Yes, I play guitar

Well, "play" is kinda a strong word for something that sounds like our cat did right after he had the operation. But I muck about.

Current target of mucking about: I've been picking up a few classical pieces. Found a nice arrangement of Bach's Minuet in G, which I've memorised but am not yet up to full speed on. I learned Greensleeves a while back, which is harder on 'tar than you'd think.

I've also got a couple of less well-known ones under my belt: Sarabande from Robert de Visee's Suite in D minor, and the first piece from Giulani's Op. 71 No. 1. Both fairly easy by classical standards, but the de Visee piece in particular is lovely. The Giulani piece is a bit mechanical but a great warm-up.

I also tend to make a note of any chord sequences or arpeggios that catch my fancy. The following are a couple of my favourites.


Shamelessly ripped from the Inner Life of the Cell soundtrack:

--------------------------------
---6---6------------------------
--7---7----5---5---7---7---3---5
-7---7----7---5---8---8---5---7-
5--------7---5---8---8---5---7--
--------5---5---6-------3---5---

Variations on the chord set G, C6 (?) C, D:

3-3-0-2-  --------------2-3-  --------------3-3--
3-3-1-3-  ------3---1----3--  ------3---1----2-3-
0-0-0-2-  --0----0---0------  --0----0---0-2-----
0-2-2-0-  ---0--------0-----  ---0-2---2--0------
2-3-3-x-  ----3---3---------  -2--3---3----------
3-0-0-x-  3-----------------  3------------------

-----------0---2---  ---3---3---0---2(3)-
---3---3--1---3-3--  --3---3---1---3-3---
--0---0--0---2---2-  -0---0---0---2---2--
-0---0------0------  ------------0-------
----3---3----------  ----3---3-----------
3------------------  3-------------------

The rhythm should be more like 1--4--7-1--4--7- on the second one, and 1-34--7- on the last three. This explains why it appears not to scan properly*. The (3) is because, if you hammer down your little finger (which you'd need to get in position for the next repetition of the G chord, anyway) you can get a lovely ringing high G just on the edge of hearing.

Got a really boring scale on the bass strings? Slow it down by a factor of six and fill the gaps with arpeggio:

------------------------------------------------
---3-----3-----3-----3-----3-----3-----3-----3--
--0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0-
-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0
------0-----2-----3-----------------------------
3-----------------------0-----2-----3-----3-----

---0-----0-----0-----0-----0-----0-----0-----0-----0--
--0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0-
-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0-0---0
------------------------------------------------------
------------------------3-----3-----2-----0-----------
0-----0-----0-----0-----------------------------0-----etc

Next project: actually learn some !"£$%^& scales. I'm currently memorising music by throwing lots of neurons at the problem. Having some sort of framework in place would presumably make learning new stuff easier. Not to mention making improvisation easier. I suck at impro.

Also, my mum has requested that I get good at an arrangement of the Trout Quintet I came across. I hear and obey.

---

* A limerick:
There was a young bloke from Milan
Who wrote poems that never would scan
When asked why this was
He said "it's because
I just like to fit as many syllables into the last line as I possibly possibly can."