BLUES AND FUSION

What You’ll Learn

If your blues and fusion playing has hit a plateau, this is the weekend that will move you forward.

Many guitarists reach a point where they’re relying on the same pentatonic patterns, familiar barre chords and repetitive licks. The problem isn’t technique—it’s knowing how to create groove, make better musical choices and sound like a complete player.

Over the weekend, Nat Martin will show you how professional musicians approach blues and fusion. You’ll learn how to combine shell chords, triads, fingerstyle and plectrum techniques to create rich, dynamic rhythm parts, while developing a vocabulary of licks and solos that sound natural, expressive and musical.

You’ll discover how to:

• Create infectious groove in your rhythm playing.
• Build a blues and fusion vocabulary that you can actually use.
• Blend chords, fills and licks into authentic, professional-sounding performances.
• Make stronger musical choices by playing the right notes at the right time.
• Adapt your playing to different styles, bands and musical situations.

As always, you’ll be learning in a relaxed, supportive environment alongside like-minded guitarists, with plenty of opportunities to play together, perform and put everything into practice.

How the weekend works

FRIDAY EVENING

Our De Vere hotel location has changed its timings. We feel this also works well for us as a group as it will mean things are less rushed. We will have access to bedrooms from 4pm and access to set up in the teaching room from 5:30pm on the Friday evening. This first evening will be a relaxed time, with us getting know each other, jamming as group, working on core blues and funk techniques and playing together. After dinner the evening will open into get up and play evening. This is a relaxed affair and allows everyone to settle in. Our second tutor Andy Moore will lead us through a number of songs as well as playing pieces with Nat as an example of what is possible. Everyone will be able to join in.

SATURDAY

We are aiming to begin teaching at 10am (earlier if the group wish) working through until approximately 5pm. There will be two refreshment breaks, (although you are welcome to take a break at any point) plus a lunch break in the hotel restaurant. We will take an hours break at 5pm before heading for dinner. After dinner it will be group pieces and a chance to simply get up and perform without tutoring.

SUNDAY

We will start at 10am and work through till 4pm. This is an additional three hours tutoring plus a Sunday lunch. There will be a morning refreshment break plus Sunday lunch. Everyone will get the chance to perform solo pieces again as well as group performances from the work done on Saturday.

The room must be empty by 4:30pm. For those that may need to leave slightly earlier, you will get to perform first to ensure you get as much out of the time as possible.

Course suitability

The course is perfect for players of multiple levels but you don’t want to be a complete beginner. If you can master basic barre chords and can play a minor pentatonic scale then you will find it possible. A good lead into this course is Nat’s Blues Vocab Online Series.

Materials

We’ll take photos of any flip charts used or video/audio recordings taken but essentially you’ll be bringing your own music. So just a pen and paper for taking notes should be sufficient.

What’s included in the price?

There are a number of ways of attending our courses: residential, non-residential and sharing with a spouse/partner.

Our price for players is all-inclusive:

• tuition/guidance and any materials
• accommodation and breakfasts (double en suite room whether single or sharing)
• dinners, lunches and morning/afternoon refreshment breaks

Our prices for:

• Non-residential players exclude B&B.
• Non-playing sharing spouse/partners exclude: lunch and refreshments.

Check out the venue by clicking on the name in the sidebar above. If you have any specific requirements about staying at the venue click ENQUIRE and we’ll see if we can help.

Paying Options

At this stage you may choose to pay the full fee or the deposit only. If you choose deposit only, we will contact nearer the course to pay the remaining fee.

Remember

Unlike our online courses these weekend mini-breaks have limited numbers. We have to keep numbers limited on this course or people don’t get adequate time to perform. This is a very popular course – don’t miss out, book in early.