Matthew Hutchinson - A New Voice in Classical Guitar

Finally Nailed That Barre Chord!

This week, I told my teacher just how painful that barre chord in Romanza was, and that I'd felt I'd made very little progress with the piece as a result. He pointed out a small flaw in my finger position on the barre. Apparently, I wasn't taking advantage of the large knuckle that forms the base of the index finger. All I had to do was relax a little and move my finger up just enough so that that knuckle frets the first and second strings. After correcting my finger position, I played the chord again, and it sounded fantastic! I was so excited that I laughed out loud at how easy it was to correct the problem!

I'm also very pleased to announce that I've since made significant progress with the piece and can play the entire first half that my teacher assigned me last week!

One Painful Barre Chord

Romanza has quickly proven to be quite a deceptively simple beast. Not only am I dealing with rest strokes, I'm also getting to learn how to pluck two strings at once while keeping two other fingers planted on two other strings in order to complete the arpeggios that make up the entire piece.

There's one particularly difficult chord progression that starts at the 12th fret, moves to a half barre chord on the 5th fret (fifth position), and then ends with a full barre chord on the 7th fret (seventh position), with my middle finger on the 8th fret of the third string and my pinky on the 11th fret on the 1st string. One of the notes in that last barre chord is part of the barre itself, specifically the 2nd string - which means I have to be able to keep my index finger flat enough on the fretboard so as to not mute the note when I play it.

That chord is fucking murder on my index finger, which means I've got a lot of work to do in order to develop the muscle connecting my index finger and thumb well enough to avoid muting the note.

Thankfully, my teacher had some ideas on how to develop my barre chords, and now I've got some extra stretching exercises to incorporate into my practice routine.

For your viewing pleasure, here's a picture of that barre chord:

The Principles of Correct Practice for Guitar

I received my copy today. The first thing I noticed upon opening the package was the spiral binding. Major kudos for that. It's perfect for resting the book flat open on a music stand.

The book is divided into five chapters broken down into each of three different types of study for every concept discussed in each chapter:

Understandings that discuss the various concepts that are taught in the book...

Tools that include specific approaches you can use in your practice...

Exercies that use the approaches to help you develop and maintain your technique.

After reading it, I've discovered that I'm already familiar with many of the concepts, but from a different approach. I did, however, find some really useful information on how to rid myself of some of the tension I've been feeling when playing, which is why I bought it in the first place. That'll come in real handy.

This book was written for anyone who's ever had any interest in playing guitar, already plays but needs help correcting problem areas (me), or is just starting out but either can't afford a (good) teacher, and/or hasn't the slightest idea of how to begin learning.

I own two method books:

Hal Leonard Guitar Method Book 1
Christopher Parkening Guitar Method vol. 1

While good instructional material in their own right, neither of them contain the degree of foundational information found in the Principles. They give you a lot of content (music and theory exercises, sitting and hand positions), but none of the building blocks needed to do anything with that content.

The Principles is definitely worth the money for anyone serious about learning to play and looking for help with knowing HOW to practice and not just WHAT to practice.

Imagine sitting with a teacher for the first time, and the entire lesson is spent learning how to familiarize yourself with the guitar, develop and maintain whole body awareness to help you stay relaxed while playing, put fingers to strings, and begin playing your first notes. Imagine, also, that your teacher is giving you some good, solid advice on how to get started practicing and developing an effective practice schedule that will guarantee progress if you just stick to it. You now have a foundation with which to begin learning that will become an integral part of your success for the rest of your life.

Now, imagine that entire session printed in a 77-page book, complete with pictures and diagrams, and you've got The Principles.

No Lesson This Week - Romanza, Principles

My teacher had plans to celebrate the 4th with his family, so I had no lesson this week.

I'm learning a new song - Romanza, by Anonymous. Mind you, that's not the author's real name. The piece is simple, yet challenging in that I'm working with rest strokes. Rest strokes involve letting the designated finger rest on the string it lands on after rolling off the string it plucks, just until the next string is plucked. This gives the note more resonence, enhancing the overall effect and beauty of the song.

Finally, I ordered some instructional material yesterday morning - namely, a book titled The Principles of Correct Practice for Guitar, by Jamey Andreas. It claims to posess one thing most other books often lack - guidance on how to build a better foundation for practice. I'm going to use it as suplimental material for my current studies in an effort to help identify and correct any bad habits I've picked up while learning, and fix the habits I'm already aware of. At $34 (s/h included), it's not exactly cheap, but I've been told it's worth the investment. I hope so. One thing I've learned during my studies is that you can never have too many resources on how to learn to play guitar.

You can visit Jamey's site here.