Guitar Workshop
Introduction-Welcome!
BY John Boda
Welcome to my free on-line guitar workshop! I sincerely hope that some of the lesson papers that I have posted will teach, inspire, and maybe spark some creative nerve to help you advance more on guitar!
This workshop is not intended for beginners, but more for the inter-mediate to advanced guitarist. Now, for those who don’t know me and stumbled here wondering, “Who the heck are you?”….here is a brief musical background summary
Background
I have been playing guitar, and playing it very intensely, and nearly non-stop since my senior year in high school. For those keeping track of such things, at this writing that has been a little over 30 years! I have been playing professionally, (Playing gigs/concerts for money) since April of 1977, and began teaching as a guitar instructor in 1982.
So this year (2007) marks my 30th year as a professional guitarist, and next year will mark my 25th year as a guitar instructor…..with those milestone year anniversaries, I launch this workshop!
I began teaching guitar at C Major Guitars in Wichita Kansas, and maintained an average of about 30 students per week (one per half hour lesson weekly) from 1982-1986. It was at that time, as a young dedicated guitar player/instructor, that I wrote many of the lessons posted here. I also was playing gigs at that time, and practicing scales, songs, and chords for 3-4 hours every day, sometimes more. (When I first began playing I was extremely dedicated and practiced several hours a day for the first couple of years.)
I left my teaching position to travel playing full time with an active band on the road across the western states. But shortly after, I decided to move back to the Chicago area, where I was born, and pursue my career there.
Besides playing regularly in bands immediately, I also began teaching guitar once again at Modern Music in Darien, at the time. After a few years I moved outside further to Joliet and resumed teaching at Mr. Bills Music.
For the past five years I have been a part time guitar instructor at The School for the Arts through Community Christian Church in Romeoville Illinois.
Since 1995, I have been a full time singer/guitarist/entertainer playing all over the Chicago area, performing nearly 600 gigs per year! These gigs are mostly solo for many of the senior facilities, as well as at many restaurants and lounges.
I also play out with my hot trio called “Nebula Forming” and also with other bands as a fill-in contact player.
Since I know these types of things can get very long and boring, I will end it here!
But if you ever are interested in coming out to see me play, please click on the “Now Appearing” page in this site for the latest gig info.
It is a huge relief to finally get all my old lessons into a more permanent form to this site! You are free to view or copy/print any of these to use for yourself. Thanks, JB