Lessons & Lesson Insights
Young Learners
"After a referral from a friend, our daughter started taking guitar lessons with Rik this winter. We can NOT believe how much she has learned in just a few months! ~ Kristi
Picking up music at an early age is like picking up a second language, something kids do amazingly well. Your child will get the best possible start in reading and playing music with thoughtfully designed lessons from an experienced and successful teacher.
First Lesson Plans
Know Your Guitar
I get kids to use paper & pencil, or a small whiteboard, when I can to reinforce what they're learning, and getting them to draw is a great ice-breaker for a first encounter with the new teacher!
We begin with a tour of the guitar, naming the important
parts. We look at how to hold the instrument, how to feel
comfortable with it, then introduce our first song.
Know Your Chord Diagrams
This always takes some getting used to, even for adult learners! Chords are universally depicted on grid diagrams where the horizontal lines represent the frets, the vertical lines represent the strings, circles tell you where the fingers go, and numbers along the top indicate which fingers to use. I spend as much time as needed up front to get young people to understand what they're looking at with chord diagrams. Once they get it it's a breeze. We start, of course, with easy chords and easy keys.
Know Your Notes
I'm a firm believer in developing reading skills early in youngsters . By the time they get to me many children have had at least some music education at school, so reading won't be totally new to them. But reading on guitar might be, so we take it slow. There are three entry-level music reading books I like to work with,
and we switch from one to the other as we go. Once again, I like to get kids practicing to draw treble clefs and writing notes early. Engaging in the act of writing tends to help with remembering things. We begin with our first three notes:
G, E & F, then when a child is ready we move on to B, C & D.
I find that learning open position reading has limited value for our purposes so I begin all my students in the key of C in second position and we grow from there.
Team Play ~ Co-Learning for Ages 9-14
Max class size 4
It's incalculable what a child can pick up by watching others in a Co-Learning environment
High quality individual instruction is a proven way to learn a musical instrument. Another and equally effective method of learning is in small group settings where you can gauge your progress against others of a similar level. In fact this is how I learned to play guitar as a kid and probably explains my motivation and success as a young learner.
As a music educator I've come to understand that
just the right interplay of
Active Learning (with individual attention given to each student)
Passive Learning (with students learning by watching others learn)
& Team Play (by playing music together & learning as a group)
results in a faster assimilation of songs/chords/strums,
as well as building of camaraderie, a boost in self-confidence,
and of course more fun in learning
how to play guitar!
Adults Acoustic ~ Entry-level to Intermediate Advanced to Performance
"One of the challenges in learning the guitar is knowing how to learn. You want to know it all but don't know where to start. Rik provides the structure, tailoring your learning to your interests and abilities ~ Tucker
When you see guitarists play live - on stage, in a coffee house, on YouTube - that level of proficiency they exude has taken them years to cultivate. So how do you get there? How do I get learners to that stage?
To get you started there are all the basics like knowing your instrument, becoming familiar with open chords by learning to play dozens of songs that I've graded from easy to challenging, and that I
have grouped into three levels. Things like strum patterns, getting your chords not to buzz, reducing the gap between chord changes,
some finger picking, and fundamental music theory to help demystify
for you the world of music - these are all taken care of for entry-level players. At a pace that suits you.
The complete acoustic player walks away with knowing their chords in open position and standard barre chords, then more complex barre chords (positions 3 & 5, then 2), a working knowledge of major and minor keys, plus inverted chords - but only the real world practical ones. Understanding chord progressions enough to write original
songs if you wanted to, and perhaps even taking a crack at
singing while playing - it's all doable.
Of course all of the above applies to electric players as well, with the addition of soloing. And many people opt to do acoustic and electric. There's ample crossover between the two.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
While the above represents a good deal of work, and demonstrates tremendous accomplishment, I still consider it a
basic platform. There are subtleties of string attack, hybrid picking, and fluidity of chord movement that often prove more elusive,
but are the hallmark of truly accomplished players. I try to engender these skills into everyone who studies long-term with me.
There is also timing, phrasing, rhythm and smooth transitions -
how to react to the music being played, how to latch onto a groove, and instill confidence in others that you can hold a beat. The ability to
carry a song convincingly so listeners won't notice the joins
or other behind the scenes mechanics.
And also a working understanding of music principles that will
not only give you a deeper understanding of what you play, but allow you
to feel comfortable speaking the language of music with others, with
band mates, with people who play instruments other than guitar.
Over and above the fundamentals, these are some of the nuanced,
not so easy to attain elements of guitaring that inform good musicianship. Attainable nonetheless, but not overnight.
Knowing What to Teach
In What Order and When
Good teaching is not just about the material taught, or the rapport built, or the respect given, or even the accommodation made for each learner and their individual learning style. All of these are of course essential in getting players to
where they want to be with the instrument.
But the ability to assess, in real time, what a learner needs at any given moment in order to help them understand what they're playing, to help them to see the big picture, to get it to click for them - this aspect of teaching is critical,
and I don't believe it is something that teachers can be taught.
Knowing what piece of the puzzle (chord voicing, scale position, etc.) needs to
be introduced first, and what to present next to make it all make sense. Being able to read a situation to know just the right amount to push. And recognizing
when there's overload, when it's time to simplify - all these are the hallmarks of
quality teaching. I believe that these are innate traits shared by
all good instructors, no matter what the field.
In essence good teaching comes down to knowing your student and
being able to see beforehand what small steps forward he or she will need
to take to maintain momentum.
Teaching in Keys
Thinking Beyond Isolated Chords
Chords in music are rarely if ever stand alone entities. They are found
in songs, for example, alongside other chords in sequences that make music interesting. Related chords are grouped together in what is called a key,
or what I like to call a 'family'.
In introducing a chord to a new learner (given that chords exist in the context of songs, and that songs are written in keys) other chords necessarily come along for the ride. But here's the thing, not all chords are created equally
- at least not equally easy to play.
In learning guitar, especially for children, there are definitely some chords,
like F and Bb and Dm and F#m and the like, that may prove challenging for
young fingers. I certainly didn't have an easy time of it with these chords when I was a kid. And from what I've seen this goes for adult beginners too.
For successful teaching, then, it becomes important to avoid keys that contain tough chords - at least in the beginning, at least until a learner has gained some guitaring experience. Following this line of thinking I base my Entry-level
guitar curriculum on the key of G, with the chords G and C being the first two chords I teach. Taking it at the student's own pace, we move forward from there to the next appropriate key. What can I say - guaranteed results.
There are many aspects to quality music education. Knowing which
keys to teach first is an important factor in getting learners off to a good start.
Teaching Guitar via Songs
A Means to an End
In teaching, right from the get go, I’ve viewed songs primarily as a means to
an end. And that end for me has always been getting students both to a level
of proficiency on the instrument, as well as to a solid understanding of
how and why the elements of music connect.
The way I present them, songs are tools for learning. Whether it’s inherent in their structure, whether it has to do with right-hand technique, or keeping time, or working on a particular set of chords, or how best to apply certain scales – the ways are many and varied in which we can gain from studying songs.
If there’s a game plan.
Ultimately we're talking about long-term learning.
Nobody gets a handle on guitar overnight.
So, how are long-term goals, or a particular curriculum, set in terms of songs taught? The short answer is that once we get the basic entry-level material out of the way – which in itself is comprised of strategically chosen songs to convey particular learning points – things are then customized according to the
direction a student wants to take, together with consideration of
where their strengths lie.
At that point we can focus on the technical and conceptual requirements needed to get there. Then it’s a matter of reaching into a bag of cool and interesting songs, songs which double as vehicles that carry the appropriate learning points. This whole process has taken years to streamline, but I have it all in place now.
So it’s never been just about teaching songs. It’s always been about getting players to a stage where they become independent of guidance, where they can think on their feet and hold their own in performance, where they can untangle theory and start to create their own music.