Happy Thanksgiving Month from Maple Street! As always, we are so thankful to all of you for your support. We are closing in on another holiday season and hope you come see us to help with your gift giving! Speaking of great gifts, our Guitars of the Month are a Supro Island Series Baritone and a Collings Baritone1 (see a pattern?). If you've ever thought about adding a Baritone Guitar to your arsenal, now is a good time to consider it. They add depth and texture to recordings and are a great way to add variety in a live setting. We are very proud of our Teaching Staff and are featuring them this month. If someone you know is getting a new guitar this year, keep in mind that we have the best staff of teachers in Atlanta! Get to know them all below. It's never too early to start planning your Holiday Shopping List. We are gearing up with some fantastic Guitars, Ukuleles, Banjos and Mandolins for beginners all the way to the discerning collector! We had a very successful Clearance Sale this year, but we still have a few outstanding guitars that will be marked down substantially through the end of December. Come check them out! And finally, Lindsay has some cool thoughts on developing your style, as well as your technique. He shares some really good food for thought.
The Collings Baritone 1 utilizes our DS body dimensions to beautifully communicate the extended harmonic range of baritone tuning. With deep yet articulate bass, this baritone acoustic makes for an inspiring tool in any songwriter or recording artist. Featuring a 27.5” scale length
The Supro Island Series Baritone 2022MN applies the award-winning, retro-modern aesthetics of the Supro Hampton and Westbury guitar models to a 26.75” scale instrument that can be comfortably tuned
to low A, B or C.
Acoustic and Electric Baritones
Our great Teaching Staff (l-r): Sam McPherson, Charles Williams, Johnna Jeong, Rick Burgess, Mary Akerman, Bucky Motter, Brian Molin, Mike Cady, Lyster Bass, Sid Wolf and George Petsch. We are incredibly proud to have each of these highly qualified, highly talented people teaching in our shop. There are International Competition Classical Guitar winners, Berklee School of Music in Boston alumni, University level Guitar Department Heads. Many of them are great songwriters, singers, band leaders and solo artists. If you are a child or adult who is just getting started or a pro who needs some inspiration, this is where you need to be!
Our Fearless Leader, George Petsch has been teaching, performing and supporting the guitar world in Atlanta for over 45 years. George's enthusiasm and knowledge are well known and he still teaches every Thursday.
Thoughts on Developing Style Lindsay Petsch
One Hand Washes the Other—Thoughts on Developing Style
In addition to building our business alongside my mother, my father, George, has spent more than forty years as a classical guitar teacher. As one might imagine, he has developed some very useful insights that condense broad topics into simple terms that even a total novice can readily absorb. Among these is a summation of the goals of musical pedagogy. In his words, the study of music boils down to a focus on two domains, those being instrument skills and musicianship (which might also be described as technique and taste). While I have learned so much from my father (and continue to do so!), I first encountered this view of musical study during a conversation with a friend who held up his left/fretting hand and said, “this is what you know,” and then held up his right/picking hand and said, “this is who you are” (obviously this gets reversed for lefty players!). This statement was so profound and yet simple that I’ve used it ever since; and, though it is somewhat implied, I often add, “when it comes to art, guess which matters most?”
In theory, a student of music works to develop both domains concurrently. However, it has been my experience that many aspiring players and a surprising number of professionals are particularly focused on the instrument skills (or the left hand side of things). This is understandable, especially in the case of beginners, given that one must acquire some familiarity with the instrument and fundamental techniques in order to play anything at all! And, for those players who are genuinely interested in expanding their skills and understanding of the fingerboard, it goes without saying that there will always be focus on practicing technique, be it mechanical or theoretical. Thus, the instrument skills part of the equation is arguably the grittier, less romantic part of the process, as it requires a lot of discipline and rote to become an accomplished player.
Yet, as any admirer of country blues or folk music would tell you, being an accomplished player does not necessarily translate to being a great musician, as one can communicate a great deal of emotion without saying a whole lot! In the end, it is the player’s sense of musicianship that makes their music, well, musical. I find this principal very well mirrored in public speaking, especially as we usually regard an instrument of any sort as having a “voice.” If we listen to a great speech, it is not so much the words that carry the power (though they are a very important factor!) but rather their delivery that impels us to listen. So, when it comes to musicianship, we are principally focused upon core concepts like rhythm, dynamics (i.e., volume/intensity), phrasing, and tone color, all of which are generated by the right hand where the guitar is concerned. While these elements of music are usually fairly explicit in written music, they are still the more subjective part and most open to interpretation. Subsequently, it is in this domain that a player has the most opportunity to express their true feelings and emotions. In some situations, like a classical guitar recital where there would be no deviation from the written score, this mode of interpretation might appear more subtle and nuanced compared to other genres where there is more freedom and encouragement to improvise. Yet, regardless of the genre, I can assure you that it strong musicianship that separates true artists from great players! Bearing this in mind, the development of the right hand (or the “who you are” of playing the guitar) is perhaps the greatest challenge, as it requires not only technical skill and proficiency with regard to core musical principals (e.g., rhythm, dynamics, etc.) but also a great deal of introspection and emoting. To become truly confident in this domain can take a lifetime of critical self evaluation and refinement.
Of course, this is a cumulative process that one must embrace in order to progress as a musician. The best musicians dedicate the time necessary to refining their skills in both domains while remaining eager to learn from others, as there is always a chance that they will enhance their artistry in doing so. And, in truth, the ultimate accomplishment in any art form is to develop a distinctive and personal style, instantly recognizable as yours and yours alone. It is certainly true that all of the “greats” learned from someone and derived their sense of musicianship through years of study and emulation/imitation. Yet, somewhere in the course of their diligent efforts these artists began to deviate from what they sought to copy and let their own personality come to the fore—this is the powerful moment when style and artistry emerge! So, while you should always focus on instrument skills and which notes or chords you’re supposed to be playing, I strongly encourage you to be mindful of how you are playing. This might be a bit of a challenge or seem like a step backward at the outset, but in time you will reap the greatest reward in music: a true conduit for your emotions and personality, which in turn makes your performance genuine for both you and your audience.
