Guitar | Joan Fenton | Intermediate | Period 2 | Week 3 (July 21-26, 2024)
Unlock the mysteries of playing up the neck. Most guitarists only play in first position or need to use a capo if they want to play in another key. Participants in this workshop will learn how to take basic 3 and 4 finger chords ( NOT bar chords) and move them up and down the neck, pick out the melody and learn how to take a song and play it in any key. We will also explore how to find the chords in a song. It’s a “must-take” class for guitarists who feel they are stuck down the neck, or who, when they play up the neck don’t really know exactly what they are doing. Participants should be able to play first position chords A, B, C, D, E, F, and B7, and be able to switch chords easily.
About the Instructor
Folklorist and performer Joan Fenton earned her Master’s degree in folklore from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1981. She records and interviews southern roots artists from North Carolina, South Carolina, West Virginia, and Louisiana. Artists include: Reverend Gary Davis, Willie Trice, Pink Anderson, and Guitar Shorty. Fenton’s folklore thesis fieldwork on Howard Cotten, recorded between 1976 and 1978, is represented through his songs, anecdotes, and tales about fishing and hunting. Documentation of field recordings include transcription notes from interviews and notes compiled from audio material. She is the owner of several stores in Charlottesville, Virginia that feature traditional and contemporary handcrafts. Joan was one of the founders of Blues Week along with Phil Wiggins and Sparky Rucker.