Way forward for newbie.

Roy · October 2007

Hello everyone. I´m a new member here and would appreciate the opinions of some of the more experienced guitar players.
I´ve been playing guitar on and off for about 15 years without really learning much theory or fretboard knowledge. In the last 6 months I´ve been listening to Django almost every day. I have bought a copy of gypsy picking which has helped my right hand and timing tremendously. I have read in recent posts that learning rhythm is the way to advance with this style which I can fully understand. The question is, do I need to get totally back to basics and theory, to get an understanding of the fretboard, scales and chords etc. Obviously as a bloke closing in on the big 40 and with 2 children, time is of the essence and I feel as though I need a game plan for getting started. So, should it be Gypsy Rhythm followed by Gypsy Picking or Modern Method for Guitar.
By the way, I love this music.
All the best.
Roy.

HCPhilly · October 2007

Roy,

Definitely learn to do a good basic Pompe. I'd suggest getting Gypsy Rhythm, and/or Dennis Chang's DVD. I say this based on the high standards that both Michael and Dennis adhere to. [I don't have Michael's book or Dennis' DVD, but they have been well reviewed,
and both of those guys have really done their homework].
I would also suggest getting Stephan Wrembel's "getting into GJ,"
and of course Michael's Gypsy Picking. As I've said many times, the traditional players teach you to do a good pompe first. If your pompe is raggedy or weak, you should work with it until it's strong.
Here's a few points to consider;

Some basic theory is helpful, but for now learn your basic chord shapes, and learn a few simple songs. You should also learn the upper and lower neighbor tones relating to the chord shapes. Learn the melody and the chords,
so that you can play without music or tab.
Work on getting a nice strong sound and tone. The rhythmic attack for soloing is very important.
When you start to solo, use the melody as your starting point, and
don't worry about playing a lot of notes, just be yourself and swing.
You can start by paraphrasing the melody and doing fills around it.
[BTW, If you can hook up with a teacher that would help of course.]
Record yourself playing a good pompe for some basic tunes,
[Minor Swing, Can't give you anything but love,]
If you can learn some of Django's solos, and phrases,
[and also ideas from current players].
You might want to get Band in the Box. It's a great program. I've used it for myself and students with good results. It will play back songs as midi files, so you can vary speed etc. I will be posting files that I've done for some standards on my site, www.hotclubphilly.com soon.
Try to hook up with other players if you can, it'll make it more fun. Also, Wrembel uses a very good "question and answer" method to creating musical solos. This uses your inner ear more than relying on theory. Hope that that helps.
Good luck,
Barry

Roy · October 2007

Thanks for the good advice Barry. I´ll order the gypsy rhythm book. Hopefully I can persuade the wife that the Dennis Chang DVD is also invaluable. She had a good laugh when she read that I should work on my pompe.
I´ll also see if its possible to find a teacher locally. The main gypsy jazz scene is unfortunately a 3 hour drive from here ( Copenhagen ).
I´ll leave the soloing til later and use this winter to work on rhythm.
I look forward to hearing the midi files on your site.
All the best.
Roy

dburdick · October 2007

Caveat: I am going through the learning process myself. I'd suggest that you start learning repertoire through online resources (charts aka "grilles") or better yet with the Pearl Django Playalong book. The latter has chord shapes and rhythm tracks to play along with. It also has melodies to the songs.

I'd also learn some fully transcribed solos so you get a chance to put the gypsy picking skills to use with argegios, chromatic runs, etc...

Gypsy Rhythm is a big book with a lot of material (too much for me right now). Just start simple and figure out "gypsy" chords rooted on the E and A string for Maj, Maj7, Dom7, Maj6, m6, m7b5, (others?). The playalong book will show you a lot of these, but this page is helpful too: http://serendipity-band.com/misc/manouc ... rds-en.htm

good luck and keep having fun!

asd123321 · October 2007

I would think you would continously be learning a Django Reinhardt tune from transcriptions available online to get the style and work on being able to play a tune with arpeggios to get ready to be able to improvise.

djadam · October 2007

I think play-a-longs are invaluable for beginners. You can pompe along with a strong rhythm section and practice your lead stuff with a strong rhythm section behind you. Nolan's books provide you with friendly chord shapes and lead tab.

HCPhilly's advice is spot-on - learn good la pompe and lots of melodies. Learning the heads to tunes gives you a solid melodic foundation which you can use later as you learn to improvise.

I've seen most of Dennis' video and it's quite good.

The only other advice I'd give you is something you probably don't need to hear - just keep listening and listening. Develop your ear and your taste and you'll have something to say when you get some tools in your box!