Desi Serna

Make your guitar sing with insight on music theory brings your instrument to life There’s a universe of incredible music living in your guitar. You just need to discover how to let it out. In Guitar Theory For Dummies, expert guitarist and instructor Desi Serna walks you through the music theory concepts you need to understand to expand your musical horizons. From deciphering the mysteries of the fretboard to adapting chord progressions to a song’s key, you’ll master techniques that will help you move past simple, three-chord songs to more complex and creative pieces. Build on your existing knowledge of open and barre chords and simple progressions with practical instruction that demystifies scales and chord voicings and shows you how to bring them together to create impressive music. You can also jump over to dummies.com to hear audio samples of the examples featured in the book. You’ll also learn: How chords, keys, and scales are built and how they interact with one another Powerful concepts, like intervals, chord extensions, modes and modal scales, that grant access to a world of musical possibilities How popular songs apply elements of guitar theory and how you can apply the same techniques Free yourself from the confines of tab sheets and simple chords and start enjoying all the musical potential of your guitar. Guitar Theory For Dummies is for anyone who wants to unlock the next stage of their musical journey.

A one-stop resource to the essentials of owning and playing the guitar If you’ve just bought a guitar, or you’ve had one for a while, you probably know it takes some time and effort to learn how to play the popular instrument. There’s so much to know about owning, maintaining, and playing a guitar. Where do you even begin? In Guitar All-in-One For Dummies, a team of expert guitarists and music teachers shows you the essentials you need to know about owning and playing a guitar. From picking your first notes to exploring music theory and composition, maintaining your gear, and diving into the specifics of genres like blues and rock, this book is a comprehensive and practical goldmine of indispensable info. Created for the budding guitarist who wants all their lessons and advice in one place, the book will show you how to: Maintain, tune, and string your guitar, as well as decipher music notation and guitar tablature Understand guitar theory, sounds and techniques to help you learn new songs and add your style to classic tunes Practice several popular genres of guitar music, including blues, rock, and classical Access accompanying online video and audio instructional resources that demonstrate the lessons you find in the book Perfect for guitar players at any skill level, Guitar All-in-One For Dummies is a must-have resource for anyone who wants to get the most out of their own guitar and make great music.

Guitar Picking Mechanics equips you to use a standard guitar pick (a.k.a. flatpick or plectrum) to play popular styles of music as proficiently as possible. Through a series of exercises, you are trained to use the proper techniques needed to play common guitar parts. You also discover techniques that make an immediate difference in how well you pick, so you see fast results. In order to learn the most practical skills, you play examples composed in the style of familiar songs. You even unleash your creativity by applying your newfound skills to your own improvisations and compositions. Your path to picking improvement involves the development and application of the following techniques: Alternate pickingChanging strings on downstrokesDownstroke sweep pickingDownstroke economy pickingUpstroke string changes, sweep picking, and economy pickingPick slantingInside and outside pickingPlaying melodic patterns (a.k.a. "scale sequences")CrosspickingAfter completing Guitar Picking Mechanics, you will be able to pick more quickly, more accurately, and more comfortably. You will know how to compose fluid lead lines around efficient mechanics. Most importantly, you will discover which picking techniques work best for you so you can play to your strengths. Guitar Picking Mechanics is not just about technique-it is about your artistic expression and style. The program's goals are for you to explore options, develop new skills, break through barriers, and make progress so that your guitar playing becomes something you can be proud of.: )The Guitar Picking Mechanics book includes: 100 pages of instruction84 Notation Figures with Tablature74 Audio TracksAre you ready to make your picking problems a thing of the past? Do you want to see how changing your approach to picking can help you progress faster than you thought possible? Get your copy of Guitar Picking Mechanics today RequirementsGuitar Picking Mechanics is not a beginner guitar program. In order to take full advantage of this instruction, you should already be playing at an intermediate level. Your skills should include being able to play pentatonic scale and three-notes-per-string scale patterns. Guitar Picking Mechanics works on either an acoustic or electric guitar. Both right-handed and left-handed guitar players can follow the lessons. Audio TracksOnce you have your book, follow the instructions to download all the audio tracks. Book FormatsAmazon sells paperbacks and Kindles. PDF eBooks are sold at the author's website. Visit GuitarMusicTheory.com/pick for more information. Video (Sold Separately)A complete video version of Guitar Picking Mechanics is also available at the author's website. Visit GuitarMusicTheory.com/pick for more information. About the AuthorHailed as a "music-theory expert" by Rolling Stone magazine, Desi Serna is the author of several instructional guitar books and video programs including Fretboard Theory, Guitar Theory For Dummies, Guitar Rhythm and Technique For Dummies, and Guitar Picking Mechanics. He is known for his practical, hands-on approach to music teaching, with a focus on the guitar fretboard and emphasis on popular songs. Desi honed his craft through decades of teaching, performing, and publishing. He lives in the Nashville, Tennessee area, and works full-time managing his business and GuitarMusicTheory.com website.

This book is a revised edition of Desi Serna's original 2001 release, How to Make Money Teaching Guitar, which was one of the very first coaching materials on the market geared toward guitar teachers. Through a step-by-step process, and using a positive and encouraging tone, Desi and his new coauthor, Donnie Schexnayder, guide you through the ins and outs of teaching and illuminate the professional and personal benefits that guitar instruction can offer you. How To Teach Guitar and Start Your Own Music Instruction Business is the definitive guide to starting your own small business teaching the guitar. Discover how to: - Start your teaching business with a proven strategy for success.- Determine when you are ready to teach lessons.- Bring your teaching skills to the next level.- Develop lesson plans and student materials.- Organize your teaching space with both your students and their parents in mind.- Design clear studio policies that minimize common problems.- Learn the best marketing strategies to attract your first students.- Schedule your lessons with fewer headaches.- Set your lesson fees for your market.- Much more You may have any number of reasons for wanting to teach the guitar. Maybe you want to earn some extra money in your spare time. Perhaps you want to use your skills as a musician to help others. Maybe you see teaching as a way to round out your career as a musician. Whatever your reasons, this book can be your passport to a whole new experience with music and your work. Becoming a guitar teacher has may benefits: - Improve your own guitar skills.- Earn money while doing something you love.- Become your own boss.- Set your own hours.- Work from home.- Control how much money you earn.- Make a difference in other people's lives.- Boost your success as a gigging musician.- Specialize in a field that doesn't need formal training or a college degree.- Start your own business with very little up-front money. Desi Serna and Donnie Schexnayder have written this book to take you from the beginning, from never having taught guitar before, to your first ten paying guitar students. The 90-day action plan takes you one step at a time towards establishing your new teaching studio. It has never been easier to start teaching the guitar Response to Negative ReviewsWithin a week of its release detractors began a campaign against the book and its authors through the Amazon.com review system. They systematically reported abuses on the book's many positive reviews until those reviews were removed, and began submitting their own negative reviews, with the main objective of harming book sales and the reputation of the authors. The authors, Desi and Donnie, offer responses to these detractors' most common criticisms here: http: //howtoteachguitar.com/response-to-critics/

Improve your guitar-playing rhythm, feel, and timing If you want to improve your timing, sharpen your technique, or get inspired by new ideas, Guitar Rhythm & Technique For Dummies breaks down the basics of reading, counting, strumming, and picking rhythms on guitar to make you an ace on the axe in no time. With the help of this friendly guide, you'll learn to play examples of eighth and sixteenth note rhythms—including common strum patterns heard in popular music—to improve your guitar rhythm, feel, and timing. Plus, access to audio downloads and online video lessons complement the coverage presented in the book, giving you the option of supplementing your reading with additional visual and audio learning. There's no denying that guitar is one of the coolest musical instruments on the planet. Okay, perhaps undeniably the coolest. Whether you bow at the feet of Chuck Berry, Keith Richards, the Edge, or Eddie Van Halen, they all have one thing in common: they make it look incredibly, naturally easy! However, anyone who's actually picked up a guitar knows that mastering rhythm and technique is something that takes a lot of practice—not to mention good coaching. Luckily, Guitar Rhythm & Technique For Dummies makes your aspirations to play guitar like the pros attainable with loads of helpful step-by-step instruction on everything from mastering hammer-ons, pull-offs, and slides to perfecting your picking—and beyond. Covers strum patterns, articulations, picking techniques, and moreShowcases musical styles such as pop, rock, blues, folk, and funkIncludes techniques for playing with both your right and left handProvides access to online audio tracks and video instruction so you can master the concepts and techniques presented in the book Whether you're new to guitar or an advanced player looking to improve your musical timing and skills, Guitar Rhythm & Technique For Dummies quickly gets you in the groove before the rhythm gets you.