About Me
Hi,
My name is Bill and I love playing the guitar. I have been playing for about five years now and am good enough to play in church (where they don’t throw stuff), around campfires and for personal and family enjoyment.
I am a real person. Many guitar learning software sites have characters that claim to have mastered the guitar in 6 months with photos of hardcore rockers represented as them. I know, because of the time I spent researching software programs for myself.
When I turned 40, my daughter announced she wanted to learn how to play the guitar. Since I just received some birthday money, I figured, “Hey, I’ll learn to play the guitar with you.” The good news is a middle age dog can still learn new tricks. The trick to new tricks was figuring out how to learn them.
My wife is our organist at church and my daughter and I can play the piano, so I do have some musical background. One big thing I learned is that the piano and guitar are definately two different instruments. At least I did not have to learn to read music until I found out the easiest way to learn guitar was through use of tab.
5 years ago life was great. Business was booming and everyone was healthy. I bought two guitars. My guitars are a Martin acoustic and Fender Stratocaster with a 1972 Vibrolux tube amp that a friend gave me. They do inspire one to want to play. With the price of the Martin came a deal with the wife. If I was going to spend that kind of money, I was going to have to give something back like playing in church once a month. Actually, that was a great deal.
Based upon an old saying that a friend of mine modified is, “You can lead a horse to water. You can force it to drink. But, you can’t make him thirsty.” By getting a guitar that you love it will make you want to play it more. Buy a cheap guitar or one you don’t like it will be more like work then enjoyment.
Another friend of mine who is a musician stated a basic fact. If you want to be a better guitarist quicker, play in front of an audience. He is absolutely correct! Not only do you practice till your fingertips scream, but also standing in front of an audience; even a captive one, creates a whole new atmosphere.
Anyway, my industry in the building business has taken a plunge. Thank goodness I got the guitars when I did. Throw in some family health issues with cancer and my life was upside down. Even though I still consider myself somewhat of a beginner but gaining quickly now, I was forced to drop lessons and try to replace with some type of guitar learning software if I wanted to get better.
Finally, that brings us here. It is the reason I purchased and checked out so many programs. So I thought I would try making this site, for people like you looking for good guitar learning software. I can share what I have found. Regardless of anyone’s personal situation I think playing the guitar goes beyond entertainment, performing and making music. It can become both spiritual and in some cases even therapeutic.
Keep your string tight,
Bill
