Gary Nelson

Doug, you will be in good company. I think any of us that choose to play for our friends (I'd rather think of it that way than performing) will be nervous. But this will be the most forgiving and encouraging audience you could ever find! No rotten tomatoes allowed!

Rorton. During our live lesson last week Steve mentioned those additional places had been sold. I guess the banner hasn’t been updated yet. You might send him an email directly to service@GuitarGathering.com to see if you could get on a waiting list in case there is a cancellation. Good luck!

Nice PRS!

I wanted to document a couple of small arrangements for my own benefit, and my wife's piano teacher recommended MuseScore. I think this is what she used in her local university music program. It is freeware, and there are versions for both Mac and PC. (I am running it on an iMac). I am sure it is not as fully featured as the higher end software such as Finale, but I have found it more than adequate for my fledgling purposes.

Jim, I think I have participated in all of Steve's Academies and have enjoyed them all. Since this is a repeat of the first one and I already have these arrangements, I may sit this one out - although I am certain I would benefit from the additional instruction! But you know, as important as the materials and instruction are, one of the best parts of these academies is simply the opportunity to connect with other guitar learners on the weekly zooms. Hard to beat a Saturday morning zoom with a good cup of Greg Voros coffee, a guitar and Steve and the rest of the folks. Don't let the perceived difficulty of jazz intimidate you. I was never a jazz fan growing up - it was Southern Rock, Country and Gospel in my household. I'd never heard of "Satin Doll" until Steve introduced it. But there are many of these tunes that I was familiar with (Misty, Somewhere over the Rainbow, etc) and I have tried to focus on those. As Steve says, just pick up what you can - play the melody with a backing track, or just pick up a new chord form or two. Enjoy yourself and I'll see you in October!

Anne, I love it. I bought this used a few years ago. It’s a Luthier’s Choice model from 2001. I don’t play it that often simply because it’s a little on the large side and an OM or Ooo is more comfortable.

Doug - Steve mentioned that he flies with his Reunion Blues case quite often. I want to say that he said he checks his acoustic and carries his electric on (but don't quote me). I do think the overall depth of the case ( about 9.5 inches) might be an issue in the overhead space on some aircraft - particularly the smaller regional jets. You might be asked to gate check it. But I wouldn't be afraid to do that at all if I needed to fly with it.

In another thread we had been lamenting the lack of new gear posts so I thought I’d share this. Before heading to the Fingerstyle Retreat in October I wanted to invest in a new gig bag, rather than using my old hard case. The gig bags I have used in the past are those cheap kind with very little padding. It didn’t make sense to carry a guitar that cost a good bit in a bag that was $40. At the retreat last year , Steve had shown us the bag that he uses for his J45. So I decided to bite the bullet and make the investment in a Reunion Blues case. I’ll feel a lot better about transporting my Bourgeois in a quality case.

Looks like a great conference Diane. Hopefully that will keep you recharged until we gather for the Fingerstyle Retreat in October.

One of the unfortunate side effects of retirement is that there is a lot less money to spend on new toys. On on the plus side, there is a lot more time to learn. But like you, Six, I have also been considering a switch to an old school amp. After a career in IT, the last thing I want now is an amp where I have to install software patches and upgrades! I just want to plug in and play!

Just what I needed on a Monday morning!

One of our members posted a question recently about where to find the answer key to the written exercises in the Learn and Master course. There was a companion book containing Bonus Resources that went along with the course. The answer keys were at the end of that Bonus Resource book. I was able to google "Learn and Master Bonus Resources" and was directed to a link for the PDF version of this document. Steve has also done some additional live lessons on "How Music Works" and provided a PDF as part of that series of live lessons - freely available on the YouTube Channel and the PDF should be available in the downloads section. Hope this helps!

Hmm...I wonder if a couple of those would fit in my post-retirement budget........

Just Registered! See you there.

Good for you Diane!