“Spy Tune” is typically the first piece that the students learn on the first full day of class. This piece is taught entirely by rote. The focus of “Spy Tune” is to give immediate musical context for the technical prior lesson. Frequent modeling by the teacher is essential for the success of this lesson.
Sequencing
Students will:
- Sit in predetermined seat as they walk in
- Leave book bag and guitar case at the back of the classroom
- Sit without speaking or playing as the teacher tunes guitars
- Watch teacher set up footstool and put it under left foot
- Set up footstool adjusting height for comfort
- Listen to teacher identify parts: body, headstock, neck, strings 1-6, sound hole
- Raise hand to identify part of guitar teacher points to
- Sit with proper guitar position imitating each step after teacher
a. Place left leg on footstool
b. Sit at the front of chair
c. Lay guitar across left thigh
d. Relax shoulders
e. Raise the headstock of the guitar to eye level
f. Face guitar straight up and down, not angled back
g. Lay right arm on the edge of the guitar, just in front of elbow
h. Position right hand just behind the sound hole
i. Curve and relax right hand fingers
j. Straighten right wrist
k. Place left hand thumb up-and-down, not sideways, on back of neck
l. Straighten left wrist, not bowed in or out
m. Situate left hand so that knuckles are parallel to strings
- Repeat these steps as a class
- Place p, i, and m on treble strings 3, 2, and 1
- Watch teacher play string k with I finger moving across string from big knuckle
- (Teacher demonstrates good tone and bad tone)
- Class plays open string 2 with i finger
- Listen to teacher play open string 2 with “Spy Tune” rhythm saying “Long, long, short”
- Class plays open string 2 with i finger in “Spy Tune” rhythm
- Listen to teacher play “Spy Tune” with left hand speaking the fret number as he or she plays. “0-0-0, 1-1-1, 2-2-2, 1-1-1, 0-0-0”
- Play Spy Tune “theme” making sure left hand fingers are pressing down on the tips
- Play high E “drone” using same rhythm and right hand finger moving i finger down to string 1
- Do this as a class, then split students into “theme” and “drone” groups
- Play together alternating theme and E drone
- Play in small groups of students/individually as directed by teacher
- Listen to teacher play “Spy Tune” with written dynamics
- Play “Spy Tune” with dynamics.
- Teacher plays bass line
* After the students have played this piece for a few days, the teacher can introduce M finger and have the students play both parts 1 and 2 together using i and m fingers at the same time.