Introduction

This blog will look at good technique and an approach that has its foundation in classical playing. Good technique is always good technique though, no matter what the style of playing; so, everything can be adapted to the steel string guitar.

I will not attempt to repeat the approaches found in the plethora of teaching videos online, but rather, I will seek to explain the little things that can make a huge difference to an approach to playing - things that I have developed and adopted from various leading teachers in the contemporary guitar world.    

I’ll be sharing my thoughts on: Holding the guitar; tuning the guitar; hand positions; nails; finger exercises for synchronisation, finger independence and legato; stretching; melody playing; tasto and ponticello; harmonics; rest stroke, especially on the ring finger; barré chords; vibrato...