4/4 School of Music

As a beginner, or someone shopping for their first electric or acoustic guitar, there are several different categories to pick from.

Which ever guitar you choose, make sure that…

The strings aren’t really high off the fret board.  This is good. Twice this much space would be difficult to play.

It is comfortable to hold.  This Stratocaster design electric guitar is usually the most comfortable for beginners.

$70 – $100

Usually these guitars are smaller sized for smaller players. These guitars generally aren’t crafted to last for a lifetime. But if you aren’t sure whether or not you want to play for a lifetime, they can be a good way to test the waters. The Squire Mini Strat is a good entry level model that gives the Fender feel without the Fender price. If you are looking for an acoustic guitar in this price range, Epiphone and Jasmine by Takamine have several quality instruments for the price. If you are confident that you (or who you are buying for) will play guitar longer than a few months, this range is generally not recommended.

$100 – $200 – TOP PICK if you are NOT sure you will stick with it.

In this category, Squire, Epiphone and Ibanez offer the best value. Most of these are full sized and can last the typical beginning student one to two years. The major factor to consider with this range is whether you want the Les Paul feel of the Epiphone Junior, the Stratocaster touch of the Squire Bullet or the rocker appeal of the Ibanez GRX20Z. For younger girls, Daisy Rocks offers surprisingly good quality guitars in shades of pink. For acoustic guitars, Epiphone and Yamaha have the best options for these prices.

$350 to $750 – TOP PICK if you ARE SURE you will stick with it.

These are are top recommendations for beginning students. It can be frustrating for a new player to practice hard and still not be able to get a good sound because their instrument is holding them back. Fender offers their “Made in Mexico” models in this range and what you get is a quality guitar that can last a lifetime if you want them to. (I have an MiM Strat that I’ve owned for 17years and still play!) Epiphone Les Pauls offer high quality instruments and feel extremely similar to their Gibson counterparts. Ibanez has become a very reliable brand and offers many guitars that have hard rockability and looks.  Fender, Epiphone and Takamine are the most popular in this range for acoustic guitars but if you are looking for something a bit more unique, Breedlove Guitars (Made in Oregon) offer high quality acoustic guitars at a great value!

$750 and Up!!

At this point, the world is limitless with options. You can spend thousands of dollars on high end guitars with premier tone and playability but aren’t necessary at all for learning the instrument. Once you’ve been playing for a while, you will get a sense for what your dream guitar is. You don’t need to start with the best. When you are ready to rock stadiums, you’ll know what to get.

Please call us at 425-485-8310 if you have any other questions about purchasing a keyboard or digital piano for yourself or your child.

Learning an instrument takes consistent work, but it should also be
fun and relaxing.  After playing a song, I’ve heard countless students
remark that it "sounded better at home."  Lots of people – kids and
adults – tend to get a little self-conscious in lessons, especially
early on.  The following tips are great ways to help you focus, relax
and enjoy the process!

1. Get to lessons a couple minutes early

When folks are late, they tend to be frazzled, feel rushed and
unfocused.  Aim to get to the studio a few minutes early – this is a
great way to immediately feel more relaxed prior to your lesson!

2. Wash your hands before your lesson

Besides the germ-busting factor, washing your hands before each lesson
will also help you focus your mind on the task at hand, and mentally
prepare for a calming, fun, focused lesson.

3.  Turn off the cell phone

For 30 minutes, allow yourself to focus on develop your musical
prowess.  Ignore the cell phone, try to put away any worries or
concerns that are on your mind.  Let the outside world go and you’ll
be more likely to connect with your instrument.

4. Practice during the week

For obvious reasons, the more prepared you are, the more focused and
confident you’ll feel in lesson.  Consistent practice most days of the
week is the best approach!

5. Identify short and long-term goals

This is great for kids and adults alike.  Your goals can be as
specific or broad as you want — learn a particular song or genre,
enjoy music, become familiar with chords, perform in a recital, develop
a new hobby — and so forth and so on.  Reflecting on your personal
motivation for being in lessons helps develop a positive, focused
attitude in lesson and throughout the week with practicing!  If you’re
not sure what you are looking for or how to get there, that’s okay!
You can also work with your teacher to identify goals and interests.

6. Remember that we’re on your side!

Teachers aren’t just musicians — we are there to help you and
encourage you. We want to help you succeed in your musical goals!

~ Jennifer Iovanne

Find out about Guitar, Piano, Voice lessons and more at

4/4 School of Music

Guitar Lessons in Clackamas Oregon

Guitar Lessons in Vancouver Washington

Breathing is an essential part of being able to sing correctly.  You may be thinking, “How hard can it be?  I do it everyday of my life!”  Well, the truth is our breathing habits over the course of our lives sometimes get very out of whack and we develop bad habits that can hinder us from being able to sing freely. 

When we are born we have perfectly operating lungs and breath function.  That is why a babies’ big tummy will move up and down as they breathe.  You can usually hear one tiny baby scream and cry over a large room of people (think church or graduation ceremony).  They have amazing projection and volume!  As we grow older we are told in school to whisper and to keep our voice down.  We also shamefully suck in our belly to achieve that much desired flat stomach.  Pair these habits with anxiety and stress and you have a type of breathing that will originate in your upper chest and shoulders.  Your breathing will be very shallow.  The initial step in learning how to form correct breathing habits is to recognize the incorrect patterns and try to understand and feel how our body is naturally supposed to function.  There is so much more space to utilize in our body for air then just our chest!

Here are a few experiments to try…go ahead and inhale.  Take a really big breath!  Do this in front of a mirror.  What do you see?  Did you shrug your shoulders?  Did your chest puff up?  If so, your breath is originating in your chest cavity.  Now go lay down on your back on the floor.  Put your hand on your stomach and just relax and breathe.  What do you feel?  Do you feel your stomach moving up and down?  Do you feel yours sides expanding?  When we are in this position we have proper breathing technique.  Did you feel how relaxed your shoulders and chest felt? 

Our breathing muscle is called the ‘diaphragm’.  It is located in the area right underneath your lower ribcage.  Try to remember this…when you INHALE your stomach region should go OUT and expand.  When you EXHALE your stomach area should be pulled IN.  It is the opposite of what we usually do!  This is the natural breathing process so just relax and breathe!  Start paying attention to how your breathe when you sing, exercise, and go about your day because these basics on proper breathing aren’t just for singing but how you should operate daily.  Becoming aware of how your body functions, is the first step to altering and forming new habits! 

Stay tuned for an upcoming blog that will give you breathing exercises that will help your body develop techniques that will set your voice free!

Voice Lessons in Bellingham

When students begin learning piano (or guitar, or any instrument for that matter!), there’s a common starting point – learn to identify intervals, types of notes, and so forth.  With voice, the path is generally not as clearly laid out.  While music theory still applies, students beginning voice lessons have quite likely sung before at some point and have an idea in their head of how their voice sounds – raspy, low, thin, high, mellow, and so forth.  In other words, folks generally begin voice lessons with an idea of their own ability.  Identifying our conceptions of our own voice is very important for many reasons – it helps us better identify specific aspects we like or dislike about our voice, identify areas we’ve like to improve upon, and gain a deeper awareness and ability to listen to vocal qualities.  A great way to begin thinking about your voice is to work with your voice teacher to figure out your vocal range and "type".  Here’s a run-down of how that works:

Everyone has a vocal range – a particular number of notes they can comfortably hit.  Over time with practice, our ability to higher or lower notes clearly can increase, which can expand the vocal range a bit.  In general everyone falls into a particular voice "type".  This is GREAT info to use when purchasing vocal music – especially for classical or musical theater voice music, look for music meant for your voice type!

The general names used for vocal types are:

Soprano: the higher female voice.  Generally from the A or B below middle C to high C.

Alto: the lower female voice.  Generally from F below middle C to F on the top line of the treble clef.

Tenor: the higher male voice.  Generally from C one octave below middle C to the G above middle C.

Bass: the lower male voice.  Generally from the C below the bass clef to middle C. 

There are other types as well, including:

Contralto – a low alto voice

Mezzo – "mixed" voice – between alto and soprano ranges

Baritone – between tenor and bass ranges

Do you know your voice type?  Work with your voice teacher to gain a better understanding of your own voice, and how we can use proper vocal technique to make your vocal range stronger!  
–
Jennifer Iovanne

As with any instrument, practice outside of lessons is very important for continued progress.  For most kids, parental encouragement and support is necessary to ensure practicing is done regularly throughout the week.  During the school year, aim to build practice sessions into your child’s regular schedule – or into your own schedule!  During the summer, take extra measures to keep practice sessions fun, exciting and productive – Rachel’s article below is a great resource in ideas to help stay engaged during these summer months!  Want other ideas on how to help yourself (or your child) make the most of their practice outside of lessons? 

First, be sure to review the weekly lesson log – these are passed out to piano students in each lesson with information on pieces to practice and other things to work on during the week.  Be sure to practice assigned material – it is also great to spend some time just playing around on the piano and making your own music, but don’t sacrifice one for the other.

Come to the piano as relaxed and focused as possible.  Try to eliminate distractions and other noise if possible – TV, conversations, etc.   For a lot of students, having a cool drink at the piano and taking a moment to take a few deep, relaxing breaths can help to focus the mind and encourage creativity!  Think of "putting away" any frustrations or worries you may be holding, and let the piano be a place where you can stop multi-tasking and let yourself be in the moment as completely as possible.  The more you can encourage your child – or yourself – to treat practice sessions as fun AND productive, the better. 

If you or your child gets discouraged in piano lessons, remember to think of progress in baby steps — no one became a piano virtuoso overnight!  Encourage progress and acknowledge frustrations but don’t let them stop you.  Each practice session helps build a stronger, more confident piano player – keep it up, you CAN do it!

~ Jennifer Iovanne

The sun is out and the weather is beautiful!  It can be so hard sometimes to stay inside and want to practice your instrument during an amazing Seattle summer.  That is why we should make our learning in the summer interesting!  Here are a few ideas to "spice" up your practicing. 

Get a new book full of fun and entertaining songs you have always wanted to learn…Start a jam session with a friend…Go to a concert that will inspire you…take your instrument outside (to a park, to the backyard, ect.)…set new goals.

Here is a great website that has free sheet music of your favorite TV shows and movies!  Use this site to help fill up the summer with exciting new songs!

http://muzika.50webs.com/sheetmusic.htm

Make music a part of your summer!

photo by Peter Castleton

As a voice teacher, each week I have students come into lessons with scratchy, horse voices.  Vocal students struggle with frustration week after week with not being able to sing the way they want.  A lot of times in talking to the student about their week I find that bad singing technique isn’t the main problem… it is how they treat their voice during the week.  Screaming, whispering, and many other factors contribute to vocalists never being able to sing properly.

Here are a few tips to protect your voice during the week so you can sing to the best of your ability!

*Don’t scream, talk in a loud voice or whisper!

All extremes are harmful to the vocal chords and will wear down and make your vocal chords swollen.  If this happens rest your voice!  Sometimes it could take up to a week for vocal chords to heal properly.  When you keep singing with swollen vocal chords they will only get worse and will take a very long time to heal.  When in a loud room, talk into your friend’s ears instead of talking over the noise.  When you are at a party or a sporting event, try to limit your yelling.

*Don’t over sing!

When singing in the car or at home, don’t turn the music up so loud that you have to over sing or shout to hear yourself.  This will harm your vocal chords.  Turn the music down so you can hear yourself.

*Be mindful of your milk intake (especially within 24 hours of a performance)

Dairy thickens the mucus in your throat thus making it difficult to control your voice.

Try to always be aware of what you do with your voice.  Just like a guitar player keeps their guitar in a case so it doesn’t get beat up and ruined, we have to protect and keep our voice safe from harm so we can sound great and have a blast singing!

~ Rachel Nichols

You can find almost any song you need in Karaoke (Background tracks) format.  These recordings typically have just the music and sometime some backup vocals.  Often times they have a version of the song including the lead vocal for reference.  Just remember to search for the word karaoke and what ever song title you are looking for like…   karaoke jingle bells

You can also try to search Google for the word midi and the name of the song you are looking for like…   midi jingle bells

There are millions of songs that you can download for free all over the web in this format.  They don’t sound as good as mp3 or CDs.  Also they will only play on your computer. Sometimes they sound really cheesy  and occasionally really good. Either way they can help you by having something to sing to with rhythm and some harmony instruments to match your pitch to and the best part is they are usually free!

Karaoke.com – Karaoke CDs.

Amazon.com – Karaoke MP3 Downloads.

Amazon.com – Karaoke CDs.

Walmart.com – Karaoke MP3 Downloads.

Walmart.com – Karaoke CDs.

With my own students I try to avoid using the term “Music Theory.”  It sounds difficult and boring to most.  I like to call it “How Music Works.”  Most students would love to know how music works but don’t want anything to do with MUSIC THEORY.

How can I use this knowledge of “How Music Works?”

1. Play lead guitar
2. Songwriting
3. Figuring out what chords might sound better than the one on the page in front of you.
4. Change the key of a song to fit your voice (Transposing)
5. Figure out what notes will sound good behind another musician’s part.
6. Know how the BREAK the rules so you can create a really fresh sound.
7. Get yourself out of a rut when you have a part of a song written but cannot just randomly come up with another part that goes with the one you already have (Maybe you have a verse but cannot come up with a good chorus).
8. Figure out songs by ear faster by listening to the radio or your iPod (Transcribing).
9. Almost anything you want to do with music is made easier and even possible by knowing “How Music Works.”
10. Many, many more reasons!

Be sure to check other blog entries for some great links to help you on your way!

Please call us at 425-485-8310 if you have any other questions about lessons for yourself or your child.

4/4 School of Music, LLC
Seattle | Kirkland | Lynnwood | Everett | Bothell | Redmond | Renton Wa.

Guitar tablature (sheet music for guitarists in a simple and easy to learn diagram system).

Check these sites for more info on how to read guitar tabs and also to find thousands of songs written in this easy to learn system!

http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/
http://www.harmony-central.com/Guitar/tab.html