Intermediate courses
These courses are for guitarists who have completed the beginners' course, or who have been playing at least a few months and can play the chords to several basic strumming songs with good timing. During the courses, we'll explore different styles of music, different techniques and music theory. You'll learn to play more complex songs and to improvise. You'll also improve your ability to hear music and play it. The aims of the courses are to bring you on as a guitar player and musician and to set up good habits for practicing and playing guitar in the future. Intermediate I and II each take between 10 and 20 lessons to complete, depending on ability, previous experience with music and the amount of time you can dedicate to practice between lessons.
By the end of the Intermediate I course, you'll be able to:
1) Play five strumming songs. These will use common open chords (eg G, Cadd9, D, Am...) and few other open chords too. The songs will be more complicated than in the beginners' course and may include some single-line phrases as well as strumming.
2) Play a clear F chord and be able to change quickly with other chords (especially chords in the key of C, such as Am, C, Dm and G).
3) Use different techniques to make your playing more rhythmical and groovy - eg bass notes, restrictive strumming, accents.
4) Play three different scales over two octaves and move around them fluently - A minor pentatonic, A minor blues, C major.
5) Transpose these three scale positions to any key.
6) Use the scales to improvise over different accompaniments.
7) Create interesting solos using a variety of techniques - eg bends, vibrato, left-hand muting, slides....
8) Tune up your guitar by ear, using the fifth-fret technique.
9) Find any note on any string of the guitar.
10) Play a fingerstyle piece.
By the end of Intermediate II, you'll be able to:
1) Play five songs, more complex than in previous courses. At least one song should include an F chord.
2) Play clear-sounding barre chords, including two major, two minor, two minor seventh and two dominant seventh positions.
3) Play and name these chords in any key.
4) Use different techniques to make your rhythm playing groovier - eg left- and right-hand muting, percussive sounds.
5) Play the pentatonic scale in three different positions.
6) Play the major scale in five different positions.
7) Play, from memory, six triad chords (three major, three minor) from common guitar keys: G, C, E, A, D.
8) Improvise solos over three different accompaniments using different positions of the pentatonic scale.
9) Tune up using the harmonic technique.
10) Use octave shapes to find notes on the guitar neck quicker.
By Mark Baxter
1) Play five strumming songs. These will use common open chords (eg G, Cadd9, D, Am...) and few other open chords too. The songs will be more complicated than in the beginners' course and may include some single-line phrases as well as strumming.
2) Play a clear F chord and be able to change quickly with other chords (especially chords in the key of C, such as Am, C, Dm and G).
3) Use different techniques to make your playing more rhythmical and groovy - eg bass notes, restrictive strumming, accents.
4) Play three different scales over two octaves and move around them fluently - A minor pentatonic, A minor blues, C major.
5) Transpose these three scale positions to any key.
6) Use the scales to improvise over different accompaniments.
7) Create interesting solos using a variety of techniques - eg bends, vibrato, left-hand muting, slides....
8) Tune up your guitar by ear, using the fifth-fret technique.
9) Find any note on any string of the guitar.
10) Play a fingerstyle piece.
By the end of Intermediate II, you'll be able to:
1) Play five songs, more complex than in previous courses. At least one song should include an F chord.
2) Play clear-sounding barre chords, including two major, two minor, two minor seventh and two dominant seventh positions.
3) Play and name these chords in any key.
4) Use different techniques to make your rhythm playing groovier - eg left- and right-hand muting, percussive sounds.
5) Play the pentatonic scale in three different positions.
6) Play the major scale in five different positions.
7) Play, from memory, six triad chords (three major, three minor) from common guitar keys: G, C, E, A, D.
8) Improvise solos over three different accompaniments using different positions of the pentatonic scale.
9) Tune up using the harmonic technique.
10) Use octave shapes to find notes on the guitar neck quicker.
By Mark Baxter