guitar

Brooklyn Guitar Festival 2010

Submitted by Chris Conly on Tue | 08.31.2010 | 11:51

Celebrating 2 years of bringing the new, and under-appreciated gems of the Brooklyn music scene into the light, the Brooklyn Experiments Groove Series announces the 1st Annual BROOKLYN GUITAR FESTIVAL 2010! Every Sunday night this September, October and November will feature a different member of the local guitar family from in and around Brooklyn.

In the spirit of the great festivals, Woodstock, Bonaroo, Crossroads, comes a new and exciting festival celebrating the impact of the guitar in all its incarnations, as well as the geographically unique talent bringing it to life. Purposefully spread out across 3 months, this weekly gathering will more than justify it's need to grow in the coming years.

SUNDAY NIGHTS THIS FALL // SEPT, OCT & NOV
Rose Live Music
345 Grand Street Brooklyn, NY 11211 // 718.599.0069

FULL SCHEDULE & FREE DOWNLOADS

This week, Sunday, September 5th
featuring BML's own Curtis MacDonald Group + The Adam Rogers Trio!

9pm - Curtis MacDonlad Group (Feat. Travis Reuter)

Along with developing a sizable repertoire for the modern jazzensemble, Curtis' music has taken form in many a medium.  In the past 3 years he has composed music and sound for film, dance, games and chamber ensembles.  His production savvy can be heard on numerous new music and modern jazz recordings where he incorporates improvisation, sound art and digital technology.

Curtis Macdonald - Alto Sax
Jeremy Viner - Tenor Sax
Travis Retuer - Guitar
David Miralles - Keys
Chris Tordini - Bass
Cody Brown - Drums

10pm & 11pm - Adam Rogers Trio (w/Fima Ephron & Nate Smith)

"Unlike many musicians who ply their trade in New York, Adam Rogers has been doing it all his life, being, as he is, a lifelong resident of Manhattan. Since 1990, he has appeared a on over fifty recordings so diverse, that many fans know him as an expert player in different genres. For example, his gigging and recordings with Lost Tribe, saxman Bill Evans, and recently, Matt Garrison, have built his renown as a great player in the electric jazz idiom, whereas work with John Zorn, David Binney or Uri Caine make him identifiable as a downtown mainstay. Working with Cassandra Wilson, Regina Carter or either Brecker shows his straight ahead talents, and he has recorded and performed klezmer and middle eastern classical music with Giora Feidman and David Krakauer and Simon Shaheen. He is also an accomplished pop player, as recordings with Elvis Costello, Vitamin C and Alana Davis will confirm, and he brings real classical credentials to table as well, having studied and performed the idiom intensively at Mannes College in the eighties. The above is not intended to indicate that he is a jack-of-all trades, but truly, a modern-day, master multi-stylist."

~ Phil DiPietro (All About Jazz)

Adam brings his Funk/Rock trio to Rose to celebrate the kick-off of the Brooklyn Guitar Festival!

Adam Rogers - Guitar
Fima Ephron - Bass
Nate Smith - Drums

Pocketknife - Feels

Submitted by jordan.brooks on Tue | 08.18.2009 | 06:57

Here is a video filmed with fellow BML teachers Colin Killalea and Robby Sinclair. It was conceived and wonderfully shot and edited by my brother, Travis Brooks. The music was written by Colin Killalea and performed by Pocketknife.

“With great power…” [a guitar effects primer]

Submitted by chris.kuklis on Wed | 06.24.2009 | 06:02


My name is Chris.
I am a guitarist.
I am a scientist.
I am a seeker of sounds.
I am an explorer of tone colors.
I am a dedicated enthusiast of guitar effects.

Much as it pains me to say, guitar effects are often grossly misused.

This is not the fault of the player, for how can you blame someone for something they don’t realize is wrong, but it is the sad truth. They pick up the latest guitar mag or check out their favorite player’s setup and think “Wow, what a great shortcut! All I have to do is buy the same pedals and I’ll sound just like Johnny Greenwood!”

This is not the case.

Effects are instruments.
Each pedal must be seriously studied and practiced and combined with every possible pickup and amp setting, every possible picking technique, throughout every string and octave of your instrument and beyond.
You must spend dedicated hours learning the ins and outs of every feature.
You must test and re-test every combination.
You must become intimately connected to the feel of each knob and know, without thinking, exactly how it will respond.

You must become a scientist of sound.

This is what Johnny Greenwood did.
This is what Animal Collective did.
This is what The Flaming Lips did.
This is what so many other greats have done.

and this, my friends, is precisely why their use of effects stands as a glorious monolith of inspiration to us all…

Now, take everything you’ve just read and throw it out the window!!! Quick!!

Effects are about FREEDOM and the pure joy of exploration!
Effects are about the search for something new in the great unknown!
Effects are about taking what you do with the guitar, an instrument with one of the most diverse tonal palettes available, and expanding the possibilities to infinity!
Effects are another way to find your distinct and original voice and show it to the world!

There are no answers!
There is no right or wrong!
There is only sound!

This is what Johnny Greenwood discovered.
This is what Animal Collective discovered.
This is what The Flaming Lips discovered.
This is what so many other greats have discovered.

and this, my friends, is precisely why their use of effects stands as a glorious monolith of inspiration to us all.

Now, take what you threw out the window earlier (it’s ok, I’ll wait while you find it), combine with what you just read, and you have the answer.

Using effects in a meaningful way is no simple task, for you must be BOTH the great scientist and the wild creative rebel. But with time and effort and wondering and exploring, you can create sounds that no one has ever heard and in doing so, you’ll be one step closer to your true voice as a musician.

This can be an arduous journey, as all truly rewarding paths tend to be, and many are lost along the way… But you are a BML student. You are different. The very fact that you’re reading this article means that you care enough about finding your voice and bettering yourself that you’re taking the necessary steps to make it a reality. With this mindset, and the words above, there is no pedal you cannot conquer.

As Peter’s Uncle Ben said: “With great power, comes great responsibility..."

ck

5 Essentials for the Beginner Guitarist

Submitted by BML on Mon | 03.16.2009 | 11:21

The following is a list of essentials for the beginner guitarist. My goal in assembling this package is to keep costs low and quality high. The package includes links to a guitar that is easy to play, an amp that even the pros use and other important accessories. Let me first take a moment to discuss the most important factor in choosing a beginner guitar: playability.

MAKING A SOUND

Most people would agree that the act of playing a single note on a guitar is more difficult than playing that same note on a piano. Guitarists have to use one hand to press and hold a string at one end of the instrument and another hand to pluck that same string at the other end of the instrument. Pianists however, need only drop their hand to the keyboard, using gravity to help depress a key.

WHAT TYPE OF GUITAR IS THE EASIEST TO PLAY?

STEEL STRING acoustic guitars tend to require a lot of hand-strength to play. Many people assume that acoustic guitars are great for beginners (and they can be) but its good to know that even the most expensive steel strings require more effort to play than other types of guitars while some inexpensive steel string guitars can make it nearly impossible to get a good sound. Stringing a steel string guitar with Folk strings made from Silk & Steel can help to soften the touch a bit. Many of our students enjoy the ease of playing these strings provide:

Martin M130 Silk & Steel Folk Acoustic Guitar Strings (11-47)

NYLON STRING acoustic guitars tend to be MUCH easier to play than their steel string counterparts. The reduced string tension with nylon strings makes for a much more playable instrument, however the wider fingerboard width can make the instrument difficult for small hands.

ELECTRIC guitars tend to be the most playable of all three types because:

  • they can be set up with light gauge strings - easy on the hands!
  • they are easily adjustable in their action and intonation - easy to fix!
  • they are available in smaller sizes - mini guitars for kids!

1. GUITAR

This guitar is one of the best buys at $99. It's a mini-guitar that's sized for kids, but still looks just like the same Fender Strat played by Hendrix, Clapton, et al.

 

Squier Affinity Mini Strat Electric GuitarSquier Mini Strat Electric Guitar (Rosewood)

 

If a mini-guitar is not needed, here's the FULL-SIZED version of the same guitar:

 

Squier Affinity Strat Electric Guitar Squier Affinity Strat Electric Guitar (Maple)

 

2. AMP

The amp is a classic. It can run on batteries or an adaptor. It might have been the first portable amp and in my opinion it is still the best. You open it like a book to change the tone.

Pignose Legendary 7100 Portable Battery-Powered Guitar Combo Amplifier Pignose Legendary 7100 Portable Battery-Powered Guitar Combo Amplifier

 

3. INSTRUMENT CABLE

You'll need a cable to plug the guitar into the amp. Monster makes great cables with a lifetime, no questions asked warranty. ALL of my cables are Monster. I tend to use the next step (or two or three) up from this particular one but we're cutting costs while maximizing value here.

Be sure to choose a 12 FT cable. The others will either be too long or too short to go from a guitar to an amp.

Monster Cable Monster Standard 100 Instrument CableMonster Cable Standard 100 Instrument Cable

 

4. TUNER

I also use this tuner. It is important to have a chromatic tuner to help train the ear to hear what an 'in-tune' guitar actually sounds like. It's under $20 and it's the best thing out there for this price. I also own a $180 Peterson tuner, and it's amazing, but for the price you can't beat the Korg.

Korg CA1 Chromatic TunerKorg CA1 Chromatic Tuner

 

5. GIG BAG

Lastly, if the little rocker needs to travel to his or her teacher's studio, you might want a bag to protect the MINI-GUITAR.

Fender Deluxe Gig Bag for Mini StratFender Deluxe Gig Bag for Mini Strat

 

Here's a bag to fit the FULL-SIZED guitar. It doesn't provide much protection, but it gets the job done and is less than $20. I have one of these bags for my Fender Mustang guitar.

 

Fender Standard Electric Guitar Gig BagFender Standard Electric Guitar Gig Bag

 

CONCLUSION

All tallied, the mini-guitar package weighs in under $275 - $20 less if you don't need a gig bag. Fortunately, the amp, cable and tuner will prove to be useful after the child's hands have outgrown the mini-guitar. Unlike other beginner guitar packages I've seen, the quality of these indiviidual pieces insures their value over time. If the full-sized guitar is chosen the price is $75 higher, but then nothing can really be 'outgrown'.

Hopefully you've found this article helpful. Feel free to ask us any questions!

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