Adult Jam

Hi there.

  On Saturday, February 2nd, we will be start our second season of Adult Jams. This is primarily for the benefit of my adult students , but everyone is welcome (no kids please). Most everyone is a beginner and still feeling their way around a guitar. You can bring your guitar and play along but, if you're more than a beginner,  you can't show off. (If you do we'll escort you over to Guitar Center and let you play with the 15 year olds! )

  We always start off with Stand By Me in G. Since it's getting close to Valentine's Day, I'll play a love song or two. Then, at any point, if someone wants to play a song for the group, they are welcome to  do so. No pressure, you don't even have to play if you don't feel like it. We just like getting together and playing some songs. 

  Location: Vocals and More , 481 N. Commons Rd, Suite 100, Aurora IL   640-851-3262

  Time:  7:00 PM to (officially) 9:00 ( or what ever )

  Thanks, hope to see you there!

  Terry

Humidity and your guitar

Hi, Everyone.

With winter in the midwest going back and forth, the two big things you really have to watch out for is humidity and temperature control. I have been discussing humidity with my students and they all know how important it is. At the end of this post is a link to a page on Larrivee's web site that has a lot of information about humidity and your guitar. While it is directed at us Larrivee owners, it has a lot of good information for everyone else! 

Cold is bad for your guitar also. I don't have to tell you to not keep it in your car trunk. As you know, trunks get very cold in the winter and very hot in the summer. But even in the back seat of your car for a half hour can really lower the temperature.     

 When you go into a house that's heated to 70/75 or so and open the guitar case, the poor chilly guitar experiences thermal shock! As the wood, glue, plastics and finish try to get up to temp, they expand at different rates. In extreme cases this can cause cracking of the finish. It's what's known as checking. 

   Allow your guitar to warm up in it's hard shell case. Let it get close to room temperature before you open it. The newer finishes aren't as sensitive but you should still avoid extremes. 

   The bottom line is that your guitar was probably made in a factory that maintained 70 degrees and 50 per cent RH. You want to keep your guitar's environment as close to that as possible.

Thanks. Keep playing guitar!

Terry

 http://www.larrivee.com/5_features/educationEssays/humidityWood_essay.html

Winter Guitar

Hi everyone. It's cold and dry out and your guitar is starting to feel the effects. I've already adjusted 5 guitars due to the change in humidity. Try to keep your guitar at 40 to 50 per cent relative humidity and it should be fine. Keep it in the case and use a guitar humidifier like the products from Planet Waves.

Hopefully, nothing will happen to your guitar. But, you might notice the fret ends scratching your hands as you slide up the neck. Or it might start buzzing and sound more like a sitar than a guitar. At the worst, and I've seen this before, a crack develops on the top and just gets worse. In that case the repair shop needs to re-hydrate it which can take weeks. Then re-glue and clamp and maybe cleat the top. It's not cheap and it's not covered by any warranty that I've seen.

So take good care of your guitar, and keep playing!

Terry 

www.napervilleguitarlessons.com