Friday Five

Hi team! Once again, I am putting this together while in Denver. My friends in Colorado - you have a good state here 🙂 Here is your Friday 5! Music Article I’m Reading Beatboxers’ and guitarists’ brains react differently to hearing music. Guitar Tip Where is Thumbkin? Check the position of your thumb on your fretting hand. Though it will move around a bit depending on what you’re doing, it shouldn’t be too far under the neck or peeking way up above the neck. I usually try and keep the…

Hi Everybody, welcome back to Friday 🙂 Here is your Friday 5. There’s a bit of a theme - see if you pick up on it. Documentary to Watch Jiro Dreams of Sushi Says Amazon: “A thoughtful and elegant meditation on work, family and the art of perfection, chronicling Jiro Ono’s life as both an unparalleled success in the culinary world and a loving yet complicated father." Quote "Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.” Ralph Waldo Emerson Guitar Tip In line with today’s quote and documentary suggestion,…

Hey Gang, Later August. Hellloooo September! For those students and teachers out there, welcome back to school 🙂 What I’m Listening To September - Earth, Wind, and Fire Cat Bags My colleagues have been going bananas for these bags because they are easy to sanitize and serve as fun conversation starters. You can fit a lot of instruments in there! Gear My team uses this Shure microphone with an iPod Touch or iPad and it actually works pretty well. Great for impromptu recordings with patients. Good Deeds Feeling sad, icky, lethargic…?…

Hi team, Welcome to Friday. I’m wishing you all the best as we head into the weekend! Here is the F5. What I’m Reading The Inevitable: Understanding the 12 Technological Forces That Will Shape Our Future by Kevin Kelly What I’m Listening To Aretha Franklin - Don’t Play That Song You Lied Guitar Tip Finding pivots, fingers that don’t move when you’re switching between chords, makes chord transitions easier and more efficient. I’ve got a guide on it HERE. Quote “Adversity has the effect of eliciting talents, which in prosperous circumstances…

Happy Friday! Here is your Friday 5! Guitar Tips Want to understand capos better? Check out my video + guide, the Capo Converter. For free! Productivity: Batching You wouldn’t bake one cookie at a time, right? This article shares other reasons and ideas for batching your tasks in the effort to save time and be more productive. Finger-picking Technique I see a lot of people do this wrong, which makes for inefficient movements and frustrations. I think the best technique advice comes from the classical guitar world, which is why…

Happy Friday! Here is the 5: What I’m Listening To I’ve been enjoying Arctic Monkeys this week (Spotify link) What I’m Reading Aesop’s Fables. Though meant for children, there are some nice little nuggets of wisdom in there. Music Resource Table Top Audio - click on Soundpad and create your own soundscapes. Article I’m Reading Wondering why concerts are so expensive? Ever had questions about how money moves around the music industry? This article on Rolling Stone has some answers. How Musicians Make Money - Or Don’t At All -…

Hi team! Thanks for checking out another edition of the Friday 5! Why do I say "hi team"? Because I know that the readers of this newsletter are collectively working to build skills and find tools to improve themselves, thus improving their impact on the world. It’s why I take this very seriously! Here is the Friday 5: Conference Speaking of improving, the AMTA conference is in a couple months, and early bird registration ends August 6. Save money and get registered! Will I see you in Dallas? Sessions at Conference…

It’s another edition of the Saturday 6 🙂 Have a great weekend! What I’m Listening To Doing Alright by Queen. The vocals at the very end give me that spine-tingly feeling. What I’m Reading Why You Should Enroll Your Kids in Piano Lessons, According to Science Guitar Resource Color Chord My World Want to spice up your chords? Want to add some beautiful harmonies to your repertoire? You might like this downloadable guide + video lesson. It includes 10 chord progressions with really pretty chords you can begin using right…

Good day, my friends. I want to say “what’s up” to readers in the Denver area, as I’ll be in your 'hood for a couple days. Why is it so hot here?? I know I know…it’s a “dry heat”… ;) Here is your Friday 5! Guitar Tip Here’s a great way to work on your guitar styles and transposition. Pick a key, like G or C, and then see how many songs you can string together with as smooth of transitions as possible. Feel free to change the styles, your…

Hi all, and happy Friday to you. Please enjoy the Friday 5 and have a great weekend! Quote "Time is a measurement of opportunity” Manly P. Hall Tool I’m Using a Lot Hapi Drum. Personally I like the C Major Pentatonic, but there are many options. Book I’m Reading Hero With a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell Wine Basics Want to learn a little about wine in a fun way? Check out this scratch and sniff wine board book 🙂 Public Service Announcement It’s hot in many parts of the…