• Auto Correct
• Fingerboard Harmony: Diminished Triads
• Q&A: Teachers-The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
• New Principled Teacher Added To Network: Shailendra Gangwar

Auto Correct

Hi Jamie,

I actually have a name for this idea of "doing something over and over until it starts coming out right". I call it "auto-correct". I use it myself, and I use it with students. However, it is important to know how to use it, when to use it, and especially, when not to use it.

I may have a student sitting in front of me, playing something we have worked on awhile. They may mess up a passage, and I will say "okay, take that part again". But, I will add these extremely important words "increase your attention and intention before and during this next attempt". In other words, some mistakes will occur simply because we are not paying enough attention to what we are doing, or, even more likely, are not thinking ahead to our next series of movements, including hearing the music in our heads as we play. So, my first line of attack with mistakes where music has already been practiced is "auto-correct". It very well may happen that by simply going over the passage a few times with strong mental focus (and it is always a big help to play it mentally before each new attempt), it starts to improve. But, if the mistake does not yield to this approach, it is a good indication that something else is going on, that the problem is not in the mind, so to speak, but in the fingers.

It could be bad fingering, unclear fingering, erratic fingering, physical tension in any part of the body; a million different things. At that point, a diagnostic process of analysis must be conducted, and there is only one way to do it. If you doggedly stick with "auto-correct", the methods you have asked me about, you are going to be a seriously frustrated guitarist, because when the problem is of this nature, IT DOES NOT FIX ITSELF!

Another point to appreciate is this: in my book "The Deeper I Go", I define intelligence as "responsive awareness". I also make the point that there are many domains of intelligence, and physical intelligence is one of them. Some people's bodies are more naturally "responsively aware" than others. For these people, auto-correct is going to work at an earlier date in their development, and more strongly. However, all of us can teach our bodies to be responsively aware, to be "intelligent", that is what proper training is all about. The more sophisticated our technique becomes through training, the more "auto-correct" will work for us, and in increasingly complex situations.

But, much more important than all of this is to know what to do when auto-correct is not solving our problem, which is 99% of the time! What must be done is, essentially, the Basic Practice Approach (the fundamental practice methodology taught in The Principles). I will say to the student having trouble with something, "play the passage for me no tempo, show me the bottom of your practice". That will tell me all I need to know. I will see the discomfort the student is truly experiencing (without knowing it), and I will see what they are doing to create or exacerbate that discomfort. I see what is wrong, why it is wrong, and what to do about it, and then we get to work.

Now let's talk about this other idea of learning a skill by simply having a go at it as fast as you can, observing the action, and assuming that the details of that action are the best possible ones for you to use, and so should be developed.

Well, my first reaction is "try it, see how it works". I imagine it may be a good idea, and bring good and MAYBE the best results for some very few people, but again, all of my decades of teaching experience have shown me otherwise. In fact, my basic attitude is, all things being equal, the untrained fingers are incredibly stupid, and can almost always be depended upon to do things in the worst way possible. In fact, it would usually be better to watch what your fingers do, and then train them to do just the opposite!

Now, please remember I am not laying down hard and fast "this is the way it is for everybody all the time" type of rules, because there are none. There are so many variables involved in this whole subject that no rules could ever hold true always. My philosophy is to listen to everybody, think about everything, try everything you have a mind to, and then assess and analyze results. We just really need to be careful in this whole endeavor. I would not be surprised that someone who based their picking technique on the first available action template that presented itself would never know whether they were, by doing so, making many other skills inaccessible to themselves down the road. We frequently hear of long time players who wish they could change this or that about their technique, having discovered superior approaches later in life.

So, those are my thoughts concerning the provocative statements made by these great players. If I were to summarize my reaction to the substance of your questions concerning the statements of these players of great natural talent who, as great players often will, have temporarily taken on the role of teachers, I would say this: it is a perfect illustration of why so often great players are lousy teachers, unless they are teaching already great players!

The fingering for the minor triad given last time should have been adjusted from that used for the major triad. Use 2, not 3 for the lowered note of the minor triad.

We have looked at the structure and shape of major triads and minor triads. Now, we will look at diminished triads.

The simplest way to understand the make-up of a major triad is to know that it is simply a set of 3 notes, and that those notes are the 1st, 3rd, and 5th note of any major scale you choose. The letter name of the scale you choose will be the letter name of the Major triad. So, if I choose the scale of A, which has the notes.....A B C# D E F# G#.........then I simply pick AC#E, and I have a major triad (I can also say I have a major chord). So, the formula for a major triad is 1 3 5

To make a minor, you simply take the same 1st, 3rd, and 5th notes, but you lower the 3rd one half step, so the the C# becomes C natural (C§) So, the formula for a minor triad is 1 b3 5

Diminished triads take us one step further. We take the 1st note, we use that lowered 3rd note, BUT we lower the 5th note as well. So, in the key of A, we would have A C Eb. So, the formula for a diminished  triad is 1 b3 b5.

Now, this is the technical, "mental" explanation. You also need to translate these concepts into ability in your fingers, and most especially, into recognition in your ear.

As far as your fingers go, you will take the major triads, and play them as before around the circle of 5ths. As you play each one, you will then transform the major triad to minor by lowering the 3rd (adjusting the fingering). Then, you will turn that minor triad into a diminished triad by lowering the 5th (which is played by the 1st finger).

As you do this, playing a major-minor-diminished triad in succession, you will sing the notes as well. You can just sing "la" for each note, but it is probably better to sing 1-3-5, saying "flatted" where appropriate. Don't skip this part, all good musicians, all professional musicians train their ears this way, connecting them to their fingers as they do these type of drills. It may seem hard at first, it will soon become easier, then second nature.

Here is an example of the above described operation, done with the major triad from a 6th string root. Do each string set, of course around the circle of 5ths.

The diminished triad, in terms of how it sounds and how it functions musically, can probably best be described as simply "weird'. It is a very dissonant chord, a very unstable chord, and it does not want to remain as it is, but strongly wants to resolve to something else. Music, in essence, is "tension and release", and diminished chords belong to the "tension" part of the equation!

Last time, I had you do an "Integration Exercise" to learn the major and minor triad forms along the 4 string sets. We played a "chord scale" in C major (a series of chords, each one representing and built on a scale note)_....

Cmaj-Dm-Em-Fmaj-Gmaj-Am

There are only 6 chords here, and there are 7 notes in the scale. We left out the chord that would correspond to the 7th note of the scale because it happens to be a diminished chord! So, this time, play the same chord scales, up and down each string set, but include the 7th chord as well.

 Cmaj-Dm-Em-Fmaj-Gmaj-Am -Bdim---and end on the higher C, then work back down.

Here are the fingerings to use for diminished triads on the other string sets, derived from the minor triads.....

 

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Q&A:

 

Teachers: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly!

 

 

Jamie:

I am in the beginning phases of the principles (after many years of floundering) and although not an accomplished player I do remember something from the past regarding teaching. My Grandmother, in the first half of the last century taught in a school in North Dakota. It wasn't a typical school teaching typical students. It was a school that taught teachers how to teach. It taught the art of teaching itself.

She was very convinced that teaching was a sacred craft in and of itself and the most proficient in their trade were often not the best teachers. True, you have to be an expert in the material you are teaching. But, teaching is its own art separate from the material itself.

I think your article on student abuse is great, no...... brilliant!! I caution you, however. If you are beginning to form a network principle teachers, you will, for those of us who, like you say, are becoming more discerning regarding the ability of their paid teachers to teach effectively, be putting your name and your teaching prowess on the line when they are included in your "network".

I therefore challenge you. If going to the wrong teachers can ruin me as a guitar player, what qualifications and checks and balances are in place for those "on the network"? I cannot believe that you just send out phony diplomas in the mail for a fee. You see, I respect you and what you stand for. So...........

If I call on one of these teachers in my area (when and if available), I will expect to get the same quality of teaching that I would expect to get from you. Therefore I must ask (at least for the short term)......... based on lessons learned in your earliest teaching experiences, have you interviewed these people face to face? Have you questioned them on their training and experience? Have you gone through their lesson plans? Have you interviewed any of their students? Have you sat through any of their lessons as an observer? Have you sat next to them and watched them play the guitar?

In the long term, do you have a systematic program (curriculum, lesson plan etc.) to teach teachers how to teach and, for yourself, how to know when they are ready to do so?

Those are the kind of questions I would expect would come from the kind of student I am trying to create!

First of all, that newsletter you are referring to was a "classic", meaning it was a few years old. GuitarPrinciples was quite new, and we were first beginning to become deluged with people asking for anyone who could teach "The Principles". Unfortunately, there was only one: me! And I don't get out of the house much!

So, our first level of approaching the problem of directing people to teachers who would have something remotely resembling the competency people were expecting from a teacher of The Principles, was to at least find teachers who had read my book, and either agreed with its basic tenets, or perhaps even had been using similar type approaches. We felt, and I think rightly so, that any student would be better off in the hands of such a teacher. So we asked for the names of teachers who were in sympathy with my methods, and began to post their names.

Realize that this was even before I had produced the DVDs we have now, that are so essential in making everything in "The Principles Of Correct Practice For Guitar", our source textbook, real for people. I felt those DVD's had to be my highest priority in terms of bringing The Principles into people lives, hands, and playing, and I was correct about that. They are also absolutely essential that they be studied by anyone teaching my methods.

So, my point is that this whole thing is a VERY large undertaking. All of your concerns, all of your suggestions, I think are spot on and wonderful. You are entirely correct to challenge me on this point. And I am going to meet that challenge, and even now have already made significant advances in this area. That is because many people, from all over the world, have come to study with me. In the beginning, we had a lot of short consultations, now, I am only interested in longer, more intensive training sessions with people.

Some people of extraordinary talent and dedication, people such as Trevor in Ireland, Jonsi in Iceland, Mikkel in Denmark, Donna in California, Le in Pittsburgh, and a number of others, have not only come to study with me personally, but have studied my work intensely, and consistently apply my methods in their teaching. Such people will continue to appear and grow in number. (I think some of the people I mentioned are so busy with students now they are afraid being on the network page will overload them!) These people, who I have taught personally, and who have given great attention to studying my work (which is quite a vast system), are the ideal Principled Teachers I wish to create.

I am considering it part of my work for my remaining years to continue to create teachers, and the materials and systems for them to use. I have many things in the works now. I have more material unpublished and unknown then I do published and being used, and it never stops developing. So, we all need to take the long view here.

Now, as far as your question as to what should you, the student, be looking for in a so called "Principled Teacher", that is a good question, and one I have been wanting to address. I may play guitar all day, but I am not stupid! I realize there are individuals who want to get on my network, or otherwise get known as teachers of my methods, who don't know anything more than the names of my books! We have discovered a few, and we get rid of them when we find them. We have discovered, over the last few years, the qualities and actions of the excellent teachers such as I have mentioned, and the schlubs that everyone needs to avoid. So, let's talk about those differences.

First of all, and one of the most obvious things: does the teacher have the student actually obtain a copy of The Principles, and oversee the long and demanding process of making this system of practicing a daily reality, one that is increasingly understood and used? Well, we have discovered many so-called teachers who don't even do that!

On the other end of the spectrum, Ney Mello, a master guitarist who knew what teaching and playing were about long before he discovered my work, has every student get a copy of the Principles from the beginning of lessons, and drills them each week, asking them questions about key concepts until the right answers start coming out of their mouths, and the right movements start coming out of their fingers! That is the way ALL of our teachers should be.

Anyone teaching my methods should, at a minimum, be studying "The Principles", "The Path", and my the DVD's. My new book "The Deeper I Go, The Deeper It Gets", will be necessary for grasping much of the work I will release over the next few years.

At this point, I am satisfied that I have created what is necessary for the average person to achieve, at the very least, and average ability on the guitar, if that is what they want. One of the great things, though, is that they will also achieve the foundation to become as advanced as they want to later on in life, if that comes about. To me, that is just the coolest thing: no one is blocked from the simple pleasures the guitar provides, and no one will find themselves later on blocked from higher development due to a faulty or non-existent foundation if they begin to pursue such development.

You ask "what checks and balances are in place for those on the network" to insure that you are not ruined by someone you may take lessons with. Here is the answer: none! There probably never will be, what am I supposed to do, sit in on everyone's lessons! You are wrong when you say I am putting my name or reputation on the line by putting someone's name on my network. I am not charging anyone to be on the network, or use the network, and I certainly don't get a cut of their teaching! I stand behind my own work, period! When you say "if I go to a teacher on the network, I expect to get the same quality of training I would get from you", well, excuse me, but perhaps you may want to examine the soundness of that expectation. I will tell you right now, with absolutely no fear of appearing to lack humility, because I do not possess a shred of it anyway, you will never find a teacher as good as me! It is simply my observation after a lifetime of teaching and observing myself and others that there is no one who comes close to what I can do with people.

Now, you may say "Jamie, you are out of your mind, and an ego-maniac", and again, while probably true, that is beside the point. I firmly believe this, apparently a good number of other people who travel to me from around the world believe it as well. You are free to think whatever you want. I am just telling you, at least for right now, do not expect to find someone that can match my abilities as a teacher. But, who knows what the future may bring. When I get a chance to spend many years training people, some may well equal or surpass me, but it is not the case now.

Of course, I will do my best to make sure that the best teachers are being created, and become known for the quality of their work, but that is already happening. We have a teachers forum, full of people teaching my methods. It doesn't take too long to read through it and figure out who knows what they are talking about. You can ask anyone any question you want. As in any other field, people's reputations will become known, for good or ill. We have already thrown out a couple of jerks that couldn't help displaying their lack of value after awhile.

Use your common sense here. The people who have studied with me personally say so. Using what I have said here, ask questions of whoever you are considering. Obviously, you should have my book before looking for a Principled Teacher, so it should not be too difficult to tell if someone really knows the material, and how to make sure it is transferred to the student. As time goes on, I will develop levels of "certification" for my teachers. Over the next few years, we will be holding teacher workshops. But these things take time, and I do not spend all of my available time building GuitarPrinciples. I need many hours for my own pracitce and study, and will be working on a writing and recording a new album this year. And I'm not sure, but I think I have a personal life too, although I temporarily mis-place it from time to time.

As far as your concerns about finding the most capable teacher go, the best possible scenario is someone who has studied with me consistently over a long period of time. But, for a variety of reasons, my teaching has been very restricted over the last few years, and I have been doing only consultations, as opposed to seeing people on an ongoing basis week after week.

In fact, there is only one person I have been teaching on a consistent, bi-weekly basis for about 2 1/2 years now. He has just decided to begin teaching, and I have added him to the network. I am speaking of Shailendra Gangwar, who is presently in New Jersey. He is one of the most excellent students I have ever had, so I have no doubt he will be an outstanding teacher. Anyone in his area would be wise to take advantage of his services while he is still around, he may be going back to India in a year or so.

Here is a little bit of info on Shailendra....................

I am very pleased to announce a new teacher on our Teacher Network: Shailendra Gangwar.

Shailendra began teaching himself with "The Principles", and his hands had a perfect foundation from the time I met him at a workshop he attended.

He subsequently began regular lessons with me, focusing on folk, pop, classical, and general guitar theory.

He is ideally suited at this point to give a firm guitar foundation to any beginner, as well as helping those already playing overcome technical problems, and learn the most effective practice methods to use for continuous growth.

Here are a few words from Shailendra....... I'm one of those fortunate people who started learning guitar using The Principles. I've been learning for just about 3 years now (in July 2005) under Jamie's expert guidance.

Even though I have just begun teaching, the confidence of getting results from students even with this short experience reflects nothing but the Power of The Principles.

If you belong to the category of people whose guitar is eating dust in the closet after years of frustration of not reaching anywhere, you are my favorite student!

Shailendra is located in Edison, New Jersey, and can be contacted here........... z.shail@gmail.com