I took an instrumental music class this semester at the community college. My chamber group was 2 guitars and a drummer. We recruited a vocalist after the first month, who like you had done mainly classical vocals. She really enjoyed digging into learning and performing Sweet Home Chicago and Santa Baby with the group. We’re keeping the same group together next semester and looking for more good tunes to cover. Enjoy!
Haha so classical music is the bicycle and now I can graduate to a motorcycle!! That tracks!
I think it’s going to be so good to take an immersive approach to this style. The fact that the underlying theory and the tablature notation differ from what I am used to also helps me to approach things without getting pulled in the direction of a classical framework. And yes, I do understand how to practice and reinforce new coordination!
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Now I get to struggle with singing and playing too!
I have helped a lot of my students who sing and play with this over the years, and I think the blues course is going to help me with this a lot. It’s my plan to work on the licks both on guitar and vocally—practicing licks vocally while strumming a 12-bar blues progression could be a good inroad for this.
Singing and playing simultaneously is kind of like having to play both rhythm and lead guitar, except the lead guitar is in your throat. You have to memorize and habituate the chord progressions and strumming patterns to the point that they happen without your having to consciously think about it, because most of your creativity and attention needs to be on the words and melodies you’re singing.
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That has never happened for me, no matter how long I’ve played a song or how well I know it. As soon as I think about anything but what I’m playing, it all falls apart. Which is a shame, because I’m a much better singer than guitar player.
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I mean, I still struggle to separate my hands, so I imagine that layering a vocal line on top of that challenge will take a lot of practice. In the past I couldn’t separate my hands at all, I failed in my attempts to learn viola and electric bass, but for some reason I decided to try again and this time it’s working, thanks at least in part to Justin’s approach. I can’t predict whether I’ll be able to play and sing at the same time well, but I believe in the possibility. And if it doesn’t work out, I think I can settle for being a solid singer and front man who can also play guitar when not singing.
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I don’t think singing and playing at the same time is really in the cards for me. I’ve never been a particularly good singer, anyway. Pretty much only worth anything when singing for myself in the shower or in the car. So far there are only 2 songs I can sing and play guitar at the same time. And not especially well. I do admire anyone who can do both well.
One handy thing that’s fairly common with blues is that you don’t necessarily have to play while you’re singing. You can alternate them. Especially if you have a band who can fill up the sound while you’re singing and not playing.
My wife is really getting into the singing part and has been thinking for awhile about taking voice lessons. She plays ukulele, too, but for her, the ukulele is really in service to the singing. One of our long term goals is to play more together and I think the way it’s going to shake out is that she does the singing and strums on her uke while I play guitar. At least for now, we don’t have a bass player, so I have to occupy that low end. I’m only just starting to figure out what that means so we haven’t performed together. It does sound pretty damn cool when I figure out how to do it for a song, though.
She wants me to play bass, but I don’t really want to be “the bass player”. Might get a pitch shifting pedal. I suppose with a looper and a pitch shifting pedal, I can lay down a bassline, loop it, turn off the pitch shifter, and then play guitar on top of it. Not there yet, though.
Hi Claudia and welcome! That’s great to have you here…you know we will soon ask for some singing advice! I love singing! And I love arranging chord melodies and make the guitar sing what I sing in my mind and have Rhythm and Melody together as a whole, I’m still at a beginner level though. As for the Classical Music I’ve started listening to Classical Guitar Music a few years ago and I listen to it very often…I especially love Ana Vidovic. I also play some Classical guitar at a beginner level.
I can understand this, nevertheless technique on the instrument requires accuracy no matter the genre.
I recently discovered, much to my surprise, that I’m able to improvise and right soon after I realised that I won’t get much far with my poor technique on scales!
The BEAT Claudia, that’s what both your hands have to follow; and I’m sure you’ll teach me it is also what the melody you sing rely on. Don’t get bored at doing your downstrums on the beat and sing along as Justin does in his song lessons; just keep your hand moving and the upstrums will come naturally, as well as the strumming patterns.