I'm starting to work these days with volume 3 of Barry Galbraith (with Marc's videos, they are fantastic!), very difficult and very useful at the same time. To relax a little, I wanted to start playing a piece by Ralph Towner that I've always liked: Summer's End, a beautiful ballad. I've made the chord sequence with iReal Pro (I attach an image). It's the second tribute that I dedicate to my beloved Ralph Towner (who I've been listening to since I was sixteen) and who passed away this past January. I'll also try to make a chord melody, let's see if I can manage it.

It’s a work in process….

Here’s a quick four chorus exercise video that shows how I’ve been practicing performing for the last year. I used to get stuck in practice ruts where I would neglect performing in favor of way too many drills. This is challenging in my opinion. Using a daw or looper play two guitars like you are two friends just having fun playing standards. Guitar 1 plays single note melody (head in), then comps, then improv, then melody (head out). The second guitar plays to the first; comp, improv, comp, head out. The first guitar is the hardest because you have only a metronome and your own conception of the tune. Soloing alone is very hard for me and forces me to be clear and confident, or as confident as I can be. This exercise will reveal how well you actually know a tune. For me the absolute magic to this is to record myself and then put it away and listen to it the next day. I need some time to forget all the details about what I wanted to do and just listen to it. I listen for what makes me happy and ignore the other stuff. I try to make it better the next day. It has worked very well for me. It creates the sand box that @Coach Marc-Andre Seguin talked about. It allows me to take the pinnacle practice steps and apply them in a more performance atmosphere. It’s helped me to hear the good stuff and try to make more of that. More better phrasing through playing tunes over and over and then actually listening to myself. Plus it’s a lot of fun. I hope this helps, it was very hard to get to the point where I could play a complete tune solo including improvisation. I really have to know the form, plus I end up comping way more than I used to.

I've been practicing the Galbraith comping study Nowhere with the actual tune Out of Nowhere. I definitely recommend that approach on the Galbraith comping studies - knowing the actual tune will help you understand his chord substitutions and rhythmic choices - plus you'll add a tune to your repertoire. Here is a 4CE of Out of Nowhere (head in, comp, 2 rounds of improv, head out) plus a separate recording of Galbraith's Nowhere etude - with his backing track. I play the Galbraith comping study in both videos - the stand alone version is the better performance. Worth noting is that he strings together a long series of continuous Charleston's starting at the 58 second mark over 6 bars - definitely a challenge to count! Lastly there are some chords that contained difficult stretches that I simplified (1:26 mark) so I could focus on the rhythm.

This is a practice video for an upcoming gig with a full band. I was tasked with 4 tunes, and this was the most challenging since it calls for backing vocals plus these double stops. Anyway, after two weeks I’m about ready. The background practice track has a lead singer, bass, rhythm acoustic guitar and other stuff. I’m singing harmony with a pedal that adds a 3rd above the notes you sing - its accurate if you play the right notes in your instrument! The value of a video practice- for me at least - is that I can hear how late I am on some of the vocal lines - and I’m off on a few spots in the guitar. Funny how you don’t notice these things unless you record it. Anyway - I have some work to do! Appreciate any feedback! Thank you https://youtu.be/8NFA8xW0qys?is=Rn4cB1khr3vcGXos