With all that said, let me give some surprising totals of what things were paid for in 1950 vs. 2010 calculating inflation. Remember, this is not what you necessarily pay now, but what the cost of 1950 would equal to now.

You can decide for yourself the amount of money you’d pay a qualified music instructor. You’ll notice that a gallon of gas and a gallon of good milk cost more than what is indicated on the table. As far as yearly income, the last report I read (click here) states that the average income per person in the United States is $33,070. Most families today have two working parents which on average doubles that amount. Of course, there are many factors other than inflation (of which this table is based) that determine the prices of things. I came about these figures by Googling the items price in 1950 and comparing five or six reputable sites. Then, I entered it into the U.S. Government’s inflation calculator to get the buying power of the amount from 1950.

All in all, I think that most would agree that the average teaching musician is being underpaid by their students. Believe me this is not about me making more money. This entry is about what many of my colleagues get paid by their students. I am fortunate that I feel properly compensated for my work with my students and can provide for my family by teaching. It is a shame that many other musicians I know have to work three or four jobs to make ends meet because their students fail to pay a worthy value for the instruction they receive.

Any good practice regimen requires one to think about these two separate and connected ideas. Our fingers must be able to play that which we want to hear. Yet to be able to hear that which you want to play is another separate issue. The technical aspect is usually the easiest to practice for most people. This, of course, has to do with the fact that it means you’ll be putting your hands on the guitar through scales, arpeggios, and pieces. The musician part is not as easy.

Becoming a good musician is a much more difficult thing to master. It involves being able to hear chord structures, sing melodies, know where to put an emphasis on a phrase, and even the simple or difficult ability to count a rhythm correctly. The study of all of this falls under becoming a good musician. Therefore, in your practicing this area must be one that takes a good bit of your time. Being a good musician is not dependent on you being a good technician and vice versa. However, you must attain ability in both to allow your music to actually convey its intended result.

Masinter Summertime

Other resources:

George Gershwin – Summertime Solo Guitar Sheet Music (Digital Download)

George Gershwin – Summertime Lead Sheet Music (Digital Download)

In some cases, people just have to adventure on their own until they discover the above truth. Therefore, I am currently happy to suggest the book by Greg Horne published by Alfred Publishing and associated with the National Guitar Workshop. Horne has a firm foundation in American roots music but also finds time to power in some bluesy rock. This diversity and a clear way of presenting ideas finds its way into every aspect of the book. He takes the student through the basics with clear explanations and builds on playing songs from the beginning. Each chapter reveals a new technique and eventually leads to blues playing after walking a bit through some fundamentals including American roots music basics. The book ends with the infamous barre chord. By then, the student should be ready to take on the barre without reservations. With Horne’s advice and teaching, moving from chapter to chapter is very rewarding for the “self-studying beginning guitarist.”

I will, once again, say that a student runs a chance of developing bad habits in their playing when studying on their own. However, if a student wants to go for it, then beginning with Horne’s series of books will help them to move efficiently through the basics with good instruction.

It is geared toward the home musician rather than a professional musician. The amazing thing about the publication is that it has very little “fluff” in it. There are serious discussions on interpretation of musical styles as well as some serious and simple music for play at home. This tells me that the musician at the beginning of the 20th century was truly interested in being a musician and understanding the music they played. This is, of course, much different than many students today that just want to figure out how to play three chords and then write their great rock anthem. I am not suggestion that the music of today is inferior in its use. I am suggesting that our microwave society has created a much less capable home musician than it did 50 to 100 years ago.

As I research each issue, you will undoubtedly find their content making its way to my blog. I am sure that you will be amazed at how much of it is still of great value today. It seems that humanity and music changes very little over time. I leave you with this excerpt from an article titled, “Practical Considerations in Pianoforte Interpretations” by Walter Gieseking. Though it is written with the piano in mind, I am sure you will agree that the concepts are valuable for the serious guitar student as well.

One of the first things I learned from Mr. Leimer was to practice with my head as well as with my fingers, to concentrate intently on every note of the scale or arpeggio, to play with the utmost accuracy. It is only through constant attention to the individual note that fingers accustom themselves to play evenly and acquire the ability to effect exactly each nuance desired for giving appropriate expression to a musical phrase. When one practices like this, three to four hours a day is the limit of mental endurance – and anything beyond the point of mental endurance is time and effort wasted. It should be spent more profitably in health-building out-door exercise and acquainting oneself with the other arts – literature, painting, sculpture.

Just to let you all in on the progress. We are finally moved and are getting a bit organized in our new location. Students are beginning to find their way to the studio and it is exciting to see new faces and potential. Each new student brings me excitement as I have a chance to see and hear them become who they want to be in their guitar playing.

The online guitar lessons are busting at the seems as far as the demands they put on my time. I work very hard to give them the exact same level of expertise as my personal one-on-one lessons. This makes me think about raising prices, but I want to keep it affordable for the average Joe looking to get somewhere they never thought possible.

As I said in the previous post, it will be very difficult to leave many of my students in Pittsburgh when the time comes. They have brought me much joy and taught me so much in these past 8 years. However, I know that they have plans to keep moving on and upward in their playing. I am grateful that many of them have decided to continue on the path with me through our online lessons. For those of you who visit here for insight into your guitar playing and aren’t students yet, I will be getting back to regular new post in the coming week.

That’s it for this new post because I have some lessons to teach and lessons to write.

We will be moving to northeastern Pennsylvania to a small city named Laporte. I will continue my teaching at The Pajama Factory (www.pajamafactory.net) in Williamsport, PA. I will be moving into my own studio where classes, performances, and private lessons will be available. Classes will begin September 13th at The Pajama Factory and my last day of lessons in Pittsburgh will be August 28th.

I have enjoyed the many relationships that have formed over the years here in Pittsburgh. I am extremely grateful for your support over the years and the support of Steve at the store. This is not a decision that Kristi and I take lightly but one that we have chosen as we look to the future to be closer to family.

Thank you all for trusting me with your guitar instruction and musical endeavors. We will miss the city of Pittsburgh and but more importantly we’ll miss the people we have come to know and love.

With the above in mind, I have been pondering the sense of urgency for the guitar. Did you ever think about urgency when you were in school? Probably not, but I bet you felt the sense of urgency. Remember those assignments that you had all semester to finish? When did you begin working on them? I bet for most of you it boiled down to the last week before the due date. Even for those that worked throughout the semester, you put in longer and more intense hours the week before the due date to ensure the best results. The same applies to guitar, even when it is for enjoyment.

We all need a sense of urgency to really motivate us to finish what we start. We need it to drive use to a higher level than we would otherwise achieve. That’s why you need to create a sense of urgency when it comes to learning the guitar. There are a few ways to do this and probably many more in reference to your own life.

1. Create a deadline for a YouTube video. This forces you to get your work done because it is a performance to be seen by millions of people over the web.
2. Create a deadline for sending a recording to a friend. This isn’t as “out-there” as a YouTube video but still puts a sense of urgency into your practice. Another way to think of it is to record something for a birthday or anniversary.
3. Schedule a live performance. This is the end all of everything you are doing to learn the guitar. The goal is to share music. Even if you are not performing to a huge audience, this type of motivation is hard to beat. Schedule a dinner party and let everyone know that you are going to perform for them after dinner and before dessert.

The above are just a few ways to encourage you to begin to create a sense of urgency in your playing. It will make you a better player and will reward you by getting feed back and giving enjoyment to those who listen.

1. If you’re going to take your buying seriously, then you need to take a guitar tuner with you when you are on the hunt. If you do not know how to use the tuner or you have never played guitar before, then you need to take someone with you that can accomplish all of these tasks before buying a guitar. Back to the tuner . . . the strings should be tuned up and the guitar should be played from the lowest to the highest frets to make sure it stays in tune. You can easily check the intonation by playing a harmonic on fret twelve and then playing the fingered note at fret twelve. These should be the same. If the tuner or your ear hears differently, then make you know the intonation is out and you need to look at another instrument. If only one of the six strings is off, then you know that it is probably just the string itself that needs to be replaced.
2. Now that you know the guitar has good intonation, it’s time to inspect the rest of the guitar. Begin by looking over the joints, tuning keys, the bridge and other areas where pieces connect. If you see open spaces, drops of glue or shoddy details, the guitar is most likely not put together well. A good acoustic guitar will have tight seams and tuning keys made from metal or pearl but not plastic. The bridge will sometimes have lifted off the guitar. This is a crucial inspection place. If it is lifting and you can see a space, then move on to the next option.
3. Always play or have each guitar you are considering played for you. Compare the sound to other acoustic guitars you are considering. If you are considering from two different stores, then do your best to find a similar guitar in the current store you are in and compare it. Each guitar may have a slightly different body style and be made from a different type of wood. These may not be important to you right now, but each instrument will sound a little different based on the wood and size. There is no such thing as good or bad sound, only different. Think vanilla ice cream or chocolate. You may not like chocolate but then you may be a vanilla type of person.
4. Check to make sure that the size of the neck of the acoustic guitar fits well in your hand. Some guitars have wider necks than others. While this will not affect the sound quality, it can certainly affect the way you play and your comfort level. remember that if this is your first guitar, then you may get it wrong when it comes to feel. You will develop a “feel” for your preferences the longer you play and the more guitars you try. For now, just make sure you feel pretty comfortable.
5. If you are interested in an acoustic/electric, a guitar with electrinic pickups installed, then test them with at least two different amplifiers before you make your purchase. Built in pickups vary greatly in sound and quality, so it becomes a serious consideration when choosing this type of instrument.
6. When you are satisfied with the previous litmus tests, then it’s time to head to the check-out counter and purchase that new jewel of a guitar. Then, get home and get practicing!!!