Guitar 101 The Fender Method
So you want to learn to play electric guitar? Fender, the world’s leading electric guitar manufacturer, has teamed up with G-VOX to create Guitar 101, an easy-to-use CD-ROM tutorial that covers the basics of electric guitar playing. The program consists of 30 sequenced lessons, which are divided into six categories: mechanics of the guitar, the right hand, the left hand, combining hands, music basics, and music theory. Each of the lessons has six parts to it: introduction, textbook, movie, styles, exercises, and a quiz. The movie, a demonstration by a guitar teacher, and the textbook form the crux of the lesson. The exercises allow you to practice the techniques of the lesson, and the quiz is a multiple choice review of the concepts covered.
Guitar 101 is specifically targeted for beginners who want to play rock or pop styles on the electric guitar with a pick. The lessons are logically ordered and are easy to understand. Each lesson analyzes only one concept, and you might find it easy to master several early lessons in one sitting. Moving through the lessons is as simple as point and click.
In addition to the lessons, Guitar 101 also has a feature called Hot Spots, which includes tuning the guitar, playing along with prerecorded beats and classic rock songs, and an extensive glossary. There is also a short history of the Fender Stratocaster. Though Guitar 101 is designed for use as a stand-alone product, it can also be used in conjunction with G-VOX’s Guitar software, which converts a regular electric guitar signal into a MIDI instrument. This makes it possible to play along with various lesson exercises as well as with the prerecorded Hot Spots music. –Matthew Kohut
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Instant Play Guitar
From basic technique to progressive chording Instant Play Guitar Express on CD-Rom gets you in the groove for accelerated PC-based guitar fluency. An interactive musical basics primer teaching everything from hand position to simple strumming. System Requirements:Windows 98 or higher Pentium IBM-compatible PC 233 MHz or faster 64 MB or RAM 90 MB HD 16-bit color screen 800×600 resolution or higher 2x or greater CD-Rom drive 16-bit Sound Blaster-compatible sound card Speakers or headset Printer (optional) Internet access recommended for activation and updates Format: WIN 98MENT2000XPVISTA Genre:
eMedia Guitar Method 2
Designed for the beginning to intermediate guitar player, eMedia’s Guitar Method 2 gives you plenty of new techniques to boost your playing chops and extend your range of musical styles. With over 60 lessons on solo guitar licks, rhythm guitar, blues, and fingerpicking techniques, this CD-ROM is a great choice for musicians seeking to extend their range and craft.
The lessons in Guitar Method 2 build up new playing techniques, beginning with hammer-ons, pull-offs, trills, and vibrato techniques. Short musical excerpts using blues, rock, folk, and even classical tunes let you practice these skills for yourself. You can play along with a recording while viewing the score (both in guitar tablature or in standard music notation). The CD-ROM bundles plenty of short video and voice tips, too.
Besides playing leads, Guitar Method 2 has a lot to say about learning new rhythm techniques, particularly for blues and rock (including an excellent introduction to barre chords, a must for any serious guitarist). You’ll learn the essence of 12-bar blues, shuffle rhythms, and the like. The final set of lessons concentrates on finger-style guitar, illustrating a variety of picking techniques.
With songs by many of the greats–including Willie Dixon, Eric Clapton, Jerry Garcia, Jeff Beck, Bob Dylan, and Jim Croce–Guitar Method 2 lets you learn from the best. Many lessons end with links to the Online Guitar Archive (OLGA) for songs by newer artists who use the same playing techniques.
Beyond the main lessons, additional sections show how to read music and the scales used for a variety of music styles. Added perks here include an electronic metronome, a nifty electronic dictionary of over 150 chords with diagrams, plus a utility to help you tune up. In all, Guitar Method 2 can make you a better guitarist as you learn at your own pace and gain exposure to an appealing range of styles and new techniques. –Rich Dragan
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eMedia Rock Guitar Method
Rock Guitar Method shows you how to rock out by teaching you the classics. Pick up an ax and start covering your favorite rock, blues, country and folk songs with the roar and energy that only an electric guitar has. Follow along with 165 different step-by-step lessons, covering the basics like holding & stringing your guitar — then move on to reading notation and fingerpicking styles. On-screen lessons from a noted guitar expert provide clear and user-friendly instruction. Start playing the guitar more easily than you ever thought possible! The digital metronome is for setting your own tempo, to work on your picking speed, rhythm and timing Use the Digital Recorder to play yourself back and hear how you’re doing
User Ratings and Reviews
5 Stars I’ve been playing for awhile now
So me getting this was kinda moot, but all in all it’s really beneficial if you’re just starting out. For anyone who’s played more than 2 years even… Don’t get this. I give it a 5 star for the beginner, cause this thing is packed with some really beneficial stuff for you all to learn. Everything from chord finder “all the decent sounding ones anyways” and a built in tuner and a good deal of lessons are what you’ll find on this disc. You have to have the disc in order to access alot of the video and audio, but it’s still alright… All in all I’d endorse it for anyone wanting to learn the guitar. This’ll have you playing some pretty good sounding progressions within’ hours.
3 Stars it is ok but metal method with doug marks is better
I would really prefer a lesson were the video plays most of the time. This is mostley reading the screen, which is very small and they are so paraoid that you will copy it that they disable printing, The video really does not help much and i have been through half of the course. I personally would reccomend metal method with doug marks over this.
5 Stars eMedia Rock Guitar Method
The best product I have ever found for learning guitar, almost better than paying for lessons!
5 Stars What a Surprise!
I got this software for my husband along with a new guitar for Christmas. After about 1/2 an hour he had the guitar tuned (using the automatic tuner included in the software)and was playing the begining of a real song. I was very surprised. I had been expecting to hear alot of Mary had a little lamb, but with this program, he was able to rock right out of the box. This is a must for anyone who would like to learn a little recreational guitar playing.
4 Stars Definitely get your $’s worth, but not as good as the Beginner CD-ROM
I began with eMedia’s beginner CD-ROM and next moved to the Rock Guitar. One of the things I enjoyed most about the former was that it taught lessons with entire songs. However, in Rock Guitar, you only learn bits and pieces of songs–and fewer ones at that. Many are not titled songs, but something like “a Nirvana-like song.” So if you loved the amount of music on the beginner CD, you may be a little dissatisfied. Additionally, some chords are taught with different fingering than in the beginner CD.
All in all, I learn very quickly with emedia. I really enjoy playing along to their riffs and pieces of songs. Putting the voice to the songs to play with is probably my favorite feature (don’t tell anybody that I sing along while playing in the privacy of my room).
This is certainly a really great step towards learning the basics of rock guitar, but should not be your first eMedia CD-ROM (buy the beginner one first!).
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