Throughout these lessons you will learn to incorporate these two pillars that have been time tested and proven to improve the musicianship of any guitarist regardless of their current level of expertise. Each pillar is essential to successfully mastering 6,7and 8 string electric or acoustic guitar and are rooted in two fundamental elements:
Music Theory
I like to teach what I call musicianship; musicianship consists of music theory and technique. Theory teaches you the understanding of how chords, scales, melody and harmony work. Understanding the rules is imperative before you can break them.
Technique
Technique gives you the physical ability to unlock the music within you and express it using your instrument. It’s what allows your personality to come through in your music. You could be a musical genius but if you don’t have the physical ability to unlock it, no one will ever know.
“Rusty Cooley’s 2 pillars of guitar series is THE most thorough course for aspiring and established guitarists available today.”
Beginning Guitar:
Beginning guitar lessons are perfect for new guitarists and casual players who want to enhance their knowledge and skill as well as build the physical strength and coordination it takes to play the guitar.
This power packed lesson series includes basic music fundamentals such as:
Music alphabet, sharps, flats, open string names and other fundamental terminology, music is a language and we have to learn to speak it so we can easily communicate with other musicians
Multiple tuning formats including tuning with harmonics
Learning and understanding your guitar amp and effects
Open position chords, open position power chords, chord progressions and rhythm guitar techniques
Right and left hand coordination techniques and finger exercises
How to use a metronome, counting and reading rhythm
Beginning lead with pentatonic scales, licks and sequences and the pentatonic workout
Techniques such as alternate picking, bending, vibrato, hammer-ons, pull offs and palm muting
5th and 6th string root barre chords and positon power chords
Licks in the style of the greats
Plus exclusive additional content only available through Rusty Cooley 2 pillars of guitar series
Intermediate Guitar:
Intermediate guitar lessons are perfect for the guitarist who wants to continue building their knowledge of music theory while simultaneously building their own technique. This course includes:
Intervals
Harmonization
Triads
Triad arpeggios
Fretboard visualization
Major scale and it’s modes derivative and parallel approach
The modal workout and intense study of the content from Fretboard Visualization
Improvisation and phrasing with the modes and combining pentatonic and blues scales with the modes
4th, 5th and 6th string root 7th chords and formulas
How to write and compose using the modes
How to apply rhythm guitar and chord scales and different approaches through chords, riffs (single note rhythm) and intervals
Advancing lead techniques such as tapping string skipping and sweep picking
Learning all the notes on the fretboard. “I have developed a simple system that will allow you to learn all of the notes on a 24 fret neck in 12 weeks”
Advanced to Pro Guitar:
The Advanced to Pro guitar lessons continue building on my two pillars of guitar concept all taught with theoretical and improvisational applications.
This class includes, but is not limited to:
Fretboard visualization
Harmonic minor and it’s modes derivative and parallel approach
Melodic minor and its modes derivative and parallel approach
Advanced 3 note per string pentatonic scales including minor, Indian, dominant, hirajoshi and how to extract them from 6,7 and 8 tone scales
Arpeggios 7, 9, 11, 13 as well as altered dominants and 3 octave patterns. Multiple applications via alternate, economy and sweep picking as well as tapping using multiple fingers.
Extended chords up to 13ths and altered dominants and substitutions
Intervallic playing and enharmonic respelling of scales to reveal chords and arpeggios that are easily overlooked.
Advanced rhythm guitar through intervallic concepts, modal interchange, modulation and key changes
Time signatures including odd time and counting subdivisions.
Phrasing, building and improvising solos and guitar solo composition
Advanced exercises the legato workout, 3 note per string variables, 4 note per string variables, alternate picking including inside and outside picking, sweep picking 2,3,4,5,6,7,8 concepts, hybrid picking, string skipping and tapping with multiple fingers and intense chromatic studies for finger independence
Advanced scales such as diminished, whole tone, harmonic major, hungarian minor, hybrid scales and much more
Additional Lesson Info:
Each lesson will be tailored to your individual style preference. Ages taught 7 and it doesn’t matter if you dig the blues, country, jazz, acoustic, heavy metal, shred or any other flavor of guitar, the Two Pillars of Guitar Course can help you be the musician you want to be. I believe in building partnerships and relationships with my clients and more than just teaching, I like to think of myself as a guitar coach, mentor, personal trainer and motivator that will help you attain your musical aspirations through proper studying goal setting and designing the right practice schedule to reach your goals. I can also help you with your equipment setup for practice, live and studio application and can advise you on your career, how to form a band, online presence, getting gigs, stage presence endorsements and the music business in general.
Lesson Locations
Texas Music Emporium at 1960 and 1-45 Houston, TX.
Pro Music Instruction the Woodlands, TX
Skype Online
Contact rusty@rustycooley.com for more prices and scheduling