I recently self published two volumes of teaching methods titled Guitar Victoria Studio Series Vol. I & II. These books, contrary to popular selling methods, are not self-teaching methods and have almost no fingering included. They are designed as much for teachers as for students. Key areas are presented, similar to the Carcassi Method book but modernized by including triads and common chord forms, Shearer-like scale patterns, solos from various time periods, and duets. Following this method area is a section devoted to rhythm (think Berklee/Leavitt style), a technique section, and a jazz oriented section focusing on shapes, patterns, and supplemental materials etc…
I don’t want to spend this time plugging my own efforts but there is a point about readings and fingerings I’d like to make. When I started using my own materials I switched my teaching method from goal based teaching to concept based teaching. With no fingerings to guide the students they had to remember the concepts of fingering associated with keys and scale forms, triad studies, and practical shapes. With no right-hand fingering included they had to rely on the right-hand concepts we’d practised to guide them through the music – I always make them provide an answer for their choice in fingerings the next lesson.
If any of you have practised the Pumping Nylon cross-string exercises (he names them Right-hand Tarrega Studies) then you know that becoming comfortable with repeated i, m fingering can simplify your life. Once a concept is in place, such as repeating i, m, learning where an extension requires the a finger is a simple lesson. When I look at books such as the Royal Conservatory Toronto Series, all I see is a contradiction between technique and practical repertoire execution. Students get overwhelmed by the amount of information on the page – right-hand fingering, left-hand fingering, dynamics, phrasing, articulation, position marks etc – and they learn a very non-musical visual association with the work. They no longer see scale passages as just that: scales they’ve practised before!
Learning to recognize the common shapes in music is what students need: seeing the intervals, recognizing triads, noticing when the music is presenting a pattern. Noticing that from E to F is a semi-tone really does matter and fingering can’t always teach that concept. Once a student learns that F follows E by one fret they can learn to read every E to F on the all six strings. That is why fingering must be eliminated from method books. Notice I said method books, not repertoire. We play a difficult instrument and often in a difficult work a fingering, here and there, is welcomed.
When I first started teaching my studio was filled with a mix of classical players, steel-string players, and electric players. Using electric books such as the Berklee Method (Leavitt) I noticed how much students were forced to read conceptually rather and locating individual notes. The first thing a student learns in those books is a C major scale, just like that, bang, a whole scale across multiple strings. Amazingly the students learn to read music based on their knowledge of the scale and not necessarily the individual note they are playing. I’ve noticed that this method of learning promotes anticipation of upcoming notes as well as visualizing multiple notes as a concept rather than say, six individual notes. I like to make the comparison to learning to read English: When you first learn to read you spell it out “D-E-C-E-M-B-E-R” but eventually you just read the word “DECEMBER”. Similarity, a student should not be reading C-D-E-F-G but instead be seeing it all as a scale passage and executing the material.
Below I’ve included some excepts from my book that might outline what I consider to be a more conceptual approach to teaching. It’s a tonal approach in this case. It’s been done before, I’m not the first, Carcassi was presenting these ideas many a year ago!
From Guitar Victoria Studio Series Vol. II
- Vol II examples (Click Here for PDF)
- Take note that this excerpt jumps around the book to various sections. This indicates that a qualified teacher is absolutely needed to navigate these books – it is not a self-teaching method – in case you purchase one.
- Included here is:
- C major patterns (scales patterns and triads/chords)
- C major duet
- C major repertoire
- C major position reading
- C major duet involving position reading
- Rhythm study on open-string and C major
- The Fretboard – Triads & Inversions in C major
- An essential concept of RH fingering exercise
Please realize these are excerpts from the book and do not represent the actual order of the material. The books are formatted for teachers to assign material based on the student’s need.
