Customer Reviews

DVD-Learn To Play Flamenco Guitar

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I've been playing flamenco for several years, but learned from instructors who were quite busy and could not spend a lot of time helping me refine my technique. The value of this DVD is that you can play the material over and over again until you have the rhythms down solid. I read music, but I find I really like seeing the left and right hand parts demonstrated separately -- another thing you can't really do with a live instructor. Aaron Gilmartin also clarifies some confusing aspects of Flamenco terminology -- something I wish I'd had in the early years of playing

Aaron goes into great detail on each rasguedo and rhythm, giving you everything you need to learn them perfectly. And his hints about playing and how each technique should feel are priceless. The melodic passages are very basic, but pleasant and reasonably interesting. But I'm after the rhythm, and I got it here.

I also have Juan Martin's "Solos Flamenco", but that book is too vague and moves too quickly to advanced material to be very rewarding. I did like some of the Martin's pieces, and enjoyed learning them, but I don't think his course really helped me improve my technique.

This is a great book for new flamenco players that already have some proficiency at classical guitar, but also valuable for intermediate students llike myself. A green beginner will get lost -- you've got to master fretboard and right-hand fundamentals before tackling the flamenco style.

This DVD (they are 2 in fact) is very good. It focuses very well on very important techniques that usually all flamenco guitar players use, and it gives you methods to practice them with a guitar and without it. The picture of the movie is very clear, and the method of showing both the right hand and the left hand at the same time is very successful. Also the DVD titles are very well made allowing you to easily jump to any technique you are practicing.

What you have to be careful about this DVD is that it is not for beginners in guitar. Don't expect that you are in zero level and you want to learn flamenco from it. The level of the songs played and the techniques discussed are to a bit experienced guitar player.

I strongly recommend this DVD if you would like to learn flamenco, and I also recommend that you get the book of Juan Martin too. These two together will form a complete ring.

This DVD is really good. I have been playing drums for a while now, but always had fooled around guitars. However, only recently I decided to play flamenco guitar. I bought a book on the basics and this DVD. It is amazing how fast you can start playing the basic forms of flamenco like Tangos. The DVD is easy to follow and Aaron simplifies the pieces. He goes over technique for the right and left hand.

However this shouldn't be looked as a comprehensive but rather intorduction to Flamenco which in my opinion is really beneficial for starters.

If you play guitar already and want to explore flamenco, there is not a better DVD than this one.

I enjoyed the various sections of these 2 DVDs. He breaks the various guitar techniques used in flamenco into playable pieces. The split screen showing both left and right hand simultaneously is excellent for matching what to do as you learn. I would recommend this DVD to any beginner to intermediate player, but it helps to have some familiarity with the guitar and with music structure to appreciate the lessons..

I bought this guitar a while back, when I was just starting to play flamenco guitar. I found it to be too complicated and put it on the shelf. Two years later I decided to give it another try and I am definitely impressed. This is truly the best learn Flamenco guitar DVD out there.....Encuentro videos maybe better but this one's in english, is accessible and doesn't cost a $100 per dvd. Aaron covers the tangos, alegrias, soleares and Bulerias palos as well as the various flamenco guitar techniques e.g. rasgeo tremelo e.t.c. Aaron explains clearly what he is doing (whether its explaining a technique or breaking down the falsetas and explaining how to play them.

This DVD is not meant for an absolute guitar beginner because it takes time to develop some of the techniques to a half decent level. For example the rasgeo stroke can take at least 6 weeks to get it down and upto a year to make it sound good. Having said that, if you're an flamenco guitar beginner willing to invest serious practice time...this DVD might just be the resource you need.

I bought this instructional CD to accompany Juan Martin's "Solos Flamenco," in my efforts to learn flamenco at home without a teacher. This CD is good in that it offered tips on developing the "rasguedo" and "avanico" techniques which Martin's does not offer. This is really good because just watching Juan Martin play the techniques is quite daunting! But Aaron Gilmartin explains how to approach these techniques and practice them. What both of these instructional CDs do not offer is the development of the complex rhythms found in flamenco. Actually, this CD does touch on the subject matter but not to the extend that I want. In all, this CD is good for intermediate players of guitar and beginners of flamenco style. If you are beginning guitar, I wouldn't recommend this as your first instructional material.

I have purchased few instructional tape on this topic with disappointing results. The instructior usually gives a very brief demonstration of a technique and then comes a master level piece using the technique.Aaron comes from classical guitar background and I believe through learning Flamenco guitar he had encountered the same issues and pitfalls that any beginner will face. I really love his sympathetic approach to teaching in addtion to not taking anything for granted. Before he move to a new topic he make sure has cover the material well enough that to not leave you behind. The course also come a TAB book which may be useful but who needs it, just watch the DVD. Thanks Aaron, and hoping to see more DVD's from you soon

I purchased this 2 DVD set on a recommendation from a flamenco guitarist. Because I saw a negative review somewhere, I needed to write this review. First, this 2-DVD set is VERY WELL organized and Aaron Gilmartin does an excellent job of breaking down the flamenco styles and techniques required to play every piece on both DVDs. If you can fingerpick (bluegrass, folk, any fingerstyle), you can follow everything Gilmartin explains. He even tells you at what points of the DVDs you should hit "pause" and practice what he covered. If you want to explore flamenco and don't know anything about it, this DVD set is as good a starting point as the other instructional DVD's available out there. You won't be sorry, but you will have to devote yourself to it. Not because of any shortcomings in Mr. Gilmartin's presentation, but rather because flamenco is, indeed, a difficult and impressive style of guitar playing. Go for it!

This instructional DVD does not go in detail about strum fingerings and picado fingerings. This DVD is not for beginners.

This DVD does not show or go over basic "how-to"s. Half of the first DVD is devoted to the author explaining Flamenco terminology definitions. The second half of this DVD then shows him playing two Flamenco songs without any explanation. Skip this DVD set altogther. Juan Martin's Flamenco education material is much much much better.