Guitar Pro 8 Is a Must Have!!!

Upping My Game

So, if you have been paying attention you know that I have been seriously stepping up my game in teaching Guitar.  Simply put, I want to be the best guitar teacher in Denver (and the world, for that matter).  I want my lessons to be the most engaging, dynamic, exciting, productive and stimulating lessons available.

To that end I have done all the aforementioned things: Subscribe to Sheet Music Direct for the the most accurate tabs available; Subscribe to Troy Grady’s Cracking the code for the best insight into practical picking hand technique; Acquisition of a 50″ monitor to display, videos, sheet music and tabs, using Guitar Pro to create tabs that are unavailable or simply inaccurate; and the list goes on…

Enter Guitar Pro 8!

Well regarding Guitar Pro, they have also upped their game and it looks like they have become an absolutely indispensible tool for my teaching!   Arobas Music with their Guitar Pro software has just implemented audio file addition in the new Version 8.  Now, “why is that a big deal?”, you might ask.  Well, for me its a game changer.

Now, I no longer have to stomp on my Page Flip in an attempt to keep our tab properly flowing with the music that is played by a separate application.  Within Guitar Pro 8, I can *perfectly sync* my tabs to the audio file.  Sorry, but that is just too cool!  By doing a little editing, I can get the tab to perfectly follow any tempo changes and weirdness that happens.  Especially with older music that was not recorded to a click.

For example, my latest project is aligning my personally created, note for note bass tab of Blinded by the Light, by Manfred Mann’s Earth Band.  Recorded in 1976, this song is definitely NOT on a click!  This song starts at around 140 BPM, but drifts as high as 145 BPM and as low as 136 BPM.  How do I know that?  Well, because when I edit the tab to the music, Guitar Pro 8 will TELL ME what the tempos are between sync points.

Awesome!  Amazing!  Game Changing!  My students no longer need to flip pages while they play.  I no longer need to worry about stomping a pedal to keep a tab flowing with the music.  I can now put that tab up on a 50″ monitor for the entire room to see and I can actually pay attention to MY STUDENT again instead of worrying about “driving”.  Yay, Double Yay and Super Yay!

And of course, you can slow down the song/tab too.  You can also pitch correct or transpose a down-tuned song.  You can loop sections.  Guitar Pro is awesome.

Get Guitar Pro 8!

I will be encouraging all my students to get a copy of Guitar Pro 8.  Instead of printing a file, I can give them the GP file that I have created and they can play it at home.  They can also use it to actually write their own music as well (just like the students who introduced me to Guitar Pro many years ago.  Thanks Dom and Harrison!)  And as an added bonus, the wonderful people at Arobas Music have graciously given me a discount code for all my students, past and present, to save 50% when buying Guitar Pro 8 from the Arobas website.  Hit me up, get the code and save 50% now on an absolutely indispensable teaching / learning tool!

And for the record, I am NOT receiving any kick backs from Arobas.  Guitar Pro 8 is simply an awesome piece of software and I believe every guitarist and bassist should own a copy!

So now, if you will excuse me, I have some serious work to do!  I need to import all the audio for all the songs I have already tabbed out in Guitar Pro!!!