Paul | Guitar Lessons and Performance - Paul Elwood

Dinner at the Alabardero

Dinner at Alabardero by Paul Elwood is written in a Chamber Jazz and Gypsy Jazz (Jazz Manouche) fusion style, heavily incorporating elements of traditional European folk, blues, and classical counterpoint.The piece is scored as an instrumental duet for Classical Guitar and Acoustic Bass. It blends traditional jazz harmony with an avant-garde, chromatic compositional approach.

Classical Guitar <—> Acoustic Bass

[ Harmonic Style ] [ Melodic Motion ] [ Rhythmic Structure ]

• Chromatic Jazz Chords • Syncopated Hooks • 4/4 Time Signature
• Diminished Passing • Sudden Register Jumps • “Walking” Bass Lines
• Rapid Key Shifts • Blues/Folk Flourishes • Highly Improv-Ready

Harmonic Style & Musicality

Intricate Jazz and Chromatic Chords:

The chord progression bypasses standard diatonic patterns. It relies on complex jazz sonorities like F6, B♭7, A7, and B(b9) interspersed with diminished chords (Fdim, Edim, E♭dim) that act as tense, chromatic passing mechanisms.

Rapid Modulations:

The tonality shifts quickly through contrasting spaces. For example, measures 8–12 jump rapidly through E -> Fdim -> A -> Am -> D7 -> G -> Gm -> C7, creating a […]

Paul2026-06-21T16:51:03-04:00

G major scale

Guitar lesson G major scale. The word “Position” simply tells us what fret our first finger is going to be on, so in second position, 1st finger is on the 2nd fret. In 3rd position, 1st finger is on the 3rd fret.

Download the associated PDF here

But there we have 5 frets and only four fingers! Pinkie finger has to do some extra work here, so he can cover the 6th and 7th fret. A 5 fret stretch scale is an excellent exercise to help us teach all our fingers to move accurately and independently.

Also, both the 2nd and 3rd position G Maj. scales are “portable”, meaning that they don’t need an open string. Essentially, if we learn these Major scale patterns in one position we will have them in all 12 keys. Pretty cool, right? Practice these patterns starting at the root, moving to the octave, ascending and descending

G scale is spelled “G,A, B, C, D, E, F# and G. G Major has one sharp which is the 7th (F#), establishing the pattern for adding sharps for the rest of the sharp keys. All the other notes in G are the same notes as in the C major scale, and this makes sense because G […]

Paul2026-06-08T20:27:59-04:00

New Orleans Weekend

A trip to New Orleans with Mrs. E was lots of fun and very inspiring!

Lead Sheet for New Orleans Weekend

According to our tour guide, if you have New Orleans in mind as a final resting place, he suggests as a first step, moving here and learning to play an instrument. The musician’s tomb in Cemetery #1 would be your last port of call. I especially like the symbolism of the blue note in the center of the cross on top. The blue note is pretty darn important!

During some down time on our last day in N’awlens I put this down- “New Orleans Weekend”. Sounds like it has a sort of French influence to me. Or maybe that’s the fried oyster po’boy I hear…

This (and all my other music too, come to think about it) was written with musescore which is a FREE! notation software and pretty easy to get a handle on. If you like music and you want to look under the hood a little I highly recommend it.

“If you want to work consistently, you have to be a team player.” – Russell Malone

Paul2026-06-15T10:38:16-04:00

Composition 011323

Composition 101323

Paul2026-06-09T21:19:24-04:00

How do you start a Hammond Organ?

How do you start a Hammond organ?

Depends on the model. Check the side of your organ. Is there a button, or perhaps a switch? On older models there may be a handle attached to a rope, which you must pull while bracing one foot against the bench. Also they can be notoriously hard to start in cold weather. Feel around the back, upper right hand corner for a choke lever. Push it all the way forward. Right below that is a sort of a black rubber thing- press it all the way in once or twice, then tug on the cord a couple of times to get the gas flowing into the carb. Then give the rope a couple of good yanks. If the organ turns over, you’re good to go. If not, set the choke to about half way and repeat the procedure.

If none of this works, you may need a jump, so get a couple of friends to wheel in another organ. put them back-to-back so your jumper cables will be long enough to go between the battery terminals on both organs. Start the second organ, being careful to match the proper sides of the batteries! Red to red and black to black- otherwise you can damage both organs.

Once you get it started, let it idle a while until it’s warmed up.

Happy organizing!

Paul2026-06-08T20:27:51-04:00

Boat’s got a hole

The phrase “the boat’s got a hole” serves as a powerful metaphor for the modern psyche, capturing a collective sense of quiet desperation, vulnerability, and shared fate. This imagery mirrors the current mental and emotional states- for many of us:

1. Inevitable, Slow-Motion Crisis
The Psyche: Many people feel a persistent, low-grade anxiety about the future rather than a sudden panic.
The Metaphor: A hole in a boat rarely causes an immediate sinking; it creates a slow, exhausting influx of water that demands constant attention.

2. The Illusion of Safety
The Psyche: On the surface, daily life appears normal, structured, and functional.
The Metaphor: The boat is still afloat and moving forward, masking the critical flaw hidden beneath the waterline.

3. Hyper-Vigilance and Burnout
The Psyche: Mental bandwidth is consumed by survival, leaving little room for joy, creativity, or long-term planning.
The Metaphor: Instead of steering toward a destination, all energy is redirected to bailing out water just to stay afloat.

4. Interconnected Vulnerability
The Psyche: Modern stressors—like economic pressures, climate anxiety, and social isolation—are systemic and affect everyone.The Metaphor: It does not matter which side of the boat the hole is on; if the boat sinks, everyone on board goes down together.

5. Existential Dread
The Psyche: A growing feeling that our current lifestyle or societal systems are […]

Paul2026-06-09T16:44:08-04:00

Can you learn to play guitar on any kind of guitar?

Can you learn to play guitar on any kind of guitar?

Yes! But my vote would go to a classical guitar as the best for that, for sure.

Everything else being equal, nylon strings are easier on fingers that don’t have calluses yet. The wider neck means a student can see more clearly how each finger is to be positioned and that can help train the fretting hand for more accuracy. It is lightweight. Since it is a style of acoustic guitar, the student can practice quietly without having to plug in. I have heard that for the same cost you can get a better quality classical guitar than you can with acoustic or electric guitars. Traditionally there is no cutaway so the tone may be richer. Notes above the 12th fret can be managed with the hand in front of the guitar rather than with the thumb wrapped around the neck (which may or may not be a plus, now that I think of it). And you can shred on it if you want to. Here’s some funk on classical guitar.

Even now, at 82 years old, if I don’t learn something every day, you know what I think? It’s a day lost. Now, I don’t practice every […]

Paul2026-06-08T20:27:43-04:00

Composition 061026

Composition 061026

Guitar tabs are available, just reach out.

This is a piece of music made to reflect George and Bailey’s perfect, beautiful love for one another.
The notation provides a clear blueprint for analysis. The piece is scored as a duet for Guitar and Piano.

Texture: The arrangement is homophonic, referring to a musical texture where one primary melody is supported by chords or an underlying harmony. The accompaniment backs up the main tune, and all parts tend to move together in the same rhythm (e.g., a singer accompanied by a strumming guitar, or a traditional church hymn) leaning into a classical or contemporary chamber-folk style. The guitar primarily carries the lyrical, single-note melody line.
Role Distribution: The piano supports the guitar with rolling accompaniments, arpeggiated figures (seen in the opening measure), and low bass anchoring notes. In several places, like […]

Paul2026-06-11T08:17:50-04:00

Composition 022725

The piece is written as a compact 12-bar form with a repeat sign at the very end, mirroring the traditional structure of a jazz blues or a short jazz standard. However, instead of using standard blues changes, it swaps out familiar turnarounds for a highly cinematic and modern harmonic palette.

Paul2026-06-12T10:16:44-04:00

which musical notation software is best for a guitar-playing songwriter?

Which music notation software programs are the best for someone who simply wants to compose by playing a guitar and singing?

I can highly recommend Musescore for that. The learning curve isn’t too steep and it’s wicked easy to use once you get past some basic stuff. I use it every day, practically. And it’s FREE which is hard to believe considering what you get, but true. Download it here

I like it for a few reasons. I was introduced to it while taking lessons online at Berklee; it was the tool that Berklee teachers (the ones I had anyway) used to teach music theory for guitarists, primarily I think for its ease of use and ready functionality. Right out-of-the-box you can start manipulating written music! Even if in some cases, “written music” was previously nothing but a bunch of black marks on a page.

Here are a couple of tunes I wrote using Musescore while on vacation in New Orleans. You can easily see- the program has tons of capabilities. Enjoy!

New Orleans Weekend