New Year's Eve

no writing today.  Happy New Year!

Dec. 30 writing report

no writing today!

Dec. 29: no writing

no writing today

Dec. 28: no writing

no writing today.

Dec. 27: no writing

no writing on Dec. 27

Dec. 26: No Writing

no writing on the 26th.

Happy Xmas to all!

of course I didn't write today!  But I did get some cool gifts from some cool people.  A Star Trek Comm panel from Ivy and Hayden.  Wow!  A Star Trek reboot Sulu doll.  Thanks, Gary!  A cool plaid sports coat from Dad and Jenny.  Gonna wear it next semester!  A neat-o charging thingy from Judy that allows you to charge almost anything off your laptop.  And it's a tiny white rectangle.  Yow!  And, a cool command gold Star Trek tie from Poly.  Awesome!  Also, a laser level, a super cool Xmas ornament from Skye (I'm #1 Dad!), and so on.  All cool stuff from cool folks.

Xmas Eve writing report

I'm sure I won't get any writing done today.  It's 10 am, and the house is filled with guests.  I guess I can give myself a break on Xmas-1 day.  And Xmas day itself.  Yesterday I did make some notes on the protagonist's musical tastes, but that doesn't count as writing.  Anyhoo, he likes Tchaikovsky, Liszt, Mendelssohn, Brahms, Chopin, and Schumann.  Later I'll tell you about the painters and artists he likes.

nothing today

didn't write today -- xmas preparations.  wait until after the holidays.

Dec. 22 writing report

Didn't write on the 22nd!  Oh, the pain!  I write these entries to be brutally honest.  I know, it's Xmas time and guests will arrive on Sunday, blah blah.  Just making a record of activity, or non-activity!

didn't write today

21 Dec. 2012.  It's almost 6 pm and I haven't written.  Oh well, there's always tomorrow.  Had a morning meeting at school and some afternoon stuff to do.  And Xmas preps continue.  Guests arrive on Sunday.

20 Dec. 2012 word count

word count:  4814

Today I added 508 words: ended the scene with Booth's wife, and added a scene with his daughter.  500 words wasn't too bad at all to write, and took about half an hour.  But, somehow, the word count differed a little on the two computers!  One was 4814, and one was 4799.  15 words different?  how does that happen?

today's word count

current word count:  4306

I didn't write today!  Anway, the official count doesn't start until January.  Still, I wanna try and write everyday.  Now we're busy with Xmas preparations.

Ruggiero Rescuing Angelica by Gustave Doré.

from the illustrated Orlando Furioso

William Adolphe Bougereau -- The Bohemiam -- 1890

Tchaikovsky : Violin Concerto in D major op.35 -- 1878

Arnold Boecklin - Island of the Dead -- 1883

Wiliam Hewlett McCord

1846 - 1912

My great-great-great grandfather's nephew!  So some sort of cousin of mine?  A rich dude in Gilded Age New York City.

writing takes over from guitar

the writing goes well.  guitar will take a back seat.  am researching Cleveland, Oh in the 1880s.  Want to finish the project by August 2013.  off we go!

Back to writing fiction

Started working on a story I began in 2003.  Dr. James booth, spirit surgeon.  Sort of a steam punk ghost buster story with a major nemesis.  Let's hope this time it goes.

horizontal and vertical work on the guitar

so, working with octaves got me to look at the neck horizontally.  I've been doing the beatles melodies with octaves running up and down the strings, so I have fewer times to jump strings.  this lay out is good at showing the scale as steps and half steps.  a different way of looking at the fretboard, as opposed to the vertical, across the strings, patterns of blues boxes and scales. 

so now i'm looking at finding patterns, such as triads, along the fretboard, and moving them up and down according to the major scale.  This really opens up the whole neck.  for example, in C, I do the 1-3-5 triad on the low E and A strings.  this pattern I then move up and down the neck from C on the low E string to B, A, G, and up to D, E, etc. 

I will look for more patterns and arpeggios to move up and down the fretboard in the major scale, and also in the mixolydian scale for a more jazzy sound.  I will also print out some blank neckboard diagrams and make some charts as references. 

jazzing up Hey Jude

working on a jazzy rendition of Hey Jude.  Just messing with the melody and adding notes from the scale, and some passing notes.  just whatever sounds jazzy to my ears.  I use the major scale as my base, and move around to whatever sounds good.  seems to be working so far.  that will be combined with octaves in a future recording, with a second track for the chords. 

more octave tunes

I added some tunes to my octaves list:

Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds
And I Love Her

The practice continues.  I use the 339 and the pawn shop strat.  Both have great humbuckers.

Octaves continue

My octaves plan is going well.  I can play, in octaves, these melodies:

Let it Be
Hey Jude
Windy
California Dreaming
Eight Days a Week

I've got the chords worked out for Let it Be.  The others will get chorded when I have time to make some videos -- after the end of the semester. 

In general I like octaves as a technique.  Turns out I think well with looking at the string and noting the scale in step and half step intervals.  More like a piano keyboard layout.  So going up and down the string feels better to me than going across strings.  Still a piano player at heart!  For the melody this is good.  For chords I just use the jazz chord forms I've learned. 

Poe Documentary

Wes, Octaves, and Gibson

It's crazy, but playing octaves on my Gibson, knowing that Wes played octaves on his Gibson -- well, that's cool!  Yeah, his model was way better, but mine is an ES custom shop too.  I guess that would be my dream guitar, the L5-CES.  I'm playing octaves on my Gibson..... like Wes.....!

Octave Beatles!

yeah, so hold on to your hats.  instead of the rock with drums, i'm gonna go back to the Beatles thing, and use ocatves, ala wes montgomery and others.  It's just a good way to make single note melodies sound richer and fuller.  what i still have to do is come up with some chord substitutions to make it sound jazzier.  maybe ask around about how to do that.  jazzy beatles will be the result, two tracks with chords and octave lead.  rock on... in a jazzy manner!

Actually, i was surprised that i could do octaves.  last time i tried, maybe 6 months ago, it just didn't sound good.  now i can do it and it sounds OK.  progress!  this is a great way to beef up single note leads.  i am octave man!

drum tracks, rock and roll

so here's the latest plan.  i found some rock drum backing tracks on youtube, so i'm gonna make some rock videos.  probably won't happen until the end of the semester.  rock is our folk music.

Pholk Music

since i'm not really working on chinese folk music, but instead i'm playing the major pent scale and "sounding" chinese or asian, i decided to call my work pholk music.  not real folk, but faux folk.  pholk.  so, my indigenous folk name (like a blues name) is Phil Pholio.

not much lately

not much lately going on.  too busy with life.  still playing.  not recording, but hope to do so in a few weeks. 

chinese folk music

been listening to chinese folk music lately.  it uses major pentatonic scale, so i'm finding i can imitate the folk melodies pretty easily.  gonna record some fake folk tunes.  yeah, fake folk is what it is.

BEATLES

Let It Be will be my first two track instrumental.  Yeah, doing another 180 on everybody.  Blues will take a break while I work on Beatles guitar instrumentals with the same two track method, rhythm and lead.  Did the rhythm today, and will do lead track tomorrow and upload the video.  let it be!

3220 blues new video

OK, so here's the new video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHJF3FVlAIg

first vid in a while.  2 tracks, using the vg strat.  rhythm track is 12 string acoustic setting, and the lead track is 6 string.  that's gonna be my pattern for a while.  the photos are from the library of congress and in the public domain. 

two or three track recording

yeah, going back to my idea of the multi-tracked instrumental as the final product, instead of the live performance.  Then I can split up the guitar parts into rhythm and lead parts, with maybe a piano part too.  It will be easier to do country blues, ragtime, and other songs this way, and I can use all my guitars in the process.  Must think this over some more, and experiment a little on Fridays!  Garage Band will be the software platform.  

now fender surfy is the one

yeah, the fender known as surfy, the surf green strat, is my go to guitar for my blues work.  it's got the sound, the comfort, and the ease of use.

workin' on kind hearted woman blues, crosssroads, and "from four until late." the idea is to do the intro, then the head twice, then improv head improve head improv.... etc.  that's my format for the RJ songs.

Kind hearted woman

Working on RJ's Kind HeArted Woman Blues.  Using a simplified form I got in a Hal Leonard book.

37 blues backing tracks.. the set list

yeah, those blues never go away!  so, now my semester plan is to NOT leave the blues and go to jazz and not use what I've studied for 3 years.  Finally, not gonna do that again!  So, I gathered up my blues backing tracks onto one ipod.  37 tracks.  Figures out the keys for all of them, and they will be my set list.  Gonna play and play and play those 37 tracks.  Jazz will come back in 2013 or so, after I've mastered those blues tracks and have "performance worthy" songs ready to go.  Blues!

new jazz book

got a great book at the library.  "Jazz Standards for Easy Guitar" by Hal Leonard publishers.  60 standards in EZ format -- a little too easy.  I will learn them, do some chord substitutions, and there you go.  then add some improv to it -- still working on that!

so, how to use 9s and 10s.  Start with 9s for the day's practice, and later, after you're warmed up, move on to 10s.  Good for the muscles.

Gibby now in the lead

OK, after a few days of practice with the Fender, the Gibson doesn't feel so bad.  I got some more strength, I guess.  So now the 339 comes roaring back as the #1 git box.

Yesterday I learned a jazz blues comp 12 bar from freddym.  Great transitional device from blues to jazz.  I found some jazzy tones around the fifth position major pentatonic box, so I'm gonna try a two track jazz blues number sometime.  make a youtube video.  Freddym has great lessons -- lots of chords and clear explanations.  Also making good progress on Autumn Leaves.  So that's two jazz pieces (heads), a jazz blues 12 bar comp, and a nice chord progression from an earlier lesson, plus a list of lots of chords.  yeah!

Gibson v. Fender

Really it's a matter of string gauge.  I just like 9 gauge strings more than 10s.  Easier to fret.  I tried to make my Gibson my go-to guitar for jazz, but the Fender is just easier to play.  Gibby sounds better, though.  Typical dilemma.  So, I'll use the Fender pawn shop 72 as my main axe now.  Someday I want to put 9s on Gibby and see how that feels.  The 339 is a better guitar, so I'd like to have that as my main one.  The scale length doesn't matter so much, I'm comfortable with either one.

Great Source for Jazz Lessons

Here is my new source on YouTube for jazz lessons:

Freddym223

Better than the other one I got those songs from.  This guy has a great lesson on jazz chords.  He has lessons on many jazz standards using his set of moveable chords.  Seems to be a very good system.  Gonna focus on Freddy M and see where it takes me.

strawberry pancakes for breakfast

yeah, instead of Just Friends I"m gonna work on a solo guitar version of Strawberry Fields Forever.  Got to add some variety to my music.  Got the tabs from my Beatles songbook I ordered recently.  So, Fab 4 and jazz lite.  and a little blues and ragtime.

Jazz Lite

yeah, that's what I'm working on.  jazz lite.  not gonna get all theory obsessed.  just gonna figure out some basic ways to play some jazz standards with light improvising.  Printed out the third piece, Just Friends.

Autumn Leaves

working on Autumn leaves now.  Still working on All the Things You Are.  the jazz continues!

jazz and the ringing ear

so, i've found a few limits with jazz and my ringing left ear.  i thought, hey, jazzers use just the neck pickup, so i will too.  ring a ding ding.  i thought, hey, jazzers use some chorus with their reverb, so i will too.  ring a ding ding.  so i'm back to neck/bridge pickups with reverb, like i always play.  i hope the extra ringing will go away by tomorrow.  it usually does when something sets it off.  oh well.  not gonna be a conventional jazzer.

jazz is good

workin' hard on the "all the things you are" piece.  really enjoying the new chords and new sounds.  I feel this is the best way for me to start jazz.  learn songs first, then work on improvs.  finally, jazz!

giving jazz guitar another chance

OK, so I never give up!  I found a good website with PDFs of standard jazz tunes, tabs format, with easy versions.  here it is;

http://www.jazzguitarlessons.net/index.html

I printed out the first one, "all the things you are" and I'm working on it now.  Chords mostly, with a few melody notes.  This is the way for me.  Theory and scales and single note improvs can wait.  I just need some nice simple chord melody jazz tunes to learn.

Jazz is back, baby!  Still gonna work on ragtime and blues.

happy fourth of july

ok, so happy birthday USA.  Still pluggin away at ragtime.  workning  a little on Hesitation Blues, by Rev. Gary Davis.  Just learning the chord pattern and improvising.

It hit 100 degrees today in this town.  too hot to handle!

Bought a guitar rack so all 4 guitars are in one spot, right beside the computer desk here.  cool!

blues and ragtime together

Got a Robert Johnson breakthrough yesterday.  Just playing outside in the backyard, messing with 32 20 Blues.  Then I started mixing in some pentatonic improv, and it began to expand.  I felt that here was the way to play RJ without singing.  So now my interest in blues is back, and especially in RJ.  I ordered an "easy play" book of his songs on Amazon, along with a book of Rev. Gary Davis rags and  one on fingerstyle Beatles.

So, workin' on RJ and 32 20 blues, and ready to add blues and ragtime into a set list.

12 string

got to play a friend's 12 string Taylor.  Really really nice sound!  It reinforced what I've been experiencing with my VG strat.  I play ragtime on it with 12 string acoustic mode, and it sounds great.  Just that right touch of musicbox and carnival that goes so well with ragtime.  Chimey and dreamy and summertime.  Methinks if I get an acoustic it will be a 12 stringer!

still working on ragtime

still working on the same ragtime pieces.  good progress.  mostly using the 12 string acoustic mode with the VG strat.  Having fun!

oh, my last lesson went well

so I had my last lesson during final's week.  It went well, and Tom was in a good mood.  I didn't say whether I'd be back or not, and he didn't ask.  We ended on good terms.  I feel good to go on my own now and study ragtime guitar.  I've worked through the rags in the Kenny Sultan book, and soon I'll order a book of Rev. Gary Davis rags.  I think I can simplify and streamline the rags to suit my skills and style.

guitar ragtime

OK, gonna stay with guitar ragtime.  gonna play it chord-based, and not so much with syncopated fingerpicking.  this will save my thumb some pain.  anyhoo, it's easier that way.  chords with some melody notes will suffice.  the basic sound comes through and it's easier.  so far I have two by Blind Boy Fuller, Wabash Rag and Keep on Truckin.  My book has two more by Blind Blake, That's Not Gonna Happen to Me, and Blake's Breakdown.

Lesson this week went well.  Working on the Truckin' song.  Doing it fingerstyle for Tom.

Piano plans on hold.  Guitar stuff is working out fine.

somehow mix piano, guitar, and ragtime

so i'm gonna mix these three up some way.  like, my piano can be a looper i think.  play a section then have it repeat, like a VI II V I progression.  then play guitar lead over it.  OR, play guitar sheet music on the piano, and modify as needed.  I bet I could play robert johnson and others on the piano instead of guitar.  how will that sound?

it will give me something to do over the summer.  i want something different.  I"m not so good at either instrument, so if i mix it up like this then maybe something good will come of it. 

Ragtime piano, blues guitar

Ok, I pulled out my old piano sheet music. Playing the entertainer by Joplin again. Will switch to ragtime piano, with lessons next spring. Guitar will be my blues instrument. I'm back to a focus on piano. Wow! Didn't expect it.

Ragtime is it

forget jazz.  That book will have to wait.  I'm going to focus on ragtime guitar this summer.  I'm finishing up the Wabash rag, and will start on the next one, Keep On Truckin' Mama.  Then I'm gonna get a book of ragtime guitar pieces.  This is the instrumental type of music I've been looking for.

This week's lesson went well.  We worked on the songs I chose.

april 11 lesson

this week we worked more on the ragtime piece, Wabash Rag.  Since then I've gotten the hang of it, and it's not hard once I got the stretch in the A chord and melody in the first two measures.  The rest is smooth sailing.

Today I bought a book, a Mel Bay book, Teach Yourself Jazz Guitar.  Not sure if it's what I wanted, but it has some good exercises and scales.  I want an intermediate level book of jazz standards.  i thought I could start learning jazz songs, and learn the theory later.  why not?  just learn to play some pieces.  that's still my plan for the summer.  probably need another book, though.

ragtime blues for today's lesson

so I showed my guitar teacher the new book of blues pieces, and I chose a ragtime song by Blind Boy Fuller, Wabash Rag, to work on.  It's a VI II V I form in C.  Good lesson today.

Captain's log

Star date 2012.4.1

new strings for the 339

Finally, I put a new set of strings on the 339!  yeah, I've had it since June 2010.  The guitar was made in July 2009.  So those strings are pretty old!  Well, she's got new Ernie Ball Slinky 10s now.  Sounds so much better.

Still working on my list of songs from the previous entry, although I'm not doing B&O Blues.  Haven't figured a good way to make it an instrumental.  Also have a new piece in C, Hot Coffee, and I'm working  on one in D.

Blogs are dead

Blogging is the ham radio of the Internet. I blog as a journal for my guitar lessons and playing. I don't expect anyone to read it. Twitter is too short and Facebook too scattered. Blogs are more like classic texts or journals. Still, they are dying out.

this week's lesson

so, my guitar teacher broke a bone in his wrist.  His arm was in a sling and he didn't play.  He helped me through the Spanish piece I'm working on.  So still had a good lesson.  Poor guy!

no lesson this week

my guitar teacher called in with a hand injury, so there was no lesson this week.
I looked at my Kenny Sultan book and found a very interesting ragtime guitar piece, with a VI II V I format.  ooh!  looks cool!  something besides I IV V.  Maybe ragtime guitar can be something I will learn.

who remembers Kendall?

yeah, the guitar playing guy in the union back in the 80s.  He worked for the railroad.  great guitar player -- instrumentalist.  He had a cool tuner with a dial and needle.  He played blues stuff, I suppose, or folk stuff.  I wanna be like that, playing wise.  Just sit back and play instrumentals.  Kendall. 

meet Pullman Greenlake

that's my updated blues persona.... Pullman Greenlake.  It includes the three major locations in my life.  He's back, by the way, now that I'm doing acoustic style blues.  I told my guitar teacher today about my blues stuff, and showed him what I can play.   He was in a good mood.  we're dropping the three songs from the last few weeks, and now I'm working on a one page Spanish folk piece -- very famous, you'd recognize it if you heard it.  I'll get the name later.

updated song list

OK, here's my list so far:

Spike Driver's Blues -- Mississippi John Hurt (MJH)
Make Me a Pallet -- MJH
M&O Blues -- Willie Brown (still working on it)
32-20 Blues -- Robert Johnson
Black Rat Swing -- Memphis Minnie 
January Thaw -- me (in G)
Wild Wind Blow -- me, still in development (in E)


instrumental versions only!



The ideal form will be head-head-improv-head.  So I gotta work on improvs for all these(except Jan. Thaw).  



My versions are not always accurate.  I simplify and change as needed to fit my abilities.  

new book of songs

the book is "blues guitar legends in the styles of ......(list of names)" by Kenny Sultan.  Great book!

this week's lesson went OK

so the guitar teacher was in a better mood this week.  We worked on the three pieces without tension.  I was reserved but polite.  I told him I'm not interested in a duet, which one of the pieces is, but I'll learn one part of it. 

Still this will be my last semester of lessons.  Today I bought a book of acoustic blues songs, interpreted and reworked by Kenny Sultan.  They are right at my level.  Not accurate transcriptions, but pieces based on classic Delta and Piedmont blues, among other sub-genres.  All in standard tuning, too.  A lot of delta blues are in open tunings -- I don't want to go there yet. 

last semester of lessons

I decided to finish the semester with my lessons and then go on my own.  I can teach myself these acoustic blues songs.  I know the basics of form and technique.  I need a break from my teacher's moods, and he probably needs a break from me.  If I take lessons again I'll sign up with my college's other guitar teacher.  I look forward to working on my own.  It's been three years of lessons. 

updated blues song list

OK, here's my list so far:

Spike Driver's Blues -- Mississippi John Hurt (MJH)
Make Me a Pallet -- MJH
M&O Blues -- Willie Brown (just started this one)
32-20 Blues -- Robert Johnson (yup!)
Black Rat Swing -- Memphis Minnie 
January Thaw -- Me

instrumental versions only!


The ideal form will be head-head-improv-head.  So I gotta work on improvs for all these(except Jan. Thaw).  


My versions are not always accurate.  I simplify and change as needed to fit my abilities.  

progress in bible as literature

I've gone through Chronicles now, the sections dealing with the kings of Judah after Solomon.  Made a nice graphic organizer for each king and chapter/verse.

Also went through the sections of Kings that deal with the kings of Israel.  Still working on a graphic organizer for that; the text is more complicated.

Also made a chart for the judges in the Book of Judges.  Making your own charts is much more helpful than filling one out that others made.  I really have to do the legwork myself.

Still want to make an organizer for King David.  that's a complex story!  Also would like to make ones for Saul and Samuel.

After that, Ezra and Nehemiah.  Someday.

worst lesson ever

Man, what a grouch!  T. was in one heck of a bad mood.  Either that or he wants to get rid of me.  Which he might just do.  I'm considering whether or not to continue lessons with him after this semester.  I don't need this kind of behavior from a teacher.  I'm not a music major or a full time student.  I have limited time.

Perhaps it's time for a break.  I can learn on my own now, I'm discovering. 

Songs I'm working on

OK, here's my list so far:

Spike Driver's Blues -- Mississippi John Hurt (MJH)
Make Me a Pallet -- MJH
January Thaw -- Me
Black Rat Swing -- Memphis Minnie (just started on this one)

instrumental versions only!

Piedmont Blues

so i read about piedmont blues.  it's supposed to be more melodic than delta blues.  often the song's melody is in the guitar part, tracking with the singer.  thus to me it sounds like a good focus for me.  it would make a better base for instrumental guitar.  also it's supposed to have roots in ragtime, and that brings back my old interest in piano ragtime.  plus, the piedmont region is good ol' south carolina, my Skye's birth place.  so it's all wrapped up nicely. 

now I"m working on Make Me a Pallet by Mississippi John Hurt.  Finally I can play the advanced version from the xeroxes Tom gave me.  After that's down I will work on Black Rat Swing, an piedmont blues song from my book.  i can learn these on my own now.

maybe this will be the focus.

latest guitar lesson

OK, my guitar teacher wants me to work on three pieces!  dude, where you at?  I don't have time for three works.  One at a time, dude!  I'm not a full time music major!  He'll find out next week!

january thaw -- second recording

here it is, done a little better:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZENnfU92qY&feature=plcp&context=C39ebf1cUDOEgsToPDskIsurpOaO6jvXSfBWwlj3Pi

almost got it down!  sometime I gotta record the piece from my lessons, "First Solo."  a light somewhat jazzy subdued number.

fingerpickin' composition!

OK, here's my first fingerpickin piece, "January Thaw."  Mistakes included!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLryvCgN18M&list=UUgbfaJcYcN-uYBGwDgAAidw&index=1&feature=plcp

enjoy!

latest video: delta blues

here's my fingerpick practice of Spike Driver's Blues, by Mississippi John Hurt:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhG_NjpAMHA

i like the fingerpicks.  they take a while to get used to but provide a consistent tone compared to fingers.

dead blog sighting

no post since 2007:

http://seniorhighstyle.blogspot.com/?expref=next-blog

delta blues are back, baby!

yeah they're back!  I put on the fingerpicks and am working to get good at them.  Finally, after a few years, I've got the dexterity to begin practicing.  Sometimes I still catch my fingers on the strings, but I'm getting better.  As usual, once I give up something I come back to it a little later.  I also figured out how to improvise a little, especially in G.  I found the scale notes and can move around and make simple melodies that way.  Good stuff!

Had my second lesson last week.  We're working on some music theory (diatonic harmony; adding 7ths to the diatonic  triads) and still working on the "first solo" piece from last semester.

dead blog sightings

dead blog: no entries since 2009:

http://model-discussion.blogspot.com/?expref=next-blog

a guy blogs about the weather.

I might keep an eye out for dead blogs.  interesting topic.  what happened?

this one died in 2005:

http://fledthescene.blogspot.com/?expref=next-blog

2 girls blogging about music/

more than just guitar

why not write about anything at all?  there's more to life than guitar.  lately i've been reading other blogger blogs, using the "next blog" button at the top.  interesting to see who blogs, why, and how frequently.  i should think of this blog as a record of my activities for the future to read.  something to look back on by myself and my family.

had one guitar lesson this semester.  we're gonna work on solo pieces, pop and jazzy stuff.  this wednesday i hope he brings in the next one.  the current song is "first solo" from a music book.  a nice piece, but not jazzy enough or pop enough.  a little bland.  good for sight reading practice, though.

the fender pawn shop 72, surf green, named Surfy, has had a set up and sounds great.  it will be my school guitar and a main guitar this semester, along with the gibson 339.  the vg strat will take a break for a while.

taking two PLS courses in the first 8 weeks of the semester.  busy!  teaching 3 classes and chairing the assessment team on campus.  fun!

major progress in major/minor pent

yeah, somehow a lot is clicking now.  i'm moving between major  and minor licks with greater ease.  i'm seeing the boxes better, (visualizing).  I can move between the overlapping boxes better, both across and up and down the fretboard.  I can move on that fretboard!  getting the licks to sound better.  so interesting!  that's the under-reported part of blues that I like, the fun of these major/minor shifts.  Overall it gives the blues a lot of notes in a octave.  8 or 9.  the notes are bound by the licks being in recognizable major/minor riffs.

Playing the vg strat for this.  Can't beat the fender strat with 9 gauge strings for blues work.  so, the jazz... that will wait until my lessons start again.  jazz for the lessons, blues for my own work.  can't give up the blues yet, stuff is finally coming together, after almost three years.  2.5 years.  i'll make a video sometime to illustrate what I"m doing.