What do you think of these flashcards?

[LiveMusic]

This site:

http://www.willlandrum.com/flashcards.html

 

has flashcards for learning every note on the fretboard, which I need to master. Reason I like something like this is because I can take them anywhere and work on it whenever the opportunity arises. Plus, I like this one cuz it shows the associated note in music notation form. So, it would help in learning to read music in relation to the guitar.

 

Know of anything better to learn fretboard notes?

[Chip McDonald]

Originally posted by LiveMusic:

Reason I like something like this is because I can take them anywhere and work on it whenever the opportunity arises. Plus, I like this one cuz it shows the associated note in music notation form. So, it would help in learning to read music in relation to the guitar.

 

I think that's a terribly inefficient way of doing it. Using the following procedure - and quizzing a student in front of me by placing the finger on each note "flashcard" style - a person can learn the whole neck in a 30 minute lesson. Retention requires some repeated quizzing, but I think the following procedure is faster *and* better for you in the long run:

 

It's way too easy to learn the notes on the fingerboard. Using flash cards - not the actual neck itself - adds a step to the process, an extra small bit of complexity.

 

When you see a place on the neck you should associate it with having gone through the process of learning the note from *that* experience, not a seperate one you have to think about ( a diagram). Just because the pictogram appears to be the neck of a guitar doesn't mean the mind responds to that image the same way it does having internalized the visual image/concept of the neck. That's why you shouldn't seperate it out: it's an extra step.

 

Know of anything better to learn fretboard notes?

 

1) Learn the names of the notes where the position markers are on

the low E string: G,A,D,C#.

 

Reasoning: it's easy to remember the name of the open string. It's just as instantly easy to be aware that the first note on the E string is a half-step higher - F, so you already know that, right? Starting at G the position markers skip whole steps; if you learn where G and A is, you'll instantly know that in between is G#. If you know where A and B is, you'll instantly know A# is in between, right? Etc...

 

Beyond C# is easy, because you know that there's two dots at the 12th fret because it's the octave of the open strings, right? So that's E; one note less than E is D - so you know that "already".

 

Quiz yourself on the E string with those notes until you have them down.

 

 

2) Know that 2 frets forward, 2 strings down is the interval of an octave - the same note.

 

Which means, if you know the E string it's a matter of quickly looking to find the octave on the D string - which means you essentially know the notes on the D string at this point. Once it becomes a reflex to "feel" that an octave is it will be instantaneous; then eventually unneccessary.

 

3) Memorize the A string as you did the E string, the dot markers: C,D,E, F#.

 

Note that the last dot marker is the only sharp note, just as it was on the E string - it's easier to remember that way.

 

Once you've done that, you'll know the G string in the same manner as the D: look at the octave of the A string (2 forward, 2 down) you'll have the same note on the G string as the A.

 

4) The B - you have to flat memorize. You can still use references to help: the first fret is a half higher than the open string, C. The fifth fret is the note you tune the next string to - E. Limbo is between the fifth and 12th..... That's the hardest part. Although again, you can quickly see a whole step higher than the fifth fret is going to be F#, right? You've got B lurking about, waiting for you up at the 12th fret; a whole below there you've got A. G, G# has to be learned...

 

5) But once you do that, you'll know where all the notes are.

 

 

So essentially, the only *hard* memorization to be done is 4 notes on the E string, 4 on the A string - and then dealing with the B string above the 5th fret, which is easier keeping in mind the tricks I pointed out.

 

That seems like "more" than just flashcards - a lot of writing, but the concepts are simple. Additionally, *because* the concepts are applied to spatialization on the fretboard itself, you're "thinking on the fretboard" - using awareness of where octaves are, where the strings repeat (the fifth fret), the limits of the octave (at the 12th).

 

THEN....

 

...you go through Mel Bay Book 1, ignoring the pictures of fingerings (keep the first finger down). Mel Bay Book 1 is the most coherent way of learning to read, based on positions one string at a time. HOWEVER - learn the notes on the neck first, so you don't slow down learning either process. Another point: when learning to read *by playing a note on the fingerboard*, you associate a tactile response to seeing the note: people who are great, fast readers aren't thinking about the name of the note value, they're using *kinesthetic* (physical) reflexes developed over time.

 

There are other tricks, but here isn't the place.

 

 

Man, I need to get back to writing that book....

 

http://www.mp3.com/chipmcdonald

[LiveMusic]

Wow, Chip, that is a good answer! I think I see what you mean; I think I could learn the notes within a short time with that method.

[Mile]

You have to know the tones on the E and A strings because of the bare chords! Now learn octaves from those to D and G string (two frets down, two stringd down). Hrdest part is B string... And, the last one is 1st string (E) whish has the same tones as 6th (E) string... That's it!

[Mile]

You have to know the tones on the E and A strings because of the bare chords! Now learn octaves from those to D and G string (two frets down, two strings down). Hardest part is B string... And, the last one is 1st string (E) whish has the same tones as 6th (E) string... That's it! http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif

[Mile]

How in the world did this happened??? http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/confused.gif

[Chip McDonald]

Originally posted by Mile:

chords! Now learn octaves from those to D and G string (two frets down, two stringd down). Hrdest part is B string... And, the last one is 1st string (E) whish has the same tones as 6th (E) string... That's it!

 

Hmmm... er... Isn't this paraphrased what I already said? There must be an echo in here...

 

 

http://www.mp3.com/chipmcdonald

[Chip McDonald]

Originally posted by Mile:

How in the world did this happened??? http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/confused.gif

 

Someone set us up the bomb.

 

 

I guess there *was* an echo in here....

 

http://www.mp3.com/chipmcdonald

[Mile]

Yeah, but I explained it in few words... http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif

[Chip McDonald]

Originally posted by Mile:

Yeah, but I explained it in few words... http://www.musicplayer.com/ubb/smile.gif

 

Yeah, but they were ambiguous and somewhat misleading, particularly to someone who is a novice.

 

It doesn't matter that you have to know the notes on the E and A string to play bar chords - only to name them. If you need to know the names of the bar chords you probably need to know the names of the notes on those two strings anyhow, right? If you tell someone they have to know those notes

"because of the bar chords" they're then going to think off on a tangent asking "why?", instead of concentrating on the task at hand (naming the notes). Since it's not literally neccessary, it is a confusing detour in the learning process to say (IMO).

 

The octave is found two frets *up* the neck, not *down*: the pitches get higher towards the bridge. A person beginning guitar can get confused very easily if one isn't consistent with the "directions" from the start, and it prevents uneccessary questions later ("I thought this was "down"?").

I try to make sure that students immediately get a feel for the layout of the geometry of the guitar - which way goes higher, where the notes repeat at the 5th and 12th frets, so that when they look at the neck they realize that it's not 144 unique possible locations on the fingerboard.

 

Saying the B string is the "hardest part" doesn't convey any information...

and hopefully a person realizes the high E string is a duplicate note wise of the low. But again, having learned that the 5th fret is where you tune the high E string for instance, that's a landmark along the B string that can help a person remember the notes nearby.

 

Sorry, I know english isn't your primary language. I'm just tired of being derided for being overly verbose, when I see it as being concise when appropriate.... Or maybe just tired: 2 weeks worth of working on a tune has just become corrupted (along with the backup) tonight thanks to a software glitch, so I'm in a foul(er) mood.

 

http://www.mp3.com/chipmcdonald

[BK_dup2]

As Kahn would say

 

Uh oh.

[michael saulnier]

Originally posted by BK:

As Kahn would say

 

Uh oh.

 

 

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[michael saulnier]

Chip,

 

Don't worry... you're still nailing your posts... a great ratio of rant to useful content...

 

as KHAN would say...

 

 

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