Steve Krenz

An in-depth study in arpeggios on guitar. Learn all you can!

Click the "Download this File" button for the PDF of this lesson.

Many players know how major, minor, and dominant seventh chords fit into music because they use them all the time. But, often, they are perplexed at the diminished chord. Unlike major and minor chords, the diminished chord is an unstable chord - meaning that it needs to be resolved to some other chord. It is because of this “need to be resolved” that it is so helpful and can be used in all kinds of musical situations to get from one chord to another. Learn how to take a bland progression and make it amazing by using a few diminished chords.

How to Practice Guitar - Tips and Practice Logs

Creating movement in an otherwise static chord is always a challenge. Sometimes chords need to be held for an extended period of time. So, adding a little movement can make a simple into a great progression. And this can be done by just moving a finger!

Growing players tend to have a choppy, robotic sound to their playing. They are playing the right notes (mostly) but it sounds like a broken robot is playing them. Goal: Play lines & chords flowing together – each note leading to the next. Each chord dovetailing or overlapping into the next. The Solution: Focus on where notes are ending. Become aware of the overlapping of tones. 1) For Single Notes Lines – Play lines with even rhythms letting each note flow into the next. 2) For Chords – Let the notes ring together. Move fingers independently so that some are holding notes while others are moving. Grab your guitar and let’s learn!

Grab your guitar and let's learn this important guitar technique!

Grab your four-leaf clover and your leprechaun and let's learn some classic Irish jigs! Three Timeless Irish Jigs put in a Upbeat Medley Boys of Bock Hills Come to the Raffle The Irish Washerwoman Download the Demo Track, Performance Track and the Sheet Music Have fun!

Tired of playing the same licks over the same chords? Learn an easy way to MULTIPLY your soloing options over any chord! DOWNLOAD THE PDF

Soloing Over 7th Chords & the Blues Seventh chords are some of the most common types of chords but can be tricky to solo over at times. Seventh chords have three main tones – the root, the major 3rd, & the flatted 7th. Here’s the problem: If you want to solo using pentatonic scales then neither the major or minor pentatonic scales work perfectly. The major pentatonic scale doesn’t include the b7. And the minor pentatonic scale doesn’t include the major 3rd - although it does include the bluesy sounding minor 3rd. So, it’s helpful to find other ways to approach this common chord. Grab your guitar and download the PDF and let's get started!

The PDF of The Top Guitar Chords in Any Key With all of the thousands of songs out there, you would think that they would use countless different chords. But, actually, most common songs use a pretty limited number of chords. And, most of those commonly used chords have the same function within whatever key they are in. The most commonly used chords in any key are the I (one), IV (four), V7(five), and vim (six minor). Yes, I know there are a lot of other chords possible, but if you could get an average of the chords used in any song you would see that MOST of them are one of these four chords. So, as a guitarist, it is important and very helpful that we can play these four types of chords in any key.

Two Holiday Classics: Silver Bells and God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen

Here is a fun intermediate arrangement of "Jingle Bells" done in a Travis picking style. Have fun!!

This is the PDF for Travis Picking Bootcamp Workout Pages 1-10 and a Basic and Intermediate Versions of "Freight Train" Freight Train (Basic Solo).pdf Freight Train (Intermediate Solo).pdf Travis Picking Bootcamp pgs1-10.pdf