guitar techniques fingerpicking workout

BORROW - DON’T STEAL!

by Tom Yoder

Stealing is easy to do. Making it work for an

original sound is more difficult. Randy Rhodes did

a great job when he stole the chord progression

from the first 16 measures of Leo Brouwer’s

(1939- ) Estudios Sencillos #6. He used it for the

intro of Ozzy’s “Diary of a Madman”.

I confess, I’ve also stolen. One of my more blatant

rip-offs is the contrasting middle section (starting

at measure 44, 1:23 into the tune) of “Zen Parked

on Z” from my CD, “Eat This It’s Safe”. It uses a

right hand arpeggio pattern lifted directly from

study #1 of the 12 studies by Heitor Villa-Lobos

(1881-1959).

“Zen” is in C Tuning (CGCGCE low to high). The

arpeggio pattern is as follows: pipi pmia maim

pipi. It’s done with a sixteenth note rhythm. The

whole section (measures 44-77) uses this pattern

except for the quintuplet figure at measures 64

and 77. To count a quintuplet I always use the

word un-i-ver-si-ty. It helps me to play the figure

smoothly instead of lapsing into a three/two or

two/three feel. Say university as you play the

figure. It works.

If you really want to own this arpeggio pattern, I

recommend tying a cloth underneath the strings

up by the nut around the first and second frets.

Then sit in front of the television and play the

pattern.

To play this arpeggio fluidly and make the top two

strings ring strong, you will need to really dig into

the strings. Having that cloth tied underneath the

strings will help you gain strength in your right

hand. The ama move in the middle of the pattern

is tough to get loud and fast. But it is essential

that you do.

It will take lots of practice. Play slowly with a

metronome to keep the pattern at an even pace.

It is well worth your time. You will end up much

more coordinated and faster, and with a much

bigger sound.

By using a different tuning and obviously different

fingerings, I’ve taken something someone else did

(not to mention a standard part of the guitar

repertoire) and made it my own.

Both the Villa-Lobos 12 studies and Brouwer’s 20

Estudios Sencillos are great for fingerstyle guitarist

to study. It doesn’t matter whether or not you want

to play classical guitar. Working on them will give

you lots of ideas to build upon.

Remember, good composers borrow, great

composers steal.

Tom Yoder

Tom Yoder is a guitar instructor at Coastal Carolina

University - the emminence grise behind countless

guitar players in South Carolina, including Edwin

McCain.

His CD “Eat This It’s Safe” showcases his

phenomenal compositional and fingerstyle talents.

Yoder bears comparison with the likes of Hedges,

Bensusan and Kottke.

Visit Tom’s site at

www.tomyoder.net

Listen to Tom’s mp3’s at

www.mp3.com/tom_yoder

NOTE: you can listen to “Zen Parked On Z” by

clicking here