How was your experience going through the site and all the resources?

“The listing of available lessons were all pieces that I was familiar with from the books I was using to learn. Knowing that I could get direct feedback from someone like Jason seemed like the best way to improve my playing, so I signed up. The site is very easy to navigate and I enjoyed looking through other student videos and their feedback. The organization of lessons into Basic, Intermediate and Advanced makes it very easy to find something new to work on that I know will be approachable for me."

How was it submitting your first video to Jason for his feedback?

“Submitting my first videos was a bit intimidating. This was some of the first pro level feedback I was ever hearing about my playing. I still remember how exciting it was when I saw the first notification that a Response video had been posted.

"The advice given on my first videos made me realize just how much work I still had ahead of me. Jason prescribed a few fundamental exercises to work on and I was able to begin correcting some of my technical flaws very quickly."

You’ve now had 7 Video Exchanges with Jason, is there any advice that stands out as particularly valuable to you?

"One observation Jason made in my earlier videos was the amount of tension in my hands. I have been very conscious about this ever since and it has definitely helped me learn to play in a much more relaxed way.

"I also made some very basic mistakes in the rhythm of one section of Lagrima in an attempt to mimic the style I heard on some YouTube videos. Taking Jason's advice, I first learned to play the piece in perfect time before beginning to add more stylistic elements."

What would you tell someone about ArtistWorks who hasn’t tried it?

"Submitting videos for the first time can be intimidating, but it gets easier with time. Even people who are not yet ready to record themselves can benefit from watching Jason play through the pieces and give advice to other students. There is enough material to keep anyone but the most advanced players busy for quite a long time."

How was your experience seeing Jason in concert with your grandmother?

"My grandmother, who is now 85 years old, loves classical music. She was thrilled to learn that I started playing guitar and this has allowed us to connect over music. I was told that I'm not allowed to enter her house if I don't have my guitar with me.

"She used to sing, play piano and attend concerts frequently. Due to health issues with my grandfather she hasn't been able to get out of the house as often. When I saw that Jason was performing within an hour of my house I decided that arranging for someone to stay with my grandfather and taking her to the concert would be my Christmas gift to her and she could not have been more excited. In the weeks between Christmas and the concert she probably told every single person she knew about the upcoming show.

"We ended up having a wonderful day together. In the hour car ride up to Beacon we listened to Jason's Play album, then had a nice brunch across the street from where the concert was being held. We then arrived early enough to be within the first group of people allowed in and were able to get 2 seats in the front row.

"This was my first classical guitar concert and I was thrilled to be close enough to really see Jason's technique. Both of us thoroughly enjoyed every minute of the performance. We even listened to Play again on the ride home and couldn't stop talking about the concert. The whole experience exceeded my expectations in every way and I will definitely be keeping my eye out for more concerts in my area. Music is really helping to strengthen the relationship I have with my grandmother and I would love continue that by taking her to more shows and being able to play for her more often."

What are you goals for playing guitar?

"My main goal is to able to play well enough to perform in front of small groups of friends and family. Building up a nice list of pieces that I can play confidently and mostly from memory, and working on performance anxiety. A longer term goal of mine is to play all of La Catedral by Agustín Barrios. Ever since I first heard it, I have dreamt about being able to play it myself.

"I'm currently working on both Narvaez: Guardame Las Vacas, and Barrios: Julia Florida, but I'm not quite ready to post videos of either one yet. I'm also continuing to improve on a number of pieces in the beginner section including Lagrima, the Sor B Minor Etude and Carulli Andantino G Major. I always try to have 1-2 pieces that are a challenge for me to play and a number of simpler pieces that I continue to play through in order to keep them fresh in my memory and continue to improve on.

"In general I have been very happy with my progress. I look back at videos that I posted a year ago and I see tremendous improvements in my own playing. I have much more confidence with my left hand which allows me to focus more on the music instead of constantly looking at my fingers to check for proper placement on the frets."

What advice would you give other guitarists who are struggling to make progress?

"Spend time while away from your guitar working on things like music reading ability and fretboard knowledge. I feel like my struggle with reading sheet music really held me back in the beginning. There are great apps for both Android and iPhone that allow you to practice even when you don't have access to a guitar.

"Take things slow and don't reach too far beyond your current abilities. It's great to have a goal piece to work on, but stretch too far and it can get very frustrating and discouraging. If I ever feel like my progress has stalled I will go back and play through easier music that I once struggled to play. Playing pieces that are now simple for me from a technical standpoint allows me to work more on the musicality. It can be far more rewarding to play through a simple piece extremely well than to struggle through something more complex."

Learn classical guitar online with Jason Vieaux at http://artistworks.com/jason-vieaux

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