Guitar Music Theory

In this free guitar lesson, I have another installment of How Does This Song Work? featuring “Down Under” by Men at Work. This reggae-inspired song features great rhythm guitar tracks that make use of CAGED system chord shapes, sixteenth note strumming, and hybrid picking technique. Instead of using guitar tablature, I just show you the main chords and parts of the song and explain the music theory.  

In this free guitar lesson, I talk with a physiotherapist about hand anatomy, why we have more control over some fingers than others, and things you can do to improve your hand dexterity and play to your strengths.  

In this free guitar lesson, I teach you how to play the opening riff heard in Stevie Ray Vaughan’s song, “Cold Shot.” I explain what you need to do to play it using the right tone, timing, and technique. I also answer some email questions.  

In my latest podcast episode, I talk about different things you can do with your guitar playing in 2021. If you're looking to get more out of your playing but you're not sure what to do exactly, I give you several suggestions.  

In this free guitar lesson, I talk about the rockabilly lead guitar fills heard in the song “Jingle Bell Rock” by Bobby Helms.  

In this free guitar lesson, I explain and demonstrate what it means to play legato on guitar. Legato refers to the smooth transition between notes using hammer-ons, pull-offs, and slides.  

In this free guitar lesson, I analyze the song “Walk Away” by Joe Walsh as recorded by his former band, James Gang. You get to know the key, chords, and progression as well as the scales used for the guitar solo.  

In this free guitar lesson, I have another installment of How Does This Song Work featuring “Gravity” by John Mayer. I give you an overview of the song including the chords, progression, composition techniques, and the scales used for the solos. I also demonstrate a part from the live version of the song.  

In this free guitar lesson, I answer email questions regarding learning pentatonic scale patterns, playing country guitar solos, identifying roots and modes, practicing picking exercises, and changing scales over chords.  

In episode 73 of the Guitar Music Theory podcast, I talk with Your Guitar Sage, Erich Andreas. We talk about how we got started teaching guitar online and what made Eddie Van Halen so great.  

Should guitar players learn how to read music? In this free guitar lesson, I discuss the pros and cons of reading standard musical notation. I talk about where your time might be better spent and how professional guitarists use their sight-reading skills.  

In this free guitar lesson, I explain what chord inversions, chord voicings, and drop 2 chords are. I demonstrate how you can add variety to your playing with different chord shapes, and how these chord forms are used in familiar guitar songs. I make use of the CAGED chord system as taught in my course Fretboard Theory Chapter 3.   

In this free guitar lesson, I explain to you that it’s not necessary to use all five pentatonic scale patterns. Most players have particular patterns and portions of patterns they favor and use most of the time. I’m going to show you why players do this and why you should do it too.  

In this free guitar lesson, I demonstrate part of the instrumental track, “Eruption,” that is featured on the very first Van Halen record and performed by Eddie Van Halen. I explain how the finger tapping technique works, how the tapping uses arpeggios, and how those arpeggios create a chord progression that features modal interchange and harmonic minor. I also discuss how I dial in an Eruption tone and my reverb, delay, and phaser settings.  

Interview with Fretboard Theory student Fabio Marraccini from the Where Music Meets Technology podcast. We talk music theory, modes, rock music, and more.  

In this free guitar lesson, I have tips for small-handed and short-fingered guitars. If you struggle to play guitar because you have little hands or stubby fingers, these tips will help you eliminate most of your problems. The four things I’m going to talk about include:   What is the ideal hand size to play guitar? Which guitars are best for small-handed players? How should small-handed players hold their guitar? What can small-handed players do differently on the fretboard?  

Interview with two special guests, Kory Brunson and Jason Wyatt from Nashville Artist Development University (NADU). https://naduniversity.com/   We talk about what it takes to become a successful music artist and how their program is putting many musicians on the fastback to living their dreams. If you’ve ever wondered how the music industry works, you’re going to find this discussion interesting.  

In Episode 65 of the Guitar Music Theory podcast, I answer questions about keeping time, using modes over chords, teaching children, playing what you hear, small hands, and more.  

In episode 64 of the Guitar Music Theory podcast, I talk with Carrie Underwood guitarist Matt Reviere. I ask him what it’s like being part of such a big live show, which pieces of gear he uses, and how he prepares for his performances.  

In this free guitar lesson, I have another installment of How Does This Song Work featuring “The Thrill is Gone” by B.B. King. You get to know this song’s key, chords, and chord progression, as well as the different ways you can approach the solo.