The woes & triumphs of finding a mentor

I’ve met some talented guitarists in the San Francisco Bay area but I finally settled on one–Alek.  He has something the other guitar teachers did not: a teaching style similar to Danny’s and chemistry that inspires me and makes me hurry home and start practicing.

To all of you self taught guitarists, I commend you because I don’t have the self discipline to watch videos and organize my own curriculum.  Instead, I need accountability and motivation or else, I lose momentum and wonder why I am doing it in the first place.  I can’t imagine sorting through thousands of guitar videos that are available today… do you ever feel conflicted in your interests?  I think I would learn things out of order. But if you ever decide to get a guitar teacher, definitely be extremely picky.

Growing up I’ve had my share of bland, non-inspiring, overpriced teachers.  Fortunately, I’ve figured out what I prefer in a teacher and came to the conclusion that no matter how talented or at what price… chemistry and teaching style is at the top of my criteria.

1. Chemistry is everything.  This is my number 1 priority.  Three weeks ago, I had a “free trial lesson” with a guitarist who used to live in NYC and LA.  He had friends who played with Michael Jackson and what not… simply a long list of impressive connections but our lack of chemistry made me forgo his services.  Don’t get me wrong, he was really outgoing, a great conversationalist and everything but he didn’t get me amped up about practicing.  He also didn’t cater his lessons to my goals and it felt more like a check list: “learn the parts of guitar, okay good, CHECK.”  I felt like he didn’t care about what I already knew and was just going through the motions.
2. Teaching style is not one for all, nor is it customizable.  I’ve stuck with some wonderful musicians thinking I could just ask them to slow down or reword their explanations but it’s difficult to change a person’s teaching style and mind set.  You must find someone who naturally accommodates the way you learn because very few teachers can adapt to different students.

My favorite thing about Alek is he jumps right into the nitty gritty: theory, technique and technical terms that hurt your brain.  Luckily, I enjoy squinting my eyes as I memorize and wrap my mind around music theory.  It helps, it really does–no, not all actually.  On top of that, I can visibly see in his eyes and hand gestures that he’s passionate and enthusiastic about my journey to layin’ down some sweet solos.  We typically (accidentally) we go over the allotted time period but he’s never rushed me out or glanced at his watch.  In fact, sometimes I am the one packing up my guitar while he’s still yammering on and on about our lesson–it’s refreshing.

The other guitar teachers I “tried out” simply covered barre chords (which I already know) and how to read music (which again, I already know).  It baffles me because they knew I can read music after I explained my history but they quizzed me anyways.  I know, I can’t be annoyed about that because, yeah, a lot of people are big fat liars.  But I proved to be well-versed, big thanks to my militant, high school marching band director.

In retrospect, Danny is still the best teacher out of the 8 or 9 I grew up with.  And I still keep in touch with him, in case you’re wondering.  In fact, he texted me a couple days ago asking when I’m moving back to the east coast!

Flying coast to coast without celebrity treatment

“Is that an instrument?” asked the US Airways employee.
“Yes,” I answered softly with sleepy eyes.
“And you want to check it with your suitcase?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t know if I would do that…”
“And why not?”

Perhaps there is more advice on the internet nowadays but when I began flying from California to North Carolina regularly, the concept of traveling with a guitar was daunting.  Reading google search results stating, “it depends on the airlines” and the inevitable horror stories did not help with my anxiety of allowing mysterious airport employees handle my pride and joy… I mean, has any passenger actually seen these people?

I am very fortunate that three Christmases ago, my Dad got me an extremely nice Gator case.  It is heavy and a pain to lug around, especially while running through the airport to catch a connecting flight before the terminal door closes… Oof! Bad memories…  But man, oh man, is that case sturdy.

Typically, I travel with my guitar as a carry on and put it in the overhead compartment or underneath the plane with the other fragile instruments and baby strollers.  However, one day I found myself boarding a plane that was so full, there was no room in the overhead compartment.  That’s when one of fears came to life…

“Miss, this flight is full.  But you can check your baggage at no cost.”
“There’s no space underneath the plane for fragile items?” I asked suspiciously.
“No.  Check in your instrument and it’ll arrive at your final destination.”

I asked the poor woman several questions after that.  I simply could not understand how the plane did not have any compartments underneath the plane for passengers–Thanks for looking out, United Airlines.

After sensing her frustration, I surrendered my guitar and sat on two planes as I anxiously awaited the fate of my beloved Breedlove, acoustic guitar. And you know what?  It was completely okay!

I mean, the buckles that close the case were loose but thankfully, I locked it which disabled its ability to open without a key.  Was there any damage?  Not at all.  There wasn’t a single crack, scratch or dent on my guitar.  Now that I think about it, my Gator case was in better shape than my suitcase.

I’m not going to lie, as nerve wrecking as it was, it was nice to not lug my guitar around an airport.  Because the Gator case is the weight of a small child, I fear setting it down to rest my arm then absentmindedly leaving it to get stolen.  So, this past Tuesday I checked my guitar, regardless of what the US Airways employee warned me.  And you know what?

Again, it was fine!

Traveling Tips:

• Invest in a hardshell guitar case.  Yeah, it’s expensive but it’s like health insurance:  better safe than sorry.
• Carry your guitar onto the plane.  You can check it in when you initially arrive at the airport but it will be FREE at the terminal.
• Avoid United Airlines.  But that’s my unbiased opinion because I had a bad experience and they don’t tag your guitar as “fragile” like US Airways/American Airlines.
• Tune down all your strings to prevent them from breaking due to the high elevation.
• Examine your guitar while in the baggage claim area.  I can’t imagine how difficult it would be to call the airport about damages found on your guitar.
• Lock your case!