Posts by Kevin Downing
What to Do When Tempos Are Too Quick
Many guitar players ask me questions about what they need to do when the tempos of songs they are playing with their band are just too fast for them to play well. That is a great question. If you have this problem, you can read the article What to Do When Tempos are Too Quick…
Read MoreYou Can Learn A Lot From A Simple Lick
Many guitar players tend to overlook the many simple licks or riffs that come their way not realising that there is a wealth of information just waiting for you to tap into. Have a look at this lesson called You Can Learn A Lot From A Simple Lick and see what it can do to…
Read MoreThe Best Guitar Solos Tell A Story – Do Yours?
Many guitar players just play up and down pentatonic scales, wonder around the fretboard aimlessly, or never think about what it is they are trying to say musically. Are you like that? Maybe you need to read The Best Solos Tell A Story. Make sure to implement the contents in this lesson into your playing…
Read MoreThe Best Guitar Learning Software – Transcribe
In all my years of playing and teaching music I have never come across a piece of equipment that is as good as “Transcribe”. Transcribe is a software application for your computer that slows your music down so you can learn quicker. It is not only in the slowing down that it is useful but…
Read MorePlay What You Hear
Many guitarists hear others say “play what you hear in your head”, but find that doing it is quite difficult. Wouldn’t it be great to play whatever you hear in your head, or on a recording, as it would make learning your favourite songs, solos, and writing your own songs so much easier than it…
Read MoreThe Forgotten Art of Listening
Practicing the art of actively listening to music is something many guitar players miss. In fact almost all musicians miss this point. This skill is necessary if you want to be a good musician no matter what level you aspire to play at. Click the link to read The Forgotten Art of Listening and change…
Read MoreNew Years Resolutions
Most people make New Year’s resolutions of some sort, but never seem to achieve what they set out to do. I am not a big fan of New Year’s resolutions, but I am a big fan of setting out what you want to do and sticking with it all year round no matter what the…
Read MorePracticing For Playing Live
Playing live is definitely a different skill to learn than practicing in your practice room. There are many different things going on when playing live which take a bit of getting used to, and you can practice these areas to get used it before you go to the next gig, jam, or studio session. Click…
Read More11 Things I Learnt From Carl Verheyen
Carl Verheyen (pronounced Ver-high-in) is the number one session guitarist in Los Angeles, a member of the band Supertramp, and runs his own band, the Carl Verheyen Band. In June I was in Los Angeles and caught up with him at Village Recorders in Santa Monica where he was working on and producing an album…
Read MoreTravis Picking
Here is an introductory lesson into Travis picking, made famous by the legendary country guitar picker Merle Travis. The difference between Travis picking and regular finger-picking is the use of alternating and/or descending bass notes played by the thumb. Click here to learn more about Travis Picking.
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