Learn How to Play a Musical Instrument Fast and Easy

Have you always wanted to be a musician but never had the time or money to do so? Does the thought of trudging to a music studio or music store every week shelling out mucho bucks fill you with dread? Don't get me wrong - there are many fine musicians out there giving lessons. However, there are also many available products available online today which will help you reach your inner musician. You can go at your own pace, pay a one- time fee AND do it from your own home! Do they work and are they worth the cost?

As I was searching the internet for different ways to make music, I found that there are many different types of software and programs out there depending on your goal. You can find all kinds of styles and beats from hip hop and rock to indie and jazz. There are many programs will teach you how to play a musical instrument such as guitar or piano - even violin! They are affordable and easy to use with simple instructions no matter what your experience level is.

No matter what your goal, your budget or your time constraints, there is something out there for you. Here are some of the better programs, in my opinion:

Learn to play guitar with Jamorama

With Jamorama you learn how to play guitar with step by step course materials, jam tracks and famous songs. The Jamorama Multimedia Course will comprehensively guide you through everything you need to know to play guitar. Even though the programs claims that the course covers beginners through professionals, it is really best suited for beginners through intermediate players.

Jamorama has some really positive features. It is available for immediate download so you can start right away. The download includes ebooks plus integrated audio and video files. The video lessons are high quality and are extremely easy to follow. And, you can view the lessons wherever and whenever you want to fit into your busy schedule.

When one lesson with a private instructor can run $25 to $50, the cost of $49.95 for Jamorama is a real bargain when you consider that it easily has a year's worth of weekly lessons. And, there is very little financial risk involved since you can get a full refund within 8 weeks.

Piano for All

There are other piano learning programs which are more highly marketed and are more "slick" but I like Robin Hall's Piano for All for a variety of reasons. With this complete piano course, you can learn to play pop, blues, jazz, ragtime, ballads and even incredible classical pieces. The Pianoforall process is simple and enables you to achieve a professional sound almost immediately, teaching a playing style is relatively easier to learn than any other style.

I was impressed by Robin Hall's system as it considers the progressive nature of learning. As a result, a novice piano student will not get too overwhelmed by the lessons. At the same time, advanced piano students will appreciate the complex lessons designed for them. One of the major negatives of this program is that the music tends to be more "old school" because of copyright issues. However, I also think that style of music is better suited for learning piano anyway.

As with Jamorama, Piano for All is available for a low price which would not even come close to the cost of comparable private lessons and it has a money-back guarantee so there is little risk involved.

Learn to play Violin like a Pro

Imagine being able to learn violin without taking years of lessons. This program is a complete solution to learning the violin, from start to finish. ViolinMasterPro is a complete, online video package to learning how to play anything on violin.

Eric Lewis has been playing a violin all his life. He is a violinist of the Manhattan String Quartet and has been a privet violin teacher for more than 40 years. In ViolinMasterPro course, you have a chance to learn to play the violin from one of the greatest players in the world.

With ViolinMasterPro, the complete Eric Lewis method is available for beginners, intermediate and advanced players, as well as young players who have never picked up the instrument before. Learn how to play sonatas, solos, concertos and more. The Eric Lewis method is an incredibly complete solution to mastering the violin and is easy to apply. All you have to do is download the videos and mp3s in a step by step instructional sequence.

All of the above programs are designed to have you playing a musical instrument like a pro using less time, less money and less hassle than traditional lessons. For those of us who just don't have the time to go the traditional studio lesson route, these programs are the perfect solution. They are the fast and easy way to learn to play a musical instrument!

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Take Beginner Piano Lessons and Learn How to Play the Blues

One of the easiest things you can learn when taking beginner piano lessons is the standard blues progression. The really interesting thing is the vast body of non-blues music that uses the same basic musical pattern.

Virtually everyone in the whole world has heard music called "the blues" but only musicians know what makes the blues sound different from all other music. In this discussion, I will explain not only what is different about the blues, but how it stacks up against most other forms of popular music.

Just about all musical compositions are written in one specific key. There are few exceptions, like the really complicated piece; "Giant Steps" by the amazing jazz saxophone player John Coltrane. The key the tune is written in has a key signature indicating the number of flats or sharps, and also has a tonic, or root. This is the first note in the musical scale for that key and is referred to as "one". Four notes up in the scale lies the "fourth" and one higher is the "fifth", which always resolves back to the "one". These three tones are the basis for every blues song ever written, and are known as the "one-four-five" progression.

What fascinates nearly ever beginner taking piano lessons, is the fact that literally millions of songs use the same progression, like the song "Billy Jean" by the late superstar Michael Jackson, or nearly every Allman Brothers piece ever written. People don't necessarily equate these songs as having anything to do with straight blues. (Allman Brother music IS known as "Southern Blues", however)

Many people associate "The Blues" with music that was officially invented in the Mississippi Delta, like the sounds of Muddy Waters, but the same basic progression was common to early Rock and Roll, as was the Ragtime writings of Scott Joplin. Even Django Reinhardt was deeply immersed in the old one-four-five.

Now, moving away from these classic sounds, we find that nearly every other piece of contemporary music relates the same progression as the blues, albeit with some variations. Known as "substitutions", these are chords that replace the "four" and/or the "five" before eventually coming back home to the tonic (one), where your ear always wants the song to return, or resolve to.

This is vitally important to anyone beginning to learn piano who wants to learn to play by ear, or try to figure out the chord progressions of any specific piece. No matter what the key is, most music is either a close or distant relative of the favorite one-four-five. And that's a fact.

Elliot Steiner has been involved in the music industry for over forty years and is a staunch advocate of quality beginner piano lessons.

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Piano For All Review Guide

Now it's my turn to write a Piano for All review. This is an all-inclusive course that gives you a detailed step by step learning process. Each exercise leads smoothly into the next so you can move on with ease. The program covers basic techniques that others leave out and uses a combination of keyboard diagrams, musical notation, as well as audio and video lessons.

General Piano for All Review: Whether you're a beginner, intermediate, advanced player, you'll really benefit from this piano learning system. The books are arranged so you can progress depending on your skill level. Each book focuses on specific aspects of piano learning, and you can select from areas such as basic lessons for beginners, Ballad style, Jazz chord voicings, etc.

Detailed Piano for All Review: You start by learning rhythm techniques and chord based music styles. This allows you to begin learning songs quicker and then gradually expand into Ballad style, Blues, Jazz, Ragtime, and Improvisation. With this piano learning system you get 10 books and 200 Video piano lessons with in-depth verbal piano instruction. Also, embedded directly in the eBooks, there are over 500 sound files that cut your learning time in half.

This is a self-contained system. For instance, each book gives you the option to click on audio or video samples and instantly hear or see the lesson you're learning. You can also printout the pages you want to use for piano playing.

You also get great support with this method. Robin Hall, creator and certified piano teacher, provides excellent support for his students. So if you have any questions about the product, or just about other piano learning issues. He will respond to you personally.

The method is available in easy payment options. You can order one book at a time, or choose to have the whole course on a CD-ROM. For a low price, you get a wide variety of learning tools, and you can download it so you can start immediately. It comes with a 100% 60 day guarantee or your money back.

With any purchase, you get a FREE bonus eBook that teaches how to increase your creativity. This course gives you a solid chord foundation with real sounding rhythms, patterns and chord embellishments. Then it teaches you to play by ear and sight read along the way.

One last thing I'd like to mention in this piano for all review is that throughout this method you get highly motivated to learn and play more, and this is one of the best ways to learn. This is one of the best and most comprehensive courses I've seen, where you can learn piano in a short time.

For information and guidance on chords and how to learn piano fast, go to How to Play Piano Chords, and for tips on learning piano online, go to Learn Piano Online.

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History Of The Swing

Swing Dance Anyone has the power and ability to showcase his individuality as he is presented with various ways of expressing himself. This can be done through the written word or by orally articulating his thoughts and ideas. Some people can better express themselves through singing songs that touch the heart while there are others who would rather perform in front of an audience to exhibit their artistic skills. Dancing is one way of displaying one's flare on the dance floor. Be it a professional or an amateur dancer, one thing is common in their experiences, that of an exhilarating feeling as one moves to the beat of the music and doing the appropriate movements.

Swing is one of the more notable and enduring dances that have been developed. When you talk about Swing, it is very interesting to note that there are a number of dance forms falling under this category. The swing dance includes the Balboa, Bop, Charleston, East Coast swing, Jitterbug, Jive, Lindy Hop, Push, Shag, West Coast Swing and Whip.

It was during the 1920s, in the United States, that people took their first steps to swing music. Swing traces its roots to Jazz music as the dance originated from the African American community during that period. The swing fever went on to conquer the rest of the world. From the late 1920s until the 1940s, these years are referred to as the swing era. Even today, the dance steps in swing are still being performed to modern music.

The first swing dance was the Lindy Hop that was danced in the Savoy Ballroom in Harlem, New York. The Lindy Hop can be executed to any jazz or blues music. Then came the Jitterbug, Charleston and other variations of the swing dance. The basic differences with these swing dances involve the step patterns that may consist of 6 or 8 beat rhythm units. Some swing dance makes use of spinning and pushing moves mixed with some kicking moves, which makes this dance style truly quite energetic to accomplish. Swing may also be combined with other well-known dance styles. As an illustration, the dance "swango" is a mix of swing steps as well as that of the tango, another favorite dance.

Ever since swing was first done on the dance floor, numerous competitions have cropped up showcasing the swinging prowess of its followers. Dancing contests generally distinguish between ballroom swing and street swing. The former follows strict step patterns as it is danced mostly during competitions for ballroom dancing while the latter is more flexible to interpretations. The type of swing dance performed should likewise conform to the music being played. Swinging jazz music is apropos to Lindy Hop and ragtime music is most suitable to Charleston. Hip hop Lindy, as the term implies is danced to the tempo of hip-hop music while Country Western Swing is apt to country and western music. Each state in America also have their respective popular swing dances that includes the West Coast Swing in California, DC Hand Dancing in Washington, DC, Imperial Swing in St. Louis, Missouri, Supreme Swing in Tulsa, Oklahoma and Whip in Houston, Texas.

Swing dance is certainly one of the dance styles that will be passed on from one generation to the next as its steps continue to evolve.

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A Whole Host of Facts About the Modern Guitar

Most people know the distinctive look of a guitar and the basic sound it makes when you strum your fingers across the strings of the guitar, but most people don't know the litany of ornate facts about the guitar because they have never bothered to study it. Even some professional guitar musicians don't know about all the guitars. The guitar is a stringed instrument that is a component of a diverse set of musical styles like Blues, Country, Ragtime, Jazz, Rock and Roll, and Dance Music.

There are reports of the guitar being used 4,000 years ago. Electric guitars were even used in the 1930s. The guitar originated in Central Asia and India, and it has traveled throughout the centuries to make its way here from ancient times. The oldest representation of the guitar is from 3,000 years ago of a Hittite playing the guitar. Who said that Hittites weren't cool? The modern guitar was rumored to have come from the Romans. Some cool names and ancient references to the guitar include the guitarra, gitarre, cithara, and sihtar. These names are not familiar to most people, but remember that each culture has their own native language to represent the name of the guitar. Strings used to be made of the guts of animals and wood was used as the base of the guitar. Guitars were mentioned in records of the Vikings and the Moors. Who said that Vikings with the remarkable helmets couldn't play the guitar as well as their rock and roll legend counterparts? Maybe the world needs a band of Vikings to come along and show people how it's done.

Some of the top brands of guitars include Dean, Jackson, and Martin, but there are several dozen more and a little over 10 big names. The primary parts of the guitar that make almost every guitar include the headstock, neck, nut, fretboard, frets, truss rod, strings, and inlays. Each has its distinct part in the design, and if one is missing, then the whole thing cannot function. Imagine a guitar that was not hollow or missing its neck, the sound would be horrible.

The timbre of your guitar is a matter to discuss with the guitar salesman because he can let you hear firsthand how every guitar will sound. It is hard to describe each and every particular sound that a type and brand of a certain guitar will make, because that is something one must experience. A simple textual description will not be as good as actually hearing it and getting the appropriate sound for your band.

Some familiar guitar accessories include capotasto, slides, and plectrum. There are so many interesting parts of guitar methodology that many people find it hard to concentrate on them all without just jumping in and learning how each one works firsthand. The guitar is versatile, flexible, and portable so there is a way you can get used to it if you try. Everyone deserves a shot to be a famous musician, and the guitar may be the best way to do that.

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Ballroom Dancing - The Viennese Waltz and the Quick Step

The Viennese Waltz which was derived from the Austrian Landler is an elegant hasty, whirling dance where the partners hold each other as if in a romantic embrace. This raised greater than a few eyebrows of "polite" society. The increase in popularity of the Viennese Waltz, like the standard waltz, can at least in part be contributed to the music of Johann Strauss and to Vienna's famous ballrooms. As with the common waltz the music can be either vocal or instrumental and can be classical, country, or even rock.

The Viennese Waltz is a faster paced dance than the standard waltz which also makes it more challenging to do. Like the normal waltz the Viennese Waltz incorporates a straightforward, elegant rotation and swinging movements, though there should be no foot rise on the inner turns. The Viennese Waltz also requires a large amount of stamina, the equivalent, actually of the amount of energy that would be required to dance a polka.

The Viennese Waltz uses a right turn (natural turn), a left turn (reverse turn) and two change steps that link the moves between the turns. Dancing the line of dance (direction of traffic - turning left at the corners of the dance floor) and rotating in a clockwise direction is the Natural Turn. Following the line of dance and rotating in a counter-clockwise direction is the Reverse Turn. The step links (change steps) allow you to change directions while still following the line of dance.

The step links are simply two normal steps down the line of dance followed by a third step sliding the moving foot to the standing foot. By performing a string of change figures you can work your way through the tight spots on a crowded dance floor then resume the rotation. The "sway" is simply leaning slightly in the opposite direction of the line of dance movement.

Ballroom Dancing - The Quick Step

The Quick Step: The Charleston, the Black Bottom, the Shimmy and probably a couple other dances all melded into a quicker version of the Fox Trot, which in 1923 became called the Quick Step. The evolution of the Quick Step ended with a dance that utilizes a large number of movement, hops, runs, Quick Steps and rotation. It is a very brisk, energetic dance that was developed with very quick jazz music from the ragtime era.

The Quick Step is a fast, happy, lighthearted dance, the footwork can be slightly complex using a slow, quick, quick, slow, quick, quick tempo. Like other dances the slow steps on the heel, Quick Steps on the toes.

The Quick Step utilizes a quick moving up and down swing motion. It's essential to look light on your feet even supposing the movements are powerful. Owing to the quickness of the dance keeping in sync with your life-partner and attempting to keep similar tension in the legs is a necessity. More so than the other dances facial expression is essential to rapid the fun aspect of the dance.

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10 Piano Styles You Can Learn to Play

When studying the piano, a student encounters a myriad piano styles. To master the instrument, at least several of these styles must be learned, and all if at all possible. Knowledge of various playing styles enables a pianist to enjoy and play in any genre and to cross-polinate styles to create a fusion he or she can call their own.

Many modern piano styles are based on the blues. The blues involve an emphasis on the major and minor pentatonic scales, with an additional note included. The flatted fifth is added to the minor pentatonic to create the blues scale. Many blues songs are based on a simple chord progression, known as 12-bar blues. This uses the I, IV and V chords of a scale to create a foundation for melodies and solos.

For example, rock piano was born out of the blues and then took on a life of it's own in the stylings of Jerry Lee Lewis, Michael McDonald, Elton John, Billy Joel, and many others.

Cocktail piano is a style generally connected with Liberace, Eddy Duchin, Roger Williams, and others who play popular tunes with lots of great technique -- lots of notes, runs, flourishes, and so on. But I hate to categorize and of these great pianists, as many of them play in other styles as well.

Boogie-woogie is a piano style based on the blues. It started as a solo piano style, but has expanded into other genres, such as county-western and gospel. It differs from the blues in that it is considered dance music, while blues music traditionally expresses sadness and frustration.

Rhythm and blues piano is based on blues, jazz, and gospel styles. As the name suggests, the emphasis is on the rhythm of the song. Most R&B has a particular swing to it, with a strong feel of syncopation in the rhythm. Syncopation involves placing the stress on a normally unstressed beat. This often results in an almost off-time feel to the untrained ear.

Ragtime piano also incorporates syncopation. Ragtime uses syncopation in its melodies by placing melodic notes between the stressed beats of the rhythm. Ragtime is often considered the first completely American genre, even predating jazz.

Jazz piano encompasses such a broad palate of styles that it is impossible to describe. Many piano styles incorporate ideas borrowed from jazz, such as improvisation. An emphasis on extended chord forms and chord re-harmonization also stems from jazz piano.

New age piano often involves less chord changes than other styles, instead relying on simpler progressions and polychords. It often imitates the sound of nature -babling brooks, wind, rain, and so on. A polychord occurs when two different chords are played at once. This technique is taken from earlier classical works by composers such as Stravinsky.

Gospel piano is often similar to the blues, jazz and R&B. It emphasizes certain extended chords, such as the 11th, and usually has the swinging feel associated with jazz and R&B. The apparent simplicity of gospel songs often hides the fact that they are, indeed, quite musically complex. Syncopation is highly stressed in gospel music, as it contributes to the overall spiritual feel of the music.

Country and western piano has similar roots as blues piano. Both styles stem from earlier folk styles, often developed by the less fortunate people of the era. Many early country songs stem from Appalachian folk songs. Country and western piano is highlighted by very bright playing, with simple chord progressions underneath the melody. One of the greats in this styles is Floyd Cramer.

Traditional sacred piano styles involve the playing of liturgical songs and hymns. These can range from the harmonically and rhythmically complex to simple two and three chord songs. Many hymns stem from folk songs of centuries past. The variety of sacred piano styles is as numerous as the liturgical songs themselves. These piano styles often involve a strict reading of notation, with less of an emphasis on personal interpretation than other styles.

The classical piano style is probably the most varied of all the styles. Classical music is older than other styles, and is considered to the proper grounds for musical instruction. Many elements of other piano styles come from classical music, and nearly all forms of musical theory are used in classical music. Andre Previn is the classic example of a well-trained classical pianist crossing over into the world of jazz, and with great success. Classical music usually requires intense training to master, though there many simpler pieces designed with the novice player in mind.

Though classical is often considered the high point of music, this "ain't necessarily so." For instance, many players who are "classically trained" have trouble adapting to the feel and sincerity of the blues. For this reason, a well-rounded player should be adaptable and learn as much about each of these piano styles as possible. In this way, a pianist is ready for any musical challenge. And besides, who knows where the future of music lies?

Duane Shinn is the author of the popular online newsletter on piano chords, available free at "Exciting Piano Chords & Chord Progressions!"

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