Jim Duff Music Blog

Growing up in Kentucky, Jim Duff counted the legends of traditional Country music as his heroes. Artists like Waylon Jennings, Kris Kristofferson and Townes Van Zandt made a huge impact on the young songwriter and helped shape his sound. He dreamt of a life performing. However, music was not his only talent and life took him in another direction for a while.


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Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Gift Ideas For Guitar Players: Which Guitar Gifts Are Best For Improving Skills?

When searching for gift ideas for guitar players look for items that will help propel their knowledge and skills. Tools that make learning to play more fun, easier to understand and provide experiences that would not otherwise be possible should be a top priority. Here are three categories of educational guitar gifts that are worth consideration.

Guitar Music Slow Down Devices: ($50 - $150 USD) When a guitarist reaches the advanced-beginner stage it is very common to want to learn to play popular songs. It can be difficult to listen to a song at full speed then figure out which notes and chords to play. This is especially difficult when the song contains a fast or complicated solo.

Slow down devices play back dvds at much slower speeds without distorting the pitch of the song. Often a difficult part of the song can be set to continuously loop until it can be conquered. Two basic varieties are available. One is software that you load on your computer and the other is a modified dvd player.

Jam tracks or Backing Tracks: ($25 - $100) There is nothing more fun then playing lead guitar with a recording of a full band in the security and comfort of your own bedroom. Jam tracks are available in two versions; with and without the lead guitar part built in. They are also available in just about any genre of music from blues, rock, country and jazz, just to name a few.

Video Guitar Lesson DVDs: ($50 -$200) There has never been a time in history where so many options have been available for learning to play guitar. No longer do you need to settle for the inconvenience and expense of being taught by a randomly selected local guitar instructor. Now it is possible to inexpensively learn in the comfort and convenience of your own home with Guitar Lesson DVDs.

One of the most exciting parts of these courses is that the instructors are often experienced professional guitarists that also have a passion for teaching. These instructors would normally not be available to the average student if it weren‘t for the invention of guitar courses on dvd.

Video Guitar Lessons come in many forms but there are two that are most prevalent. The first is an all around, thorough beginner through intermediate course that teaches both acoustic and electric guitar playing with a taste of many different popular styles.

Secondly there are many courses available that specialize on specific styles of music and techniques. Examples of these are blues, rock/metal, lead, improvisation, acoustic, electric, bass, classical and many more.

Since the quality and thoroughness of these courses vary greatly, it is a great idea to visit guitar lesson review websites to learn which are the good ones and why. Also, make sure that the these instructional dvds have a money back guarantee if your favorite guitar player is not satisfied for any reason.

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