posted 27 September 2001 06:54 AM         

For example,
Major Chords (grips are 3,4,5; 4,5,6; 5,6,8; 6,8,10)
3rd fret -- GMaj -- no pedals
6th fret -- GMaj -- A pedal + E to F lever
8th fret -- G6 -- E to D# lever
(for a pure major, substitute 1st str for 3rd and 7th for 6th)
10th fret -- GMaj -- A+B pedals

Once you're comfortable with those, begin looking at minor chords.
1st fret -- Gmi -- B+C pedals
(you can use A+B = Gmi7 if you include the 1st and/or 7th string -- root tone)
6th fret -- Gmi -- A pedal
10th fret -- Gmi -- E to D# lever

In exploring those positions, be sure to learn where the root tone is found. You should be able to go from lower to higher frets or from higher to lower with ease. Make a chart of every note on every string and every fret for each of those positions. You will use this for building other chords from the simple 3-note Maj/minor chords and also for building scales (below). Look carefully at what adding the 1st, 2nd, 7th, and 9th strings will add to the major and minor chords.

Once you have the chord positions, begin looking for scale positions, realizing that wherever you find the chord, the scale for that chord should be centered around that fret. Use pedals, move the bar, wrap all of those up into a one- or preferably two-octave scale. Remember the CMajor scale is C D E F G A B C. If you don't know how to 'spell' scales, there are several online sources for elementary music theory. Study them until you can build every major scale.

Once you have found easy ways to play scales, look for ways to navigate up and down the fretboard, combining and uniting those positions. This is one of the keys to understanding 'speed picking'.

Bottom line is to know your tuning thoroughly. There are a lot of books, courses, and videos out there, but none of them will learn it for you. Don't be deceived into thinking that if you put Scotty's book under your pillow when you sleep, the knowledge will come into your brain by osmosis. You will learn at your own pace -- everyone is different -- but I can guarantee you that the speed with which you progress will be directly proportional to the amount of time your fingers are on those strings.

There are many technique-related tips, but I'll leave those for others.

Best of luck. You've chosen the most incredible (and often frustrating) instrument there is.

------------------
Larry Bell - email: larry@larrybell.org - gigs - Home Page
2000 Fessenden S-12 8x8, 1969 Emmons S-12 6x6, 1971 Emmons D-10 9x9, 1971 Dobro

posted 27 September 2001 08:06 AM         

From one who has been playing for about 18 months and loves it. First, isn't this a great site?! It has kept me going at times.

1. Larry has given you great advice. I would suggest just sticking with the key of G for most of your work. At least for a while. Once you have things under control in G, it will be easy and natural to transpose to any other key. If you try to learn this scale in A, that lick in E, play this song in F...it gets pretty hard to keep track of what you have learned...and it is easy to lose track of the big picture.

2. I found some basic licks that I can use in almost any song. I use Jeff Newman's AB pedal course as a basis. You can find many basic "pockets" or licks in the tab section of this forum. Then I work these licks to death until I know how to play them all in just about any song.

3. Equipment to play along with is very helpful to me. I have a CD player that I can mark A-B so that it will loop on a section of a recording. Also, I can record easily anything I am doing and I keep it set up all the time to give myself a reality check. I record about 1/4 of any practice session and play it back.

4. I set my expectations fairly low. It goes without saying that I will never play like Lloyd Green, Buddy Emmons, Paul Frankin, Tommy White, etc. Neither will I play like most of these guys on the forum...bOb, Moon, Ricky, Jack, Joe, Herb, Etc. That doesn't discourage me because I hear a lot of hit records and professional playing that I can imitate and get pretty close to. That tells me that I can still have fun and stay simple and sane.

5. Find a way to set yourself up for a lot of practice. I have two places now with a guitar setup and ready to go. I can practice at home in the evening without bothering my wife (headset), and I can play through an amp very early in the morning in a garage area near my business. Being able to sit down and practice at a moments notice is a great benefit.

6. I think the most critical technique to learn at first is right hand picking and blocking. Bad form is hard to overcome. Jeff Newman has a course called "Right Hand Alpha". If you don't have someone to teach good right hand form, consider getting your hands on this video course.

Have fun!

If I can be of any help please don't hesitate to e mail me. As I said, I am no expert, but no one here has more fun playing than I do.

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Sho-Bud Pro II Custom, Sierra Artist S-10, Fessenden S-10, Session 2000

[This message was edited by David Weaver on 27 September 2001 at 08:20 AM.]

posted 27 September 2001 08:20 AM         

I've only been playing 2 years and I'm not very good at all, but here are a few pointers I've learned:

* Find someone who can instruct you. They can quickly and objectively see things you might be doing wrong. Just one or two critical pointers can make a world of difference.

* Lots of practice. This instrument takes a world of time to learn (at least for me). Try to practice when you're feeling fresh and alert. I can only find time in the evenings after a long day's work or on weekends after chores so I'm seldom in good playing condition when I practice, and I'm sure that is slowing my progress down considerably.

* Get your right hand position down pat. It is crucial! In my very first lesson my instructor had me change my hand position and it immediately made a world of difference.

* Keep the guitar well tuned. This may sound silly or obvious, but for a while I'd only tune my steel every week or so. I didn't realize the guitar was drifting as a whole up or down with temperature and was causing me to change the position of the bar over the frets unknowingly to stay in key. That made getting the bar correctly positioned a bigger battle than it normally would be.

* Record yourself. That way you can hear how you're really playing. Generally, I find that the intensity of concentration needed to get both hands, both feet, and both knees working together is so distracting it's hard to really listen to the sound being made by the instrument. If you listen to a recording of yourself there are no such distractions. (Be advised--it can be very humbling.)

* Jam with others or play in a band as soon as you can. For many, getting over the hurdle of playing this contraption in public is difficult because we all know how hard it is to do it right. My first time in front of others was at a jam with perhaps 5 other steelers, and I was shaking like a leaf. I couldn't even keep my volume pedal foot steady. (I'm better about it now, I think!)

* Don't get discouraged. Progress can be very slow (well... that's been my experience, anyway). This Forum is a good place to come to find encouragement if you need it.

* Don't get caught up in gizmo acquisition fever. A good steel, a workable amp, and a touch of reverb or delay is about all you need (my opinion) to work on your foundation. Coloring your sound up with effects and such will fool you into thinking you're better than you are. They're fun and do have their place, but work with your pure sound first before you start adding frosting.

* Practice to rehearsal tracks or with Band In A Box. This forces you to keep proper time and tuning as you play. If you practice solo, you can't tell if the bar is slightly off or if your tempo/timing are loose.

* I usually wear headphones when I practice. This removes the performance anxiety part of the experience (in case others overhear my ghastly playing) so I feel freer to dive in and really try, even to explore areas where I'm sure to make some big mistakes as I learn.

As a post script, here are some things NOT to do (particularly on the Forum) [these are all meant to be tongue-in-cheek! ]:

* Ask who the greatest steel player in the world is.

* Ask which brand of pedal steel guitar is best.

* Ask if a double neck or a single neck universal is better.

* Ask about the future of country music.

* Ask if today's country is really country.

* Ask about b@njos.

All the best to you!

posted 27 September 2001 04:20 PM         

"Happy Birthday", "Row Row Row your boat", "Flight of the Bumblebee" ...anything!

posted 28 September 2001 04:31 AM         

Keep in mind that your hands don't know where to go, even if your brain does. They have to learn, too, but aren't as quick to pick up a new pattern as your brain.

I forget who said it, but he saw Buddy Emmons practicing harmonics backstage at the Opry for three hours. Nothing else just harmonics. It paid off, Buddy's harmonics are the cleanest and clearest around.

Good luck with your contraption! It will be a love/hate relationship. You'll hate the guitar when you can't find something or seemingly can't do something, but will love it when you do accomplish something.

------------------
My best,
Ernie

The Official Buddy Emmons Website
www.buddyemmons.com

[This message was edited by Ernie Renn on 28 September 2001 at 10:07 AM.]

posted 28 September 2001 04:58 PM         

Or as they say where I grew up, "prack'-tize". Kinda rhymes with "baptize".

Good luck and work hard!

posted 09 October 2001 10:01 AM         

If you can not make the necessary moves that it takes to pick the strings accurately and slide the bar exactly where you want to go then you are backing up.

There is no need to know what the pedals do if your hands are not prepared.

There is no need to learn a scale if your fingers are not prepared.

They are great for making practice less monotonous but it will always go back to the physical dexterity that you need to play this instrument.

This is a very hard instrument to play and the best tip you can get from me is to work on your hands. EVERYTHING that has been given as advice is relying on them.

posted 10 October 2001 05:01 PM         

I had to go back to correct my right hand technique. To do palm blocking correctly, I practiced going across (up and down)the string, alternating (crossing over)with the thumb and finger while holding the palm down while I picked. This produces a "klunk" sound but forces your hand in the correct position. I also practiced with the palm down doing finger rolls. I found that at first I could only practice for 5 to 10 minutes at a time because my finger would ache at first. Now I am practicing pick blocking because I see advantages using both methods.

NEVER, NEVER look at your picking hand while playing.

posted 12 October 2001 06:33 AM         

You forgot "Don't ask what color steel sounds the best" !

------------------
Regards,

John

Steelin' is a way of life!

My PSG website-Carter SD-12-U, 8p/5k, Nashville 1000

[This message was edited by John Sims on 12 October 2001 at 06:34 AM.]

posted 12 October 2001 09:16 AM         

For me, I've had only two lessons and attended perhaps a half dozen steel jams in my two years of playing. That's it.... no band work. Because of my limited experiences in front of others with the steel, I get stage fright. (Mind you, I've played piano, synth, Hammond organ, and bass in front of crowds for years, and have no real problems there.) So even if I have come along reasonably with developing some steel skills such as picking or palm blocking, I tend to get nervous in front of my steel teacher or other steelers and then fall apart. To them I look worse than I actually am and so they can't guide me on the level I'm really at. That's a communication breakdown of sorts, and it can't help.

So get your confidence up any way you can, it helps a lot!

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Bill (steel player impersonator) | MSA Classic U12 | Email | My music | Steeler birthdays | Over 50?

[This message was edited by Bill Llewellyn on 12 October 2001 at 09:17 AM.]