Ask Peter a Question

Question: Is it possible to download the videos?
Peter: If you purchase a registered version of Quicktime Pro you should be able to download the videos to your hard drive and watch them whenever you want. Get QuickTime 7 Pro for Windows or QuickTime 7 Pro for Mac OS X.

Question: I just got a guitar and watched a few lessons. It seems a bit overwhelming what should I do?
Peter: First of all, congrats on taking up guitar. Anyone taking up something new needs lots of help. Start with learning how to play chords, scales, and songs. Use chord charts, songbooks, and tablature. To learn these, you may need a teacher or you may try one of our beginning method books like The Acoustic Guitar Primer or Electric Guitar Primer by Watch & Learn.

Question: Do I have to hold the pick like you do? Or should I hold it the way I feel most comfortable?
Peter: No you don't have to hold it like me. I have a method that I know works, but it is a combination of things. If you were taking from me I would want you to hold the pick that way because all of the techniques are pretty dependent on one another. How you hold the pick is important because it determines many techniques. So I guess another question might be is my technique of holding a pick better than others. I would definitely say yes. Some of my students, I would dare say, are the fastest guitar players I have ever seen. What will happen is you will make subtle changes to the way you hold the pick over time. Start with a good method and then let your mind and body do what it's gonna. The way you currently hold the pick is the most comfortable because it's the way you started. However it's not necessarily the best way.

Question: I’ve been playing rhythm guitar for awhile now, how do I approach learning to play lead guitar?
Peter: It's a combination of things that you must do. First, I think you must be very familiar with scales such as pentatonic scales and diatonic scales. Second, you must learn to use these scales in all keys and in a improvisational way. Third, learning licks here and there from books, cds, videos, etc. will help you put all this in context. Try playing scales with the Let's Jam CDs. That's really what they are designed for; to help you learn to solo and play rhythm with a band. As always, a good teacher would definitely speed up the process.

Question: What kind of amp and guitar are you playing on the Guitarist’s Lick DVD?
Peter: I used a Shector Guitar and a Fender Deluxe for most of the DVD and sometimes used a Vetta head for the CD that goes with the book. I usually use a good compressor pedal as well which adds a lot to my sound. The Boss compressor is a little too aggressive for me so I have a more expensive pedal that I use.

Question: What is a guitar lick?
Peter: A lick is combination of notes. They frequently are based out of scales or chords and used often.

Question: When new to soloing, is it better to try and improvise (although it sounds like I am playing scales) or should I learn a lot of licks?
Peter: As you get more advanced, you will not sound as much like you are playing scales or quoting licks. The thing about soloing is everyone focuses on the note selection. The real interest and variety comes from phrasing. Think about this. There is only a very limited amount of notes to choose from. In any one scale, there are generally only 5 to 7 notes repeated over and over. Not many to create a language from. There are, however, an infinite amount of rhythms to choose from. There is also a infinite range of dynamics to choose from. (loud and soft). What about accents, bends, and slides, etc. A good soloist can take just a couple notes and make them sound interesting by applying phrasing and creativity. In a nutshell, learn your scales, licks, arpeggios etc. and then understand that soloing comes from everything else. The notes are of minimal importance.

Question: Why is it that on the tracks in major keys you suggest using either the major or minor pentatonic scales, but for tracks in minor keys, you suggest only the minor pentatonic?  Why can you use either the major 3 or the minor 3 in a major key?
Peter: When singing a blues, rock, or funky sort of tune it is very common to play around with the minor and major third. Using both is acceptable as long as you don't hang on the minor third too long or it is resolved into the major third. It, along with the flat fifth, gives us the blues like approach to music. The most common notes to play around with are the minor and major third, the flat and perfect 5th, and the 7 and flat 7. Different genres of music use them in slightly different ways. In a minor key, however, I would not suggest using the major third unless it is immediately going to the 4 chord. You have to understand a good bit of theory to do this, so as a rule, do not use the major third in a minor key.

Question: I’ve been trying to learn some harder solos. What do you think I should do in order to actually get the speed, stamina and accuracy to play such solos?
Peter: There is no one thing to practice to get speed and accuracy-it depends on what style and such you want to play. First of all the big trick is to practice slow-and I mean slow. Slower than you brain wants you to practice. That's where the accuracy will come from, and speed without accuracy is not speed...it's slop. The scales and exercises are an every day thing to work on. If you have a solo you want to play break it up into small excerpts and practice them like you would a drill. Now here is the painful part. What you want takes much time and repetition. The soloist you are trying to imitate has done that move thousands and thousands of times. When you have done the same, chances are you will be quite fast and accurate. That is, as long as you are using reasonably good technique. When I studied classical guitar, we used to take the hardest moves in pieces, make a copy, and then tape them into a book of our hardest techniques. We would then practice those moves every day from that book.

Question: How can I improve my left hand speed?
Peter: Again you want to practice slow and make sure you are using the correct technique. Next you want to make sure that every part of your body stays relaxed. Don't let your hands, shoulders, elbows, etc. tense up. Finally you want to use an economy of motion. Keep your fingers close to the strings even when they are not being used to play a note.

Question: What type of strings and guitar pick do you suggest I use?
Peter: I prefer Dadarrio strings. If you are playing acoustic start with a light guage and later move on to a medium. Picks in the medium guage are great.

Question: Is there video instruction on the Let's Jam! CD's?
Peter: No. The CD's only contain jam tracks, and small CD booklet that contains the chord progressions for each jam track and some scale suggestions. Any video instruction associated with the jam tracks is only available on this site.

Question: It seems that when I play chords I get dead sounds from other strings that are not part of the chord. Is this normal?
Peter: Play on the tips of your fingers, keep the thumb low on the back of the neck, play towards the very front of the frets, and the it gets better over time. D is harder for most, A is hard for folks with big hands, Am can be hard for beginners as well. Give yourself several months of playing and working on it before you expect it to go away.

Question: Is it possible to take a right handed guitar and change the strings around so it can be used by a left handed player? If it is possible how much difference will there be in the sound of the music?
Peter: It is possible but you need to have some changes made.  The nut on the guitar has to be recut to fit the difference in width of strings.  The saddle on the bridge of the guitar will probably have to be replaced or recut as well.  Not very expensive but a guitar tech/luthier needs to do this.  After doing this there should be no difference in sound.

Question: I have small hands and as a result I have a hard time reaching to play the notes in the cross stringing scales. What should I do?
Peter: I know people barely 5 foot tall that can reach any note I can reach. The trick is a very low thumb position on the back of the neck, a lower wrist position, and the thumb being in the middle of the stretch allowing the index finger to stretch toward the headstock end of the neck while the pinky stretches toward the body.

Question: What's the key to playing barre chords?
Peter: First of all, it's hard for everyone to play barre chords and it takes a lot of practice. Make sure that your left thumb has a low position on the neck. You should also place the non barre fingers down before placing you index finger down. It's also important to try and use the side of your index finger more than the bottom or pad of your finger. We have a full lesson on barre chords here.

Question: What is a Nashville Tuning?
Peter: On a Nashville Tuning the first two strings of your guitar are tuned as normal. However the 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th string are tuned a full octave higher than their normal tuning. A lighter gauge string is required to achieve this. A Nashville Tuning places the guitar in a much higher range and can be used to record over guitars in a normal tuning.

Questions:What type of guitar effects pedals do you use?
Peter: My pedal board includes the following Boss Pedals: Chorus, Sustain, Compressor, Digital Delay, Distortion, Tremolo and Harmonist. Watch the video for further explanation for each pedal and find out what else I have on my pedal layout.