GUITAR
5 TIPS FOR GUITAR ARTISTRY | David Harsh
What if there were 5 simple tips you could incorporate into your guitar playing that could enhance your guitar artistry right now ? These are my top 5 . Want to see these demonstrated ? Please watch the accompanying video , click the thumbnail to the right .
1 . EXPLORE COLOR CHORDS . I think it can be helpful if we understand just enough chord theory to make our chords sound more colorful and interesting . In the video , I unpack the distinct sonic difference between a simple E minor chord and an E minor 9 . Here ’ s a diagram of this amazing chord :
You can go as deep as you want with chord theory , or you can just try some shapes and see if they add some color to the chords you already know . You might discover some unique flavors that enhance your artistry . And if you want to go deeper , please check out my August 2024 Worship Musician Magazine article “ E Minor Chords Enhanced .”
2 . STRUM WITH GROOVE . This is much more easily explained in the accompanying video , but let ’ s say we take a straight strum and delay the up-strums . We get a beautifully enriched shuffle or swing groove . The pattern stays the same , but the groove factor goes up significantly .
This is one I call the “ Triple Down ” Strum . It can be played straight , or shuffled . ( Diagram below )
Now , there are implications for collaborators if you ’ re going to shuffle , so let the rhythm players know you ’ re going to be shuffling so they know what ’ s going on . In the June 2023 issue of
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