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Todd Ferris Mosby - Indian/Jazz Guitar Virtuoso: Ensembles & Clinics

Clinic - Guitar Techniques For Songwriters


Guitar Techniques For Songwriters  Book Now

 

Open position  playing is one of the most beautiful aspects of guitar yet one of the least  understood. Open means just what it says, open, expansive, no boundaries and full  bodied tone as opposed to the closed fingerings and chord voicings found in the  moveable forms. The sounds emanating from this region of the instrument are truly expansive and emotionally expressive in a way which opens huge sonic  doorways for placing your chords, melodies and licks. The open position is also  the area from which all other moveable forms evolve.

 

In this clinic you will learn: 

 

  • A Straight forward approach to performing and composing most all popular folk and rock based tunes out there.
  • Learn how to place the eight basic individual shapes in your hands quickly and then how to move between each of the eight basic chords.
  • Learn a fail proof system for creating an unlimited supply of your own professional sounding pop chord progressions using the eight basic chords.
  • Learn how to structure your own chord progression into a popular song format using the eight basic shapes.
  • Learn how to move the eight basic shapes horizontally to for a broader tonal palette.
  • Demonstrations using this method.

 

The open strings provide a beauty and resonance which brings out the natural acoustic properties of your instrument. Few have ever really   developed and mastered this aspect of guitar playing. As a matter of fact, the open position is one of the two areas higher level players tend to avoid once the moveable fingerings and chords are conquered. This is also the are where most beginning level players start, yet have such a hard time progressing past the basic I - IV - V (G - C - D) shapes. The really cool sounds are in easy reach if you understand the simple similarities of how these chords are built.    


The information presented has been accumulated from personal explorations into the open position as a virtuoso classical North Indian   and jazz guitarist, 25 years professional performance and teaching  experience as well as a composer in the classical, jazz and North   Indian realms of music. My studies at Berklee College of Music  and teaching at the university and private levels provide  a wealth of  first time information.