Scores/Tablature
Arrangements
The following arrangement are written in guitar tablature and staff notation. I find this the ideal system to represent the rhythm and notes (for any instrument) and also where to place those notes on the guitar. Each arrangement combines music from West African artists and my own original compositions. I teach private lessons over zoom if you want to dive deeper into this music.
Beginner Arrangements
SOME THOUGHTS ON LEARNING AN ARRANGEMENT
Do not try to learn any of these scores by playing through from start to finish. Or by playing from the start and going as far as you can and then repeating the process. Just don’t do it. It's not a successful strategy for digesting and internalizing the material.
Instead, take each phrase or even measure one by one and memorize them, One at a time. That way, you will have the focus to get to know a phrase, to understand what it’s expressing. And in having it make sense to you, you’ll be more able to remember it and express it.
Even if you just learn the main rhythm/groove part and the first melody (and really learn it) you will have something wonderful and satisfying to play and to share. And if you are still motivated, you can spend time getting to really know another phrase and integrate that into your piece.
Like building a cathedral from solid blocks instead of a house of sticks (which is what you get if you try and read through again and again without taking the time with each phrase individually).If you run into a phrase that is giving you extra trouble, it’s probably at your technical edge.
There’s a lot of phrases in most of these scores, so you could skip it. But if you can isolate these technical crux moments in a score and spend the most time with each one, you can slowly and steadily expand your technical abilities.
If you are having a lot of trouble, or you just want to learn a score faster, or you want a skillful set of ears and eyes to bring out even more out in your playing, you can reach out to me for a lesson. I have been teaching for decades and am confident I can help you along your way.