guitar paraphanelia

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guitar paraphanelia

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Miguel de Maria

Posts: 3532
Joined: Oct. 20 2003
From: Phoenix, AZ

guitar paraphanelia

Man, I have a big mouth today. Must be this coffee I just drained.

When I was in Sevilla, probably the best part of it was just the exposure to other guitarists. For over a month, I was hanging out with and studying with a bunch of other guitarists, most of them more advanced than me, a couple of them quite excellent. I learned more from them than from the course. One thing I noticed is that a lot of them had.... guitar paraphanelia.

Of course, the true macho flamenco doesn't need any... guitar paraphanelia. All he needs is a guitar, some old strings, nails he hasn't filed for days--he certainly doesn't need any amplification or a sound engineer (just joking, tom!). But for me, I found that having a few aids very helpful.

One, if your forearm sticks on the upper bout of the guitar when you move it back and forth, you can cut a hole in a sock and wear that on your forearm. I have a similar arm position to Vicente and Paco in that when I play picado, I hold my elbow up high. To go from E to e, my forearm has to slide the same distance on the upper bout. Someone also told me to put some vaseline on the upper about to solve the same problem. This article is, of course, unnecessary when you wear long sleeves, but if you're bumming around the house, playing naked... um, well, I'm sure no one here does that, but you know what I mean, right?

Two, another guy had a three" thick pad on the upper bout. He played in the traditional position, and because he was a large german person, his hand would never lay right unless he had this thing to rest his arm on.

Three, a lot of people kept little dabs on carmex on their guitars, usually stuck between the side and the heel, to make their fingers go faster. Or they sometimes kept it on the back of the headstock. This one wasn't new to me, but I saw a lot of people doing this. My solution to dry fingers is just to wipe my forehead or my nose, but if you're not a greaseball like me maybe you have to buy some carmex.

Four, the Paco Pena guys all had minidisc player/recorders. I think each disc can hold several hours of lessons, with very good sound quality. Then you can put it on your computer for easy access. I used a digital voice recorder, which was small and handy but had very bad sound quality.

Five, I have had problems with my guitar slipping off my leg and not feeling stable. So, I got this idea... you know those rubber sheets, grippy ones, that you can use to open a stubborn can? I put that on my leg and it held my guitar real good.

A lot of people wouldn't want to use these things, because once you have them you might get used to them and then not be able to play without them. Of course, maybe you shouldn't get a good guitar, either, because then you won't be able to play crappy ones again. I have to admit, this has happened to me!

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Aug. 18 2003 15:38:48

gerundino63

Posts: 1743
Joined: Jul. 11 2003
From: The Netherlands

RE: guitar paraphanelia (in reply to Miguel de Maria)

Hi Michael!

I red in an interview with Paco Pena, that he tapes his guitar to avoid slipping.
greetings, Peter

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Aug. 18 2003 15:49:38

Jim Opfer

Posts: 1876
Joined: Jul. 19 2003
From: Glasgow, Scotland.

RE: guitar paraphanelia (in reply to gerundino63)

That's it, plain buff coloured draughting tape round the lower bout at the back edge so it's not seen from the front!
Jim.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Aug. 18 2003 17:38:04

Jim Opfer

Posts: 1876
Joined: Jul. 19 2003
From: Glasgow, Scotland.

RE: guitar paraphanelia (in reply to Miguel de Maria)

Michael,
Sounds like you've had a great experience there, I tell you, material will flood back in time, even although you might feel that you've missed it now. Things that have gone in will creep out in your playing a few years from now.
You're right when you say that being with other guitarists really brings a person on, It's a shame that so meny of us live in relative isolation.
I guess people just need to feel secure when they play, so all the crutches come out!
How did your fingers hold up?
Cheers
Jim.

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Aug. 18 2003 17:46:13

Miguel de Maria

Posts: 3532
Joined: Oct. 20 2003
From: Phoenix, AZ

RE: guitar paraphanelia (in reply to Miguel de Maria)

Jim,
my fingers were in a constant state of fatigue after the first week. That first week, I got lots of compliments from my teachers on my right hand technique, that I had spent so many hours building. Boy, those disappeared fast! After that time, they were dead, I played ploddingly, sloppily. I thought I had lost everything, or worse, that I had just learned that I was never any good to begin with! I practiced 4 hours a day, plus 4 hours of guitar instruction in which I often played quite a bit.

When I got back, I felt the same. I took off about 3 or 4 days, and then realized that my hand was a lot stronger. I had gotten a lot closer to dominating the instrument, the feeling that the guitar is just a small toy that I can do with what I will...

REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE | Date Aug. 18 2003 18:01:45