I've been running this 27-year experiment to get these results. ;) Check out all my video lessons at: www.the-art-of-... and/or Patreonize me:) / theartofguitar Thanks!
This dude doesn't just give you guitar lessons, he gives you LIFE lessons, everything in this video, or his videos in general can be applied in non-guitar stuff, that's what I love about his channel.
That is part of the magic of music. Think about it, have you ever known of any career (real, actually talented) musician that was a complete moron? Of course I'm making exceptions for douche bags such as Bono and Neil Young. But they're actually just singers if we're being honest. But I digress.. it sort of makes sense that some parents push their children to take up music.
I’m 51 years old and just picked up a guitar when Covid 19 hit. I figured if I’m gonna be stuck at home I might as well learn something. I won’t lie, it’s not easy. But I see progress. At first I couldn’t hold a C chord even when I focused all my attention on it. But now it’s become much easier. My scales are speeding up, my fingers don’t hurt any more and I find the whole practice calming. It’s like a session of meditation. Focusing on one thing to the exclusion of everything else so you mind doesn’t wander. Now I wish I had picked it up before but I guess I wasn’t ready before. Got a MIM fender Strat but since the pandemic interrupted delivery, I also Got a cheap second hand steel string acoustic. Not gonna buy any more gear till I feel I have earned it with my progress. Blues inspires me the most 😊
Hey bro, just a tip from one player to another - you can take it or leave it. If you want to put off buying gear (which I heartily commend!), stay the hell away from guitar utube channels!There is a reason sponsors line up to hand their gear out to Utubers, and why many Utubers have walls of guitars, and just insane amounts of gear. It triggers our G.A.S.! If you don't know what that is, it's called Guitar/gear Acquisition Syndrome and A) it is deadly, and B) we all have it. Every single guitar player, ever! No sh*t! The more gear you see in the Utubers studio, the more dangerous he/she is! I have spent $7K (AUD) in under 2 years since I started watching guitar utube channels. Prior to that, I was always happy with one guitar, one amp, one pedal. Now I've got 5 expensive guitars, 2 amps and 13 pedals and counting ...and that's softcore compared to many. I should add that I don't have much money. I had to slog my guts out in a hot laundry to fund these acquisitions - and on top of that, my Zippay is maxed out. Don't freak out, just be forewarned. Only watch someone giving a lesson, and of those only the guys with just them and their guitar in frame. (This guy on this channel is good 🤙). Congratulations on mastering some chords and working on some scales already. Its immensely satisfying, isn't it? Working on something again and again and again until you start to master it. And welcome to the guitar!
Thanks guys! At my age I have no ambitions to play on stage ever so I figured starting to play guitar would be purely a personal journey, but now I see there’s a whole community I’m joining and it’s refreshing to see a community spirit that welcomes you 😊🙏
"Not gonna buy any more gear till I feel I have earned it with my progress." You'll soon find out that that's a lie. Buying gear is a disease worse than covid and we (guitarists of all levels) are hopelessly infected with it. Best of luck though.
"Not gonna buy any more gear till I feel I have earned it with my progress" Oh man I'm guilty with this thinking! It actually can motivate you. "When I can play Wish You Were Here - the whole song, leads, in-time" got me my American Strat ;-) P.S. 53 y/o old here. Don't give up! Muscle memory really is a thing - trust in it ;-)
I lost by brother to cancer last year, and can definitely say that trauma messed me up. Getting a guitar has been my saviour ever since and ur videos have helped so much ❤
sorry to hear but it's good that you found something that has eased your mind.I started to learn as a 12 year old,now 55 and have jack the dancer and have picked it up again,don't expect to be that good but just enjoy playing around with it,so it eases my mind as well,that's the great thing about music,soothes the soul.
I am so sorry to hear that. I recently lost my 18 year old son. Trauma in every single way. I am so very sorry for your loss! 😢 I picked up the guitar for the same reason you did. Healing. It is actually my son’s guitar and I won’t stop until I conquer it in honor of my baby boy. If you haven’t heard the song “Hold Me While You Wait”...listen to it!! It is the song I heard and just KNEW .... that is what I have to learn to play!! It’s beautiful. I will be thinking of you and please know that you’re not in suffering alone.
In some martial arts systems, the beginner wears a white belt - and the highest level master wears double-white belts. The reason: the master is just another level of beginner.
Revolving my life around guitar for 22 years, I dont understand how the majority of people live their lives without that "something." Whether it's an instrument, or any other art form or hobby. I cant understand how it's even possible.
I think the best thing in my life are my hobbies. Problem is I have too many of them and now in my 30s I have very little time to devote to any of them.
I remember many times I would get “stuck”, I would put the guitar down, or move on. When I would come back to it, it would all fall in place like I’ve always known how to play it. That is a rewarding feeling
Haha that's exactly what happened to me with the lead part of For Whom the Bell Tolls about a year after I picked up guitar. I couldn't do it to save my life. Angerly just strummed all the strings at once, set the guitar down and didn't touch it for a week. Came back and suddenly was able to do it much better, not perfect, but manageable. Other times I'll just stop trying to learn something I' having difficulty with and start doing random noodling for a few min then go back and it'll start to click.
An interesting fact I’d like to share with you on that subject is that this is what is exactly required to learn any skill in life. Practising and learning required two types of thinking: focused and diffused thinking. Focused is when you really set and use your full conscious to learn something, but the diffuse mode of thinking is your subconcious connecting the pieces of information your learning without actually being actively practise. The art of learning something is finding a balance in that. For me personally it works to have practise sessions of pure focus on something I want to learn on guitar, followed by going outside, go see some friends or literally any other way to “relax” your mind a bit, followed by going back to another intense focus session. That back and forth is vital to learning anything! That’s why sleep is also so important, it helps your brain consolidate the neural pathways you make when you are learning in a focused manner!
i agree with this but at the same time i find people can become afraid to truly use their instruments if they "fear it" i guess? im not sure how to phrase it but i mean like my acoustic was a gift to me from a friend who had one sitting around for years and never used it and im learning more than i ever did because im not afraid to really beat on it or play around with the tuning since the guitar would have been garbage basically and i put stickers on it and now it feels like an ally instead of an opponent. i hope that makes sense to someone lol
Without music, I wouldn't have been able to get through personal ordeals. I play music because I found light in what looked like a dark arduous tunnel, now, I want to make music to inspire people. not just to learn music, but for their passions. to put this shortly, the first one hit close to home.
You hit the nail on the head by saying " be humble".I've been playing guitar for over 40 years ,taught for 10 yrs.I still continue to learn from people that have been playing for only a little while.They might have a way of looking at things different than myself but it can be useful to me to put into practice in my playing or a helpful thing to pass on to a beginner.Just like life itself,we are all merely students.Never stop learning.
This applies not only to guitar but to every hobby in general. I've always been trying to get my friends into guitar, but all of them get discouraged after not being talented at it right away. Definitely feel like every person getting into a long term hobby should watch this video, well said dude
I started on guitar to beat the loneliness I felt as a child Pain never came into my head after a short time I’m still learning and feel the same excitement about the guitar at age 50 than as a 12 year old RnR will never die 👍🏻🇮🇪
A year ago I was asked to teach two kids guitar/ ukulele, but they were unmotivated up to the point when one kid didn't even want to pick up the guitar in the lesson, so I decided to teach them a riff that was way above their skill level but it seemed to motivate them. So my takeaway is that you always need a goal you want to achieve to stay motivated. (I'm neither a professional teacher nor a native English speaker so correct me if I was wrong)
You didn't know how to be humble? I thought everyone knew that. In fact, I'm probably the most humble person I know; happy to teach you how to be like me.
Man I lost my dad when I started lessons and my first teacher didn't understand when I said I wanted my guitar to sound sad when I am sad and happy when when Im happy. My second teacher unstudied me and I am still with him today.
I'd like to rephrase your 3 traits in more general terms: 1. Interest/passion 2. Grit 3. Humility This is far more universal than just guitar -- applies to almost anything in life!!!
My childhood was also less than ideal, and I'm learning guitar to channel pain out as well. I find myself tearing up when certain sounds come together and seem to resonate just right, like something inside was released through it after decades of being bottled up. I really appreciate your videos.
I've had a rough life, so part of me is skeptical, but my guitar teacher is so encouraging. I went to get lessons because he happened to open shop in town, but even though it's only a passing interest, I was open to learning and he could tell I was engaged. Even when the shop closed he'd come to my home to give me lessons. I miss our lessons, damn isolation. I think I'm lucky though in that before PTSD and disability got to me, I spent 20 years doing martial arts, so I know change happens incrementally, like a year into karate I noticed my forearms were really defined suddenly. Back when I started learning aikido I'd watch videos of the masters and my mind would be torn between "I can't imagine being that good" and "I can't wait to be that good." You gotta just keep plugging away and trust that consistant practice will get you somewhere and enjoy making noise ^_^
I can often feel a bit intimidated when I sit down to play or even think about playing. Even though it's one of the best things I know. Like just knowing I'm holding this really powerful tool that's capable of so much and that I know so little of can make playing feel a little daunting sometime's
Totally agree with you on this one! But keeping at it, learning pieces bit by bit ultimately gets you the pont you want to be at, it just takes time, dedication and repetition
I teach older students(60 plus) for the U3A in the UK. The most common sentence I hear is "I've always wanted to play the guitar for 50 years..."-when I hear that I die slightly inside these are the students who expect some magic fairy dust to be sprinkled on them without working at practicing. If they give up I suggest the Ukulele which I also teach...usually works.
Aw hell, this made me feel guilty- but I needed it. I've been that person who is like "I already know this" and with hindsight I know it was just an attempt to puff my ego up. I still have tons and tons to learn- there's always someone better and they usually live within like three or four miles of you!!
Teresa Thomley I’ve been playing guitar for about 30 years and learn something new every time I play. I’ve learned it’s more about finding your play style and trying to hone that craft.
Guitar is def not easy, but it’s still fun! I’m still a beginner, it’s frustrating but still an enjoyable experience! There’s so much to learn, lots of inspiration out there. I don’t think I’ll ever be bored with it 🎸👌🏾
Wow. As in 'just.... WOW!'. This might be my very favorite video of Mike's, and there are a lot of his saved into my playlists, but this feels the most personally relevant. I've been fascinated by the guitar for as long as I can remember; there are photos of me at about 4 years old 'playing' a toy tennis racquet I had and, later, a toy guitar. I would listen endlessly to Simon and Garfunkle's' 'Bridge Over Troubled Water', Dad's Jim Croce and Wes Montgomery albums while focusing on the guitars. Reading the credits to see the instruments being played and trying to match those to what I heard. As I got older, the interest remained and I wanted lessons but Mom was more inclined towards piano. So.... we compromised and I took classical piano lessons through middle school and high school, but my heart was never in it. My teacher was a fantastic pianist who had been performing since age 13 and played with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra and who, sadly, was probably wasted on me. Practice was always a chore and progress was laborious and slow. It probably didn't help that, as a young science nerd, the 'why' of things always helped me more than a 'cookbook' approach. People, upon learning I was taking lessons, always asked if I could play by ear or improvise and it shamed me that I had to say "No." I couldn't even understand how people *could*, not having any understanding of the underlying theory. What I didn't know at that time, and actually didn't understand until late in 2019 (thanks to some YouTub piano channels), was that the classical instruction paradigm traditionally didn't focus on those elements. Several online instructors confessed that they didn't have a clue either until after they'd graduated from college (as music majors) and it was eye-opening to find out that it wasn't just me. Unsurprisingly, I didn't touch a keyboard for decades, but I never really lost my ardor for guitar. Fast forward 35 years to my discovery of a couple of music theory playlists on piano and guitar instruction channels. With the light bulbs going off, my fingers started itching and I finally bought a used acoustic with change harvested from the couch cushions. Since the New Year, I've been laying hands on it every day (with the help of Mike and others) and it's never been a chore. Short stints of 5-15 minutes spread throughout the day seem to have been key, although they've gotten longer as my fingers have toughened and the instrument has come to feel less alien. Over the years, I've been involved in a number of athletic pursuits and some of them feel strangely relevant; particularly gymnastics and rowing. For gymnastics, it took a couple of years of work to develop the strength and flexibility to be able *start* to work on a lot of moves. Concerning rowing, I often think of an analysis I once read that asserted the psychology of rowers was different from a lot of athletes... it can be intensely painful and it's one of the rare sports where you never see the finish line until the race is over. You sit there, legs burning, wanting to barf and just keep pulling. And pulling. With no end in sight until you've passed it. Oddly, those experiences have translated to guitar in ways I didn't expect. I've been focused on learning the fundamentals, developing my conditioning and trying to do things correctly. I'm in no hurry but have a faith that if I keep plugging away I might eventually evolve into a crappy guitar player... with the ultimate goal of becoming a mediocre guitarist. Seeing a post like this fuels my hope that these are not unreasonable expectations. Thanks to Mike for helping to restore reignite my interest and keep my dream alive! And apologies all around for the preceding essay.
the longer i play and learn the more i realize what a baby i am in this journey, and am blown away at others play, you wanna play you've got to stay...humble i love your videos so much🎸 thankyou!
I know nothing. Help me fill my cup. Awesome. After 30 yrs of picking up and putting down the guitar for various reasons. I can't just quit. Just keep going. Be patient with yourself. Don't ever give up your passion for another. Be true to yourself first. Step out of comfort zones. Failing is part of the process for every sucess. Keep challenging yourself. There are no short cuts. Practice and repetition are words that have great meaning. Thanks bro.
I wish I could be your student I have been playing for the past year and by myself ive learned so much but I feel like ive hit that ceiling and even though I do make distance every once in a while but I feel like I could use a great teacher because I sometimes dont see what can be best for me to learn its mostly been passion to be up on stage like eddie van halen or eric johnson just the beauty of what they do its just the love I have
I love these videos. I started teaching as a 2nd job and these stories are just so relatable. You're right in the first lesson or two you can tell if the student is genuinely interested or if the parents are pushing for some reason.
One of the best messages I have heard for people (trying) to become better at playing the guitar. I have zero talent or musical sense, but I love playing, learning and want to keep doing it. This reinforces my thought process; my line of thinking is on par; keep at it, ask questions, and don't pretend you know things you don't. Thanks for the message, made my day.
When it comes to my playing, I always think 6 months ahead. I dont get mad that way. It's a good confidence builder for people that love to play and practice a lot at home like I do. I learned spirit of radio last month and gosh I sucked up that crazy fast intro so bad at first wow. You gotta just keep at it over and over and over. I got it where its like buttah now and I am so stoked when i nail that. Its so much fun when that happens. Have a great day😁
interesting point about childhood and dysfunctional family, and I would say that when I was introduced to a musical intrument, first I saw was a SG model (1976) when I was returning from a hockey practice, it was in a store, in a window and it called me to go and see it and also that famous Kiss alive album put the guitars in another perspective, more like a object from the outer worlds, which was practically going hands in hands with some TV shows from that era. So yeah for a couple of hundred dollars, you found a friend, a friend for life, still do music, but more leaning toward jazz, really good for expression
I am amazed. All 3 is spot on about me, especially about not that easy childhood thing. I actually never thouth about it and this clicked in me as soon as i heard it. 10/10 video, everything that was said here is absolutely true
This is one of my top 5 guitar channels if not the first..there is just something about your aura i could listen you for hours. Another thing..you are giving most valuable lessons, you are really looking a wider picture all these small things that people dont't realise importance of: posture, arm angle, rhythm being more important than shreding and so on.. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with us!
Hey, I played the flugelhorn! Chuck Mangione for life! ☺ However, trumpet is definitely not an instrument that is fun to play without a band, so guitar it is! Loving it so far. Keep up the great vids.
Picked up the guitar after my exams this year (feb?) I already knew a few chords but I've started learning some lead stuff, I've practically been glued to my guitar for the last five months and when I'm not with it I'm watching guitar videos... I got my first electric last month and I'm so excited to learn more things! Your videos are great dude, I'm currently watching all of them lol
Thanks for the reminder that all the struggles on the guitar are only a hurdle in the big picture. Right now feeling a bit frustrated stuck learning the same solo section for weeks.
I'm late to guitar like I'm late to this video. I originally picked up bass and I was that apothetic guy who just got on with it but didn't particularly enjoy it until I put the instrument down and stopped entirely. Mid 20's now and just picked up my first guitar, a Jackson JS32T Rhaods and I'm like a kid again, excited to play after work and just going into my own world learning stuff slowly but surely, it's fantastic.
I picked up guitar about 7 months ago, and have seen pretty good progress throughout the start of my guitar journey, even though I'm self taught. Your videos help keep the fire burning, as well as others in the guitar community, which is a great place. Thanks for the great advice and videos, they keep the drive going so I can progress and hopefully get somewhere with guitar.
Old new begginer here. Found out that I don't see the progress from what I did today until tomorrow. So I'm always excited for tomorrow with the guitar! Only been playing 4 months but nailed 3dg never too late. Working on Breaking Benjamin Angels fall. All your videos help me. Even the ones I can't do yet. It still gives me something! Love the guitar can't get enough.
Wise words......humility and hunger drive me.....plus if I could give any advise it's to be happy for others who play better or differently than you.....its not a competition and also,I think the childhood trait thing is bang on!
Good to know that I have the three traits you mentioned. Always wanted to learn guitar, but for one reason or another I couldn't, but with the dawn of the Internet and its many resources, there's no reason to not learn now. The best thing that anyone ever said to me was that learning how to play guitar isn't easy and will take time. My love for music leads me to be patient, and it's so cool when you learn something that you thought was impossible. Since I love to listen to music, it's always humbling to hear fabulous musicians like EVH, Al Di Meola, and others play something. Then if you really want to be humbled, listen to someone with disabilities play the guitar, like Django Reinhardt and Tony Iommi. Whenever I'm struggling and feel the discomfort and pain, I think of Django and Tony. Yes, there is much to learn, and it is a long journey, but it is so rewarding.
Good video, love your last point. I'm a teacher too and I see this a lot, the student who doesn't seem to know what they don't know. It's the Dunning-Kruger effect, where people way overestimate their ability, constantly telling me "they already know that" even as I watch them struggle to execute it, rushing through things and not taking the time to master one thing before moving on to the next. It's frustrating as a teacher to try and slow them down and teach them humility, in some cases it just doesn't work at all. It's unfortunate because all they're really doing is sabotaging themselves. If you ever have any tips on how to handle that kind of student, I'd love to hear them.
You sound just like my martial arts instructors past and present. I love it. Thanks for all the videos, they have been a huge help. I am only 11 weeks in to playing as I picked it up once quarantine started and I love it! I absolutely suck, haha, but the journey feels just the same as when I started martial arts.
I came to guitar in a round about way. I was first struck by a mandolin/violin group name Barrage. Something clicked and I new I wanted, and could learn Mandolin. After that I figured why not try guitar? That was a long time ago and I mainly play guitar now, but I still love my mandolin. Kevin O'Rourke
I'm in my fourth year of learning guitar. Along the way, there were certain songs or riffs I wanted to learn that I couldn't quite play. I told myself: 'I'm not ready yet' but I'll try again when I feel a bit more confident in my ability. For instance, it took me a while to learn the intro to "Revelations" by Iron Maiden but I finally got it down. I think it's important to set goals and visualize yourself playing those riffs and you will get there.
Mike you are an excellent teacher man. I've been learning so much since I subscribed to your channel. I especially love your habits/traits videos. I have been able to take some habits and tricks developed by some of the greats to alter my style into something that I love to play. Thanks for all the advise and help man. Keep up all the good work
Eh man, big fan of your channel. I actually picked up bass guitar about a year and a half ago and genuinely enjoy these kinds of videos because they motivate me to keep learning about my instrument. Thanks for doing what you do.
I've been playing guitar professionally for 33 years now and I still love learning new things. If you always want to learn, you will stay humble enough to become good. You can always spot someone who can't play very well by how much they talk. Never stop learning!
i think the best way to motivate someone to play guitar is to start on electric. even a cheap squier. for me, when i started, i only had this little acoustic guitar someone gave me, and i started looking up videos online, but i was never that much motivated, until my uncle let me borrow his strat, and all of a sudden i felt like i was a real guitar player and not some stupid begginner, and it really helped with my confidence and motivated me to learn more
Very refreshing with a teacher on RU-vid who just doesn't promote short-cuts and "3 riffs that will take you you through anything", because it takes time and real effort to get good at anything.
This described me almost perfect mom and dad got divorced mom stayed in Florida we came back to Michigan. 3 yrs in I’m still sucky but I never gave up no matter what bcuz people made fun of me and it at first it hurt but then it fueled me.
Well done to your friend for calling you out, and MASSIVE props for owning and sharing that, a lot of whats wrong with this world is people who can't admit theyr'e not perfect or right all the time. You rule, and you look like John Cusack.
27 years - dude was born holding a guitar and after he could breathe, he looked at the doctor and said "Today we are going to discuss the enharmonic frequencies of the major scale".
I didnt think I would relate to this at all Ive been playing guitar for 4 days and this really solidified my idealization of becoming a great guitarist. Kinda scary tho how much I related to this thank you for getting me thinking.
Thank you for this video, it is helping me in several ways. I am just beginning and I am trying to approach the process with the "long-term" philosophy, so I find that I am more forgiving of myself, and in exploring why I want to play the guitar. I think that your patience is very helpful to your students. I will follow your lessons closely..