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Thread: Suggestions for my next few tutorials?

  1. #1
    Registered User zak borden's Avatar
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    Question Suggestions for my next few tutorials?

    Hey y'all,

    So as I've committed to put out a new video tutorial every week until 2015, I thought I'd ask folks here if there are any subjects you would like to see covered? I've got plenty of ideas, but I'm curious to hear what's popular with the "kids" these days.

    I got a few requests for blues improvisation and fiddle tunes. Anything else?

    Let me know.

    Thanks,
    Zak



    www.zakborden.com
    Currently accepting students via SKYPE!


  2. #2

    Default Re: Suggestions for my next few tutorials?

    HI Zak-

    I think your tutorials are really great. I enjoyed going through your series on building chords on triads by modifying the 1, 3, and 5 tones. That brought in the major and minor chords, dominant sevenths, augmented and diminished chords. I would love to see this same approach expanded at some point to include the most common extended chords, rootless chords, the basic jazz comp stuff. Although I have lots of chord charts, I am attracted to the idea of building the chords, as needed, from the elemental triad. Seems it would ingrain the harmonic theory much better than methods which focus on simply memorizing lots of shapes. I suspect it would get a bit more complicated and require some consideration of voice leading and such, but I would like to hear your thoughts on the possibility. Thanks for making these tutorial available!

    Scott

  3. #3
    Registered User zak borden's Avatar
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    Default Re: Suggestions for my next few tutorials?

    Quote Originally Posted by Grommet View Post
    HI Zak-

    I think your tutorials are really great. I enjoyed going through your series on building chords on triads by modifying the 1, 3, and 5 tones. That brought in the major and minor chords, dominant sevenths, augmented and diminished chords. I would love to see this same approach expanded at some point to include the most common extended chords, rootless chords, the basic jazz comp stuff. Although I have lots of chord charts, I am attracted to the idea of building the chords, as needed, from the elemental triad. Seems it would ingrain the harmonic theory much better than methods which focus on simply memorizing lots of shapes. I suspect it would get a bit more complicated and require some consideration of voice leading and such, but I would like to hear your thoughts on the possibility. Thanks for making these tutorial available!

    Scott
    Thanks for the feedback Scott. And good idea. I'm gearing up to put out some more advanced classes soon. I'll have to think about how to address extended chords in a small chunk of time. That'll be a fun challenge. I'll definitely be teaching some easy approaches to voice leading and ii V I triads around the circle. Stay tuned!

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    Default Re: Suggestions for my next few tutorials?

    Zak,
    love the videos to date. Here are a few suggestions

    -- you had one lesson on jig picking and could continue in that direction
    -- rhythm beyond the bluegrass chop -- I'd welcome some exercises to enrich my rhythm playing
    -- teach a song -- how about one of your Brazillionaire tunes ?

    Anyway, it's your party so make sure you have fun.

    Geoffrey

  5. #5

    Default Re: Suggestions for my next few tutorials?

    I second the request for something on blues improvisation (heck, it might have been me who asked for it before ). It's fairly easy to find lessons on blues in G or C, but not so easy to find other keys, such as E or A. I'd also love to see a lesson on movable blues sequences. Closed blues sequences that can be used in different keys by moving up or down or across the fretboard.

    Thanks for making the tutorials. I get a lot out of them.

    ron

  6. #6
    Registered User zak borden's Avatar
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    Default Re: Suggestions for my next few tutorials?

    Good ideas y'all. Yes to Ron on the movable blues thing. I was just teaching a lesson on that very thing today. I'm all about breaking out of key-specific ruts...both for myself and students. And Geoffrey: I'll be following up on some jig stuff in Dec and definitely will go into rhythm stuff. My favorite subject.

    Thanks for the ideas.
    -Zak

  7. #7

    Default Re: Suggestions for my next few tutorials?

    Hi Zak-

    I have been interested in your videos. I think you have a particularly good way of expressing the underlying simple (more or less) realities of musical concepts that are often explained in overwhelmingly complex ways.

    One thing I'd be interested in hearing you talk about has very little to do with specific mandolin technique, so maybe it wouldn't be of interest to most people. But here it is:

    The mandolin has certain inherent limits (no dig at the mando, all instruments do)-- among them are; it is a picked instrument, its short string length and high pitch leads to limited sustain, and it only has 4 tones that are available simultaneously. None the less, I find it is capable of remarkable breadth, musically. I'd be really interested to hear your ideas on how to USE (not overcome) these limits in pushing the bounds of mandolin. For example, how might one pick the 4 (or likely, 3) tones to use in conveying the flavor of a D7add9 chord? It is obviously context-specific, but are there ANY guidelines, or is it totally situation dependent? These things become increasingly important if the mandolin is played solo, when you can't rely on other instruments to "pick up the slack".

    In these situations I've likened mando playing to Zen ink brush drawings-- less is more, but the "less" obviously needs to be the RIGHT "less", if you get my drift.

    Anyway-- would love to hear your thoughts.

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