks for adding them to this course. You rock, Dan!
😎😉
Pleased to hear it and my pleasure. Hope you have loads of fun with them! 🙂
Hi, Dan. Lovely jolly piece. I’m finding it a challenge to get the thumb plucks clean. The strings are still vibrating when it’s time to pluck again, so it’s very obvious if the thumb brushes against them before/while plucking. I can avoid that by plucking a string, then immediately placing the thumb on the next string ahead of the beat, so that it stops the vibration more cleanly and is primed to pluck again. I honestly can’t tell if you’re doing that in the video, although it seems likely. Anyway, is that the right idea? And would it still work… Read more »
Hi Dawna, glad you enjoyed the piece. It’s okay if the strings are vibrating as that means the notes will be ringing out cleanly. I encourage you to only touch a string with the picking hand at the point you pluck it. If you rest on the strings it will kill off the note. If the vibration is a buzzing sound it’s likely the fretting hand is releasing pressure (get close to the frets with this hand and keep the pressure on). Palm muting does kill off the strings faster but the same principles apply. I hope that makes sense… Read more »
Thanks, Dan. The unwanted noise is from my thumb brushing against a string before plucking – either the target string or its neighbor (both are still vibrating). Guess I’ll have to work on precision! Feels like more of a swoop down from a (slightly) greater height when I get it cleaner without stopping the string, whereas the stopping motion keeps the thumb closer to the plane of the strings.
It’s an interesting one. I wonder if part of the nail or thumb is touching the string. It’s hard to say without seeing (but feel free to send me a video if you want me to look). It’s well worth isolating any technical thing like this and just practicing thumb plucks over and over, paying close attention to when it sounds/feels good or bad. Do let us know how you get on. 🙂
Will do. Thanks!
I just dusted off my copy of Jamie Andreas’ Principles book, and discovered Foundation Exercise #12 for the R hand (bouncing thumb with arpeggio). That felt so good that I suspect it will help somehow!
That’s great to know. Plenty of good exercises for those fine details in Jamie’s book. Hope it helps and let us know how you get on. 🙂
Dan, Excellent course. daily lessons are concise and supporting videos quite helpful.
just the right amount for each day. great basics with good suggestions for creativity
and experimenting. looking forward to the bonus courses. thanks
Cheers, John. Super pleased to hear you have enjoyed it and the format was a hit. Well done going through it and enjoying the process. Hope you enjoy it when you revisit it and enjoy the bonuses too. 🙂
That was an 8 minute lesson, but there was so much content within it. I found that it required a lot more concentration, presumably because I’m more used to 4/4. Level 3 was particularly challenging but like anything new will just require concentration and repetition. I’m writing this in the evening after my third visit to the lesson….it is so much fun learning all these new techniques and patterns. 😀
That’s great, Dave. Love how you are revisiting the lesson and paying close attention to it and all the details. Keep up the great practice and keep having fun. 🙂
What a fun way to actually get better at Travis picking. I love the sound of it and have worked hard at learning it. This is a great way to go from just playing the base notes and one or two melody notes to playing more melody without losing the base. Still working to get the whole thing, but the first part is coming along nicely. 10x for the win!
Pleased you enjoyed this. Love Travis picking and hopefully this shows how simple stuff can sound great. Good stuff with the progress you’ve made so far and keep enjoying it. 🙂
This is a great way to warm up hands for cold winter days. Of course, where I am we’re having this incredibly extended Indian summer. We haven’t even had a hard frost yet.But it felt good anyway!
Very cool to know. Ah, lucky you for sure! Sounds like some nice times for playing the guitar. Nothing better than doing so on a lovely warm evening in the sun, and when the frost comes you’ll be ready. 🙂
I use a metronome quite often. With my piano playing, I use it to get the tempo faster on pieces. With guitar, I use it to get my spider exercises faster. It was fun to use it with fingerpicking as well.
Glad to hear you enjoyed it. I find musicians in general tend to be good at using them but guitarists don’t get enough encouragement. The metronome is super useful and can be fun too which I know you know! 🙂
Although I have the Fingerpicking 101 course, I’ve never finished it. I think this course will give me the motivation to not only do this course but finish Fingerpicking 101 as well.
Ah, that’s so cool. One of the big aims with this course is to get people using it and finishing. Many online courses never get finished for a variety of reasons. Even Fingerstyle 101, which is well loved, doesn’t always get finished. Sounds like the structure of this course worked for you which is pleasing to know. 🙂
I have truly enjoyed this course. I can’t wait to go back and spend more time with the course, as well as diving into the bonuses. Thank you for all the work you put into this course.
Thanks, Leslie. Pleased to hear it. Much appreciate the kind words too. Hope you get lots of fun from the lessons both now and in the future 🙂
Like these Fingerpicking Fun and Jam lessons!
Glad to hear it. Hope you have lots of fun with them! 🙂
Exciting? Well, yes indeed. And my review and consolidation is completed and I’m ready for a new lesson tomorrow. My method for this course has been to watch the lesson video(s) in the morning, before going to work. Then after work I print out the TAB and do the lesson. Then on Monday, which is my first day off, I review the previous lessons and post a comment if I have not already done so. I am really enjoying the variety and depth of this course. I have never really bothered with power chords, but this adds another dimension to… Read more »
That’s cool. You have a great system for using the course which is working well for you. Glad you are enjoying the variety – was keen to make it a fun and varied course as well as teaching the fundamentals. Glad you like the power chords and dyads – both are ace. 🙂
Another superb lesson and some new patterns to learn… really enjoyable using the rhythm of the strumming pattern too…but, I’ve come to a roadblock! I’m struggling with the percussive slap in the Secret Bonus lesson. So I think I’ll return to it in a few days time.
Glad you enjoyed it. The percussive hit is awkward at first. If it’s new to you, it will feel strange but with some experimenting, you will get it for sure. Do be patient though. Enjoy 🙂
Brilliant. Add this to the ever expanding list of new skills. It wasn’t easy but I enjoyed it very much, and I’m sure I’ll be returning to this lesson again. Superb Secret Bonus too.
Great stuff, this is such a powerful and important skill so I am glad you enjoyed it and the secret bonus. Cheers. 🙂
That was awesome! So much variety and so much fun. I really liked level 2 with the pull off, something that I struggle with, and the two chords at the end. What a lovely sound. I really struggled for a long time with the harmonics before realising that I was doing it wrong. Adjustment made and yes 😀👍. I have never come across harmonics before, so add this to the list of new discoveries on this wonderful course. I love these intros and also the added practice on the picking pattern 😀🎸👍
Cheers. Happy to know you enjoyed it. Sounds like lots of fun for you here – and yeah, harmonics, they are a bit of a secret weapon on the guitar I find. Such a cool sound. Keep having fun with all these ideas and thanks for the comment. 🙂
I enjoyed this course. There is a lot of information presented in a very digestable fashion. I will be cycling back through again, to pick up on ideas I missed first time through, and really setting muscle memory, which …for me… just takes a bit of time. While i can play a piece, or an exersize, setting the muscle memory, really getting it under my fingers, makes the techniques themselves really mine. Just me, ymmv. I like the idea presented, of going through the course, then doing a bonus lesson or 2, then going back thru. Thats the path I’ll… Read more »
Thanks, Allan. Pleased you enjoyed it. No doubt the more you go through it, the more little things you will pick up on, as well as refine other things. Keep enjoying it and I hope we all get to hear more about your progress. I appreciate all the comments throughout too! 🙂
I enjoyed these ideas and can see how they can be expanded to other chords with a little bit of experimentation. This has been a fast three weeks, but I’m excited that I can go back and tighten up my technique on the earlier lessons. A few of them had things that I couldn’t do in one day. Thanks for putting this course together.
Good stuff, I like that you are thinking about using them on other chords – like you say, it requires a bit of thinking, but that is time really well spent I have found. Fun too! Super pleased you enjoyed it and are excited to keep progressing. Well done! 🙂
Hi Dan, such a cool and interesting item to add to soloing.
Cheers, Rich. Yeah, it’s a really cool technique to use. Hope you have lots of fun with it. 🙂
Really enjoying the boot camp. Enjoy having the encouragement for improvising and experimenting within the lessons. One minor problem- have not received the individual email reminders for the past 2 lessons
Cheers, John. Really pleased to hear it. Sorry about that (occasionally a few emails drift into spam or promotions folders – were they possibly in there?)
Thanks for the reply, had checked my spam folder but none there. just wanted you to be aware of it. with the access on the website i can complete the course without the emails.
Thanks, John. The issue, it appears, is that it looks like you accidentally unsubscribed to the Bootcamp email list (Google makes it really easy to do that – too easy as one click and it gets done). You can easily re-subscribe to those emails though. Let me know if you want to. 🙂
Here I am at the last lesson of this 3 week class. It went so fast.
I really enjoyed this first pass, I will be going back through to tighten up my technique, and reinforce the concepts. small bites of focus of interlocking technique is working for me, I already see improvement, now to ‘set’ the learning and get it into muscle memory.
really enjoyed these last 3 weeks,
thank you!
Great to have you on board for it all, Allan. Super pleased you enjoyed it and glad to hear you will be revisiting it. Keep it up and well done. 🙂
I’ve made it through and I think this is (in my humble opinion) the best series you’ve made. Video and audio quality are excellent and so much information. I am thinking that I have to go through this a few times. It is definitely a great resource.
Would definitely recommend it.
Jim
Cheers, Jim. Really pleased to hear it. It was one of the most fun and epic courses to create and I loved putting it together. Delighted you enjoyed it all and hope you love going through it again (and again) and the bonuses too. 🙂
Great lesson! It got me more used to the index finger strum, which I was very resistant to. It actually feels much better now. I also enjoyed the bass runs. I can’t wait until I’m as fast at it as you are. I’m a big country music fan, so this adds to my arsenal.
Good stuff. Nice to learn a style you love and improve some little techniques too such as the index finger strum. Don’t worry about the speed – lots of slow and controlled “reps” will build the muscle memory and then the speed. 🙂
I sooo love this tune. It’s my favourite.
Yeah, it’s a great one. So much fun. 🙂
Hi Dan
I’ve returned to this course purely to refresh myself. Working full-time now, woop woop….
Only drawback i don’t get any spare time during the week for practice, having my dog too, I’m a very busy bee. This is good for me because all the bad habits you talk about in this course I don’t have, Thanks to your teaching.
I recently advertised one of my guitars for sale. One question i received….. Is it easy on the fingers. My reply was ” Depends how you’ve been taught. Easy on my fingers.”
Enjoy your weekend
Angie
Hi Angie, that’s great. Pleased you are busy and enjoying it. Great about the lack of bad habits – makes me happy to know that. Ha, love that last comment too. Have a great weekend yourself. 🙂
That was fun.
Great stuff, pleased to hear it!
Staying on beat …after a bit is comes in fairly easy. Going with melody starting off beat not on 1, rather on the ‘and’ is more a challenge, but comes after a bit. Excellent exersize, this will be a regular for a while. enjoying this a lot.
Super pleased to hear it. Yeah, playing anything off the beat can be a challenge but as you say it comes after a bit. Pleased you are seeing progress with it and having fun. 🙂
Picking up where I left off in the Bootcamp on day 11. The “London” pattern. I had to go back to Fingerpicking 101 and review it. As you know, I like to find practical applications to the lessons and apply them, as it is easier to learn the pattern. You mention Paul Simon using this pattern. Are you referring to songs like “The Boxer” or ” Homeward Bound”? The pattern I use are Root and high E, then G,B,G. It may help if you associate a popular song with a particular pattern, which I know you usually do. Thanks for… Read more »
Good you’ve gone back over it as fully as you need to. Yeah, the boxer especially was a big inspiration with the pattern, and don’t forget the pattern can be varied in ways you mention. That’s a cool thing about fingerpicking – so many variations of the same pattern even if we just change one string in the pattern. 🙂
Wow! I can’t believe that it’s Day 19 already. I’ve learned a lot, but there is still so much to go back and learn. I enjoyed working with the dyads, as this is a fairly new concept for me. I’ve used the metronome a great deal – in fact, I use it daily with my spider exercises – so it was more fun for me to get to work with diads and see if I could keep them with the beat.
Yes, it’s flying by and pleased you have learnt a lot in this short space of time. That’s great – any way you can use a metronome in an inspiring and musical manner is always a good thing. Keep having fun with the dyads. 🙂
This is a lesson I’ll definitely want to come back to. I’ll want to play all the fingerpicking patterns we’ve done so far, as well add in those from the fingerpicking book. It’s time for me to haul out my Peter, Paul, and Mary book and use some of these patterns. Thanks for a great lesson.
My pleasure and pleased you’re enjoying it. Nice to recap the patterns (hint: we will be doing that soon in the course too). Hope you have loads of fun with these patterns. 🙂
This is an all season check! Nicely done.
Glad to hear it – for sure, can be done all year round (extra useful on the cold days too). 🙂
Dan, Fun! Should have titled it “Trills and Thrills” I applied it to a D chord and used the trill with my pinky on the third fret of the high E string.
Ha, yes, I like that title – or “no more chills from your trills”. Yours is better! Awesome stuff applying it to a chord already – great little workout for the pinkie what you mention there. 🙂
Like it!
Cheers 🙂
Hi Dan, Went all the way back to breakthrough beginner as suggested, I must admit I was expecting to shoot through this in no time but decided to show some patience and not race ahead an low & behold I have learnt to major things – You are right there are no easy songs I cant believe how long it took me to learn Happy Birthday which puts everything else I have been trying to do into context and I have been strumming to hard for years especially on the up strokes which is why its sounds bad and ringy,… Read more »
Hi Peter, good stuff. So many miss the basics or gloss over them but a period of focused time on these lessons will make all the difference going forward. Glad you appreciate the patience needed – many do not. Keep the focus and patience and keep enjoying the journey. You’ll love it so much more if you do. 🙂
I just chose the G scale 1 6 4 5 pattern, its fun to listen to the different sounds from different pattens on the same chord pattern. Since it was Gmajor scale, thought I’d try intro’s with the Em scale we played with earlier in the course, since the Em is relative minor to G. Interesting, definately a work in progress, I see the light at the end of the tunnel….. (hopefuly not a Mars light on a locomotive… lol).
Allan
Great stuff, glad you are feeling confident, enjoying it, and trying different things out. Really cool to take certain things from the course and try out other things with it. Definitely light at the end of a hopefully bright and short tunnel. 🙂
This is harder than you make it look!
Yeah, but it does get easier. Stick with it slowly and build the muscle memory, then it will feel easier and speed will come. 🙂
Cool little song Dan…. Lot’s of little fun things in there!!
Cheers
Cheers, Logan. Glad you like it. Have fun with it – I’m sure you will. 🙂