Jamming is about a group of disparate players playing together in time, in tune, having complementary parts, singing well, creating a groove, with clear opportunities to take a solo, starting and ending cleanly, not playing so loudly that players can’t hear themselves and, generally, producing the best sound possible!
Learn how to get a group to play music which is tight, clean and musical and, overall, sounding like a pro band. It should be entartaining and with everyone involved at the level they can play at.
Not all jams are enjoyable. They can be too loud and messy, disorganised, making some feel lost at the start of every song, individuals dominating, some just dropping out, can’t hear yourself think, etc. Essentially, not as rewarding as it should be.
A little knowledge and lots of pro input/guidance goes a long way to learning the dos and don’ts of great jamming. We’ll use lots of songs coupled with ‘on-the-fly arrangements to bring out the key organisational, guitar and vocals aspects.
Players will be encouraged to bring along the songs they like to play and even lead the group when playing them.
Jamming with a group should be a wonderfully exhilarating and uplifting experience – if done properly !
We all know the downfalls to disorganised jams:
This Jam Day seeks to address the above issues while playing classic songs across multiple genres and styles from our set list as well as selected ones that players bring along. The tutor will periodically compose something on the spot and bring the group in gradually, showing how individual voices (that’s guitar and vocals) can work together to produce a glorious sound. But tunes and songs are our main focus.
We take everything to another level by going under the hood and exploring ins-and-outs of jamming and how to make it work for a disparate group of players, making sure everyone has their own part and playing at their own level.
Acoustic, electric and bass and other instruments are all welcome – we even had a harmonica, trombone, ukelele, mandolin, baritone guitar, etc. Singers are especially welcome!
Songs covered in previous Jams have included the likes of: Pretty Woman, Lola, Black or White, Sittin’ on the dock of the bay, Help, Gravity, Moonlight Shadow,Moon River, Addicted to love, Beat it, Alright Now, etc.
Leading a song
We’ll also encourage players to have a go at leading a song. Singers and other instruments are very welcome. Our tutor will be able to offer advice on vocals and guitar (a bit on bass) but all other instruments will be expected to just fit as nomnated by the tutor.
In summary
This is a structured jam, controlled by a pro offering advice on guitar playing and singing, with the overall the aim of playing a bunch of songs to a much higher standard than usual; with everyone playing a part and having a cracking, fun time!
This course is aimed at the Late Beginner to Intermediate levels of acoustic, electric guitarists and bass players.
The tutor will also offer advice about singing as well and guide bass players. If we have trombones, horns, harmonicas, etc. then these guys will be left to their own devices and we’ll rely on them being able to keep up!
The course isn’t really for raw beginners; that said, most players will pick up some real nuggets from this day – specifically, what you need to know and be able to make real on the guitar to fit into a jam scenario.
We’d like to get the group’s input on songs and lead sheets but we’ll have a bunch of classic song lead sheets to hand out or use via a projector. You’ll get these PDFs as we go through the day.
BTW, we recently ran a Jam Essential online course – it covered all the basics you should know or have been exposed to; email for detail if interested.
If anyone wants some video snippets taken during the day we’ll make these available to the group afterwards.
Unlike our online sessions these Day-Only courses can only accommodate limited group numbers – book early to avoid disappointment.
B&B and dinners are available at the venue (other places are available in the area as well !). Get in touch directly with the venue once you’ve received the Joining Instructions.