Comment by Tyler Cornett on April 12, 2010 at 21:47

I see what you mean Rob, and thanks. I'll try to keep my pinching to a minimum :)

Comment by Joel Hooks on April 13, 2010 at 3:38

That was the book that got my feet wet into guitar style. You are doing fine, dynamics will come with practice. I still have trouble with them.

The only advice I've got is get a metronome and use it every time you practice (I like the old fashion maelzel system with bell) .

Though not necessary in the modern tab age but you might consider spending a little bit of time working on scales with notation. It is surprisingly easy to read music with little effort. It makes me feel closer to the music and era.

Comment by Tyler Cornett on April 13, 2010 at 6:50

I agree. I've been meaning to learn notation and scales. I can see how learning it will help, especially since all the tunes from that era are written in it. Tablature serves its purpose for beginners, but I've admittedly become dependent in it over the almost two years I've been frailing.

Comment by Adam on April 13, 2010 at 7:01

I'm also in the process of weaning myself off TAB ... Joel, I heard you comment before that you've found the switch to notation to be easier than expected. I found that true with some pieces/tutors, but not all.

Any particular tutor you found useful?

I've been mucking about with Frank Bradbury's books from MelBay. I'm finding them to be a gentler transition into notation than say Grimshaw or Converse. But everyone will experience this process differently I'm sure ...

Comment by Joel Hooks on April 13, 2010 at 21:39

I chose to learn to read in "A" notation, as most of my interest is American pieces before 1907. The book that I used to really tackle notation is The Eclpse Self Instructor. I found it to be the clearest.

It is on my website.

Another good introduction is Stewart's First Lessons.

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