MusicRadar.com has a brief post on miking tips for acoustic guitar. They discuss using one and two condenser mic setups.
we’re not going to just mic sound from the guitar’s soundhole – the results would be too bassy. Both low-end and high-end tone emanates from your acoustic, but from different places. The low-end is mainly around the soundhole area while the higher end sounds will be around the area of the 12th fret.
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Korg is giving away a free tuner every Monday through December 19th, 2010. All you have to do is enter your email address and zip code.
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Guitar Player has a helpful article discussing string materials, height, size, durability, and shape. Here’s an excerpt:
HEAVIER STRINGS CAN SOUND BIGGER… BUT NOT ALWAYS: Thicker strings can make you sound bigger, but only if partnered with an appropriate playing style. If you hammer the strings hard to get a lot of movement out of those wires, going up a gauge or two might suite your playing style fine. But if you’re a more delicate player, you might not get those strings moving, and going up a gauge might just choke your tone. Jimi Hendrix is known to have used .009 and .010 sets, and tone monsters Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page both purportedly used super-light sets with .008 high-E strings. Wimps? Ha! SRV used .012 or .013 sets, but also tuned his Strats down a half-step to Eb, which makes a .012 feel more like an .011.
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Mashable has an article about the new site Headliner.fm. The basic idea is that you get “Band Bucks” based on the number of fans you have following you on Facebook, Myspace, and Twitter. You can then use those bucks to encourage other bands to mention you on one those sites. You’ll receive more bucks for returning the favor and giving another band some love. The effectiveness of this probably depends on your ability to find local bands so you can advertise shows that people will actually attend. This site could also be helpful if you have your music online and a way for people to subscribe to a news list. Either way, it sure seems better than having to staple flyers all over town. Watch this video for more info
headliner.fm Sizzle Reel from headliner.fm on Vimeo.
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The Classical Guitar Blog has an interesting post on asking your teacher to tell stories. The concept comes from a business book called Sources of Power
If you ask experts what makes them so good, they are likely to give general answers that do not reveal much. But if you can get them to tell you about tough cases, nonroutine events where their skills made the difference, then you have a pathway into their perspective, into the way they are seeing the world (p. 189).
So how do you apply this to guitar? Chris suggests the following
Ask your teacher what she did the first time she performed. Ask him how he practiced that difficult bit in a piece, even if it’s not a piece you’re working on the lessons in those stories can often be applied to other works. Ask about their early years or playing and what they did to get better during them.
This seems like a great idea to me. Many teachers eventually fall into a rhythm. They are teaching the same things to new students over and over every year. It’s efficient, it’s easy, and it works. But every now and then, you should push them for more so that you get the most for your money. Instead of always asking “how do I”? Challenge your teacher with a “How did you”?
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