How do you learn to play guitar chords online? Since January 2005, nearly 1000 people have taken my berkleemusic.com course called Berklee Guitar Chords 101.
Demonstration videos, interactive drills with Flash animation, hundreds of sample sound files and pdf materials provide the course instruction. Guitarists are able to post mp3 assignments using their favorite recording software or through use of readily available freeware. All of the posted musical examples appear in standard notation, with fretboard diagrams and TAB. Great Performance examples, featuring performances by dozens of guitar icons show how the course concepts pertain to the works of everyone from Wes Montgomery and John Coltrane to Green Day and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Grouped in sections of 20, online students from all over the world interact in weekly hour-long chats or through discussion forum posts. Everyone in the course is able to hear their fellow class members’ sound files and read the comments/suggestions posted by the teacher.
Putting the material together was a tremendous challenge. In addition to teaching at Berklee for over 20 years, I’ve done clinics in schools and colleges all over the world. There is a set of basic chord shapes that everyone needs. The need for drill and practice to enable guitarists to have true command of these voicings is a perfect match for the infinite patience of the computer. Learning to spell triads, seventh chords, triads over bass notes and substitute chords in a single key takes time. Moving these shapes into all keys adds another challenge.
The reaction has been amazing. For many, the online approach is preferable to private lessons, DVD’s and instructional books. Participants love to see the material organized in an interactive atmosphere, adding teacher feedback, consistent deadlines, weekly recordings and a pool of fellow guitarists from all over the world—all helping to help the participants stay interested in the material. Unlike most classrooms, everyone is ‘called on’ to play their lesson every week. During online chats, guitarists hash out technical problems, in addition to talking about latest/greatest guitar heroes and guitar gear.
Guitarists find that there are few things more valuable than coming up with a solid set of procedures to get sound files online––getting a good sound onto the web is an essential step for today’s contemporary musician.
The course recently received the 2007 award for Best Online Course by the University Continuing Education Association, an international organization that evaluates online courses of all types. Take a look at berkleemusic.com to get a better idea of the enormous potential for online study.
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