Video Question: change easy song tabs into alternating bass fingerpicking song

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Date: April 21st, 2008 | Length: 3.1 | Instructor: Matt Brown

Tommeken says, "Hello there in the far west Playing for a few months all kinds of chords for now and i learned a few lessons from Jim and Steve about finger picking. Now i wanna learn some songs my daughter recognizes so she can sing along. Is there an easy way tot change those simple melody tabs from a songbook into a nice sounding finger picking tune with alternating bass. I mean songs like Alouette, country roads, and so on... Where to begin? what should i keep in mind ? scales? chords ? greetings and thanks for all those nice lessons... Tom" Another benefit of being a member of JamPlay is the video response section. Our expert staff fields questions from our members and provides video responses each week.

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Jzcode43 asks, "I have a gig book of scales and all of the Pentatonic minor and major are shown as Type 1 through 5. I also have a software program that has the same Pentatonic scales but their shown in positions 1 through 12. It appears that there are scales between each scale type. Can you explain what this is all about? Thanks..." View Response

- July 11th, 2008 (3 minutes, 50 seconds)

Kenstyle asks, "What is proper protocol for playing eight notes or faster on the same string when using fingerstyle? are you supposed to develop "same-finger"speed with each individual finger? or should another finger sneak on to the string and do a two-fingered run? It seems i cant go much faster than quarter notes (obviously this depends on the tempo of a song) if i use only one finger, i.e. i can only use "upstrokes". Apologize in advance for my confusing question. This question might be appropriate for Steve or Jim D." View Response

Guitar Travel Tips, Flying, Humidity and Altitude - June 9th, 2008 (4 minutes, 20 seconds)

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Guitar Tuning and Temperature Changes - June 9th, 2008 (1 minutes, 49 seconds)

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- July 11th, 2008 (5 minutes, 80 seconds)

Mingofalls asks, "Hi, I'm trying to learn more on Music theory, and I'm alittle confused on Major scales the way they the notes are set up. Why does the C Major scale have no sharps or flats, Why is there an F# in the G Major scale, and Why is there a Bb in the F Major scale? I'm somewhat confused on this theory! Thanks! JamOn" View Response