In the beginner grades, for almost every substantial technique that Justin introduces, he talks about how there’s different applications and more advanced uses for those techniques and he’s only showing a beginner usage. Do the intermediate grades circle back to teach those extended usages, or are the lessons more introductions to techniques?
I guess what I’m getting at is will I be responsible for teaching myself extended usages of techniques years from now? Are the intermediate grades basically the same as beginner but just introducing harder techniques? Or does Justin circle back to these basic techniques and teach these extended usages and little embellishments and all the tricks that are so impressive?
Ive looked through the lesson names but its hard to tell what the titles are indicating when youve never heard much of the terminology.
I’ve found both are kinda true. The intermediate/advanced grades will expand on some ideas but some concepts are found elsewhere if you are looking for more detail.
I didn’t find this area of the website until I was using it for quite a while but there’s a lot more info in these areas outside of the lessons.
A good place to look is
If you are curious about the intermediate grades you can always just browse through them; it can be pretty useful to look ahead so if you know that you’re weak in an area coming up you can preemptively practice before you get to the lesson).
The intermediate grades are mostly consolidating scales, barre chords, bends, and genre studies (blues, folk finger style, funk). I find the intermediate courses a bit more musical oriented than the beginner ones were.
Good question.I would like to know if you can recall specific instances and examples where Justin mentions this.
Everything builds, all accumulates, the whole skill set is informed by previous learning
Take rhythm, you learn basic strumming in the early stages, over beginner to intermediate you learn more advanced techniques that ca be applied to songs previously learned.
Hi Richard, if I understand Stacy’s question properly, she asks herself, if Justin is coming back to techniques in future lessons that he introduced to us in the basic grades. F.ex. Justin starts out in Grade 2 Module 11 with a introduction into fingerpicking, using a very basic pattern in 6/8. Does he build up in Grade 3 and subsequent Grades? Introducing more advanced patterns or techniques or in different time signatures? Or: he gives an overview about a basic understanding of Blues in Module 13. I think Stacey wants to know, if this is continued in the following Grades, or if it’s necessary to work out more advanced techniques on our own.
I always understood the courses system as an upbuilding process, basic skills => intermediate skills => advanced skills, related to the thematic focus we set individually. Maybe there’s some more to work out by ourselves, but Justin sets us on the track with the course and premium courses and gives helpful benchmarks. Doesn’t he?
Let me find some specific examples and get back with you. I think one or two that I can think of right now would be maybe sus chords- he introduces them and stresses he’s only planting a seed and gives a little exercise and we added it to our practice routine. Does he come back in a later module to really expand on sus chords, or are we just getting the tool handed to us and then we need to go out on our own and figure out how to really use it? Twiddles with the fret hand, muting, probaby are two more examples where I wonder if the modules come back to expand on technique or teach a song where those techniques are explored more.
I realize he cant hold our hands every step of the way but some techniques I am really hoping he comes back to expand on because I dont know if I could teach them to myself.
Yeah I think the techniques that I was thinking about were the hammer-on, sus chords, chord progressions, definitely muting, and as suggested in another post- fingerstyle. Also improvising. Also twiddles and embellishments. I know there is SO much to learn, it has to be spread out. I’m just hoping the modules swing back around to these techniques with specific intention to expand on them, because I know Justin could fill up the intermediate modules with just more introductions to more advanced techniques.
Thank you for posting these images. I mean it helps a little, but without going into each lesson to preview the material, its difficult for my beginner brain to know what the lesson titles are really indicating. I’ve looked in the lesson maps before, but I’ll go have another look.
Looks like the answer to my question is yes! Thank you for compiling these. You didn’t have to but I’m glad you did! There’s plenty to look forward to. The problem is being patient and getting there in due time.
