How Long Does it Take to Arrange a Fingerstyle Guitar Song?

[@neilchanmusic]

Hello! My 'Fingerstyle for the World' guitar course is FINALLY out! I've poured all my knowledge and experience into this course to take your playing to the next level. Check it out at academy.neilchanmusic.com/p/fingerstyle-for-the-world-level-1!

[@koushikonstrings851]

Pls share your insta id. I want to learn from you . Any online class?

[@sangyelwang8409]

You make it look so easy

[@neilchanmusic]

:) but we all know it takes years of practice and hard work, but it can be a very enjoyable process!

[@abcdeentertainment6651]

Seriously you are the best teacher...special days for me 😊☺👌👍❤ur awesome bro keep going..love from nepal🇳🇵🇳🇵make more intresting lessons like that..

[@neilchanmusic]

It's my pleasure, thank you for your kind words! More lessons to come for sure.

[@nicosalor4688]

Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge to those who wanted to learn fingerstyle.

[@neilchanmusic]

You are most welcome, it's a pleasure to help you out!

[@dipeshmanandhar3220]

Hey neil....i browse too many tutorial videos...but ur teaching technique is different n super great.....u deserve to b on top level...u have few subscribers but believe me u will b in top list of all

[@neilchanmusic]

Hey Dipesh, that really means a lot. Thank you! I am happy that I can share my knowledge in guitar with you and am motivated to keep growing my channel :)

[@jomari992]

Thank you Neil Chan for sharing your knowledge and teaching us a lot of important things to learn about being a guitarist/musician, I've just started learning how to arrange fingerstyle a month ago but most of the time i get frustrated because i can't find the note using my ear even when i do solfege and most of the time i just feel like giving up and thinking that this passion is not for me but i really love playing the guitar i can learn songs through tabs but i feel like it's a cheap trick and stops my musical creativity from progressing. I just feel lost whenever i try to arrange fingerstyle even when i watch a lot of "how to arrange fingerstyle" videos and learning the basics but i can't seem to put them into practice 😔 Sorry i just feel stupid in the past few days and i just want to let all this frustrations out but i wont give up, someday I'll be able to write wonderful arrangements like you too, Neil Chan! Thank you so much again

[@neilchanmusic]

Hey jomari, thank you for sharing your thoughts and frustrations and I’m sorry you feel this way. I can assure you that what you feel is very normal, and I also used to feel ‘stupid’ and that I’m not a good musician because I couldn’t hear a single note by ear while my peers could just play songs immediately after listening. It’s best not to compare with others but focus on the small improvements each and everyday. Sometimes other people may be faking it too! They have heard and played that song countless times and it’s all in your head that they are better than you. Keep doing solfege exercises, slowly and steadily. Scale at a time, one day at a time. I’m sure you will see progress and I’m here to help you along one video at a time 😊

[@shubhankarsharma8705]

Such a great lesson. I am a self learning fingerstyle guitarist. And such videos help me learn what are the next steps to be taken in my guitar journey. Thanks! 😄

[@neilchanmusic]

You're very welcome! Glad to be a part of your guitar journey :)

[@VishvenderSingh13]

u made it so easy...thanks brother 🙏🏻😊

[@neilchanmusic]

Happy to help!

[@abbasxli4356]

It is very valuable thanks buddy

[@neilchanmusic]

My pleasure

[@khaledelgharbi5200]

So much value! Thank you ❤❤❤

[@neilchanmusic]

Really glad to help you out :) Lots more coming up!

[@samalamaduma2557]

i learned alot thanks

[@neilchanmusic]

You are welcome!

[@LoveNjustice]

Amazing. Keep these videos coming. All the best!

[@neilchanmusic]

I definitely will. thank you!

[@yashhunlimitedd]

Love from India ❤

[@neilchanmusic]

Thank you Yash! Love from Singapore 😊 stay safe

[@aito7512]

Hey bro, I've watched few videos from your channel & I'm already a subscriber. I've been playing for like 3 months now & the progression is quite slow cuz I'm not taking any classes. Your video is very informative & would continue to keep learning from it. As a beginner, I still have a lot of questions in my mind & I'll be interested to connect with you through Instagram. Regards

[@neilchanmusic]

Hey Aito, glad to be able to help you on your guitar journey. 3 months is still very short, haha. Be patient and enjoy the process! As a beginner you will benefit from my 'Quick Guitar Tips' series of videos on youtube, which are more for basic technique stuff. You can check out the playlist on my channel. Sure, please do reach out on instagram!

[@made2worship882]

Hello Neil, fantastic topic today with great teaching, pls try to cover -Fur Elise 😊

[@neilchanmusic]

Thank you Naresh! Hope you can have fun arranging your own fingerstyle songs. Haha I used to play that a long long time ago.

[@made2worship882]

Hi Neil, first I thank ur promt replies.i understood little but sorry I'm not having that much knowledge abt learning this skills because no one thought me I'm very new to fingerstyle.but gods grace I play only family chords In my church with electric Guitar 😓

[@neilchanmusic]

@@made2worship882 hey Naresh, please no need to apologise! It’s really great that you’re playing guitar in church, may you continue to serve Him in this way. If these lessons are a little too advanced, you can check out my ‘quick guitar tips’ playlist on KZbin. Those are more for beginners!

[@made2worship882]

Thank u so much Neil 😊, ur so kind my only goal is to serve the master till the end of my life.that I need to give him alone.and one by one I'm watching ur videos too such a wonderful topics,I'll Keep in touch with you.👍😊

[@neilchanmusic]

@@made2worship882 Yes please do! How wonderful to hear of your passion to serve. I'm encouraged by your faith : )

[@tomoribashira874]

Hello Niel ..can you make a lesson on intervals and it's applications ..n why it is important to learn it..

[@neilchanmusic]

Hey Tomoriba, thanks for the suggestion. Indeed it's important to understand intervals, and beyond theory to know how to apply it! It helps a lot in composition and improvisation. I'll see if I can put together a lesson for it : )

[@tomoribashira874]

@@neilchanmusic thanks for the reply Niel😊and your teachings are awesome and unique and I am learning a lot from it.

[@neilchanmusic]

@@tomoribashira874 really glad to hear that Tomoriba! Happy to share my knowledge with you. How long have you been playing for?

[@tomoribashira874]

@@neilchanmusic it's going to be 3 years...but during those times I concentrated only on rythm guitar... .I have started learning fingerstyle recently.

[@neilchanmusic]

@@tomoribashira874 3 years is a good length to get the foundations and basics down 😊 keep working on it and you’ll see much progress. Remember to keep practicing slowly and precisely. Don’t be in a rush to play fast! You’ll get there faster in the long run by practicing slowly

[@joychan2659]

hi! can you please do a tutorial on how to alternate bass while playing fingerstyle guitar and how to add in harmony while playing too? i always have problem alternating the bass notes😕 i hope you can teach me how to. Thanks!

[@neilchanmusic]

Hey Joy! Thanks for the suggestion, I will see if I can put together a video on that topic! It can be challenging to play alternating bass, melody and harmony at the same time, but with diligent practice it can be done. I would focus first on playing the melody with the root bass note of every chord. Slowly you can add in the alternating bass and other notes of the chord.

[@joychan2659]

@@neilchanmusic thanks for the tips! i will keep practicing!

[@neilchanmusic]

@@joychan2659 Yes, keep it up!

[@pianopaint7391]

Very helpful, thank you! I've been using your videos to teach myself fingerstyle, and I love the way you approach the topic of solfege. Quick question. Is it important to say the solfege syllables (do, re, mi...), or is it enough to simply know the placement of the note within the scale without associating it with the syllables. I'm asking because I've played piano for a number of years and that has included ear training (relative pitch in my case). Would I get any further value if I were to replace the term "fifth note of the scale" with the syllable "sol" while analyzing melodies? Thanks and keep up the great videos👍

[@neilchanmusic]

Hey, thank you for your question! I'm really glad that I'm able to help you along your fingerstyle guitar journey. Regarding your question, a very useful function of solfege syllables is the ease of singing, as they are single syllables that are relatively easy so phonate (sing). I would advise to stick to the syllables do re me etc, so that when you hear any melody (sung or instrumental), it will automatically register in your mind as solfege syllables. If you were to use 'fifth note of the scale' etc, you're not going to process that long sentence fast enough in your head, especially for melodies where notes are played very quickly. Hope this helps! Will have even more lessons on solfege coming up.

[@pianopaint7391]

@@neilchanmusic Thank you so much for the reply! I see now why solfege is important and certainly an improvement of my method. I definitely feel as though there is an impediment to my relative pitch. Somehow, my speed hasn't been improving no matter how much I practice. I Will be giving solfege a try for sure!

[@neilchanmusic]

@@pianopaint7391 Yes, keep working on it! Learning and practicing solfege has been one of the best things I've done for myself musically.

[@Mrbanshi]

helloooo channn also would love to get ideas on how to harmonize melody I mean if i have a melody containing let's say nine notes like how to harmonize each 9 notes with 3rd 6th fourth-degree i hope you are getting what i am trying to say

[@neilchanmusic]

Yes, you need to study how chords are constructed so you can play an accompanying note to the melody that also fits in with the harmony :)

[@tejasmendhexd]

For fingersyle do we need to learn picking?

[@neilchanmusic]

Hi, what do you mean by picking? do elaborate a little as I don't understand your question

[@MOON-gf4tl]

Hello sir , i have a problem that i can figure out melody of the song and chords which i can use in that song but i cant figure out that which chord should i play for a particular line of a song and when to change the chord. May u explain?

[@neilchanmusic]

Hello Moon, you need to take into consideration both the rhythm and the melodic phrasing. Usually chord changes are on downbeats, eg. beat 1 or 3 in 4/4 meter. Then look at the melodic line in that phrase, and see which note is emphasised. Emphasis can be the duration of the note (longer is more emphasised), repetition of the note, or whether the note lands on a downbeat or not. Once you've found the emphasised note, most likely the chord that accompanies it will have that note as one of its chord tones.

[@MOON-gf4tl]

@@neilchanmusic thanks sir for reply , may you have immense amount of success

[@neilchanmusic]

@@MOON-gf4tl you’re very welcome Moon! Appreciate it a lot. Look forward to sharing more with you.

[@meloak3302]

🙏🏼❤️

[@neilchanmusic]

blessings Melo

[@prateekdaswani7332]

Can you tell me how to find bass note?

[@neilchanmusic]

The key is really to listen and listen! Try your best to listen to the lowest note you hear, and sing it out.

[@pbmrudula3948]

❣

[@neilchanmusic]

Thanks!

[@DH-CA]

With due all respect, you don’t need solfege… you made it harder than it needs to be… just use the guitar to plug the melody and then figure out the notes afterwards… I play violin and guitar for fun and that’s how I’d do it… however. I do agree with you that tabs and numbers confusing the heck out of me…

[@neilchanmusic]

Hi, thanks for your comment. My goal is to help guitarists become better musicians, and in doing so I encourage all to develop the skill of solfege, mapping what you hear onto exact melodic entities on the scale. What you suggested is to find the notes through trial and error and thereafter figure out what the notes are on the scale. I agree that yes, in many cases such as this one it will be more efficient and easier compared to using solfege (if you are just starting out). However, you will not develop any particular musicianship skill, and trial and error will only be effective for relatively simple melodies. Using solfege will develop your ear tremendously, and upon hearing a melody you can immediately play it as it is, play it in a different key, in a different mode, figure out the chords instantly, play it on a different instrument, and transcribe it on notation in just one hearing. Of course this takes time and practice, but this is the skill us a musicians should develop, even if we are just playing for fun. Anyway it is your choice, and no offense taken at all. This is just my honest recommendation to developing yourself as a musician, and not just a guitarist :)

[@themodestai9603]

Hi

[@neilchanmusic]

Hello Ankan! Have you any questions?

[@themodestai9603]

@@neilchanmusic Not regarding to this altho I'm learning stop this train by John Mayer. But can you make tutorials on fretting hand techniques, I mean how do I make a beautiful Melodies. Also would love to see content bout Ear Training and shight reading. Perhaps make a discord server 😀😀😀

[@neilchanmusic]

@@themodestai9603 haha what’s a discord server? I’ve actually taught some students stop this train before 🙂 And I actually do have some videos on ear training! Also check out my videos on solfege, one of the best ways to train your ear.

[@themodestai9603]

@@neilchanmusic ok😁

[@themodestai9603]

@@neilchanmusic discord server is basically like a place where subscribers can directly interact its like a messenger app. Used by KZbinr's sometimes!

[@truchua2626]

I thought it was a girl

[@neilchanmusic]

Thanks for sharing your thought.