Steve Persaud

Geometric Patterns, Angles and the Guitar (eBook, ePUB)

A 'Chordological' Shifting Perspective

• Format: ePub

Produktbeschreibung

A Novel Approach to Learning Guitar Chord Progressions
This treatise seeks to encourage guitarists of all levels to find their voice by experimenting and creating chordal ideas by playing notes on any part of the fingerboard to come up with their own chord shapes and patterns and not necessarily familiar, geometric shapes. These chord progressions can express an emotion or tone, be it sad, happy, humorous, mysterious, and the next step is to use an online chord app (if needed) to determine the names of the chords that were created. Guitarists who compose instrumental pieces will not be limited by conventional chord shapes but can come up with unusual chordal ideas that highlight their creative and compositional abilities against a background of shapes and patterns.
"This is interesting! I am an intermediate-level guitar player, and I am only familiar with moving basic chord shapes vertically, but I do think it would have been very useful if I had been familiar with these chord shapes, and this concept of moving them horizontally, earlier in my learning process."
-- Dennis Dezentje, The Netherlands
"I have read this book repeatedly and found it quite interesting. It did not take long to recognize the genius it unleashed. As I explored Persaud's Geometric Patterns, Angles and the Guitar and applied its principles, I most certainly wished I had had access to it much earlier during my exposure to advanced guitar methods."
-- Hezekiah Dean, District Superintendent of Education (retired), Bahamas
"This method can revolutionize the way a student is taught to play a musical instrument. Many students have problems processing words. For many of them, learning through visualizing shapes and the pattern of movements will be easier because the concept is more concrete. Geometric Patterns, Angles and the Guitar will have great success with both tactile and visual learners."
-- Mary Moncur Grey, B.A., Dip Ed., MBA
"The author provides an interesting geometrical concept, something that the mathematically oriented guitarist will certainly appreciate. Geometric Patterns, Angles and the Guitar will open up a less-trodden path for guitarists, allowing them to explore chord construction, sounds and tonalities. Welcome to music creativity beyond basic music theory."
--Rehman Abdul, M.S., P. Eng., Geotechnical Engineer

Produktdetails

• Verlag: Modern History Press
• Seitenzahl: 24
• Erscheinungstermin: 1. Juni 2023
• Englisch
• ISBN-13: 9781615997534
• Artikelnr.: 69219761

Autorenporträt

I realized, even at an early age, that the guitar was going to be an integral part of my life, because it improved my self-esteem and confidence. My parents had an eclectic taste in music, and this certainly exposed me to a myriad of musical styles, which encouraged me to play the guitar and piano. However, I found the guitar more challenging, which led to hours of playing, studying and researching the instrument.Thus, my guitar journey began, often accompanying singers on radio and at concerts and festivals. But I was unable to improvise as I saw fit and often felt confined or locked to a particular arrangement. Gradually, I saw the need to become a solo guitarist, as it gave me the freedom of expression and opened up the polyphonic possibilities of the guitar; i.e., I wanted my guitar to sound as if two or more persons were playing. Thus, I began to embrace Classical, Jazz, Bossa Nova and Flamenco styles of music, which prepared me to use a particular finger-style to explore the intricacies of counterpoint and enriched the harmonic structure of all other styles of music I chose to play.This is especially true when I am asked to play at wedding ceremonies, where one has to play unfamiliar, requested songs and try to capture melody, harmony and rhythm. I suppose this all started when I played solo for almost two hours at a poetry exhibition at the JFK Library, providing the background music to the poetry being read; on another occasion, I was asked to provide the background music to the poetry of Rabindranath Tagore. I realized that shapes and patterns helped me remember the improvised music on both occasions.This all created in me the need to share whatever knowledge I had acquired over the years, so teaching the guitar became more than an avocation but a passion that has endured to this day. I had to work on my technique and put into practice theoretical concepts that often initially looked like a conundrum. Teaching the guitar also created the opportunity to experiment with different approaches by using shapes and patterns to explain arpeggios, chords and notes. Teaching is a learning experience and entails much research and planning to employ the most effective strategies to help students understand complex theoretical concepts. I still find it fascinating to tell students that they don't have to follow conventional chord shapes. They can also create their own chord patterns, on any part of the fingerboard, by inverting and orchestrating notes to construct their own unique chord shapes, turning their ideas into compositional masterpieces. Beethoven said it aptly: "The guitar is a miniature orchestra in itself."