Tomo Fujita Guitar Wisdom

Thank you Kohri for this great question!

We are so lucky that we have many great teachers here!

Thank you Kurt & Clay for your suggestions! You guys are so great!

1) Chromatic scale is very important! (First 2 lessons)
https://tomovhxtv.vhx.tv/start-here

2) One String Approach / Essential Music Theory
https://tomovhxtv.vhx.tv/videos/et01-c-major-scale

3) Triad Inversions (Learn name of notes, intervals & Do Mi So = singing)
https://tomovhxtv.vhx.tv/foundation-triads

4) R 3 7 Swing Groove (Left hand muting & Right hand strumming)
https://tomovhxtv.vhx.tv/videos/ft-root-3rd-7th-swing-groove-technique

5) Sight-reading / Method Book (Muting techniques)
https://tomovhxtv.vhx.tv/sight-reading-series

Pick 2-3 sections and pick 2-3 lessons and stay there for a few weeks. My first year... all I did was chromatic scale exercises so that when I started to learn chords & phrasing... it was very quick to learn because I built my fingering & picking technique before learning what to play on guitar.

Special thanks to George who organized these lessons!
Amazing! So easy to follow!

Thank you.

Tomo

Thank you, Tomo!!!

You're very welcome!

Tomo

Great advice Clay!
We appreciate you!
Kurt

Both Clay and Kurt have given you good advice here - I've been playing way longer than 7 months and I'm getting a lot out of the beginner lessons. Knowing the basics inside out and back to front will stand you in good stead for progressing to more difficult stuff later. Keep at it!

Thank you Jonathan! I still practice my foundation exercises for maintain my guitar techniques.

This morning I practiced following.
1) Chromatic scale 1212 on 4th & 3rd strings for 10 minutes
2) Classical etude (40 seconds) 5-6 times for 5 minutes
3) R 3 7 Swing Groove with Eb Blues (10 times) Eb Jazz Blues (10 times)
with a metronome at 40, 48, 60, 69 for 20 minutes or more.

Tomo

Thanks for that Tomo, these little details are really helpful for knowing how to build up a good practice routine. I realise now that these exercises are less "stepping stones" to the next level and more "way of life"! These days I look forward to my alarm clock going off, as early morning is when I do my practice. Time is precious though and I want to use it as effectively as possible.

You're very welcome Jonathan. So happy to hear that. Consistency is the most important. Like you need to sleep, eat, exercise.... not only once but everyday! Keep it simple and try to have a good balance. 2-3 items everyday! Do not skip ONE day! But One day at times without expectation. Good job! Looking forward to your guitar journey!

Tomo

Thank you Rich for sharing your practice routine. So happy to hear that you understood how important about chromatic scale exercises. This will help your performance skill big time. You don't get this skill from just playing songs.

Please practice chromatic scale exercises.
1) 1234...
2) 1212...
10 minutes total with slow tempo. Picking is normal to soft. Toward end you almost cannot hear anything.

Keep working!

Tomo

Hey Rich - just FYI, I started doing the multi-string chromatic exercise from Tomo's book video on chromatics. Main intent is to practice / fix my muting when playing song melodies / solos.

Thank you Clay! Chromatic scale excersise are so good!

Tomo

The book makes this very clear too! Good job, Rich!

Thank you Kurt for sharing! Fun to do reading gigs!

Tomo

Love when Lee says it is intoxicating to have to play all that live.
He is known for never drinking or using drugs.
Music is the best recreational high :-)
and exercise
and love
Kurt

Yes! Music is so great! No need anything else! I get so much high from playing guitar!

Tomo

Thank you Sammi for encouragement and suggestions!

1) Use a note book
2) No Rush
3) One at a time
4) Be patient
5) With Curiosity
6) Go back a few steps
7) Enjoy your guitar journey

Tomo

Thank you for sharing. If you want to write your own songs then you need to be able to figure out these songs by listening and learn more details. A song always has parents like us! So find that parents (infulences)

3 songs. All fun melody & chords. If you have a solid foundsation and some experiences learning songs (simple ones) by ears... then learn these songs are so easy! All connected!

By the way, you can do this imagination game. As if these 3 bands ask you to play with them in 2 weeks. Can you learn these chord progressions in 2 weeks?

1) Song 1 ... 0:10 - 0:28... great guitar melody & chords!
2) Song 2 ... 0:00 - 0:23... great guitar melody & chords ... nice a 7(b13) chord!
3) Song 3 ... 0:00 - 0:15 ...great triad chords!

Each song got a great chords & simple melody for two times as intro.
15 to 20 seconds! Great simple concept for your song writing!

Another guitar journey!

Tomo

Fun songs Kohri! I think you will find that following your journey here will greatly deepen your understanding of music generally while you develop your guitar skills. It's funny - I was just thinking about this. I've always loved watching youtube music theorists dissect songs, but I have to admit I haven't always understood everything they were talking about. I just watched one where this guy went into "Still Crazy After All These Years" by Paul Simon (who writes with his guitar) - I've been listening to that "simple" song since I was a kid, but it is crazy complicated. Anyway, my point is that I understood a whole lot of what this guy broke down, and that's 100% from the work I've been doing in GW. Have fun and keep going!

Hello again, Kohri. Thank you for sharing your big goal and inspiration with us! It’s great to dream. Now is a good time to make a plan!

It’s understandable that you have many questions, but it's important to start even without all the answers. Of course, Tomo is here to guide everyone, and we have an amazing support system of members, but ultimately, much of the work depends on the student! As Clay explained, the work that you do here has a way of helping make sense of things. You may not realize it in the process, but eventually you realize just how much that foundational work supports you.

Here’s how I see it and what you have to work with:
- Tomo's new book will introduce ideas on listening to music effectively
- The educational materials on this platform (lessons, live sessions, supplementary videos, and threads) will help you develop the skills and understanding needed to reach your ultimate goal

Break your big goal into smaller steps. You mentioned wanting to "be able to transfer what’s in my mind to the fretboard or whatever instrument it is." Before focusing on learning songs by ear, identify which lessons will help you develop the skills necessary to understand notes on the fretboard and recognize pitch. The Essential Theory section will be crucial for developing your ear and knowledge. Triads will also be important in your studies. The effort you put into your foundation will support all your future learning and creative projects.

I hope this is helpful!

This is VERY helpful, Sammi!
I’m grateful to all of you for taking the time to answer my questions and share your experiences.
I’ll learn as much as I can from GW!!!

Thanks, Sunil!
I’ll see it through!

Thank you Sunil for encouragement!

Tomo

Thank you, Kurt!
I’ll keep you guys posted❤️

Right on Kohri!

We’re all learning like you here, that is the truth.

Also actually meant literally “not silly”.
Haha. Like every act of creation is a profound act.

Think of each note.
For every note, there was an impulse in your mind (…but where does the impulse come from? Hmmm…some kind of scintillation…?). Impulse, gives rise to an electric signal; signal makes muscle move; muscle makes fingers move, makes pick more…makes string move, induces tiny electric signal in magnetic pickups…more quantum physics…sound arises from your amp, you hear that note, and other note in response…that not silly…what is actually happening profound.

I think everything is like that.
What is your pick?
If you wonder what your pick is really
and break it in half…you will see some stuff. But what is that stuff made of? Then keep breaking stuff in half past the point of using light to look at it…and keep going…I think people find this scintillation of energy and particles popping in and out of existence.

Human beings have explored and studied thought throughout human history. Neurologists, psychologists, monks…They think thought is coming from the same thing this…scintillation.

But where does this bubbling come from…? Hmm…where…

So what you are doing is…not silly :)
What you are doing, what I am doing, what our big brother Kurt is doing, what Clay, Linda, everyone…what Sammi is doing, George is doing, what maestro is doing…all of us human beings learning to play guitar, transforming suffering into probably the only authentic mode of communication among us all, music.
So, you know…it’s not silly!!

For me, every meeting with my advisor made me feel like I am walking through a cloud to get a drink of water. Same here.
While we are all on the same path, it might be different for each, because we all are unique individuals. We all see different things at different times,…ultimately the only thing that doesn’t seem to change is the truth.
That is what I am here to learn.
Maybe us all.

…what? Are you guys still reading this..?
Haha. Ok, do you hear that…that was a beautiful note…wow…another…the sound is profound…what is the space between the notes…hmm…not silly :)

Also finally, maestro…is just another human being like you or me…the human being Tomo Fujita…has a life, family, struggles, joy…but after a lifetime of earnest efforts, and teaching others…he found a path. He found a way to teach everyone a method to find out our path to the truth.

That is why I am here to listen, and use earnest effort to find how to play.

Also why I say Thank you Maestro!

Peace
Sunil

Deep.
Very Deep!!
I go to a meditation center every year and don’t talk for 10 days.
I try to watch the…scintillations that appear in my mind. I watch them come and go.
Some make me feel good
Some make me feel like I want to jump out of my skin.
Some don’t make me feel anything at all.
All of them come and go in some mysterious way.
And here I am some conduit for these ‘scintillations’.
Hoping one day to figure out how to translate them into music. Seems the purist form of communication!!
Love you guys!

This was a beautiful read👏👏👏
I don’t even know what to say… This community is awesome.