Ragtime music and DADGAD tuning seem to be made for each other, or so you will believe after playing these wonderful arrangements by Rob MacKillop. With performance levels running from intermediate to advanced, there is plenty here to challenge and delight the player and audience too. With titles by Scott Joplin (The Entertainer, Weeping Willow, etc.), James Scott (Grace and Beauty), Charles L. Johnson (Dill Pickles Rag), Fred Van Eps (Rag Pickings), to popular jazzier pieces by A. J. Weidt and the rag-influenced Piedmont blues of Blind Boy Fuller, there is quite a variety of styles to explore. Additionally, recordings by Rob MacKillop will guide and entertain you in the art of DADGAD ragtime guitar! Access to online audio is included. Written in tablature and standard notation.

Rob MacKillop presents 20 wonderful fingerstyle blues arrangements andcompositions in DADGAD tuning. The styles covered in this book include country blues, boogie woogie left-hand piano blues, early jazz blues, gut-bucket blues and modal blues. Great traditional songs are included such as St. James Infirmary Blues, St. Louis Blues, C. C. Rider and more, alongside 15 full-length studies. The book begins with easy arrangements, progressing to intermediate and more advanced ones - in short, these blues studies will improve your technique through playable 12-bar tunes. A wide array of chord and scale fingerings are also provided, including pentatonic minor and major scales, blues scales, diminished arpeggios and scales, 7th chords, whole-tone scales and the super Locrian mode and much more! All the tunes presented have accompanying audio recorded by Rob MacKillop and are available to download

Make your old-time and bluegrass music sing through the warm open-string sound of DADGAD tuning! This book includes twenty classic old-time and bluegrass tunes, arranged and recorded by Rob MacKillop. The material is ideal for players of easy to intermediate levels and is designed for flatpicking, but can also be played fingerstyle. Repertoire includes Angeline the Baker, Blackberry Blossom, Fire on the Mountain, Old Joe Clark, Whiskey Before Breakfast, Wildwood Flower and much more. Additional content includes DADGAD chord diagrams, instructions and a technique primer. Includes access to online audio.

This book contains thirty of the most requested Celtic session tunes, arranged for DADGAD tuning. Accompanying audio is available as an online download, whichincludes performances by Rob MacKillop. To assist playing these tunes, a technique primer and specific exercises are included. With the use of a capo youwill be able to play these tunes in their traditional keys. The tunes can be played fingerstyle or with a pick. The repertoire includes classic tunes such as DrowsyMaggie, Soldier's Joy, St. Patrick's Day In the Morning, The Kesh, The Rights ofMan and The Wind That Shakes The Barley. A bonus twenty-five traditional Scottish lute pieces are included, also arranged for DADGAD tuning! Includes access to online audio

This book is aimed at beginner lute and guitar players interested in playing Renaissance lute music on either instrument. Lute and guitar tablature are included, along with notes on technique, biographies of lute composers from the 16th century, and general advice on buying, stringing and tuning a lute. The book starts with single-line melodies, before progressing to two-part and full repertoire pieces. Selections include works by great Renaissance composers such as John Dowland, Francesco da Milano, Alonso Mudarra, Francesco Spinacino and others, with music from England, Scotland, Italy, France and Germany. A useful chord chart is also included. Every piece in the book has been recorded for download by Rob MacKillop--in itself, an album worth owning. Includes access to online audio.

The word "DADGAD" refers to the names of the notes on the open strings of one of many alternate tunings for the guitar, one that is very popular with acoustic guitar players. It has a wonderfully warm resonance, allowing you to play simple single-note melodies, yet still fill out the sound of the instrument. The twenty Christmas carols presented here form a perfect introduction to playing guitar in DADGAD tuning. The melodies are presented without added bass notes or chords - just those great melodies, once heard, never forgotten. This means you already know what the tune is supposed to sound like, leaving you to concentrate on playing the notes on the right string and fret, and for the right length of time. This book is the easiest of Rob Mackillop's DADGAD books. It assumes you know how to hold and tune the guitar, and play some notes and a few simple chords. The book includes a "Technique Primer" to help get you up and running, plus the essential chord diagrams for playing in DADGAD tuning. Book includes access to online audio featuring Rob MacKillop's performance of each piece.

Many great Scottish traditional tunes such as Flowres Of The Forrest can be traced back to the 17th century—a period when writing down tunes in manuscript collections for the lute was of high interest. Rob MacKillop has created very playable arrangements for the mandolin featuring 25 popular tunes from the Skene, Balcarres, Panmure and Straloch manuscripts. This is a wonderful collection of dance tunes and airs, most of which have not been available for the mandolin until now. The notation is in treble clef with tablature for GDAE tuning. Includes access to online audio featuring Rob Mackillop’s performance of each piece. Get ready to explore a wonderful new take on old repertoire!

El McMeen has authored many guitar books for Mel Bay Publications, but this book holds a special place in his heart. This cutting-edge collection includes melodic, challenging, and exuberant band marches carefully arranged for fingerstyle guitar. The book contains arrangements of seven marches (including six by John Philip Sousa), many of which are in various open tunings. These pieces are challenging and geared for intermediate-advanced and advanced guitarists. There are so many great melodies in this collection–guitarists can camp on sections of pieces that they enjoy or tackle the pieces in their entirety. The book also contains a discussion by El McMeen on his selection and arrangement process. Includes access to online audio.

Whispering Stones won the award for “Best Recording” from the Washington Area Music Association and has continued to be a favorite with fans of fingerstyle guitar music throughout the world. The book features Celtic-inspired original and traditional tunes performed on solo acoustic guitar with the occasional addition of flute, mandolin, cello, piano, or bells. The tunes appear in the same order as in the recording. Al Petteway is an award-winning fingerstyle guitarist and composer. His many “Wammie” awards from the Washington Area Music Association include “Artist of the Year” and “Musician of the Year”. Al’s playing fuses Celtic/British ideas and tunings with American themes and drive. Acoustic Guitar Magazine praised his ‘concise, clean arrangements similar to John Renbourn’s better work’. In notation and tablature.

This book, written for those with no prior musical experience, is the definitive text for learning C-tuning concert, or classic-style 5-string banjo. Written by the late Frank Bradbury, Banjo Method provides a thorough grounding in music theory and note reading, along with a complete presentation of Mr. Bradbury's unique 5-string concert banjo technique and outstanding solo and duet arrangements by various artists. the technique described here is radically different from that found in other books about the 5-string banjo, and no tablature is used. No plastic or metal picks are used on the right-hand fingers, nor are the fingernails used, but rather the bare fingertips. the hand positions recommended by Mr. Bradbury are not unlike those of a classical guitarist. All in all, this is an uncommon, but valid approach to solo banjo technique. Online audio of select pieces and exercises featuring Rob MacKillop now available.