Workshops

We are scheduling a new round of workshops this Winter! Please email jjmusicschool@gmail.com if you are interested!

The workshops are held at The Music School at Jammin Java - 227 Maple Ave E Vienna, VA. They are two hours long and space is limited! To register click the PayPal links below or email Rebecca at jjmusicschool@gmail.com. Email Luke at lukejbrindley@gmail.com with any musical questions!

Players of all backgrounds are welcome but to make the most of these workshops you should be at least an intermediate guitarist - be comfortable playing fingerstyle, moving around the neck, playing barre chords, etc. Feel free to contact us with any questions!

ABOUT LUKE

Luke graduated from Rutgers University, Phi Beta Kappa, magna cum laude, with a BA in Music specializing in guitar performance and composition. He has toured internationally as a singer/songwriter and with various groups. He has released several critically acclaimed albums under his own name. His current project is Deep River - a trio with Bryan Dawley and Rachel Beauregard.

“Exquisite.” Performing Songwriter
“Digging deep and mining for the soul.” Paste
“One of the years best roots rock releases.” The Washington Post
“His own compelling musical voice.” Acoustic Guitar

INTRO TO ALTERNATE TUNINGS / TBA

Alternate tunings (and open tunings) are ways of tuning the guitar to something other than standard EADGBE. These tunings will bring a new range of richness and expressiveness to your playing. We’ll start by looking at basic chord shapes and scales in alternate tunings like Drop D, EADGCE, CADGBE and DADGAD. We’ll look at music in these tunings by Neil Young, Bob Dylan, Led Zeppelin, Foo Fighters, Red House Painters and more.

ADVANCED ALTERNATE TUNINGS / TBA

We’ll look at some more complex tunings and voicings and start exploring some open tunings Open C (CGCGCE), Open D (DADF#AD), Open G (DGDGBD) and more. We’ll learn some chord voicings and scales in these tunings and examine the music of Bon Iver, Mumford and Sons, David Wilcox, The Allman Brothers, Coldplay, Joni Mitchell and more.

INTRO TO ALTERNATE TUNINGS FOR THE SINGER/SONGWRITER / TBA

Alternate tunings offer the singer/songwriter/guitarist a way to bring a greater range of expressiveness, richness and dynamics to their guitar playing. They can inspire new creative ideas for both accompaniment and composition. We’ll focus on basic chord shapes and scales in these tunings and ways to arrange the songs you’ve written in standard tuning for these new tunings. We’ll look at tunings like Drop D, EADGCE, CADGBE, DADGAD and how artists like Neil Young, Foo Fighters, Red House Painters, Bob Dylan, and more use them.

ADVANCED ALTERNATE TUNINGS FOR THE SINGER/SONGWRITER / TBA

We’ll get into more complex tunings and voicings. We’ll focus on arranging your songs in these tunings and look at some examples of other artists using these tunings. We’ll focus on DADGAD, Open C and Open D. We’ll look at examples of songs by Mumford and Sons, Bob Dylan, David Wilcox, and more.

THE GUITAR STYLES OF BOB DYLAN / TBA

While primarily known as a lyricist, Bob Dylan also has an idiosyncratic guitar style that is worth studying. Elements of his playing have become staples of folk/rock guitar playing. We’ll look at some of his frequently used techniques in songs such as “Mississippi”, “Like a Rolling Stone”, “Desolation Row”, “Tangled Up In Blue”, “Spanish Harlem Incident”, “Shelter From the Storm” and more.

BOB DYLAN’S BLOOD ON THE TRACKS AND OPEN D/E TUNING / TBA

Considered by many to be Dylan’s best album and one of the best rock albums of all time, Blood on the Tracks is unique for Dylan’s use of the Open D/E tuning exclusively. We’ll examine some of these songs including “Shelter From the Storm”, “Buckets Of Rain”, “Simple Twist of Fate” and more.

INTRO TO THE GUITAR STYLE OF BRUCE COCKBURN / TBA

Bruce Cockburn is both a virtuoso guitarist and unparalleled lyricist. We’ll look at some of the influences on his unique style of guitar playing and how these techniques are used in his own songs. We’ll examine the folk/blues style of Mississippi John Hurt, Elizabeth Cotton and their alternating bass technique and how Bruce uses it on songs like “Wondering Where the Lions Are” and “Pacing the Cage”. We’ll also look at the monotonic bass style of Big Bill Broonzy and how Cockburn utilizes this in songs like “Tokyo”, “If I Had a Rocket Launcher”, and more.

INTRO TO THE GUITAR STYLE OF NICK DRAKE / TBA

Nick Drake was a master of using alternate tunings and intricate fingerstyle guitar to accompany himself. We’ll look at some of his unique tunings (CGCFCE, BEBEBE, GGDGBD, and more) and picking patterns in songs like “From the Morning”, “Pink Moon”, “Black Eyed Dog”.