 The Advantage and Disadvantages between Learning on an Electric and Acoustic Guitar
When it was first launched, all acoustic guitars could project sound acoustically. No amplification was necessary from outside. In fact, they were not designed to take outside amplifications. However, modern acoustic guitars are designed otherwise. They can take amplifications from outside. Advantages of learning with an acoustic guitar • Acoustic guitars generally have calm, nice and pleasant tones so no matter how bad you are, the tone projected from your guitar will not be so bad. • It is more difficult to play an acoustic guitar than an electric guitar so if you learn with the former, playing the latter will be a breeze. This can be likened to learning how to drive. Acoustic guitars are like cars with manual transmission while electric guitars can be likened to cars with automatic transmission. Since manual cars are harder to drive, if you learn with them, driving an automatic car will just be as easy as ABC. • Acoustic guitars do not require amplifiers and additional cables so it saves you some cost. Disadvantages of learning with an acoustic guitar • One of the things that make acoustic guitars more difficult to play is its higher gauge strings which makes it harder for users to hold barre chords. Electric guitars offer better gauge strings. • The higher gauge strings on acoustic guitars are more likely to produce buzzing sound so they require better skills. • Acoustic guitars usually have wider fretboards and these are more difficult for beginners to handle. Besides, they are more fragile than electric guitars. • Beginners usually find it difficult to play the heavy strings of acoustic guitars. Electric Guitar Unlike acoustic guitars, electric guitars make use of electric amplification to produce sounds. They pick up string vibrations and convert them to electric signals which are sent to the amplifier. Advantages of learning on an electric guitar • They have headphone input for you to practice without disturbing people around with noise. • It is easier to hold barre chords on electric guitars because they have softer strings. • Since the pickups and amplifier project all the sound, the strings are easier to learn. • Electric guitars have lighter gauges, thinner necks, and smaller bodies, so they are not only easier to carry around but they are also easier to play than their acoustic counterparts. Disadvantages of learning on an electric guitar • Being able to play an electric guitar does not mean you can automatically play an acoustic guitar. • Being able to find a good tone is more difficult on an electric guitar. • An electric guitar requires an amplifier and that is an additional cost. Conclusively, whether you learn with an acoustic guitar or an electric one, you will need several years of practice and dedication to be a master of the game. Even the best guitarists around the world still continue to learn. Lastly, it is also necessary to bear in mind that newer guitars will still be produced and they will have better features than older and existing ones so you need to be abreast of the new guitars that are coming into the market. If you're interested in taking Guitar lessons on Zoom or In Person in Burbank, Glendale or North Hollywood, we have some of the best guitar lessons in Los Angeles. Our guitar instructors are picked by interviewing hundreds of guitar instructors and we have really high standards on both their teaching ability as well as their personality. If you'd like to talk to one of our instructors or set up a first lesson we have a guarantee that if you don't absolutely love your first lesson you don't have to pay for it. Please contact us at (818)902-1233 or on our website at https://www.losangelesmusicteachers.com/online-guitar-lessons-in-burbank-ca.html Is It Hard To Learn Cello?
8/24/2021
 “Is cello hard to learn?” The process of learning the cello is not difficult, but it’s important to keep in mind that the cello is not an instrument of instant gratification. It does require focused, daily practice time and a good teacher to guide you along the way. How far you progress with cello is a direct result of the amount of quality time you put into practicing the instrument. Even someone who puts in just 30 minutes a day will notice a significant improvement after a few weeks, regardless of their age. A student who continues to take cello lessons and practice beyond their first year has the potential to develop into a talented amateur, and a young student with the right dedication could continue their studies all the way through to a rewarding professional career. Is Cello Hard to Learn? When learning how to play the cello, very little is spoon-fed to you by the instrument. Keyboard and fretted instruments (such as the guitar) are a little easier to learn the basics. Simply putting your finger on the right key or fret will allow you to produce the note you want to hear. With the cello, you need to have a teacher guiding you through the early stages to ensure you’re learning in a healthy way. This will lead to a lifetime of enjoying the instrument. If you have the right teacher, anyone can learn the fundamentals of playing cello. As with most instruments, the cello will come more easily to someone with experience reading notes and rhythms. Most of cello music is written down, rather than transferred aurally from teacher to student. But with a little patience, students of all ages can learn the musical language without prior knowledge or exposure. Does Age Matter When Taking Online Lessons? Young students make great beginner cellists. Often with youth comes unbridled enthusiasm for learning a cool new instrument and a mental elasticity that helps them absorb new information like a sponge. These advantages can carry a student a long way. The excitement encourages them to practice more on their own and their ability to retain information helps them progress quickly in their studies. One difficulty that young students face though, is the challenge of critically analyzing their playing. As a result, they need an outside observer to help them identify things that cause them trouble, whether it is posture, intonation, tone quality, etc. Young beginners are also generally less coordinated than their adult counterparts and will remain that way until well after puberty. Adult beginners have their own set of advantages. Firstly, they’re better in control of their bodies which helps them make changes to technique and posture more quickly. They also have a strong ability to critically analyze their own actions, and better sense of how they want to sound. As a result of their ability to critically analyze their own playing, adult learners can sometimes go straight to the criticizing part. This can lead to discouragement when they don’t immediately sound the way they want. However, the student is probably playing at a level appropriate to how long they have been studying. Practice Makes Perfect Practicing in between lessons is another necessity that makes learning the cello much easier. Without daily practice times, you will find your teacher going over the same concepts week after week during your lessons. Make a commitment to find a small chunk of time each day to practice playing the cello and you’ll set yourself up for success. If you only have five minutes, play some open strings for tone quality. Have a little more time? Add in some scale practice. If you have even more time, pick apart the challenging sections of your newest solo piece. There is always something you can practice, but focus on the most important concepts with the time that you have. Start Learning Cello With Online Lessons You no longer have to wonder if the cello is hard to learn. With a teacher guiding your technique, regular practice times, and a willingness to learn, you too can become an excellent cellist. You won’t have to worry about twisting your left arm into an uncomfortable position like violinists, or pushing air through several yards of tubing using only your lungs like a brass player. Instead, you’ll get to enjoy the comfort of the relaxed seated position for the cello. Overall, the cello is an incredible instrument with a wonderful depth of sound and breadth of repertoire. To get started now, register for your first cello lesson Online right here at Los Angeles Music Teachers with one of our many talented instructors. You will see our buttons below. If you're interested in taking Cello lessons on Zoom or In Person in Burbank, Glendale or North Hollywood, we have some of the best Cello lessons in Los Angeles. Our Cello instructors are picked by interviewing hundreds of Cello instructors and we have really high standards on both their teaching ability as well as their personality. If you'd like to talk to one of our instructors or set up a first lesson we have a guarantee that if you don't absolutely love your first lesson you don't have to pay for it. Please contact us at (818)902-1233 or on our website at https://www.losangelesmusicteachers.com/online-cello-lessons-in-burbank-ca.html
Styles of Singing for Different Genre's
8/11/2021
 Voice Lesson on styles of singing. People have been singing since the discovery of the voice and the beauty of melody. Of course, many things have changed over the hundreds of years people have been singing. Cultures across the globe have with their own scales and modes, and at the same time different type of singing styles emerged. Music genres are diverse and varied as the cultures themselves. Different genres present unique challenges for singers. Here is a list of the most common singing styles and how to sing them. Pop Pop is short for Popular. The pop music of the 40's was Frank Sinatra and Jazz music. In the 50's it was Elvis and Bo Diddly. Each decade was a different style of music right up until the pop music of today. With dance and rhythm at its heart, this style has dominated the music industry. Tips: Learn how to control your vibrato without getting stressed. Experiment with varied vocal sounds like short popping sounds. Focus on your stage movements and gestures and dance a little to set the right energy. Rock Rock is the grandchild of the blues. Rock and roll is heavier and a more danceable rhythm. It grew up t o become harsh, rougher and edgier. Tips: Experiment with different vocal flairs like a growling sound at the end but make sure you don’t overdo it. Practice singing a huge range of dynamics from whispers to high notes. Opera/ Classical This style is always considered as the most formal and restrictive of all genres of singing as it requires the greatest amount of discipline. It is sung with a terminal vibrato and emotional release. Lack of intimacy with the audience makes it the least conversational of all genres. It gives the audience the impression of admiring astonishing paintings from afar. Tips: Listening to the style of the great vocalists will help you to understand the stylistic demands of this difficult style. Don’t force or try to create it. Get connected with classical voice instructor to become a legitimate classical vocalist. Blues/Jazz Songs with clear speech level and distinct consonants come under jazz genre while blues singing has rough and rootsy edges with a unique accent. Tips: Experiment with different vocal sounds like scatting and pitch slides. Listen to great jazz vocalists for understanding the stylistic differences and you can also learn a lot from singing along with great saxophone and horn jazz soloists. Hip Hop The rhythmic rhyming singing accompanied with rapping and beat boxing is termed as hip hop style of singing. The genre has grown steadily and gained popularity over the years. The apparent origins are funk, disco, reggae, and blues. Tips: Carefully listen to funk, disco, reggae, soul, gospel and old-school hip hop songs. Hip Hop is different than rapping. Never be afraid of experimenting or wordplay. Make your own unique signature singing styles. Despite the different music genres, one thing connects them all that is love that the audience has for the voice and great vocalists no matter what style. Practice makes perfect. Listen carefully and learning some piano skills will also help you to develop faster because learning about scales and chords is important for your development. If you're interested in taking vocal lessons on Zoom or In Person in Burbank, Glendale or North Hollywood, we have some of the best vocal lessons in Los Angeles. Our vocal instructors are picked by interviewing hundreds of vocal instructors and we have really high standards on both their teaching ability as well as their personality. If you'd like to talk to one of our instructors or set up a first lesson we have a guarantee that if you don't absolutely love your first lesson you don't have to pay for it. Please contact us at (818)902-1233 or on our website at https://www.losangelesmusicteachers.com/online-voice-lessons-in-burbank-ca.html
 This is a quick lesson on what each piece of a drum kit is and what are some of the typical setups that are most popular. To work out how many ‘piece’ drum kit you have simply add up all the drums, ignoring cymbals and other hardware. Another method is to count the toms and then add 2 (for the snare and bass drum). So if your drum kit has 5 toms then it’s likely to be a 7 piece kit (assuming it has one snare drum and one bass drum). If a kit has one bass drum, one snare drum and one tom then it’s a 3 piece kit. The most common configuration is a 5 piece kit consisting of a bass drum, snare drum and 3 toms (high, mid and low) – and then of course you also have the hi-hats, cymbals etc. but these don’t count towards the number of ‘pieces’. You could have a 5 piece kit with 100 cymbals – it’s still a 5 piece kit. Serious about learning to play the drums? Drums are an awesome instrument to learn at any age but when you’re just starting out you might need some extra help and instruction. It’s really important that you get the basics right from the beginning such as how to hold the drums sticks and how to maintain good posture at the drum kit. Did you know you can now learn drums online? You can have structured step by step online lessons from a professional teacher that you work through at your own pace. By the time you finish the beginner level course you’ll be able to:
Parts of a Typical 5-piece Drum Kit 1. The Bass Drum / Kick Drum The Bass Drum is the largest of all the drums and also commonly gets referred to as the ‘Kick Drum’ or just ‘Kick’. The bass drum is played using a foot pedal that attaches to the rim (hoop) of the drum. Sometimes the front head of the drum (the resonant head) will have a hole in it – this can be used to alter the tone of the drum and is also commonly used to mic the drum up. Sometimes the resonant head is removed completely, again to alter the tone of the drum.  It’s common to place a pillow or some other damping material inside a bass drum to control the resonance of the drum and also help reduce the volume level. The bass drum has feet at the front (resonant head side) – these are known as ‘spurs’ and are generally angled in such a way as to minimise any movement of the drum while playing it. Some drummers like to have more than one bass drum so they can use both feet to play faster rhythms. Alternatively you can use a double bass drum pedal (sometimes called a double kick pedal) – this allows you to use both feet to hit a single bass drum. Although double bass drum playing is probably most common on the metal scene, double bass drum pedals are used extensively in a wide range of musical styles from jazz fusion to funk and pop. Bass drums are available in a wide range of sizes, the most common being 20″ or 22″ in diameter (drums are generally measured in inches as opposed to metric measurements). 2. The Drum Stool / Throne The stool that you sit on is known as a ‘drum throne’. It’s typically a round padded stool with 3 chrome legs. The height of the throne is really down to personal preference but normally you should ensure you can put your feet flat on the floor and your thighs should be sloping downwards slightly.  3. The Hi-Hats The hi-hat cymbals are a pair of cymbals that close against each other using a foot operated pedal. Hi-hat cymbals are typically 14″ in diameter but are available in a range of other sizes.  The hi-hats are probably the most dynamic element of the drum kit due to the wide range of sounds that can be produced. Distinct tonal options are:
4. The Snare Drum The snare drum is one of the most important drums on the kit – it forms the centre of the kit and can be played in a wide variety of ways, commonly used to play the ‘backbeat’ of a typical straight 8’s beat. The drum is normally 14″ in diameter and 6″ in depth but is available in a wide range of other sizes. The drum consists of a wooden or metal shell and it will always have both a batter (top) and resonant (bottom) head.  The resonant head has snare wires suspended under it to produce the classic snare ‘buzz’ sound – the mechanism used to attach the snare wires to the drum is called the snare strainer. The snare strainer mechanism normally also includes a ‘throw off’ to switch the snares on and off and an adjustment thumb-screw to adjust the tightness of the snare wires. The snare drum sits on a special snare drum standconsisting of legs and a 3 arm basket to hold the drum. 5. The Tom Toms Tom toms or ‘toms’ as they’re more commonly known, come in a wide range of sizes.
On a 5 piece kit you will have a high tom, mid tom and low / floor tom. The low tom will either be ‘mounted’ (normally on a ‘fusion’ kit) – i.e. attached with a clamp to a cymbal stand, or it will be a floor tom (normally on a ‘rock’ kit) – i.e. it sits independently on its own 3 legs.  Toms normally have a batter (top) and resonant (bottom) head but the resonant head isn’t mandatory. There are a variety of clamping mechanisms for the high / mid toms – most commonly they’ll attach to tom arms that in turn attach to the bass drum. Another option is for the toms to be clamped to cymbal stands. 6. The Ride Cymbal The ride cymbal is a larger cymbal (20″ is a fairly typical size) that generally sits on the right hand side of the drum kit. It’s normally a heavier cymbal played with the tip of the drum stick to produce that distinctive ride ‘ping’ sound.  For a more defined ping sound you can also play the bell of the cymbal using either the tip or shoulder of the stick for an even louder ping sound. A general rule of thumb with ride cymbals is not to crash them unless they’re designed as ‘crash/ ride’ cymbals. Crashing a normal ride cymbal can result in damage and it also probably won’t sound particularly good. 7. The Crash Cymbal Crash cymbals are generally a bit smaller than ride cymbals – a typical size being 16″. They’re designed to be hit quite hard with a glancing blow from the shoulder of the stick. Normally crashes are used as accent notes, for example at the end of a fill, however you can also ‘ride’ the crash, playing powerful rhythmic patterns similar to what would be played on the hi-hats or ride cymbal. It’s very common in rock music to ride the crash in particularly loud parts of the song – have a listen to The Pretender by the Foo Fighters where Taylor Hawkins switches between riding the ride and riding the crash during the choruses (4 bars of ride, 4 bars of riding the crash etc.).  It’s quite common to have several crash cymbals around the drum kit in a variety of sizes. Generally speaking larger cymbals will have a louder sound and longer sustain whereas smaller crash cymbals will be quieter with a shorter sustain. Having a choice of crash cymbals is both convenient, in terms of having one near to the last drum you played and also allows the player to develop a richer and more varied sonic palette. For example, if a fill calls for two crashes in short succession it often sounds better for these to be played on two different cymbals. For really powerful moments you might hit both at the same time! If you're interested in taking Drum lessons on Zoom or In Person in Burbank, Glendale or North Hollywood, we have some of the best drum lessons in Los Angeles. Our drum instructors are picked by interviewing hundreds of drum instructors and we have really high standards on both their teaching ability as well as their personality. If you'd like to talk to one of our instructors or set up a first lesson we have a guarantee that if you don't absolutely love your first lesson you don't have to pay for it. Please contact us at (818)902-1233 or on our website at https://www.losangelesmusicteachers.com/online-drum-lessons-in-burbank-ca.html
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