teaching

Guitar/Ukulele Karate: White, Yellow, Orange, and Green Belts

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I’ve been continuing to work on my Guitar and Ukulele Karate Belt requirements. I focused mostly on the Orange and Green Belts, but I also made some updates to White and Yellow Belt requirements (I’ll mention the changes below). In addition to strumming, reading, and music theory, I also added requirements from my Strumming Rhythms Index starting in Orange Belt (and continuing through Black Belt).

One of the main things I had to work on for my Karate Belt requirement was my Guitar Note-Reading book. I decided that I wanted to introduce the note High A in Unit 1, which is now in Lessons 14, 15, and 18, including additional songs. Because I added a few lessons to Unit 1 I wanted to shift some of the lessons from Yellow Belt to White Belt, so now the White Belt requirements (Unit 1, part 1 PDF) goes up to Lesson 7 (High D), and the Yellow Belt requirements (Unit 1, part 2 PDF) goes from Lesson 8 to Lesson 18. I also finished and added Unit 2: The Key of G Major, which is a requirement for Orange Belt, and Unit 3: The Key of D Major and Unit 4: The Key of A Major, which are both required for Green Belt.

I wanted to start adding pages from my Strumming Rhythms Index as requirements for Guitar/Ukulele Karate, but first I needed to give it a bit of an overhaul. Originally I was going to have rhythms with ties, but I took them out and instead focus on only adding rests to my “core rhythms”, which can then be played three ways: (1) letting the notes ring and just not strumming on the rests (which would give the sound of tied notes), (2) muffling the strings on the rests (the actual technical way rests should be interpreted in order to create silence), (3) play a muted strum on the rests (to create the “chick” sound). The main reason I did this was because writing out all of those variations would take this book up to over 200 pages, but also because I am more interested in making sure my students can count and play the rhythms, and less concerned with them being able read the rhythms in every possible variation that every songwriter/composer has ever notated. I also wanted to add rhythms with quarter notes and 8th notes in 6/4 time earlier in the book and I moved the rhythms in 6/8 time to later in the book (in the hopes that counting and playing in 6/4 first would help students have an easier time with 6/8 when it comes up). I also expanded my “Selective Strumming” exercises to include 6/4 rhythms, as well as a version of 4/4 rhythms with the high note on beat 3. The big addition was to add rhythms that use 8th notes and 16th notes in 2/4, 3/8, and 6/8, as well as variations of them using rests, and also “Selective Strumming” exercises based on them. I also separated the Strumming Rhythms Index into individual units to make it easier to find everything.

PDFs of all of these materials can be found under the FOR MY STUDENTS tab, on the GUITAR and UKULELE pages. As always, please let me know if you use any of these teaching materials with your students, and if you find them helpful, or if you have any questions or comments.

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More Note-Reading Units

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Since I’m continuing to focus on Guitar/Ukulele Karate, I worked on anything that is needed for the first couple of belts (White Belt and Yellow Belt). For both Guitar and Ukulele I split Note-Reading Unit 1 (The Key of C Major) into two parts to make it clear for the students what is required (part 1 is for White Belt, part 2 is for Yellow Belt). Also for both Guitar and Ukulele I removed any songs that have 8th notes, and I will eventually be including all of those exercises and songs (as well as others) in a later unit. I also made some adjustments/updates to Ukulele Note-Reading Units 2 (The Key of G Major) and 3 (The Key of F Major), and then created Unit 4 (The Key of D Major). Also, on Friday January 24th I awarded my first White Belt to one of my guitar students. She is well on her way to testing for her Yellow Belt, and I have a few students who should be able to get their White Belts soon.

I have a xylophone student who is coming to the end of Unit 3 (The Key of F Major), so I wanted to make sure that Unit 4 (The Key of D Major) will be ready for him. I also realized that when I am choosing melodies in a particular key, there are melodies where tonic/Do is the lowest note and the notes of the melody ascend from there (sometimes even reaching the higher octave tonic/Do), and some melodies have tonic/Do in the middle descending to the notes below (usually down to the dominant/Sol) as well as ascending to the notes above (sometimes to the high dominant/Sol). For ukulele I usually have to choose one or the other because the range of the ukulele is so small (and I’m not dealing with different hand positions moving up the neck yet), but since most mallet instruments span multiple octaves, I wanted to make sure I included both types of melody ranges (in multiple octaves). I added any “missing” exercises and melodies to Units 1, 2, and 3, and then created Unit 4 with the same format.

A few weeks ago I had the idea to restructure my Snare Drum and Drum Set method books. In my Snare Drum book, I’ve tried to teach all of the new rhythms in various meters, but it occurred to me that maybe I should introduce every new concept in 2/4 time first, then have two lessons in 4/4 time with plenty of variations, then have a lesson in 3/4 time. This way, all of the core rhythmic concepts and their variations can be simplified by dealing with only two beats at first. Then stretching those ideas out to 4/4, which is still very symmetrical, familiar, and comfortable, and also having two lessons in 4/4 time to really give the concepts an opportunity to settle into the students’ muscle memory. Then finally give them a challenge with the less-familiar/comfortable 3/4 time, before moving onto the next concept. In my Snare Drum book this is still a work in progress, so it will be a little while longer before I post them, but I was able to implement this concept in my Drum Set book. I had already followed that concept of 2/4 then 4/4 then 3/4, however, I only had one page in each unit devoted to 4/4. In each unit I added a second page of drum set beats in 4/4 with the snare drum is on beat 3 (instead of beats 2 and 4 like the initial 4/4 pages). I also added a unit with Bass Drum Variations in 2/4, 4/4 (both versions), and 3/4, which is now Unit 3. Four Measure Phrases are now Unit 4 and everything else is also pushed back a unit.

PDFs of all of these materials can be found under the FOR MY STUDENTS tab, on the GUITAR, UKULELE, MALLETS, and DRUM SET pages. As always, please let me know if you use any of these teaching materials with your students, and if you find them helpful, or if you have any questions or comments.

teaching

Ukulele Karate and Guitar Karate

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With the start of the new year, I wanted to implement something new with my students. Over break I learned about Recorder Karate, created by Barb Philipak, which is a system of awarding different colored strings (representing the different colored belts awarded in Karate)  to recorder students as they progress through nine songs of increasing difficulty. I loved this idea, so I wanted to try it with my students.

Philipak also created “Ukulele Karate”, but I couldn’t find a pre-existing “Guitar Karate”. After looking into her Recorder Karate and Ukulele Karate systems, I decided that I wanted to create my own version. First of all, after looking into the order in which her belts are awarded, as well as looking into other martial arts systems that award belts, I decided on the order: white, yellow, orange, green, blue, purple, red, brown, and black. I bought a package of embroidery floss in these colors, and I will be cutting them to a length that can be tied around the headstock, near the nut, behind the strings (or worn as a bracelet if the student prefers). Also, instead of focusing on an individual song as the requirement, I wanted to really challenge my students and hopefully push them past what they might normally work on. My requirements for Ukulele/Guitar Karate incorporate my method books, and focus on chord-strumming, note-reading, and music theory. My hope is that this will give students the motivation to become more well-rounded musicians.

In my Ukulele Karate and Guitar Karate systems, the White Belt requirements focus on the first half of Unit 1 of both the Chord-Strumming and Note-Reading Method Books, and the Yellow Belt requirements focus on the second half of Unit 1 of those same books. The music theory requirement is to memorize the notes of the chords and scales they learn in these lessons. After those two belts the requirements will become increasingly more difficult. For example, the Orange Belt requirements will include all of Unit 2 of both the Chord-Strumming and Note-Reading Method Books, and by the Black Belt, there will be multiple units required. Also along the way I will add additional concepts and techniques such as different strumming rhythms, scales, riffs, finger-picking, etc.

A PDF of my requirements for White Belt and Yellow Belt as well as Note-Reading Unit 1 (part 1 for White Belt, part 2 for Yellow Belt) can be found under FOR MY STUDENTS on the UKULELE and GUITAR pages.

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End of 2024 Lesson Materials

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Happy New Year! Here is an overview of all of my lesson materials that I worked on for the last few months of 2024 (aside from my Christmas Songbooks).

I took my Strumming Rhythms Index out of my guitar and ukulele books (originally I was planning on having it as an appendix in those books) and made it into its own book. After the first page of rhythms in 4/4 time using quarter notes and 8th notes, I added a page of strumming rhythms in 2/4, 3/4, and 6/8 time also using quarter notes and 8th notes (dotted quarter notes in 6/8 time). The next 15 pages incorporate rests on various downbeats (students can either not strum on the rests, or if they are more advanced they can actually muffle the strings on the rests). Originally I didn’t include rhythms that had a rest on beat 1, but I added those rhythms to this new version. I added a section with rests on various downbeats in 2/4, 3/4, and 6/8 time (also including rhythms with rests on beat 1). I also added a new section incorporating what I call “Selective Strumming” which is halfway between strumming and picking, which many guitarists do. Instead of strumming all 6 strings, or picking only one string at a time, I first divide the strings into two sections (three strings each) to create “low” and “high” sounds (notated on a two-lined staff), then in later pages I divide the strings into three sections (two strings each) to create “low,” “middle,” and “high” sounds (notated on a three-lined staff).  To make it simpler, I didn’t add rests to these exercises (for now). Reggae Strumming Rhythms will eventually be a part of this book, but for now it is a separate document. The new Strumming Rhythms Index can be found on both the “Guitar” and “Ukulele” pages under “For My Students”.

I added some introductory pages to my Guitar Beginning Riff and Solo Exercises, to give an explanation for where major pentatonic scales come from and how they are played on guitar and why we use specific finger patterns. I also showed where all of the natural notes are along the low E string (up to the 12th fret) so the students can see where to start any major pentatonic scale. The rest of the unit has exercises playing four-measure phrases using a I IV V progression and 12-bar blues in various keys. I added more riff rhythms (some in different meters), so now there are two pages to go through in each of the keys (the second page incorporates leaps in the beginning or middle of the measure). The new Guitar Beginning Riff and Solo Exercises can be found on the “Guitar” page under “For My Students”.

In my Guitar Chord-Strumming and Bass Guitar Chords method books, I decided to swap Units 3 and 4 so that sus chords are introduced in Unit 3 followed by 12-Bar Blues in Unit 4. I made this change in the Guitar Chord-Strumming book, but I haven’t updated it yet in my Bass Guitar Chords book, so I just removed the old PDFs from the “Bass Guitar” page.

Like my Christmas Songbooks, I started preparing my Guitar Chord-Strumming and Ukulele Chord-Strumming books for publishing and to sell. Guitar Chord-Strumming Book 1 includes Unit 1: Major and Minor Chords, Unit 2: Common Chord Progressions, Unit 3: Sus2 and Sus 4 Chords, and Unit 4: 12-Bar-Blues (23 lessons). Ukulele Chord-Strumming Book 1 includes Unit 1: The Key of C Major, Unit 2: The Key of G Major, Unit 3: The Key of F Major and Unit 4: The Key of D Major (25 lessons).

Finally, I did an arrangement of Amazing Grace in the keys of C Major, G Major, and F Major. PDFs can be found on my “Guitar,” “Mallets,” “Piano,” and “Ukulele” pages under “For My Students”.

Please let me know if you use any of these teaching materials with your students, and if you find them helpful, or if you have any questions or comments.

teaching

Christmas Songbooks

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I’m finally putting the finishing touches on my Christmas Songbooks and getting them ready to sell! Originally they were intended for my ukulele and guitar students, and a rough draft had been available on my website. Now I’ve separated the songs into two books, and both are available in the key of C Major and the key of G Major. For beginners I recommend the C Major version for ukulele students and the G Major version for guitar students, because they use the easier chords that are initially learned on those instruments. For intermediate students who have gone on to learn even more chords, I recommend the opposite keys (G Major for ukulele and C Major for guitar). Coming soon, there will be bass clef versions of both books, available in the same two keys, and possibly an alto clef version if there is enough demand for it. In the rough draft there were also two Hanukkah songs, but I took those two songs out and they are available separately for free (under “For My Students” on the instrument pages). 

All of the songs are arranged in the same way: with the melody and words in the top staff, and the chords with basic rhythm slashes in the bottom staff, which allows for the songs to be played in a number of ways. The initial way I intended is to stem the chords in the written rhythm, while singing the words and melody. If a student has started working on different strumming rhythms (from my Strumming Rhythms Index or from other resources) they could strum one of the other rhythms they learned in place of the written rhythm. If a student has learned to read the notes on the staff, they could play the notes of the melody (as long as the melody is within the range of the instrument). If the student has learned finger-picking, they could do finger-picking patterns for the chords instead of strumming them. If the student has started learning scales, they could play major and minor pentatonic riffs/solos over the chords.

There is also the potential for the books to be used for other instruments as well. If a piano student knows chords, they could play the melody in their right hand and play the chords in their left hand, or they could sing the melody, play the chords with their right hand and play the bass notes with their left hand. If a piano student doesn’t know chords, they could still play the melody with their right hand and play the bass notes with their left hand, or just the melody by itself with their right hand or both hands. (For piano students, I recommend C Major for beginners and G Major for intermediate students.) Voice students could sing the melody while they or their teacher plays the chords on piano as accompaniment. Any melodic instruments that read treble clef like flute, violin, mallet percussion instruments, etc. could also play the melody while their teacher plays the chords on piano. Instruments or singers that read bass clef like cello, string bass, bass guitar, bassoon, trombone, tuba, etc. could play the melody from the bass clef version of the books. (If enough viola students are interested, I will make alto clef versions of the books.) They could also be used to put ensembles of instruments together where some instruments/voices are playing the melody, others are playing the chords, and others a playing the bass.

The prices will soon be finalized once I finish assessing the printing costs, but they will all be reasonably priced. Book 1 is slightly shorter because it has 24 easier, mostly one-page songs, so it will be slightly less expensive. Book 2 is slightly longer with a few more songs than Book 1 and most of them are more difficult and two pages long, so it will be slightly more expensive. Soon there will be links to purchase all versions of the books on the instruments pages on my website.

Film Music

New Mix of “Toys in the Attic”

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Here is a new mix of Toys in the Attic just in time for Halloween! I also created a video from footage taken at the remote recording session with Budapest Scoring. This was written as a score for the following scenario: “Teen ghost hunters searching the attic of an abandoned mansion, looking for signs of a young changeling poltergeist that’s been encountered by several late-night visitors. All of a sudden, every toy in the attic springs to life, and the kids run for their lives!” I ended the piece with music that is supposed to signify that the kids have been turned into toys by the changeling poltergeist.

Film/TV/Game Music

New Arrangement of “Hero and Lyrical Themes”

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This month I updated “Hero and Lyrical Themes” which was another Berklee assignment that I originally did in Sibelius, but I wanted to put it into Logic to see how much better I could make it sound. For the original assignment I wanted to write a piece in sonata form, using a heroic A theme and a lyrical B theme like many film score do (Star Wars, Superman, etc.). To keep it short and sweet, I didn’t use any transitions between the themes, and I had a very short development. For this new version I wanted to expand upon the development since it feels a little rushed in the original. While I was at it, I also cleaned the partwriting in the harmonizations of the themes throughout the piece. I did all of my composition in Sibelius, then transferred all the parts over to Logic.

In the Exposition there is a “heroic” A Theme for the brass (the melody is in the horns and trombones over a C pedal) in C Major, and a contrasting “lyrical” B Theme for the woodwinds and strings in F minor. The new Development more than doubles the length of the entire piece (the original version is about 2:00, the new one is 4:30), because I wanted to think of it as music I would write for the middle of a film where I would write a lot of music that references the themes, but doesn’t give them a full statement until the end. It starts in the same key as the B Theme (F minor), with a rhythmic pedal in the timpani and low strings. The rhythm is meant to be a complement to the A Theme, and then the low woodwinds (opposite of high brass) play a chromatic reference to the A Theme. The next section modulates to Bb minor with a new rhythmic pedal that is a complement to the B Theme, and then the low brass (opposite of high winds) play a chromatic reference to the B Theme. There is another modulation to Ab minor where the ideas based on the A and B Themes are used together, both to create chaos, as well as to foreshadow the end of the piece. The Development ends with a big move from an Ab minor chord to a G Major chord to start to pull the piece back to C Major. The Retransition is made up of chromatically-rising fragments of the A and B themes over a G pedal, leaving the brass out to complement the next section. The Recapitulation starts with the expected return to the A Theme in the brass in the key of C Major, however this time the melody is in the trumpets (first time we hear the trumpets) and horns, and it is harmonized in the low brass (as opposed to just a C pedal). The B Theme is also in C Major, as expected, which gives it a refreshing brightness as opposed to the darker F minor version at the beginning. The piece ends with both themes played simultaneously, showing that they were tied together from the very beginning.

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New Year’s Resolutions

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For this post, instead of writing about the latest additions to my method books, or the most recent piece of music I finished composing, I’d like to write about something different. Now that it’s Pumpkin Spice Season and almost Spooky Season, I’ve been thinking about how at the end of every year the topic of “New Year’s Resolutions” comes up, and usually they are associated with initial optimism, followed by disappointment by around January 3rd. Why do we do this to ourselves? Is it the appeal of a “new year, new me” or is it out of guilt because of all the things we haven’t accomplished so far? I’ve found that the best way to look at New Year’s Resolutions is to not expect to be successful within the first few days of January, but instead to implement them throughout the entire new year. I wanted to share what I’ve done in the past, and what I’m planning to do this year, in order to have success with my New Year’s Resolutions. 

STEP 1: MAKE YOUR RESOLUTIONS (PREPARE AHEAD OF TIME)

I am posting this in September because too often it sneaks up on us and we feel the need to throw something together at the last minute. Brainstorm a list of all of the things you would like to change, remove, or add in your life (at this point be optimistic). Add a priority scale to each of your items, but then arrange them by difficulty, with the easiest to accomplish first (at this point be realistic). Start with some easy things (even if they aren’t that important) in order to build confidence, but also include some long-term goals (some of which you might not even start for a few months). It can be difficult to start new things in the middle of winter when it is dark and cold and we just want to stay inside and keep warm, so start with things you can do at home. Plan to save some of your resolutions until spring when it is starting to get warmer and the sun is rising earlier (like leaving the house at 6am to go to the gym for example). Not everything has to start on January 1 and continue uninterrupted. Spring is still part of the “new year”. 

When I make my list, I think about any previous projects that I should finish first, and which new projects I want to start. I think about any routines I want to start or improve on, like practicing more ukulele, guitar, and bass guitar. Also what I want to do for my mental and physical health, like less time on social media, more time reading books, more time with hobbies that don’t have anything to do with music (building LEGO sets, building puzzles, playing board games, playing video games, and watching movies), more time going outside and taking walks, or at least riding my exercise bike. In addition to how I want to spend my time on my own, I also want to try to spend more time with family and friends: spending quality time with my wife, hanging out with local friends, calling friends and family in Rhode Island, and also flying out to visit them. 

STEP 2: CREATE SPACE FOR YOUR RESOLUTIONS (FILL YOUR TIME WITH HOBBIES AND ACTIVITIES)

I think that this is the most important part of being successful with New Year’s Resolutions. Come January, you won’t be able to cram a bunch of new things into an already packed schedule, you need to make room in your schedule in order to be able to do all of those new things. The best way to do that is to add a bunch of things to your schedule leading up to the end of the year (especially in December) that you can stop doing on January 1st. What fall/winter holidays do you celebrate? What can you do to enjoy them more? What are some things you could do at home (put up decorations, holiday arts and crafts, watch holiday themed TV shows/movies, read books/stories, listen to holiday music, etc.)? Where are some places you could go (apple picking, haunted hay rides, etc.)? 

Here’s what I add to my schedule in order to enjoy the end-of-the-year holidays more. In October I watch Bob’s Burgers and The Simpsons Halloween episodes, and maybe a few horror movies. In November I watch Bob’s Burgers Thanksgiving episodes, but I mostly use this month to catch up on any projects that might have fallen behind and to hopefully get ahead on a few things before December. In December I watch the Christmas episodes of many TV shows including Bob’s Burgers, The Simpsons, The Office, Schitt’s Creek, and Hawkeye. I also watch many Christmas movies, some of which have been a tradition since I was a child (Christmas Vacation, A Christmas Story, Batman Returns, etc.). I also have a number of Christmas-themed LEGO sets that I build throughout the month. Last year I compiled a Christmas Songbook for ukulele and guitar that I use with my students, but I also play at home for fun and with any friends and family who want to do a singalong. 

STEP 3: PREPARE TO START YOUR RESOLUTIONS (THE LAST WEEK OF DECEMBER)

If you celebrate Christmas, the week after can be about getting the last little bit of Christmas enjoyment, relaxing/recovering, or getting some last minute things done before the end of the year. Take stock of all of the seasonal/holiday things you have been doing throughout the end of the year that are about to fall away, and how much extra time you will have as a result. Remind yourself of all of the easy, indoor resolutions you are about to start, and reassure yourself that you are saving some for the spring, so you don’t have to worry about those. 

I like to try to do a mix of finishing any projects that are almost done so that I can get them out of the way, but also taking the time to relax and enjoy my only real time off, before I hit the ground running for another year. 

STEP 4: DO YOUR RESOLUTIONS YEAR-ROUND (FOLLOW YOUR PLAN, BUT BE KIND TO YOURSELF)

Once the new year hits, replace all of the time you spent on holiday activities with your New Year’s Resolutions. Start with the easy ones to get the ball rolling and gradually move to the more difficult ones. Remember that not every resolution has to be completed in the first day/week/month. Also, don’t require yourself to start on January 1st. Be kind to yourself and if you slip up a little bit, don’t get discouraged. The “New Year” in “New Year’s Resolution” should refer to the entire year, not just New Year’s Day or the month of January. 

For 2024 my big New Year’s Resolution was to “finish things”. I wanted to finish my score for the Noghtwing series, finish polishing and posting the rest of my Berklee assignments, and finish some of my method books. I did finish the Nightwing music, and I am almost done with my Berklee music (I have a few more to post before the end of the year). Where I needed to be kind to myself was with my method books. Because of the needs of some of my students, I ended up having to start a bunch of new method books (note-reading for ukulele, guitar, bass guitar, mallet instruments, etc.). While I didn’t reach my exact goal, it wasn’t because I was being lazy, because I still did a ton of work on all the new method books instead. Pivoting my expectations helped me to not feel like a failure. In 2025 I’m planning to actually finish some of the method books that I didn’t get to finish this year, and also start the process of publishing them. Whereas 2024 was about finishing old things, I am mostly looking at 2025 as a year to start some new things. New practice routines, new projects, new revenue streams, new hobbies, and also just looking at how I am moving through life in a new and different way.

I hope all of this has helped in some way, and please feel free to let me know if it has. Good luck with your New Year’s Resolutions!

teaching

August Lesson Materials

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In my Ukulele Chord-Strumming Method Book I changed the order in which the initial chords are introduced. Originally I introduced CM and FM in Lesson 1, then GM in Lesson 2, Am in Lesson 3, and Dm in Lesson 4 (before introducing G7 in Lesson 5). I liked the idea that the students would learn CM, FM, and GM right away so that they could potentially play a number of songs after only two lessons. I have noticed however, that many students struggle with GM (it requires three fingers), so I decided to introduce the chords starting with the easiest ones instead, even though they might not be able to play as many real songs until after Lesson 4. Now, I introduce CM and Am (both only use one finger) in Lesson 1, FM (uses two fingers) in Lesson 2, Dm (three fingers) in Lesson 3, then finally GM in Lesson 4. I’ve seen some other books and teachers introduce AM early on because it also uses only two fingers, which I don’t do because I still wanted to keep Unit 1 in the key of C Major (CM, Am, and FM, are much more likely to be used in songs with Dm and GM than with AM).

I wanted do create still more Supplemental Piano Exercises to use with my piano students, so I did Unit 7: Reading Notes on the Staff in C Position, and Unit 8: The Grand Staff in C Position and Slurs.

In my Drum Set Method Book I added three units dealing with compound meters (6/8, 12/8, and 9/8). Unit 5 deals with how to play beats in those meters, and Unit 6 shows how to play four-measure phrases with fills in those meters. Unit 7 brings back the Four-Measure Phrase Song Form to practice a variety of beats and fills in those compound meters. I also added an additional page at the end of Unit 4 and Unit 7 that has drum beats with the bass drum playing either on all the downbeats or playing constant 8th notes (in most of the drum beats I use in the book, I don’t have the bass drum playing at the same time as the snare drum).

For my Guitar Chord-Strumming Book, I was looking forward to taking a break from bar chords, so I worked on Unit 11: Dominant 7 Chords. After I finished it, I was on a roll, so I went ahead and did Unit 12: Major 7 Chords and minor 7 Chords.

Please let me know if you use any of these teaching materials with your students, and if you find them helpful, or if you have any questions or comments.

teaching

July Lesson Materials

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Earlier this month I taught a piano ensemble class for the summer camp at one of my studios. I had to come up with my own materials, so I created a series of exercises and songs that I though might be appropriate for various age groups an abilities. After the camp was done, I liked what I had come up with , so I decided I would use them with my private students as “Supplemental Piano Exercises”. While I still primarily use the Alfred books when I’m teaching piano, sometimes a student will need a little extra work on a concept before moving on, and since I’ve been incorporating more songs into my ukulele, guitar, and bass guitar method books, I figured that I should use them for my piano students too. Also, I thought it might be a good idea to introduce tetrachords and how they can be used to build major scales. These can be found on the “Piano” page, under “For My Students”.

I added some simplified exercises to the beginning of my Guitar Beginning Finger-Picking Patterns. I realized it might be too difficult to use the thumb and three fingers together right at the very beginning, so I created some basic rhythmic patterns using just the thumb and one finger at a time. Then I did some exercises using the thumb and combinations of two fingers at a time (found on the “Guitar” page, under “For My Students”).

In my Bass Guitar Chords Method Book, I finished Unit 3: 12-Bar Blues and Unit 4: Sus2 and Sus4 Chords (found on the “Bass Guitar” page, under “For My Students”).

Please let me know if you use any of these teaching materials with your students, and if you find them helpful, or if you have any questions or comments.

Composer for Film, Television, Video Games, Theatre, and the Concert Stage. All content Copyright © 1994-2025 Timothy D. Girard. All Rights Reserved.