Software review: Guitar Alchemist 1.21

(free download available from CNet.com at http://tinyurl.com/q3vqf3)

I've been exploring the free version of Guitar Alchemist, a program that shows how different chords and scales lay in different locations on the fretboard. There are many resources like this out there, both in software and print formats, and while the information is almost always useful the real test is how practically it's presented. From that perspective, in my opinion Guitar Alchemist is well-organized and a nice free tool.

Let me say at the outset that I'm a click-by-click learner when it comes to software.....I tend to like programs that I can learn by just diving in and trying things rather than having to go to the manual. I did find this program is very user-friendly in that it took less than a minute of looking at the interface to get a sense of where things are and what the various buttons do.

The basic layout is a fretboard at the top of the screen, oriented in tab fashion: that is, upside down (with the bass strings on the bottom) and with low-to-high reading left to right. This is one of the more common layouts you're likely to see in other similar resources, and is something that's worth getting used to if you're not familiar with it. Some people have difficulty getting their brains to process this visually, but in my opinion it's the closest thing to what you actually see when you look down at the instrument. Even the upside-down part becomes less of an issue when you realize that having the lowest SOUNDING string at the bottom makes a lot of sense.....remember, one of the major hurdles in mastering the guitar is getting past the disconnect between the sounds and the things your fingers have to do to produce them.

Note: the left-to-right layout might be off-putting to left-handed players. The full version may have a left-handed layout option, but in my opinion so many guitar resources do use this layout that it's worth getting used to. The audio element of the program is really helpful here.....you can click on a fret and hear the note, so spending some time clicking fret-by-fret along a single string will help you get oriented aurally. If your ears get it I do think the eyes will learn to follow....experienced music readers will tell you that they see contour (up vs. down) and intervals (moving by small steps or larger leaps) rather than individual note names. This is how you ultimately get past that disconnect I mentioned earlier: you eventually learn to just sidestep that part of the process.

Another nice audio feature is that you can actually hear what each chord sounds like, using the internal MIDI your computer probably already has. No other software or hardware is necessary, and you can choose from a variety of guitar, bass, and keyboard sounds (some better than others, but it’s a nice touch). Just choose “MIDI” from the drop-down menu at the top of the screen and a new window with a list of the different sounds appears.

Back to the layout. Underneath the fretboard image is a list of chord diagrams, organized by position (where on the sequence of frets the chord shape lies). When you click on one, the corresponding chord is highlighted on the fretboard, and if you have the audio on you’ll hear it in that voicing (note grouping). This is a great feature and very helpful in helping you connect sound and shape. To the left of the chord diagrams is a series of dialog boxes: you can choose chord root (letter name) and type (major, minor, suspended, 7th, etc). Above the chord diagrams are more options which filter the number of diagrams you see: which note is on top, whether open strings are included, and more. There is a simple vs. detailed view, but the detailed view is not available in the free version. I’m not sure the “detailed” view is all that important, as there’s plenty of detail already here.

At the bottom of the screen is musical notation of the scale being used to derive the chords. This is a more advanced topic but also a useful one. A tab in the middle of the screen allows you to switch from chord to scale view, and the notation vs. diagrams switch positions.

My favorite thing about the layout is the way the different notes of the chord are indicated by number, with the numbers corresponding to where that note fits in the corresponding scale. This is the way we classify chord tones anyhow: the “third” of a chord is the third note you reach if you start with the “root”, call that number 1, and follow the letters in sequence. So not only can you see how each note of the chord fits into the scale, you can click it and hear what it sounds like. This layout covers the entire fingerboard, which may be overwhelming at first but becomes much easier to follow when you work position by position – that is, three or four frets at a time. This is how I teach fretboard harmony: showing how the notes of the chord correspond to the scale, where the notes are located across the fretboard position by position, and showing how to get from point A to point B.

Make no mistake, this is a large task. Don’t look at this as a crash course, it’s more of a dictionary than a method. If you’re already working with a teacher they should be able to help you organize a way to work your way through all the information IF your goal is to get to know the whole guitar. (A VERY worthwhile goal, by the way). But you can also use this as a go-to resource to just quickly find a new way to play a C chord if the one you’re using isn’t working for you.

All in all I think Guitar Alchemist is a thoughtfully designed and useful tool, especially if you have someone to help guide you through the maze. A subsequent article will explore this process in more depth, along with the reasons why you ought to know your way around the fretboard and have multiple options for each chord. It’s no substitute for a good teacher but a good resource you can refer back to again and again. Not having had the opportunity to explore the paid upgrade, I can’t comment on the additional functions this may offer, but there’s so much here I’m not sure you need any more. Try it out and spend some time exploring.

Traps

Susan Tucker’s recent “My Mistakes” article in the Songwriters E-Tip got me thinking about common mistakes that people make when trying to learn to play an instrument. These are observations I’ve made over the years both in my own experience as a student (which is still ongoing, make no mistake!) and as a teacher.

First and probably the most important: don’t underestimate the commitment! Learning to play well, and especially improving your skills when you already do play, requires daily practice. No way around it: you may have reached your current level of skill by just playing around when you felt like it, but at some point you WILL hit a wall. We all do….and most people who come to me for lessons feel that they’ve hit that wall. You get over the wall by making a real commitment to daily practice.

The opposite and equally important thing to remember: no goal is too modest. The way to progress is to set a series of small, achievable goals. This is why you go to a teacher in the first place, to help you set those goals….and a good teacher will be able to set goals that are in reach but just far enough ahead of you to help you grow toward them. Remember point number one, though: even modest goals can only be achieved through committed effort.

Number three: know the difference between playing and practicing. “Playing” is doing what you already know how to do….”practicing” is working at something you can’t do yet. And as you might imagine, there’s a right way and a wrong way, which leads us to number four….the right way to practice.

In keeping with the idea of setting and staying focused on modest goals: if your short-term goals are appropriately focused, they WILL be attainable with proper focus. That means you practice slowly with complete concentration. We’re talking about training muscle groups to follow mental instructions…..if you move slowly, you will be able to move your hands and fingers accurately. Accuracy is MUCH more important than speed at this point, in fact speed is counterproductive when you first start practicing something new. If you don’t focus on accuracy and your aim is fuzzy, you are actually training your muscles to be sloppy. Speed will always come with time if you practice properly.

Number five: trust your teacher and don’t try too hard to direct the lessons. If you really have a sense that the person you’re working with isn’t taking you down the right path, share your concern….but don’t try to micromanage the experience. If you’ve made a good choice in who to work with, your teacher will have a big-picture view that you probably don’t. An organized lesson program follows a sequence, there’s a method to the madness. Find someone you trust and follow their instructions. You’ll know in a few weeks (or less) if it’s working for you or not.

I always strive to be as positive as possible in lessons….when a student comes in and admits to not having had time to practice, I stay encouraging and use the lesson time to go over the material for that week. But I try to be clear that putting in the time with the right mindset is the path to success. So to sum up:

1. MAKE the commitment.
2. KEEP the long view and BE PATIENT!
3. SET modest goals and work on them with focus and discipline.
4. CELEBRATE small achievements! Every step is one step closer.
5. TRUST the process and the perspective of people with more experience.

You CAN make the progress you want, and it starts with the right mindset.