1. learning by memorizing lines 2. dots on fretboard

rafapak

Hi guys

1. I would like to ask you for help. Except for Gonzalo Bergara's materials which method that teaches improvisation is based on learning ready made lines by heart ? Can you recommend any tutor or any book that teaches by telling students to learn lines by heart? I like this method of learning therefore I am looking for materials that teach in this way.
2. I have recently bought gitane dg 255. I like this guitar but unfortunately white dots on fretboard are placed on 10th and 12th frets . On my regular guitars dots are placed on 9th and 12th frets. Do you know any methods to correct position of dots so that my gitane looks like regular guitar and I don't get confused when I play gitane ? Should I buy black sticky tape or sth and put it on existing white dots?
Should I buy white sticky tape and put white dots on desired frets ? Probably sticky tape method will not work so can you recommend something different ?

adrian

rafapak wrote: »

I like this guitar but unfortunately white dots on fretboard are placed on 10th and 12th frets . On my regular guitars dots are placed on 9th and 12th frets. Do you know any methods to correct position of dots so that my gitane looks like regular guitar and I don't get confused when I play gitane ?

I recommend getting used to it. You never know when you'll be in a situation where you need to play somebody else's guitar — perhaps you go to Samois or Django In June and borrow a friend's guitar that has different dot locations, for example.

Being able to change your "dot orientation" on the fly is a useful skill for a guitarist!

Adrian

rafapak

thanks for reply

Shemi

Any of the online sites like the Rosenberg academy, DC music school, etc are a good source for licks or better yet transcribe some that strike you as interesting. I keep a little cache of things I like organised for different progressions. ii V I major/minor licks, christophe, whatever that progression in the second half of Django's Tiger is called, dominant chains, etc. Once they're under the fingers and in the ears you can pull them about and experiment. The possibilities are wonderfully endless!

jonpowl

I always like to recommend Samy Daussat's Cours de Guitar Jazz Manouche. You can find tabs on Dropbox and videos on Samy's YouTube channel. There are complete solos for All of Me and Sweet Georgia Brown. Best of all, it is free!
As far as the dots on the fingerboard, you'll get used to them and if not, you learn how to quickly use chromatic half step runs. Any good guitar tech/luthier can alter the dot placement.

Buco

That's easy @rafapak , do what all of the greats did, learn a bunch of Django solos.
Bireli, Stochelo, Fapy...they all say that's what they played first.

Michael S Harrington

Anthony Parker is a fellow member here who recently wrote a book called "Manifesting Manouche". Highly recommended!

Lango-Django

Shemi, I assume you have already got the classic "Gypsy Picking" by Michael Horowitz? That's a great starting point...

http://www.djangobooks.com/Item/gypsypicking

The Daniel Givone book "La Guitare Manouche" has many useful arp fingerings, but be warned that the text is all in French....

http://www.djangobooks.com/Item/daniel_givone_guitare_manouche

Good luck!

Will

klaatu

I echo what Adrian said. The 10th fret dot actually makes a lot of sense, and you can get used to it if you try. I resisted for a while and eventually gave in, and I'm happy that I did.

rafapak

Buco wrote: »

That's easy @rafapak , do what all of the greats did, learn a bunch of Django solos.
Bireli, Stochelo, Fapy...they all say that's what they played first.

I don't know if there are Django solos available in the form of books in the market. Let's assume that they are available. Do you guys think it is better to try to copy Django's solos by ear or is it better to buy books where solos are already given ?

Buco

Learning by ear for this style is by far the best. But it's also the longest. What did Stochelo say in the interview...he played Django solos note for note 4-5 years, I think he said, before he felt he can come up with something on his own.
The middle ground would be to learn the short parts that you really like, figure out over which chords they're being played and use them in other songs.
It's good to try to change them slightly and make them your own somewhat.
The way I do that sometimes is if I'm learning a part I like, I don't particularly try to be exactly true to source, I just play what I hear making sure whatever it is I'm playing fits the chords so I might be off with both some notes and timing but it still works over those particular chords.