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7 Day Guitar Practice Routine – #3 Arpeggios

In Arpeggios, Guitar Blog, Practice and Technique by Craig SmithLeave a Comment

Hey it’s Arpeggio day! This week we’re going to change it up by doing some Arpeggio sequences for guitar. If you missed the first 2 installments you can find them here: 7 Day Guitar Practice Routine: Day 1 – Warmups 7 Day Guitar Practice Routine: Day 2 – Modal Workout If you’re new to the routine, I highly recommend reading the first one that includes important instructions on how to practice the right way every …

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Guitar Modes – A Beginners Guide to Modal Scales

In Guitar Blog, Music, Practice and Technique, Scales by Craig Smith

Introduction to Modal Scales for Guitarists I know what you’re thinking. Oh, great. Another article on scales. You may be asking yourself the usual questions: Why do I need to learn these scales? Why do modal scales have such funny names? Are these scales really going to make me better? Can I really use modes in everyday guitar playing situations? These are the same things I asked myself over 30 years ago when I first …

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20 Essential Guitar Chords for Beginners

In Chords, Guitar Blog, Practice and Technique by Craig SmithLeave a Comment

If you’re new to playing the guitar and wondering what chords are suitable for a beginner guitarist, look no further. I’ve got you covered in this lesson… and then some. [Update] Since I wrote this lesson last year, I’ve written an accompanying chord book that goes even deeper.  The Beginners Guide to Chords (35 pages) $9.99 You’ll find no shortage of downloadable guitar chord charts and graphs flying around the internet, so what makes this …

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WristGrips – Compression Therapy for Guitarists

In Guitar Blog, Practice and Technique, Reviews and Gear by Craig Smith

How’s it going in the practice room today? I had an action packed January full of gigs that concluded yesterday (Sunday) with the 5th of 5 straight gigs in a row. Now, if you’re a Rock Star doing a 90 minute concert or an original, regional band pulling a 45 minute set, chances are you may stop playing before the pain sets in. If you’re like me pulling 3-4 hour cover gigs, 200+ days per …

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10 Essential Guitar Scales for Beginners

In Guitar Blog, Music, Practice and Technique, Scales by Craig SmithLeave a Comment

If you’re a beginning guitar player, you’ve probably heard the word “scales” before but may not be sure where to start. If you’ve tried a few, you may be wondering what the point is to this often tedious guitar playing chore. There are a few reasons why adding scales to your practice routine is super important: Scales build technique, strength and coordination in both hands on the guitar. Scales are the basis for all melody, …

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40 Day Guitar Practice Challenge

In Guitar Blog, Interviews and Insights, Music, Practice and Technique by Craig Smith

Are you ready to take your guitar playing to the next level in 2020? Let’s do it together! New Years resolutions can be cliche but what’s wrong with trying to better yourself, whether it’s a hobby, your health or the desire to become a better guitarist? For beginning guitarists, improvement can be a measured by leaps and bounds almost daily. For intermediate and advanced guitarists those jumps in technique and musicality can be few and …

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Picking Exercises, Guitar Practice, Shred Guitar and Live Gear

In Arpeggios, Chords, Guitar Blog, Practice and Technique, Scales by Craig SmithLeave a Comment

Guitarists have been emailing me… asking where I’ve been and what I’ve been up to. The short answer is, practicing. Practicing a lot. While my writing has a suffered a bit, my guitar chops are making a serious comeback. Most of my friends, family and readers know I do a ton of acoustic guitar gigs. I’m still doing 4-5 per week. Thats just how I pay the bills here! Recently I got the call to …