Guitar Secrets Every Player Should Know lesson book tips instruction

Simple concepts that all stringed instrument players need to make their music easier to produce - perfect as a teaching tool. Good for the teacher as well!

First of all, thanks for buying my book. I hope it works for you.

I wrote it because I wished there had been something like this when I was a kid. If there had, many of the mysterious aspects of music would not have slowed me down because they wouldn't have been a mystery.

My goal is to inform students and even seasoned professionals of the many tricks that mainly only repairmen know. (I say repairmen not to suggest there aren't competent repairwomen. I just talk like that.) This is not a book on how to repair your guitar, but a book to educate you about your instrument so you will know when it needs a repair. It is also a book of musical tips and tricks to make your life as a musician easier.

With a little luck you won't have to endure that sick feeling in the pit of your stomach when you think you need new frets. Or scream in frustration because your guitar won't get in tune...

... When lubricating your tuners, use 3 in 1 oil, Singer sewing machine oil, any light oil will do. Use sparingly. One small drop at each bearing spot is enough.

There are two bearing spots on the worm gear shaft. Put a drop between the gears themselves, and one under the gear at the plate. Some tuners have a hole in the cover to admit oil.

Now take a rag and blot off any excess oil.

Remember, oil on rags is very dangerous. They can undergo spontaneous combustion - just burst into flames all by themselves. Wadding them up is what causes this. No matter how little oil you may think is on it, never wad up an oil rag. Always drape outside over...

... Commonly, the word "action" is inaccurately used to describe the distance a string must be pressed to reach a fret. The height of the strings above the frets is the most obvious action factor, but many elements contribute to playability: Diameter and tautness of the strings, thickness (or thinness) of the neck, width of the fingerboard, the spacing of the strings, height of the frets, smoothness of the playing surface, et cetera.

Even the tone (or lack thereof) can influence playability. A superb instrument will audibly react to the slightest nuance of the player, making ...

... Nickel wound strings are silver in color and designed to drive the magnetic field of electric guitar pickups. They are generally not used on acoustic instruments unless a magnetic pickup is present. The inside looks like this:

80-20 Bronze wound are designed for acoustic use. Bright brass in color, and surprisingly enough, sound bright and brassy. This can be desirable if the instrument sounds dark or muddy with other strings. Unfortunately, bright strings lose their brilliance quickly, so frequent replacement is necessary.

Phosphor Bronze alloy is darker in color, and darker in tone. This can be the perfect string for bright instruments (those made of brittle hardwoods like maple or rosewood) and the harder alloy keeps its tone longer...

... A perfectly flat neck will buzz all over the place. You need just a little bow to get the frets out of the way of the vibrating string. This is called "relief." The amount of relief needed depends on the movement of the string. (Dictated by your playing style.) Bass strings need more relief than trebles. Bass guitars need quite a bit.

These graphics are grossly exaggerated for clarity. A truss rod should never be this maladjusted. You'll be surprised how little adjustment is usually required. A quarter turn of the adjustment nut will generally have the desired affect if the rod was not completely out of whack to start with.

Never overtighten the rod. If the truss rod breaks, your neck will look like the lower picture!

... No matter how good your musical ear is, if your instrument does not play in tune, you're lost.

Luthiers generally don't build instruments that won't play in tune, but through the years, things can change that affect how accurately your instruments intonate.

A quick and easy test to perform on each string is as follows:

... chime the harmonic at the twelfth fret. This splits the string exactly in half, giving you a perfect octave of the open note. The fretted note at the twelfth fret should be exactly the same note. If it is not, something is wrong.

If the fretted note is sharper (higher) than the harmonic, check the nut for wear. The string should ride through the nut slot and come free right at the beginning of the fingerboard. If the slot has worn back, then the first fret (and the entire string) is too long. A too-long string has to be a little tauter to reach pitch, so it goes sharp when fretted. Wear is usually evident by black in the slot ...

... Now that we've got your instrument playing in tune, let's get it perfectly in tune. Well, as perfect as possible. It can't really play perfectly in tune. This is because music is not mathematically perfect ...

... If you start with a "C" and tune a perfect fifth above it ... then a perfect fifth above that, and a perfect fifth above that, et cetera ... When you get back to "C" you will be noticeably sharp of "C". However, if you stack perfect fourths on top of each other, you come up flat ...

... To equalize this phenomenon you must stretch the fourths and squash the fifths. A little. Not enough to bother you, but enough to keep the octaves perfect. This modified set of notes is called "The Tempered Scale."

...Maybe you've done this: Carefully tuned an "E" chord. Perfectly. No beats. All six strings... Then played an "A" chord? Excruciating! Now you know why. Perfect intervals don't work ...

... One more thing about straps: They try to drop your guitar a lot. Never trust them. Get into the habit of feeling both ends of your strap to check its mooring every time you put on your guitar. The end can easily get flipped over making it easier to jump off than stay on:

 

Try to have at least one hand on your instrument at all times. It may look cool and incite the audience when you clap your hands above your head, but this is exactly when your strap will fail you.

If you must do these kinds of theatrics ...

... going to avoid checking your guitar with your luggage (advisable if you think you can get away with it) a gig bag (that soft sided, padded material type of case) is actually better. They make it possible to fit in some overhead compartments. Especially electrics and smaller instruments. Big dreadnoughts still have a problem.

Most airline people understand that you don't want to check your delicate, valuable instrument and will admit there are several FAA-approved places to stow it. Behind the last row of seats is a good place. Sometimes the purser has a compartment. Actually, the captain has a big closet in the cockpit. Just talk to them. Be nice. You may be surprised.

Finally, if after you've carried it all the way into the aircraft, the flight crew insists you must check your guitar, don't despair. At this point your guitar will be hand carried to the luggage compartment (of the correct plane for sure). It will be the last thing in and the first thing out. I've even had it ...

... Surveys have found that if you ask people what their greatest fear is, most people will say "Getting up and speaking in front of a large group." The next most popular answer is "Death." So, for most of you, you would rather die than get up and perform! ...

... Stay loose. Mistakes happen. They usually aren't a problem if everyone in the band is paying attention. Just don't make a face. Ninety-nine percent of your audience will not notice a minor blunder, but if you make a face, one hundred percent will know.

If you make a really bad mistake, and you know everyone heard it, look over at the bass player and give him or her a dirty look ...

... relatively easy to register your work. You just need to send two copies off to Washington, D.C. with the required form (form PA for performing arts work or form SR to register a sound recording) and the registration fee. When this book went to press the fee was $30, but check www.copyright.gov to get the current rate. You can also download the forms and instructions from there.

You can register several songs at once (thus incurring only one $30 fee) by submitting a compilation. Just put them all together on one recording.

When you sell (or give away) any recordings, to protect your copyright, and serve notice to the general public that you intend to preserve this right, you must print on the label: The word "Copyright" or the circle c symbol (©), followed by the year you wrote the song, followed by the name of the copyright holder. Example: ©2004 Dave Cavanagh

This copyright is good for 70 years after your death. After that, your song becomes "public domain" and anybody can ...

Dave Cavanagh is more than a musician. He is an artist. Dave learned from an early age that things are as they seem. Learning how the world works from his father, he repaired his first guitar at the age of 13. During high school, he apprenticed at Cole Music in his hometown, Sonora California. Eventually, Dave owned and operated Cole Music for many years.

Dave has played music professionally for more than 35 years. He played and traveled with Randy Sparks, Burl Ives and at last count, over 22 different bands. He currently entertains crowds with Ron DeLacy in Doodoo Wah, a politically incorrect folk duo. They keep people laughing with original tunes about current events.

Dave dabbles in web design, graphic arts, stained glass, instrument building and restoration of antiques. Being familiar with turn of the century shop processes ...

... enjoys spending time with his wife and cat on the Sacramento river cruising on one of his two boats: a 45-foot houseboat and a 28-foot 1964 Chris Craft cabin cruiser.