May
20
Posted by Steven, under Guitars, The World of Music · RSS ·
TANGLEWOOD AMNESTY WEEKEND
This Month At Sheargold Pianos, Maidenhead…
Bring in your old instruments this weekend and we’ll give you at least £50 in exchange for a brand new Tanglewood Evolution Guitar!
It doesn’t matter what instrument you bring, so long as you can make some sort of musical sound/note from it, we’ll give you £50 against a new guitar!
So go in the loft and dig out your old spoons, beaten up guitar with no strings or even comb and paper, get down to Sheargolds over the weekend and pick up your brand new Tanglewood Evolution Guitar!
Guitars start at £199 so with your minimum £50 part exchange, they start as little as £149! Depending on what we give you exchange, it could be cheaper!!
We encourage you to be as creative as you like with your part exchange instruments!! It doesn’t matter what it is so long as you can make some sort of note/rhythm/melody with it, we’ll exchange it!
Check out our first happy customer…
Mr Fernandes received £50 part exchange for his empty coke bottle filled with half peas posing as a shaker for his brand new Tanglewood Evolution TSJ Jumbo Guitar!
May
7
Posted by Richard, under Guitars · RSS ·
At Sheargold’s I am often asked by first time guitar buyers how they should start learning their new instrument. Luckily, modern technology means that there are more ways than ever to learn songs and develop technique - unfortunately, this choice can leave many overwhelmed. For the benefit of these confused masses I will list some of the most valid methods and explain how they can be best used by the beginner guitarist.
Guitar Lessons
The good
Private tuition is a tried-and-tested learning method for any instrument. The teacher-student relationship is encouraging, focused and more likely to provide answers to all of your questions than any single book or DVD. There is also the vital aspect that a teacher is in the position to assess any problem areas in your technique or understanding and then suggest exercises that would help heal these trouble spots.
The bad
The way everybody learns is very different. I myself am very visual and prefer learning songs from sheet music or guitar tablature - many are similar and may find it hard to imitate their teacher’s playing without graphical aids to explain EXACTLY what is going on. Unfortunately, not every teacher will produce necessary supporting documents and therefore for some people lessons can be a frustrating experience. Another shortfall of lessons is that due to the limited time (30-60 minutes) the amount of transferable material is restricted, meaning that there is a slow rate of progression for those who use lessons as the only means of learning.
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Tutorial Books
The good
Books are arguably the most cost effective and information dense source for learning. A years worth (or more) of guitar lessons will fit happily within a 200 page book for less money than your average 60 minute lesson. Often appropriate layouts ensure the information is easy to mentally digest and hundreds of exercises with accompanying tablature/notation means that you will rarely have an excuse not to practice something new. Clear section divisions and sympathy for developmental process means that learning from a book is far less scary than first thought. There is also the added bonus of being able to say you’re “self-taught” - try saying it.
The bad
The huge amount of available books can leave some spoilt for choice and slightly dazzled. Luckily, there are hundreds of guitar tuition authors trying to get their foot in the door. Meaning that the battle for quality has produced some great books, and has even forced most publishers to include an accompanying DVD and/or CD to help their book shadow their rivals’. Despite the volume of high quality books, there are many that can oversimplify, neglect important areas, over colloquialise important terms, do not structure the book or sections appropriately and leave out essential or helpful visual aids (pictures and diagrams for example). In order to avoid this you can talk to a sales assistant here at Sheargold’s, have a look inside before you buy a book (if you know what to look for), or if buying online have a look at customer rating (if available). Buying a book from well-known publishers such as Hal Leonard will guarantee a high level of quality as well. Of course, always make every effort to make sure the book is stylistically appropriate for your musical endeavour and is the correct level of difficulty. There are many general guitar tuition books focusing on the fundamentals of guitar playing and theory, which generally remains the same between genres. These books are most popular as they are the most adaptable to any style the player may move towards. One additional small issue with books is that it may not have an answer to your specific question, or it may be hard to find.
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Instructional DVDs
The good
As said before, everybody learns differently and for some an interactive DVD really “clicks”. Being able to see and hear exactly how a song should be played with song specific advice can be a real confidence boost for people who have lost faith and patience in other tuition formats. Often more than 2 hours of recorded material helps make instructional DVDs worth the money, and with companies like LickLibrary churning out new DVDs every month there is guaranteed to be a DVD for the exact style or technique you are looking for. Many DVDs also come with backing tracks to practice alongside and develop ideas to, which is always great for improvising.
The bad
The main method of learning in these DVDs is to imitate the actions of the on-screen-tutor. The tutor is often very clear in their playing and will often play it slowly whilst explaining, to make sure that their actions are understood - however, it can still be disorientating, particularly for a beginner.
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These are the main ways in which people learn and for most people they are highly effective for building confidence and ability. Whilst using these it can sometimes be a good idea to consider a variety of different resources to learn from, such as…
- Having friends teach you -Great fun and free but a lack of teaching and/or musical experience may not make it a reliable influence.
- Learning from the internet - There are many free tutorial websites, but the overall quality is often inferior to that of a well written book. Electric guitars hum and buzz in the presence of a CRT computer monitor.
- Interactive CD-ROMS - A new technology that sounds promising- sadly there are few products worth considering and there are not many beyond the absolute beginner stage anyway.
So, REMEMBER…..
- Everybody learns at a different speed - you may start off slow but you may whizz along in the further stages.
- You need to find your mix of influences to shape your ability and style to how you want it to be. This means maybe more than just one method of learning - in my experience players that draw from many resources have the most rich understanding of their instrument and the strongest technique.
- Try not to be too put off by a bad experience. A bad teacher can be one of the most devastating things a beginner guitarist can face - they may be teaching in an inappropriate manner or be just plain bad at playing and teaching guitar. For every unlucky person that finds their way into this situation hundreds of others find great teachers so do not worry.
- Analyse your self progress - If after months of practice and not much improvement ask yourself “why am I not progressing?” Look at your learning methods and try to diagnose why they are not working. Making the distinction between a bad product/service and your natural learning inclinations will help lead you to the right path.
- People’s learning styles change - If you didn’t get on well with lessons or books beforehand it does not mean that you will forever be a bad candidate for private tuition. Similar to the way you didn’t learn to speak basic English through books but now would learn foreign key phrases through them, a learning method is reliant on some already established abilities.
- Have fun. Guitar (or any musical instrument for that matter) should never be a chore, always find ways to inspire yourself again if you feel the fire leaving you - listen to one of your favourite artists, watch a live performance, learn a song you have always wanted to learn, get a book or DVD that is full of great licks and riffs. Inspiration is everywhere.
Good Luck - Rich’
Click here to see our full range of guitars
Apr
22
Posted by Steven, under Pianos · RSS ·
Once again, our NO VAT Sale has proven to be a huge success with Sheargolds taking their stand against Alistair Darling and Gordon Brown!
There’s still a chance for you to buy your piano with “NO VAT” (17.5% discounted) so don’t miss out!
We have a fantastic opportunity for you to own 2 very special pianos. We have a previously owned Steinway Model A Grand Piano. We also have a fully rebuilt Bechtein Model B Grand Piano. To appreciate these pianos completely, you have to see and play them yourself!
