ZOOM Video Lessons
in Lute, Guitar, Banjo, Ukulele
With Rob MacKillop
Zoom
How to book a lesson:
1. Email me to give me notice of your wish to book a lesson – robmackillopATgmail.com
2. Get the free Zoom software from https://zoom.us
3. Pay me £43 via PayPal – see www.paypal.com
4. When the time comes, just click on the link I will send you ten minutes before the start of the lesson. Have your instrument ready and tuned, plus have a sheet of paper and a pencil at the ready. I will start the lesson on the agreed time. You might let me know in advance what you would like to discuss, so that I can be fully prepared for you. I will supply you with pdfs, if appropriate, perhaps make individual short videos of specific tasks during the lesson.
There is a discount for a block booking of ten lessons: £400 – almost a free lesson.
Any questions? Just ask: robmackillopATgmail.com
Rob MacKillop ~ Musician 
Hi Rob,
just got your Bach`s Cello Suites I – III for birthday present, and try Präludium One from Suite One. How do you play it … it sounds so evenly played like finger style. Or do you play it using a plectrum? If using a plectrum: I see the tabulature but my question is about the right hand pattern. Couldn`t find a way to move the plectrum steadily up and down,(as Harry Reser does it in nearly all of his tunes) sometimes there are longer ways, shorter ways and breaks of the movement for the right hand. Do you perhaps just ignore that … and just play without thinking of technique?
Many greetings from Germany,
Christoph Cringle
Hi Christoph. I use a plectrum, with strict alteration of up and down strokes. I get confused any other way. I hope that helps you. Cheers.
Hi Rob, thanks for your answer … I couldn`t find a right hand pattern allowing the pick evenly mooving up and down. So my suggestion is, adding this pattern to tabulature?
Greetings,
Christoph
I don’t really think you should be looking for right-hand patterns. That sounds like a bluegrass player’s thinking. Now, modern bluegrass can be subtle, but Bach is the master of subtlety, and he certainly wasn’t thinking in right-hand patterns, even with a cello bow. If you look at edited editions of his cello suites over the last hundred years, you will find that very one has different notation for the right hand. There is no agreement on what the right hand should be doing. So, rather than impose something on the music, I decided that the player should try different things, find out what works for them. There is no pattern. However, there is an inequality of stress, meaning strong and weak beats. The downbeat is strong, and I always use a down stroke for strong beats, and an up stroke for weak beats. See the fifth paragraph of my Introduction. And good luck!
thank you for your answer. I think, this is the answer, I had been searching for … I am a bit caught in the way of thinking, how Herry Reser teaches.He teaches, music on the tenor banjo has to be played with a steadily up and down movemen of the right (plectrum) hand. He even composed his musicin order to be played like that (Crackerjack, The Cat And The Dog, Heebie Jeebies,…)Do you know Harry Reser? In Bach music, played on tenor banjo, i always come to special points, where i have to do an extra movement of the right hand (interrupting the steadiliy up- and down movement)…so i thaughti just didn`t find the optimal passage to play … i see: i can move close to it, but not nearby.You must be a professional trained, accademicaly studied musician … wish i could play like you do.I am a musician of passion and do it in my band 3Klang (tuba, guitar and banjo). I play the lead on tenor and plectrum banjo and i sing. We play “Badinerie”, which is nice to be payed on tenor, and “Inventio No 15”. We even were able to play “Concerto D minor” years before, I played the violin II – part…we didn`t play it since then, seems worth to reactivate it again.As we have a new guitarist who brought new influences, we play rock titles like” White Room”, “The Joker”, … our new projekt is “Bring On The Night” by Police … watch it on youtube at Gateshead live in 1982think it is a nice challenge to sing and play a different rhytm / phrase at the same time,greetings,Christoph
Rob MacKill
Hi Rob, Greetings from Canada. I have been working on your tenor banjo arrangements of the Bach Cello Suites and was wondering if you have them in pdfs with just the notation as opposed to notation and tab. I don’t use tab and it would eliminate so many page turns while reading the music. I also play double bass in an orchestra and some jazz gigs. So being a reader, for me, the tab just gets in the way.
Just wondering! Great of you to make these resources available.
Ernie
Sorry, Ernie, you’re going to have to manually cut and paste. Mel Bay did the typesetting. I’m pleased you like the book, though! Sorry I can’t help.
Hi Rob
Just got your Scottish Traditional Music for Guitar in DADGAD and open G tunings . I am a bit of a novice with regards Tab and music reading but really want to learn.through using the book
What would really help would be hearing the pieces being played Have looked up usual.places to.find the tunes without much success Any suggestions?
Thanks Rob
Graham from Musselburgh
Hey Rob. I’m going to sign up for a lesson or two with you – two questions;
1. Are there good/bad dates & times for you? (I’m East Coast/U.S.)
2. Why are your rates so low (?) $50 USD. That’s 1970’s pricing
1. I already teach students on the US East Coast, west coast too, and some in the middle 🙂 Tends to be morning time for them, afternoon for me. I teach Mondays to Fridays, 9am to 6pm GMT.
2. You can pay me whatever you deem fit! £37 is the minimum amount 🙂
Hi, how are you? I watched your Serial Piece No.3 for Guitar by Denis ApIvor video and I like it. Congratulations! I also would like to ask you the PDF. Is that possible? Thanks. Peace!
You’ll need to email me: robmackillop@gmail.com