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Hello everyone,

The Weekly Wrap Up is ready.

Have a great weekend!

http://blog.totallyguitars.com/guitar-n ... 16th-2016/



http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/tota ... d519276594

A little mystery music at the start of today’s update, one that demonstrates some independent finger control. Our
friend Max over at TEG has put up a free lesson/tip on some cool left hand stretching exercise that will help make
things like this easier. Check it out.

As you may have noticed, I had a little extra fascination this week with Freight Train, by Libba Cotten. Some of this
was inspired by Dave Nachmanoff’s song Kindred Spirits, which I hope to get to a lesson on soon, but also by
listening to many different versions with Ed at his lesson that became this week’s Fly On The Wall. Be sure to let
me know if this is something we should pursue, some of the various arrangements we hear by different artists.

Vanessa’s lesson this week also wants back to some roots, Guy Clark’s classic L.A. Freeway. This is another song
that encourages playing it differently every time, a very useful skill as far as I am concerned.

The other big news this week is we have locked in dates for IGC 2017 and are open for registrations. I am pretty
sure we will fill up quickly this time so if you are thinking of joining us I suggest getting on board soon. We will be
at the Presentation Center the week of August 21-25, 2017, Monday through Friday once again as that seems to
have worked well for almost everybody who attended in 2016.

There were a few other fragments of some tunes I was asked to play at a ceremony tomorrow, maybe even a couple
future lessons there. In any case, on to next week.

Stay Tuned & In Touch,

Neil

That's gotta be Bicycle Tune / John Renbourn..... i love that piece !!!

..and if i'm wrong, well i still love that piece.

/ david

davidrfinn99165 wrote:

That's gotta be Bicycle Tune / John Renbourn..... i love that piece !!!

..and if i'm wrong, well i still love that piece.

/ david

David-

You are too cultured and wise, and of course, correct!

Neil

Hi Neil--

I liked that you included "Judy" in your finger independence demonstration. I knew that I would have to get back to you sooner or later about how it was going. It was a great recommendation at the IGC. I love it! Level 8? I never would have dared! But, I've got the first page down and it's coming pretty nicely, but not too fast because it can get a bit confusing. I found that if I cover the tab and just use the music, it makes it so much easier to see which notes are sustained.

Maybe after tomorrow I'll be ready for the second page. I'm happy the piece not too long.

I'm glad you're recovered from camp. I am too, and I'm looking foward to the next one.

fjeanmur wrote:

Hi Neil--

I liked that you included "Judy" in your finger independence demonstration. I knew that I would have to get back to you sooner or later about how it was going. It was a great recommendation at the IGC. I love it! Level 8? I never would have dared! But, I've got the first page down and it's coming pretty nicely, but not too fast because it can get a bit confusing. I found that if I cover the tab and just use the music, it makes it so much easier to see which notes are sustained.

Maybe after tomorrow I'll be ready for the second page. I'm happy the piece not too long.

I'm glad you're recovered from camp. I am too, and I'm looking foward to the next one.

Hey Jean,

It's funny how I guess the difficulty levels of songs. I sometimes have beginners tackle things that overall 8s, like Judy. I really only hope they get a little out of it, like an exercise disguised as a really cool song. Judy is a great example of a 4-measure phrase that is playable by intermediate students but the entire song, with all John's embellishments and nuances, is virtuoso material.
I don't have the resources, or vision to break it out for the multi-level piece that it is. The fact that John wrote it as a kid, and still played it live till he left us says a lot about it. I have had a great time the last couple days resurrecting Bicycle Tune and may break it out soon for a lesson or Acoustic Snapshot.

And, glad to hear you are likely on board for IGC 2017!

Neil