Cheap Guitar Grimoire Scales & Modes-DVD (DVD) Price

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Customer Reviews of Guitar Grimoire Scales & Modes-DVD

only for the experienced theorist (and B-movie fan)
This DVD is strange. Let's just get that out of the way. I almost turned it off after the first thirty seconds because it is so bizarre - tons of weird, satanistic goth stuff. But, mostly out of curiosity, I kept watching. I'm a former Berklee student and I'm very familiar with intervals and modes, but was looking for something to refresh my memory. Believe it or not, this was actually perfect for what I was looking for. But I can't imagine a beginning musician trying to follow this video. He flies through the material at a breakneck pace, barely explaining anything as he goes. Within minutes you're already talking about Phrygian modes and so forth. If you're not familiar with advanced musical theory, you'll be hopelessly lost, trying to keep up with the information while being slightly amazed at the surreal (ridiculous) production quality of the DVD.

However, if you are somewhat experienced with musical theory, you may glean a good bit of info from this. Strangely though, when he relates it to the guitar, it seems to be very basic info. It doesn't really add up - to be giving musical info at the most advanced musical levels, but giving guitar tips at the neophyte level.

All in all, I can't say I recommend this for too many people. You'd be much better off just buying the book version of this DVD (the Guitar Grimoire). It has tons of theory info in it, minus the pentagrams and dudes in black cloaks. He also references the book constantly in the DVD, so unless you have it, the DVD isn't particularly useful anyway.

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Very strange
I figured that I'd try this since I have the book. Actually, if you spend time reading the book, which is very helpful, you'll learn volumes more about scales and chords. The narrator/player cruises though at such a high rate of speed through all sections that it almost requires you to know what he is doing before hand to understand. I'm not writing this from a beginners point of view but as a warning to those who think it may be a nice introduction; it really isn't. The reviews that gave it 5 stars puzzles me and I'm truly and honestly being sincere when I say this. Get the book before this video and you'll know what I mean. As an aside, to call the whole wizardry thing being cheesy is an understatement. I wouldn't call it satanic, just not necessary. If anyone's interested I'll sell you my copy.. It really is of no value..

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Exceptionally Cheesy And Not A Good Learning Tool
I was very excited about getting the Guitar Grimoire Scales & Modes DVD. I had been told that it was tantamount to a month's worth of guitar lessons with a top-notch instructor. Unfortunately, I found this DVD to be exceptionally cheesy with a pedagogical style that is both tedious and repetitive.

As an intermediate guitar player, I bought this DVD to improve my knowledge of the way scales and modes can be used harmonically with chords. I had already bought the Grimoire scales and modes book and found it to be a decent reference tool, though only for someone who already understands the basics of guitar and music theory.

The DVD disappointed me in every way. It added nothing to the book. Moreover, it is incredibly boring. To his credit, the instructor attempts to liven up the video by dressing in a wizard's costume. In addition, when the instructor talks, he does so while sitting atop a thrown surrounded by gargoyles. His voice is digitized so that it sounds only partly human. Lightning bolts shoot out of his guitar between segments. To me, this was an attempt to make an otherwise boring video into something a bit more entertaining. But the attempt failed. The result is a DVD that is more adolescent than professional, more cheesy than instructional.

I would recommend that guitar players (especially beginners) stay away from this DVD. It is far too complicated for someone with no previous understanding of music theory. Furthermore, many guitar buffs might be turned off by the fact that most of the DVD's lessons are based on the piano, not the guitar. This DVD might as well be titled the "Piano Grimoire" because it focuses almost exclusively on the piano.

If you want to learn more about scales and modes, you might want to try Joe Satriani's lessons on this topic in Guitar World magazine. You can find these online at www.guitarworld.com. For a really great book about the guitar and music theory try Fretboard Logic by Bill Edwards. I am sorry that I bought the Grimoire DVD and cannot recommend it to anyone.