Topic Subtopic Better Living Hobby Learning to Play Guitar Chords, Scales, and Solos Course Guidebook Dr. Colin McAllister University of Colorado Colorado Springs PUBLISHED BY: THE GREAT COURSES Corporate Headquarters 4840 Westfields Boulevard, Suite 500 Chantilly, Virginia 20151-2299 Phone: 1-800-832-2412 Fax: 703-378-3819 www.thegreatcourses.com Copyright © The Teaching Company, 2017 Printed in the United States of America This book is in copyright. All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of The Teaching Company. Colin McAllister, D.M.A. Music Program Director University of Colorado Colorado Springs C olin McAllister is the Music Program Director at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs. He earned his master’s and doctorate degrees in Musical Arts at the University of California, San Diego, where he studied guitar with Celin and Pepe Romero, interpretation with Bertram Turetzky, and conducting with Harvey Sollberger and Rand Steiger. Dr. McAllister has taught the guitar and performed professionally as a guitarist for more than 25 years. He has made more than 1,000 appearances with organizations including the San Diego Opera, the San Diego Symphony, and the Colorado Symphony. Dr. McAllister is also a member of the jazz ensemble Hennessy 6. In 2016, he entered an artist partnership with Taylor Guitars. Dr. McAllister has recorded on several record labels, including Tzadik, Innova Recordings, and Naxos Records. He also pursues research interests in 3rd- and 4th-century religious beliefs related to apocalypticism and early medieval commentary on the Book of Revelation. PROFESSOR BIOGRAPHY i Dr. McAllister lives in Manitou Springs, Colorado, with his wife Barbara and their children. In addition to his academic studies in music and the apocalypse, he has climbed more than 35 of Colorado’s 14,000-foot peaks, along with Mount Whitney in California and three high volcanoes in Mexico. ii LEARnInG tO PLAY GuItAR Table of Contents INTRODUCTION Professor Biography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . i Course Scope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 LESSON GUIDES 1 Guitar Basics: Play a Song in 60 Seconds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 2 Tuning Up, Reading Music, and Dexterity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 3 Classical Guitar Position and Posture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 4 Learning How to Practice the Guitar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 5 Playing Fingerstyle Guitar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 6 Playing Rhythm Guitar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 7 The Pentatonic Scale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58 8 The Blues Scale and Lateral Stretching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 9 Planting for Control and Accuracy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 10 Guitar Tremolo: Gaining Speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86 11 Legato and Power Chords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 tABLE OF COntEntS iii 12 Travis Picking for Folk, Country, and Rock . . . . . . . . . . . 104 13 Hammer-Ons and Pull-Offs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 14 Finger Independence and Chord Theory . . . . . . . . . . . . 123 15 Crosspicking and Bass Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 16 Piano-Style Guitar and Fingernail Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145 17 Syncopated Strumming and Movable Scales . . . . . . . . . 157 18 A New Pentatonic Scale and the Capo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165 19 Barre Chords: Movable Chords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175 20 Flamenco Technique: Rasgueado . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186 21 Playing with Natural Harmonics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196 22 Jazz Harmony and Dorian Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206 23 DADGAD Tuning and Lydian Mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218 24 Taking the Guitar to the Next Level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228 SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL Guitar Books for Further Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241 Image Credits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244 iv LEARnInG tO PLAY GuItAR LEARNING TO PLAY GUITAR Chords, Scales, and Solos M any people believe they simply are not musically inclined. Others believe they didn’t learn to play at a young enough age, when their minds were supposed to soak up newfound skills more easily. This course aims to shatter those ideas with a series of lessons on how to play the guitar. Some of the world’s most famous music, from Bach to the Beatles and from classical to jazz, is based on basic melodies and harmonies that can sound elegant even in the hands of a beginner. This course’s lessons build toward chord changes, constructing melodies, and even playing the guitar as a solo instrument, all while introducing some of the greatest music of every genre. By the end of the course, you will have a personal songbook to play and a basis for further musical exploration. Through a unique modular construction, this course represents about 1 full year of university-level instruction. Students who successfully complete the course will have a broad foundation from which to embark on further study of the guitar in any genre, from classical to jazz to country to rock. Each of this course’s lessons contains 5 modules. They focus on proper technique; note reading and musicianship; chords; scales and melodic patterns; and an original song that brings together the lesson’s elements. COuRSE SCOPE 1 But this course is not just work: Along the way, you’ll meet some of the greatest players of the instrument through historical vignettes and stories of performance, traveling, and the life of a musician. The course also offers practical advice on organizing practice time, motivation, building a career, and performing. 2 LEARnInG tO PLAY GuItAR 1 Guitar Basics: Play a Song in 60 Seconds I n this course, each of the 24 lessons consists of five basic modules that address 1) technique, 2) musicianship, 3)  chords, 4) scales and melodic patterns, and 5) an original song that puts all of these elements together. You’re going to learn to master many styles of guitar— and become a well-rounded musician—by learning to read music, by understanding chords and scales, and by putting it all together as a lead player and accompanist. In doing so, you’ll lay the foundation for becoming an accomplished soloist and improviser one day. But your objective in this course is to conclude as an accomplished beginner. 3 MODULE 1: Technique w Developing good technique means learning to play the instrument efficiently and without injury by optimizing force, building flexibility and strength, and conserving energy. Good technique allows you to express your musicality without inhibition. w Let’s start our introductory session on technique by walking through the various parts of the guitar while also going over some basic terminology. w The guitar is designed to be a resonant chamber. The most important component for sound production is the top, or soundboard. Cedar and spruce are the most common top woods in an acoustic guitar because of their resonant tonal qualities. The underside of the top is braced to make it stronger without adding too much weight. w In the middle is the soundhole. The decoration around it is called the rosette. The back and sides are made of a hard wood, like maple and mahogany. w Next are the neck and the fretboard—or fingerboard—topped off by the headstock, with its six tuning machines, or tuning pegs. The tuning pegs maintain string tension and allow us to change the pitch of the strings. The fingerboard itself is typically made of a very hard, durable wood (like ebony). 4 LEARnInG tO PLAY GuItAR LESSON 1