In this lesson, we begin by learning how to warm up for a rehearsal or performance. Warming up effectively is essential to play your best, and you'll find that it will enhance all of your skills in an ensemble setting. It will help you to play more relaxed, get a better tone, improve your time, intonation, articulation, and allow you to focus on listening.

This lesson focuses on the skills needed to develop “good ears.” Musicians who develop “good ears” are able to adapt to any musical situation, even when they do not know the song, key, or form. We will go over exercises to improve our ears and we will practice learning melodies and identifying chords by ear.

This lesson will focus on key elements to develop your unique and personal sound on the guitar. We will discuss how the pick can be used to adjust four essential elements of your guitar sound: timbre, dynamics, note duration, and intonation. These four essential elements, when practiced with focus, will take you on the path to having a great touch and unique approach to sound and tone.

In this lesson, we'll prepare for a performance. Being prepared for a rehearsal or gig can help to create a relaxed atmosphere and better overall performance experience. We will discuss developing a performance checklist as well the importance of knowing your gear. Finally, we'll highlight the importance of listening and blending on stage.