Chords!

Ray and Al's latest offering has a focus on helping to make your chord playing smoother. Chords for the Impatient Guitarist is a download of logical and ergonomic chord progressions that fit the hand well and will help you move between chord changes more expertly.  It includes some of the effective professional chord voicings that the chord books simply don't tell you!

New downloads on the way

For those of you who enjoyed the blues fingerpicking download, watch the website for two selections of fingerpicking tunes that also teach you how to make your own arrangements while you learn to play.

Also Ray & Al have been busy putting together a unique chord playing book to be called something like "Chord Playing for the Impatient Guitarist" to enable you to learn to move smoothly between chord changes. This will be available as a download very soon.

Fingerpicking blues step by step

I have played through Al's latest download and it really works. It gradually builds up your blues finger style techniques and is fun to play. You can download it from the website

Another great weekend at Dillington

At their slide guitar weekend at Dillington House, Ray and Al once again met some wonderful people and welcomed back a couple of regular supporters for plenty of food and drink and playing (and very little sleep). Dillington hospitality was excellent as usual.
This was followed by a great session at Doorway, the homelessness centre, in Chippenham on Monday morning.
New evening classes for adult acoustic guitar improvers begin again on Thursday 14th March in Chinns Court and are almost fully booked.

Research

Al has recently been awarded a Finzi Trust scholarship for research into the educational methods of the composer Arnold Schoenberg and in particular his preparations for teaching amateur adults, including his ideas about ear training.
He's delighted about this and very grateful to the Finzi Trust.

On a completely different matter, the premises at 8A Chinns Court, Warminster is now open every Wednesday from 10am to 4pm for the sale of our music bits and pieces and for services such as restringing etc.

Doorway

The last Saturday in January hosted a gig at The Cause, Chippenham, featuring the Doorway band. Ray supported Phil, Lee and Dean in a great show - the best ever according to many people.
Dean opened the concert with great versions of his own songs, performed brilliantly. For those who had not heard him sing and play before, there was a surprise in store - a standing ovation was the result!
Phil worked the audience well, in his inimitable way, with very professional rhythm section support from Lee on drums.
Ray's encouragement gave confidence to the proceedings; Al hoped to make it but was delayed on the train journey back from an unusual visit to London [interview for his Finzi Trust Scholarship Award].

Snowy and creative weekend at Dillington House

Ray and Al set off down the A303 last Friday wondering if they'd have any participants for the No Boundaries Band weekend.
They welcome any acoustic instrument and prepare special arrangements for each to create a good ensemble sound for this course, so it's desirable that all the various instruments are there.
Any fears were soon forgotten as they arrived...to find some had even beaten them to tea and cake!
Being stuck in a lovely country house for three cold days during a white-out was very cosy.
Dillington hospitality and catering was superb as ever and a full complement of wonderful participants ensured good humour and lots of great music making.