Strumming Along

The Upper School Beginning Guitar class is a semester-long course offered in the fall. Students are focused on developing their sound on the instrument, with an emphasis on technique to help them progress toward achieving a mature guitar tone. In class, we begin with a warm-up, playing open strings while concentrating on traditional right-hand classical technique using rest strokes. This helps students develop a warm, rounded sound. We then move on to a chromatic warm-up, where students use their left-hand fingers to press down on each fret, coordinating left- and right-hand precision. This exercise is done from the 1st to the 6th string, also utilizing right-hand rest strokes. Additionally, we have been working on playing chords in different keys using I, IV, and V7 progressions, which are commonly found in many popular songs. Soon, students will begin learning how to read music notation for guitar.

Middle School Guitar II is a second-year guitar class. We begin with warm-ups using the 3-octave chromatic scale to continue developing students' individual sound and to improve their speed and precision. They are learning to play the C major scale and to understand the intervallic formula of half and whole steps across the guitar neck. Chords can be built on each note of the scale by stacking thirds, forming diatonic harmony. Students are currently working on a trio piece titled “Andante” to reinforce their skills in reading music and ensemble playing.

Click here to see the Middle School students playing guitar.

Click here to see the Upper School students playing guitar.