Choosing The Guitar

May 13, 2011 Music
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As promised, here’s a post about the guitar I’m going to order! I’ve done a bit of research and apparently Squier is a branch of Fender that’s specifically designed to provide guitars to beginners. They are relatively cheap but still look good – I can’t tell the difference between the Squier and the Fender – although I’m sure there is a difference in sound and tone. As my friend pointed out, until I’m good enough to recognise the differences in tone between instruments there really is no point paying a lot of money for an expensive one!

In the package I also got an amp and tuner. The amp is just a small model that should be fine for practicing while I get going. I think I’m going to have to lower my expectations even further though –I’m definitely not going to be at the standard of playing in a band for a while.

The next step is to start finding some learning materials. I like to self teach, but I’m thinking a guitar teacher might be a good idea to start with just until I get the basics sorted. Definitely don’t want to get into bad habits so early on, although lessons are quite expensive. There are a lot of good lessons online so I’ll probably start with those while I’m looking for a good teacher.

Start Of A Guitar Journey

May 10, 2011 Music
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I want to start playing guitar but it’s going to be a long process! I think the problem is that everyone these days is used to playing guitar hero, where after a few hours of practice you can bang out tunes like you’re a pro. The real thing is obviously a lot herder – something which I found out when I was at a friend’s the other day – but I’m going to give it a go and see how far I get.

I think the hardest part about learning an instrument is the increased expectations you have when you’ve played a game like guitar hero. It’s better to think of it as a challenge – if it was really that easy then the guitarists we all idolize wouldn’t be anything special. OK, so I might never be the next Steve Vai – but I’d be satisfied with being able to play some of his tunes!

In the next post I’ll talk about which guitar I decide to buy. It’s difficult because I naturally want to go for a really expensive model – I’ve got my eye on the Gibson Les Paul Studio – but there’s no way I can justify getting that yet. I’ll probably go for one of the starter packages but I’ll let you know how I get on with searching in a few days.

Finally, some good weather

April 12, 2011 Ramblings
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It’s been great to finally have some good weather for a change! It makes a huge difference when it’s warm outside – especially as it happens so rarely here in the UK – so I think everyone rushes to make the most of it. Over the weekend I’ve been to several pub gardens, the beach (which is a reasonable distance away) and various other places that I probably wouldn’t have visited if it hadn’t been such good weather.

The beach was great – nothing beats relaxing by the sea on a warm day. The wind was still strong though so it was difficult to forget that this isn’t summer, just a warm snap in the middle of spring. If we had a summer full of days like the last weekend then I’d be very happy though, 20-25 degrees is the perfect temperature for me!

Unfortunately, it seems to be getting colder this week which is a shame. Hopefully the last few days are just a taste of what’s to come throughout the summer months. I haven’t seen any long term predictions for the weather this summer – I don’t think they’re very accurate anyway – but it would be interesting to find out whether we are expected to have a good season. We are definitely due one, the last few have been pretty awful.

What did you do over the hot weekend? Anything interesting? If you have any news on the weather in the coming months then I’d be interested to know too!