The Paul Franklin Method

[Sonny Jenkins]

I agree 100% with Craig. As it stands now, Paul is laying the foundation, getting everyone on the same page, all speaking the same language. And like building a house, we're all anxious to see the framing start going up,,then the siding,,,the roof,,,the drywall,,flooring,,bath,,etc, etc. (personally I'm anxious for the "backing a singer" to be presented,,,LOL,,,after all,,that is 90% of what steel guitar is!)

To anyone who is on the fence,,,we all have our own individual ideas as to "how" the material should be presented,,,but this is how they (MMM) decided to present it. Don't make the mistake of creating roadblocks for yourself,,,a computer with internet connection and steel guitar equipment is all that is needed as far as equipment is concerned. Be Positive,,,you've already invested time and money in gear,,,take the next step!!

[John Ely]

Mr Jim Reynolds, I'm the same age as Paul, and I have the same problems with computers.
But once someone walks through the course dashboard with you, It's really easy.
Since you have the computer and the guitar, I suggest you find a grand-kid, a niece or nephew, a neighbor kid, or call the office of a local high school or community college and tell them you want to hire a kid for an hour. If it's a neighbor or high school/community college kid, offer them $20 or $40 bucks or whatever you can afford for an hour.
Don't give up!
Best regards,
John Ely
Minneapolis MN

[Karen Sarkisian]

Hi Karen,

Its played at the 13th fret....Play group 3 (strings 5, 6, 8 ) with the F lever.
The Danny boy lesson you mentioned is about teaching players how to make their own arrangements.

In a few days the tab for all the harmonies up the neck and across the fretboard will be added to the section where I teach that subject...... I use this method in the studio when asked to create an intro or part for any song...

Paul

Many thanks Paul !

[David Pinkston]

Spoke with my friend Steve Fishell who promised me the course was worth it so I just joined up. Updates to follow....

[Peter Johannisse]

http://brunojazz.com/vt-half-diminished.htm

[Karen Sarkisian]

http://brunojazz.com/vt-half-diminished.htm

Thanks Peter, I actually do know what a m7b5 or half dim chord is and where it comes from, just didn't know how aa Bm7b5 was played on 1st fret. The chord PF describes is a diminished triad but I think that's what he meant in the video. "Half diminished" usually assumes a b7...

[Gary Thorsen]

The m7b5 is an often used, and useful chord. It's one of those chords, like a diminished, that can be moved around the neck pretty freely without causing too much havoc. To me it's almost magical because it sounds really cool almost anywhere you play it but isn't so obvious and cliché as the diminished.

The chord you are speaking of (Bm7b5) is also a G9 chord voicing used frequently by guitar players. The voicing on guitar is 3,b7,9,5. Listen to Sugar Foot Rag on Brent Mason's Hot Wired album to hear it used tastefully, and very skillfully I might add.

Move the chord up a whole tone and it's a b5,1,3,b13 of G - which is also C#m7b5 - a tri-tone substitution for G7. Confused yet? Which voicing of Bm7b5 should I use....the 1,b5,b7,b3 or the???

There's a ton of this type of discussion on the internet, much of it NOT that useful and some of it quite WRONG!! For example, in a link mentioned here on this thread, I didn't have to read long to find the teacher telling us that a diminished chord is built with a M6. I am sorry but I know professional music educators who spell the chord 1,b3,b5,bb7, with ZERO reference to a M6.

What I really like, and there's plenty to like about this course, is that Paul is teaching us is to first recognize and hear intervals and then showing us the useful chord voicings on the standard E9 and C6 tunings. Paul is then teaching us how to apply this information and play nice stuff AND be musical rather than confuse and impress us with his knowledge of chords. I feel confident in saying you can rest assured he COULD do that with the best of them.

(Note: I thought this (my) post was saved as a draft. As it turns out it was published...Yikes!! My apologies if I confused anyone. I meant to come back to it and clarify that the strings and chord voicings I am speaking of are from a six string guitar players perspective - a VERY important point left out! It surely could be even more confusing because the E9 tuning has a ton of nice G chord voicings at the 3rd fret, not to mention 6th string root voicings on the C6th... My apologies for creating extra work for Mr Franklin and generally making a baffling statement to all who don't have the guitar fretboard ingrained in their brain. Gary 1/22)

[Franklin]

Hi Karen,

Thanks for taking the course. I am glad this subject is being brought up....There is a method to my madness

You said "usually assumes" a b7 and than you "assume" I meant something else because of the triad voicing I played...I understand that many theory books teach that mindset as the choice of notes to play when a half diminish is written on a chart.
My method is to teach how to apply this instrument without bogging anyone down in this muddy world of theory...I will share the theory I feel everyone should memorize and I will not debate whether anything should be called one chord over another...I will share the info I needed to survive in the band situations I have faced....(By the way check out the pdf's / that is where students can find written theory. Its for those that love to learn all there is to why and how chords, scales, rhythm, etc. work.) Nobody gets left out...

7 half diminish is correct because its intervals/notes are all in the scale that is the primary focus of the video...A full diminish chord with a bb7 has an outside note and would be incorrect to this application.

I believe its good to study theory but its far more important to learn what works on the street...I'm teaching application.....

"The only reason to get deep into how and why the accelerator works is if the goal is to be a mechanic"... I want to show players where the pedal is so they can step on the gas and go."

Unless you are the pianist and even they choose to omit notes for a stronger voicing, or clarity, I found that producers and fellow players who understand orchestration will prefer me to play the strongest two or three note voicing over the full chord 99% of the time. Its still crucial for playing options to know what chord type is desired.

To answer your curiosity:
At the 1st fret an F# half diminish with the E's to F's raised is played on strings 8/6/5/and 2....If I saw that chord on a chart and if it was a country song- I would probably play 8/6/5 or 8/6/2...if its country and I feel adventurous, or its pop or any other genre I might choose these options 8/2 or 6/2 or 5/2......

Here's the street rule for the chords on a chart...always assume less notes for clarity when playing in a band especially with keys and guitars.

[David Cubbedge]

After waiting a couple weeks and reading some of the early reviews here, I am now a new student of the PFM! All I can say is this course is fantastic! Even though I have been playing for decades (self-taught), I learned so much new stuff from the first beginning lessons! Thank you Mr. Franklin and Modern Music Masters for doing this - it is unprecedented in the music business, the notion of getting lessons from one of our acknowledged current masters!

Now, if there's a down side, it's that I have to consider making changes to some of the pedals and levers on my Emmons - if possible - to create some of the pitch changes he uses!.... I'll be looking here for some help.

[Dave Meis]

Is the 'introductory ' price still available? I can't seem to locate my earlier info..

[John Spaulding]

Hi Dave-

Yes, the introductory price is still available...but will be ending soon!

More Info or Sign Up Page

Hope you can join us!

John

[John McClung]

I signed up yesterday. I've been playing for 45 years, teaching for 24, but I'm not too proud or vain to know when a golden opportunity to glean wisdom from a master of our instrument is available.

I wish Buddy Emmons had found a way to do something like this. I'm sure he'd applaud Paul's efforts to share knowledge, Buddy seemed to enjoy that, too.

Tomorrow is Buddy's birthday, by the way.

[Bruce Bouton]

I signed up a couple weeks ago. I've already had a couple of duh moments where I went "dang , never thought of it that way."
I'm looking forward to digging in over the next year. It's already got me thinking differently.
Well, worth the price of admission IMHO.

BB

[Dennis Manuel]

How do I slow down the videos?

[John Spaulding]

Hi Dennis-

Hover over the timeline on the video player.

In the lower right is a gear sprocket icon. Click on it, then click on "Speed".

You can slow the video to half speed by choosing 0.5x

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Thanks,

John

[Larry Robbins]

Nice video added today on volume pedal technique and usage.

[Ryan Pinkerton]

I've been using the program for about a month now and for the most part I've really enjoyed it. I notice though that the farther through the lessons you get, the more vague and difficult to comprehend some of the ideas become. I know Paul says several times he struggles to talk while playing, and that's understandable; however for someone like myself just getting started it seems the lessons begin to assume that you already understand what he's demonstrating without any explanations. While it's certainly beneficial to analyze what he's doing and solve the questions on your own, sometimes I sit trying to figure out what's going on becoming frustrated when a simple explanation of how he was creating the chords could save me an hour and I could move on. Without having an additional camera to see what his feet and knees are doing, maybe it would be nice to have a few more captions/subtitles on the screen giving in depth explanations. I'm currently stuck on the lesson about blues progressions and he somehow appears to be playing the IV (F) in the key of C by going down from the 8th to the 7th fret. Similarly, he appears to play the V (D) on the 9th fret rather than the 10th. I've been pretty meticulously taking notes and from all the chords he's shown how to create leading up to this point, he's never shown anything that would explain these positionings. I guess I'm just curious if anyone else has had similar issues or feelings? I don't mean to criticize or complain, this program has been extremely helpful in all aspects. Maybe I just need to get my eyes checked..

RP

[Paul Stauskas]

I've been using the program for about a month now and for the most part I've really enjoyed it. I notice though that the farther through the lessons you get, the more vague and difficult to comprehend some of the ideas become. I know Paul says several times he struggles to talk while playing, and that's understandable; however for someone like myself just getting started it seems the lessons begin to assume that you already understand what he's demonstrating without any explanations. While it's certainly beneficial to analyze what he's doing and solve the questions on your own, sometimes I sit trying to figure out what's going on becoming frustrated when a simple explanation of how he was creating the chords could save me an hour and I could move on. Without having an additional camera to see what his feet and knees are doing, maybe it would be nice to have a few more captions/subtitles on the screen giving in depth explanations. I'm currently stuck on the lesson about blues progressions and he somehow appears to be playing the IV (F) in the key of C by going down from the 8th to the 7th fret. Similarly, he appears to play the V (D) on the 9th fret rather than the 10th. I've been pretty meticulously taking notes and from all the chords he's shown how to create leading up to this point, he's never shown anything that would explain these positionings. I guess I'm just curious if anyone else has had similar issues or feelings? I don't mean to criticize or complain, this program has been extremely helpful in all aspects. Maybe I just need to get my eyes checked..

RP

Hey Ryan, he is demonstrating the tritone interval found there in the key of C on strings 6 and 9, no pedals. Frets 7, 8, and 9 function as the 4, 1, and 5 '7th' chords respectively with the major third and minor seventh intervals.

[Franklin]

Hi Ryan,
There is a private study forum on Facebook for the course. Come and join us..Its like a classroom after school.... There everyone helps each other by talking about whichever video or future lessons. Its a college environment and I just finished posting over there answering players questions....My guess is you may be trying to move too fast through the course...There is at least five years of study up there now and I will continue adding concepts for learning everything throughout each year....The fundamentals take forever to master...When I first moved to Nashville I watched Buddy Emmons at Sho-Bud for about 20 minutes...He was practicing picking strings 3 and 4 and then 3 and 5 over and over....That was a valuable lesson for me...He was working on mastering his touch...Most folks would say I know how to hit those strings and move on....Not Buddy, he took his time and dissected everything and kept revisiting until he retired.
Paul

[Ryan Pinkerton]

Thank you both for your help! I've been trying to spend lots of time practicing the fundamentals but I'm definitely guilty of getting excited and probably moving through the course too quickly. I'll certainly make sure to make use of that resource and thanks again for providing such a great opportunity for people like myself to have world class instruction on such an instrument! Very thankful for your efforts and interacting with all who are participating in your class. I'm sure there are few and far between who would put forth the effort and genuine interest in the students as you have! Thanks again!

[Larry Robbins]

Anyone have a link to that private study group?
Thanks!

Update: got the link...thanks all.

[Franklin]

Ryan,

No problem. Its hard to resist responding like a kid in a candy store. There is a lot of content to check out. I would be like that too!

The most important thing a steel guitarist can learn is the importance of building memory. Besides our gear, its the only thing we take to the stage.

I have played for 55 years now. Perfecting "the fundamentals" are always the center focus of my practice sessions.

Paul

[Jack Stanton]

Add me to the list that took the plunge. Didn't have much time to get too deep into it last night, but seems extremely well thought out. Trying to do it like Paul suggests, starting at the beginning, despite the temptation of jumping to the C6th licks LOL! Already found some great ideas about Paul's approach to constructing and deconstructing licks. Already I have no doubt this is a great investment.

[Rick Myrland]

I’m about 6% into the lessons and already got my money’s worth. Not only am I understanding the instrument better, but (like Bruce Bouton) I’m seeing things much differently and haven’t been this inspired to play in a few years. I run the lessons through a laptop onto a 32”HD monitor so it really is like he’s sitting there two feet in front of me.

I did some rough calculations and figured that (as of the number of videos currently posted) you are paying $35 to $40 per hour for video time alone. This doesn’t take into consideration his travel time and costs to get to the studio, set up, run-throughs, video staff, production, the web site, or anything other incidentals. So for anyone questioning the cost, the value proposition is far and away beyond anything else you’ll ever buy related to the PSG. He’s said to be adding more videos in the future, so that proposition will only increase over time—far greater than our stock market investments this past week.

My final comment is this: there are a lot of great players out there, but just because you can execute flawlessly and understand what you are playing doesn’t mean you can teach it well or provide meaningful instruction. Paul eclipses both of those AND comes across like the kind of genuine guy I could enjoy a beer with.

[John Fauver]

Can anyone point me in the right direction for the Facebook forum? Much appreciated!