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Joined: Feb 2006
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I'm still taking music lessons - flamenco right now.
I'm wondering who out there is still taking music lessons - either:
- face-to-face from a live human being
- via watching pre-recorded videos shared for free on YouTube or another website
- via watching pre-recorded videos after paying an online subscription fee to do so
- via computer program - such as PG products, or other popular online program products.
This would actually probably make a good poll, but the most interesting part of the response is the reasoning behind your choices, what value you feel you're getting, how much of you're hard-earned money you're investing (let me say weekly real-time Skype video lessons with one of the most renowned flamenco teacher in Spain are quite expensive - more than the going rate, but there is no free and effective alternative for this idiom as described above, due to the physical technique demands and unique chord voicings used in this type of music.
How much have you invested over you're life time ?
When I started back in 1986, I was a complete guitar beginner, and took lessons from a local music store for a couple of years from the same teacher to learn the basics. I don't remember exactly how many years - but probably 2 or 3...was initially paying I think $15/half hour and later $20/half hour. Then I got interested in classical guitar - and was paying $40-$50/hr from am more specialized teacher (classical juliard student) - that didn't last too long, too expensive. Many years later, in early 20's, heard the guitar trio and was blown away by Paco de Lucia - I bought a few of his albums, and said "wow - that's great, I want to be able to do that"...hence the beginning of many years of frustration lol - that was a very unrealistic goal. But isn't that what inspires many of us - an individual that has mastered his instrument and makes the most beautiful sounding music to our ears come out of it ? Is it any different for people that sell fitness videos ? Who's buying the video that has a picture of an overweight girl or guy on the cover with flabby muscles ? Inspiration and role modeling is a big part of the price we pay for things.
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None. That's not taking into account the countless hours I've taught myself (still doing so).
Mike
Cheers, Mike My Music * Asus ROG Strix G15CF 32 GB DDR4 4TB HDD + 1 TB SSD NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 8GB Win 11 AKAI EIE PRO Sound Interface. BIAB/RB 2024 UltraPak Build - Latest
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Joe, I take lessons from time to time at Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music. In recent years I have taken fiddle, banjo, vocals, and songwriting. Mostly group lessons. Loads of fun!
I have bought several online courses but I find I that I rarely follow through on those since I have an extremely busy life and other things seem to take priority unless I have some place and time to go for a lesson!
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I'm signed up with an online course now. It's this: http://www.jazzeveryone.com/The lessons are by an 82 year old trumpet player named Willie Thomas. This cat has played with everybody. There's several free lessons available and they suited me so well I signed up for unlimited access for $15 a month. Even though I'm a keyboard guy who knows squat about playing trumpet, it doesn't matter. Theory is theory and I have no problem adapting his teachings to piano and that's true for any instrument. I recommend this site for anybody. It's not just for jazz, you hear his pentatonic pair stuff and everything else he's teaching for that matter in all kinds of music. Bob
Biab/RB latest build, Win 11 Pro, Ryzen 5 5600 G, 512 Gig SSD, 16 Gigs Ram, Steinberg UR22 MkII, Roland Sonic Cell, Kurzweil PC3, Hammond SK1, Korg PA3XPro, Garritan JABB, Hypercanvas, Sampletank 3, more.
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Im new to piano play.. Its kinda late to begin when you are 29y but i don't care  . Im taking lessons face-to-face with my music teacher and trying to improve my playing with text and video self-tutors in addtion.
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I get a music lesson everytime I either write or arrange within BIAB so I am guessing that is 3-4 times per week.
Later,
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No lessons anymore, per se, the last lesson I took was about 2 years ago from Benny Chong, great jazz guitarist turned jazz ukulele player. I do continue learning through video, the latest being Sheryl Bailey's Bebop Flow 2 part series. Pat Martino's Creative Force videos were also very good, opened up the ears and the thinking. And I'm constantly referring back to my Larry Coryell and Emily Remler dvd's. And then there's my good friend Mac. He's been listening to me play for some years now. He's always had excellent suggestions as far as technique, scale choices and arpeggios.
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Quote:
Benny Chong, great jazz guitarist turned jazz ukulele player
Why in the world would one go from guitar to uke ? Just bored I guess, or liking the challenge of getting as much music out of 4 strings as you can out of 6. But you're really limiting your sonic possibilities and range with a uke, no ?
I'm have a very selective ear for jazz music, but I LOVE and am very inspired by Pat Martino's playing - especially the El Hombre album.
Yes - Mac has always given me great advice on this forum. I'm looking forward to taking some lessons with him soon.
Regarding Larry Coryell and Emily Remler - now I can't speak to the dvd's or their teaching ability - which dvd's are you watching ? As far as their albums, I lover her playing, don't really like his as much (at least not the little bit I've heard - maybe I've listened to the wrong albums).
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Quote:
Quote:
Benny Chong, great jazz guitarist turned jazz ukulele player
Why in the world would one go from guitar to uke ? Just bored I guess, or liking the challenge of getting as much music out of 4 strings as you can out of 6. But you're really limiting your sonic possibilities and range with a uke, no ?
Joe, I will respectfully disagree. Check out Jake Shimabuduro on the Uke.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wnJfo74Y4rQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PB3RbO7updc
Or these players:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwZORh66A90
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0pVWdVIOzc
As a jazz musician/listener you know that most all jazz guitarists use three or four strings when playing chords. Plus with electric ukes uke players have the same access to amps and effects as electric guitarists.
The bottom line for me is that it is the artist not the instrument.
Just my thoughts.
Dad, how will I know when I've become an adult.
When your day is ruined because they rearranged the grocery store.
64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
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Quote:
Why in the world would one go from guitar to uke ? Just bored I guess, or liking the challenge of getting as much music out of 4 strings as you can out of 6. But you're really limiting your sonic possibilities and range with a uke, no ?
Joe, check out some of Benny's Youtube videos. He's arguably the best in the world.
Quote:
Regarding Larry Coryell and Emily Remler - now I can't speak to the dvd's or their teaching ability - which dvd's are you watching ?
Check out Em's Advanced Jazz and Latin Improv DVD. Very good section on the jazz minor scale. And while you're at it, check Sheryl Bailey out too. She will definitely open up your ears. Years ago, Larry Coryell's Advanced Jazz Guitar DVD was what really made me turn the corner from pop to jazz. I heard him play and man, I wanted some. It really isn't that advanced, as far as jazz goes, but it has some great vocabulary and is also a good introduction to the use of modes.
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I started to put this in the "Which high school/college class was most useful" thread until I realized it would have been more appropriate in a discussion called "What skill has given you the most pleasure?" Have to be musicianship, hands down.
I dabbled with violin and trumpet in elementary school. But in high school I was a member of a large (120 voice) award-winning a capella choir as well as smaller vocal ensembles composed of selected members of the larger choir. I sang second tenor and learned to read fluently for voice along with basic music theory.
In my senior year, while not officially enrolled, I picked up the double bass (the orchestra was led by the choir leader) and learned to read for bass, which has helped me to competently play as a church accompanist ever since. Oddly, I can play jazz and classical bass from charts, but I don't seem to have what it takes as a rock bassist.
After being discharged from the Army I attended a private school in New Orleans, where I studied piano and music theory. I think I went for less than two years, so I ended up musically semi-literate. I can read with much difficulty for keyboard and not at all for guitar. (It wasn't much of a school, and I wasn't much of a student.)
My primary instrument has always been guitar, on which I am almost entirely self taught. I picked it up during the summer of 1966 before my first year of high school. Two years later someone showed me how to fingerpick and I was off to the races. I have owned an electric since getting out of high school but didn't really consider myself an electric guitarist until getting seriously into BIAB in 2005. This despite the fact that I had played in bands for years as a pretty good rhythm guitarist and a so-so lead. I have taken a few lessons along the way, usually until I realized that I knew about as much as the teacher. (That would have been different had I studied classical guitar, of course.)
So throughout my life I have been in school and church choirs and bands as well as playing as a solo singer-songwriter and in various rock and blues bands that never went anywhere. Most of it was great fun, but it has taken me until relatively recently--through the use of BIAB--to consider myself a 'contender.' If I had it to do over again I'd definitely go the classical route on guitar, even though I consider myself a blues-rocker (it worked for Eddie Van Halen) and learn some more tricks on bass.
"My primary musical instrument is the personal computer."
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Holiday Weekend Hours
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With Band-in-a-Box® 2026, we've released 202 incredible new RealTracks (in sets 468-488) in a variety of genres—featuring your most requested styles!
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- MIDI Styles Set 92: Look Ma! More MIDI 15: Latin Jazz
- MIDI SuperTracks Set 46: Piano & Organ
- Instrumental Studies Set 24: Groovin' Blues Soloing
- Artist Performance Set 19: Songs with Vocals 9
- Playable RealTracks Set 5
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- MIDI Styles Set 93: Look Ma! More MIDI 16: SynthMaster
- MIDI SuperTracks Set 47: More SynthMaster
- Instrumental Studies 25 - Soul Jazz Guitar Soloing
- Artist Performance Set 20: Songs with Vocals 10
- RealDrums Stems Set 10: Groovin' Sticks
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Band-in-a-Box 2026 for Mac Videos
With the release of Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac, we’re rolling out a collection of brand-new videos on our YouTube channel. We’ll keep this forum post updated so you can easily find all the latest videos in one convenient spot.
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