Category: Music

Hello C’s Class

Coming at you with my last music video and blog! I’ll post my video below along with some of the struggles I had leading up to the end and some other things I learned! Keep reading!

Alright so this last week I struggled with playing the guitar. Now that school is at home my questions I had about playing were hard to get answers to due to not being able to meet in class in person! I got though it by pushing through and doing my best regardless of my guitar sounding a bit funny even though it was in tune and I was playing the correct chords! This past week I also explored playing the guitar with and without a pick. I discovered that with this particular song I enjoyed playing it better without a pick as it made the sound a bit softer. As you can tell in my video I am not using one! Last blog I was also figuring out which strumming pattern to use! I ended up going with down down-up up down. The first 2 chords were played with 1 set of this pattern and the 3rd chord was 2 sets of the pattern. I learned that being at home trying to get all your assignments in without being able to go into class was a lot harder than it seemed. But I did my best and honestly I am very proud of being able to now play two songs on the guitar! I think I would like to get my own guitar and over the next little bit learn some more songs so that I can implement this into my future classroom! I really enjoyed learning something new even though at first I thought it was impossible! So thanks to my teacher for making us all push through because I did it! I hope you enjoyed my blogs and videos! I am not perfect at playing but I am trying my best and I believe I made some awesome progress since the beginning of the year till now!

XO

Hello C’s Class

Just coming at you with another update on how my guitar journey is going. So far I am enjoying it as I am isolating at home… it gives me something to do other then just watch Netflix! I have been practicing through out the day for an estimated time of maybe 15-20 mins a day…

So what have I been working on? Well, still trying to work on transition from chord to chord while not looking and pressing hard enough on the strings that the song comes out clear. I haven’t quite mastered not looking yet but that is something that will come with practice and time. I also have been working on the strumming pattern which is definitely harder then I thought. It is not hard in the sense that I can’t do it but more hard on the fact that I can’t quite find a pattern that I think goes best with the song… I have been watching lots of youtube videos and everyone seems to do something different so I am trying lots of different ones out and seeing if I can find one that really makes sense to me or maybe even trying to combine some and making up my own? That would be crazy but we shall see what works! I have been playing the guitar with my song which helps me stay on beat and track of the song and to ensure I play the whole song. My hand gets cramped up sometimes so I have been trying to play more and more of the song each time so that I can eventually play the entire song with out stopping! I have also been seeing if I like the song better with or without my pick. They both make a different sound when strumming so this is something I have been trying out!

That’s all for today! Check back next week for my guitar video!

XO

Hello Casey’s Class

So I am sure you are all wondering how my music journey is going…well! I am learning a new song and it is going great!

I am learning “Blown Away” by Carrie Underwood and I am learning three new chords. The chords I am learning are EM, D, and G. So far, I have been learning the three chords and I have to say I have got them down pretty good already! I practiced once in class and I really used the time to learn the chords, learn how to use a capo, and find some videos to help me learn the song! The video I am using to help learn the chords and the video I am using to learn the strumming pattern are both posted below! As I go on my journey I am practicing every second day for about 15-20 mins! I am finding it a lot easier to learn the guitar this semester and a lot easier which is exciting! But I know I know I won’t get ahead of myself. I will keep you posted on my journey and hopefully it keeps going good! I am going to be learning the strumming pattern next! Well, enjoy the videos below and maybe bust out a guitar and try it out! Or not… maybe stick to what you’re good at? Either way do something musically and go blast music in your car at least!

Thanks for checking in!

XO

Hello C’s Class,

So as you all know I am learning to play the guitar… Well update I’m actually not that bad. Today’s blog will be about what I have learned so far and how much I have accomplished from my musical growth plan.

I was really struggling to make my strumming pattern sound good with the song. I felt like giving up but instead I found a new youtube video that explained it way better and now I can actually play the whole song! Through this video I learned how to do the strumming pattern, where my hands should be and what chords I should be playing. Looking at my musical growth plan, so far I have checked off being able to hold my guitar, I can tune it myself, I sit up straight and move from chord to chord pretty smoothly (can still work on this), and I still have to look at my fingers when playing… But that is okay, this is a process. Throughthis as
signment I have got out of my comfort zone. Many times I wanted to give up because I just didn’t understand what was going on. But then when I found the new video to follow everything clicked. Although I am not perfect, I feel really proud that I started not even knowing how to hold a guitar and now I can kinda play one song! I wasn’t able to check off all the things I said I would be able to do from my growth plan, but I can do a whole lot more then I thought. I have been leaving my guitar out in my living room and that alone has made me practice so much more! I enjoy practicing once a day and that is something I never thought I would feel. My video I will be sending into my teacher will show case what I have learned so far. Wish me luck!

Here is my video!                  https://youtu.be/I8LkV9QbgPY               

XO

Hello C’s Class

So I am still learning how to play the guitar… and it is harder than I thought. Basically I set out to learn one song for my mid term that has the chords D and A and I thought, well how hard can this be…Welllllll hard.

Last week we brought in our instruments into class to do some practicing and to ask for help. So that is definitely what I did. I explained my situation to the teacher and told her straight up “I suck and I am going to fail!” I know… pretty honest of me but seriously that is how I felt. I told her that there was no way that I was going to be able to achieve my goal by Feb 27th! She explained that all of this is a learning process and that we don’t have to be a super start by the mid term…THANK GOD! My mind was feeling more at ease now that I know I just need to try my very best and show progress! Which I definitely have. Last time I blogged I think I said I was getting the pattern down and learned the chords. Well I am here to tell you that I have learned more about the learning process which is important but I did learn new things on the guitar… Which I think is probably more important as I need to pass the class! I got better at switching from A to D quickly (still not perfect) and I learned how to do the strumming pattern that actually sounds good…well pretty good. As I continue to practice after I blog, I am going to continue practicing to switch from A to D without looking and do my best to make my sound more sharp and clear. Really pressing down on the chords to make my sound better, and playing the song with the real song to see if I can use the right tempo and speed so that I am playing it to the beat of the song! Wish me luck!

XO

Hello C’s Class

Today’s blog is focused on my journey about learning the guitar. In my music class we had to pick an instrument to learn through out the semester…I chose the guitar. Why? Well, I thought the guitar was a super cool instrument to play but I now sorta regret it because it’s HARD! So wish me luck…

What have I learned? Well, so far I am learning one song with the chords D and A. The song is “Boys Round Here” by Blake Shelton. I have been practicing about everyday with 15 mins or so. I first started with learning chord D. After learning the proper fingering for this chord I practiced the strumming pattern. It goods, down, down, down, up, up,up, down. So it seems pretty easy but honestly I am struggling! After getting down this chord with the strumming patter I moved to learn the other chord. I learned how to properly do chord A and then practiced with the same strumming pattern. Basically this song switched between D and A using the same pattern each time. Super easy right? Well not so much for me…but I am trying! I downloaded an app called Chordify to help me learn the song and hopefully will help me be able to play the song by Feb 27th. Going forward I am going to continue with what I have learned and start practicing moving quickly from one chord to the next smoothly. I have been following the youtube video below to learn my song. I am a little worried that by Feb 27th I won’t be able to play the song but I am going to keep practicing and trying my best and hopefully will improved over the next 2 weeks!

Anyways, that’s all for today! Keep posted for another music blog next week and see if I have improved! Wish me luck!

XO