Introduction
Hi,
my name is Chris Downing and I'm a
guitar
and bass, teacher and
player
in Wiltshire, England. Welcome to my website.
Most people
visit here because they are either my weekly students, have seen me
play in a couple of bands, or you've found me through a search
engine because you either want to play better or start
to play. Well you're in the right place. I've put these
pages together to help you keep you moving forward or get started - it's pretty
easy to get stuck in a rut and play the same stuff over and over and
then find you're not progressing past those few songs. Here
you'll find all sorts of ideas, resources, lessons and support
materials to help you play better.
 For
my students these pages are used for resources, templates and links
to useful sites; whether that's to buy some equipment or find new
sites that offer insights other than my own. If you're just a
visitor you'll find this is a website that doesn't try to sell you a
whole load of stuff - I don't need the money or the hassle to start
heavyweight web-trading - there's a few items I can send you, but
I'm primarily a player and teacher. That's what I enjoy doing.
My students have ranged from 6 years old to about 67, so age hasn't seemed
to be an excuse. I've taught courses
for the more mature generation and some summer schools for
younger players. I've taught
guitar and bass at a Secondary School, Primary School
and private students. Everything you find here is a result of
those experiences. Hope you enjoy what you find.
The Bands
I play in two
bands locally; bass in a four piece
local rock band called
Fat Freddy's Cat,
and guitar,
bass, banjo and mandolin in
Cocktail-ROCK
.
'The Cat'
is a party rock
band playing mostly local gigs - a trip Frome or Marlborough, some
15 miles away from home, is about as exotic as we get. (The
band freaked out when we got offered a two week gig in Cyprus!).
Cocktail-ROCK
is
a duo I set-up originally for a golf club's pro-am event. The requirement was to
play rock at cocktail-lounge volume. We also try to play some
songs with the 'wrong' instruments - want to
hear 'Paranoid' on a banjo and 'Rockin all over the World' on a
mandolin? We'll take this duo in a 50 mile radius.
Why Play?
My guitar has
always been close at hand and a great 'friend'. Nothing beats
being able to sit down, and play a few classic songs and riffs to help
chill out after a tough day. So whether
you plan to become a professional guitarist, or just a play for the sheer
enjoyment of creating live music, you'll soon discover that playing in front
of a big audience or just a handful of friends is every bit as exciting
as you imagine it might be. Speak to anyone who's done it -
they're hooked!
These web-pages
will give you some of the basics that I teach. Here you'll
find some help with your solos, common chord progressions, some theory
demystified, finger
exercises, and even a few videos and audios so you can experience a lesson
or two,
as though we're one to one in the practise room.
Chris Downing
You are
visitor number
23/6/2007
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