Call (925) 695-7060

Call (925) 695-7060

by Leave a Comment

Healing Power of Music

"One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain.” - Bob Marley

Rex Lee Bell Guitar lessons and healing power of music

Listening to some of your favourite music can instantaneously rejuvenate you, but did you know that music actually has health benefits too. Music is everywhere; we listen to a romantic song when we are in love, play inspirational music to increases the motivational level of athletes before a match and even play sad music when we are not OK to go with the mood.

But now new studies conducted by researchers have found that music not only lifts your mood but also has a positive effect on your health.

My name is Rex Lee Bell and I’m a guitar instructor at Guitar Confidence. In this blog, I’m going to bring out some of the health benefits associated with music.

Music keeps brain healthy:Music is a great medicine for brain and reverses the aging of brain. Research conductedhave found listening to music improve cognitive function. “If you want to keep your brain engaged throughout the aging process, listening to or playing music is a great tool. It provides a total brain workout.” - Charles J. Limb, M.D., Johns Hopkins otolaryngologist

Music decreases pain:Music therapy can help with pain management. This musical therapy helps patients suffering from pain in a physical, mental, and emotional way. Peter Vuust, of the Center for Functionally Integrative Neuroscience at Aarhus University, Denmark in a study in 2013 provided musical therapy to patients who suffered from fibromyalgia which causes chronic pain in the muscles and joints. Surprisingly he found that these patients experienced less chronic pain after listening to some of their favourite music.Peter Vuust puts forward two concepts for this effect; one music can trigger the release of opioids in the brain whichactually is morphine produced by the body which reduces the feeling of pain. The second concept is that when a patient’s favourite music is played it distracts the attention of the patient from pain which decreases the pain.

Music is a great stress reliever: Music can free yourself from stress, whether it’s your boss or neighbours that give you anguish, grabbing your guitar or any other musical instrument can help relieve stress. According to a study at Mind-Body Wellness Center and Loma Linda University School of Medicine and Applied Biosystems stress can be reduced on a genomic level by playing a musical instrument. Rocking out actually reverses your body’s response system to pressure. Playing guitar is a form of relaxation as it acts as a form of natural medicine. Playing guitar improves your focus, all your energy and focus gets concentrated on one and one thing only the instrument and the music it produces, relieving you from your everyday pressure. So, if you are looking to escape from your day to day pressures then you should learn guitar today.

Learning and listeningto a musical instrument specially guitar can improve memory:Playing guitar can sharpen the mind based on a Scottish study which says that if you play guitar you apparently will have sharper brain function which can help guard against mental decline in the future.Music and memory go hand in hand, learning guitar makes you use both parts of your brain which in turn boosts memory power. Intuitive thinking runs all the way to how guitarists learn. According to researchers at Vanderbilt University, guitarists get a better grasp of a song by looking at someone playing it unlike other musicians who learn through sheet music.

Music improves workout:If you enjoy your exercise with your music then you would be pleased to know that workout and music make a very good team. According to a research at Brunel University, it has been found that listening to music while workout increases the endurance of body by up to fifteen percent.

Both listening and playing music has great benefits, music can reduce stress, blood pressure; and improve the quality of sleep, mood of people, mental alertness and memory.

Why not learn and play music, and at the same time enjoy the healthy benefits of music.  If you want to learn a musical instrument apart from just listening it to stay doubly fit, then give me a call. I’m a guitar instructor, and I’llgive you personal one-on-one lessons. Ihave been doing mobile guitar lessons for many years.Visit my site guitarconfidence.com, we travel to over 30 cities in the East Bay and South Bay areas; including Danville, San Ramon, Dublin & Pleasanton.

Also, this #labor day, buy one month lesson and get the second month at 50%

Visit www.guitarconfidence.com for more info.

http://guitarconfidence.com/creating-music/1563/

Can’t think of a Life without Music

by Leave a Comment

“There’s nothing like music to relieve the soul and uplift it.” – Mickey Hart

Rex Lee Bell guitar teacher

If we are the best creation of God, then music is arguably the greatest creation of man, and is probably the most powerful thing on this planet. Music keeps us going actually, and a life without music would be the last thing on earth we would have wished for. Music makes this world lively and active, it brings cheers and happiness in our life. Anartist playinga musical instrument and the person who listens to it, both equally enjoy the music. Music is one of the most cherished human experiences and everyone enjoys some sort of music. Music can not only be enjoyable it can also have a positive effect in our life in various ways.

Music, the universal language, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, an American poet in the 19th century said that music is “the universal language of mankind.” Because of the kind of effect music has in our life, music has crossed boundaries to unit people from different countries, background and cultural heritage.There is nothing like music to take you to a place in time. Music bridges the cultural divide: a study conducted by Researcher Thomas Fritzfrom the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Germany has shown that regardless of culture or previous exposure, people in Cameroon were accurately able to recognize three emotions in Western music – happiness, sadness and fear.

Music can make you smarter, “Mozart effect”which refers to a set of research results indicating that listening to Mozart’s music may induce a short-term improvement on the performance of certain kinds of mental tasks known as “spatial-temporal reasoning”. In short it will make you smarter. It is, also, said that music training at an early age helps develop certain parts of brain which are involved with language and reasoning.

Music improves creativity, according to a HuffingtonPost article,music is a great way to enter “mind-wandering mode,” which can unlock creativity. This article talks about Levitin, a professor of neuroscience at McGill University, according to whom there are two primary modes of brain operation: Either you’re paying attention to something very closely and you’re deeply engaged in a task, or you’re in “mind-wandering mode”. It’s in this “mind-wandering mode” where most of the creativity takes place, and we’re able to come up with innovative solutions to problems.

Music reduces stress and anxiety, the calming effect of music is a well-established fact. It has a unique link to our emotions, and henceit isvery effective in managing stress. According to a study at Mind-Body Wellness Center and Loma Linda University School of Medicine and Applied Biosystems stress can be reduced on a genomic level by playing a musical instrument.

Music is everywhere, and it can set the ambiance in any room by only changing the style and sound of it. Soft music in a restaurant creates a great romantic ambience for a couple, while loud and inspirational music increases the motivational level of athletes before a match.

For decades different music genres like classical, jazz, rock, blues, hip hop, country, rap, bluegrass, folk, metal, etc. have evolved and ruled the heart, mind and soul of people. Music is a great force which can bring people together and create international peace, love and brotherhood.

So, if you want to add music to your life by learning to play an instrument, then just visit my website guitarconfidence.com and give me a call. I’m Rex Lee Bell and I have been doing mobile guitar lessons for many years. I will come to your home and give you private guitar lessons at your home. Guitar Confidence covers over 30 cities in the East Bay and South Bay areas; including Danville, San Ramon, Dublin & Pleasanton.

Also, this #labor day, buy one month lesson and get the second month at 50%

Visit www.guitarconfidence.com for more info.

Life without Music is Unthinkable

by Leave a Comment

“There are people who are looking for a break from their job, or a little bit of alone time. These are also people who are looking for a nostalgic experience as they work towards playing their favourite song from Rush, The Rolling Stones, or The Sex Pistols.” – Lifehack
I love music

Did you ever imagine how life would be without music? It would be catastrophic, isn’t it? Music has been wired into the very existence of our life for centuries. Life without music would be the last on earth we would want. Music keeps us going actually. We all enjoy listening to music, but not all of us are musicians. At some point in our life at least for once, we wished if we could play our favourite musical instrument. There are many instruments of music but one of the coolest is guitar and there is no age to learn guitar. Guitar is something that is never too late to learn.

So you ask why you should play guitar! Well, there are many reasons to learn how to play guitar, apart from the apparent fact that you want to be heard and admired along with your own interest of playing the instrument. Playing guitar can have a positive effect in your life, your attitude and boost you with confidence.

If you are not a vocal person among your friends, then perhaps you should think about learning guitar it would be your megaphone. With guitar you can express hundreds and thousands of words with the six strings of guitar. People are drawn toward guitarists in social gatherings. It will be then your responsibility, the responsibility of the guitarist to lead the campfire songs, make night club audiences gasp at ripping-good riffs and solos.

It will also free yourself from stress, whether it’s your boss or neighbours that give you anguish, grabbing your guitar can help relieve stress. According to a study at Mind-Body Wellness Centre and Loma Linda University School of Medicine and Applied Bio systems stress can be reduced on a genomic level by playing a musical instrument. Rocking out actually reverses your body’s response system to pressure.Playing guitar is a form of relaxation as it acts as a form of natural medicine. Playing guitar improves your focus, all your energy and focus gets concentrated on one and one thing only The Guitar and The Music it produces, relieving you from your everyday pressure. So, if you are lookingto escape from your day to day pressures then you should learn guitar today.

Playing guitar can also sharpen the mind based on a Scottish study which says that if you play guitar you apparently will have sharper brain function which can help guard against mental decline in the future.Music and memory go hand in hand; learning guitar makes you use both parts of your brain which in turn boosts memory power. Intuitive thinking runs all the way to how guitarists learn. According to researchers at Vanderbilt University, guitarists get a better grasp of a song by looking at someone playing it unlike other musicians who learn through sheet music.

Finally, playing guitar will give you a sense of achievement; it can bring true satisfaction when you play a difficult song. You will be hit by an understanding that you possess a skill to jam with people not through words but with music, you will have the power to bring people together through the language of music. And then there is always the fun element, playing guitar will bring back the fun character inside you. Guitar has the special ability to bring happiness; harmony and fulfilment that helps lift the spirit and make life pleasurable for everyone.

KORG Metronome – The Beat Goes On

by Leave a Comment

korg metronome

Keeping the Beat with a Metronome

Starting out playing a guitar can be difficult and overwhelming at times – keeping your fingers arched, picking the right strings, having your left fingers on the right string and the right fret, and making transitions between notes smooth, and reading music, all while keeping a steady beat. This is something I’ve been somewhat struggling with. This week, I found a solution after going through my small music toolbox.

I pulled out a 10 year old KORG metronome that I had been instructed to purchase by my former guitar teacher. Yet, I was never taught how to use it, although I knew what it was for. Fortunately, it’s in perfect condition with full battery life and ready to use. This week I shall start practicing with that on and although the ticking is quite irking, I believe it will help for some time since I am still a beginner. If you’re having trouble maintaining a beat, try using a metronome to see if it works for you – there are free apps you can download onto your smart phone.

Guitar & Banjo Lessons
Livermore CA
(925) 695-7060

This Song is for YOU

by 3 Comments

music composition jazz express guitar

Original Music Composition by Rex Bell – Recorded with Jazz Express

All professional musicians know that you must keep the band gigging to keep them together. This is true in all genres: reggae, cover band doing heavy metal, funk, rhythm and blues, Latin salsa, jazz fusion, etc.

A few years ago, I played at JB’s Café in Concord, CA. We needed a contemporary & traditional jazz music for a French restaurant. So I put together local studio musicians (Jazz Express – Rex Bell, guitar, Jeremy Cohen, bass, Eric Thompson, drums, and Greg Rahn, keyboards) who showed up to gig and read music charts from the most common professional book used by all gigging musicians known as “ The Fake Book.”  They have fake books for all C instruments like guitar and piano, all Bb instruments like Trumpet or Tenor sax and Eb  book for Alto Sax or Baritone Sax.

As the band leader, I would call out a tune like Chick Corea or Miles Davis and the musicians would sight read the music as we took turns soloing. BMI & ASCAP are the two companies that monitor all music sales for all music sold anywhere on the planet. Both BMI and ASCAP have teams that will walk into bars, restaurants, coffee shops and other venues unannounced and measure square footage of the establishment and then charge the owner a monthly royalty fee for all copyrighted music being played whether you have a live band, a disc jockey, a juke box or even a CD player.

We had this steady Friday night gig exploring our talents, getting paid and getting a free French meal of our choice. As the old adage goes – all good things must end. The restaurant owner, one day said here’s your last check because a crew from BMI told him unless my music group played only our original music, we would have to pay monthly copyright fees.

So, to keep our gig, I told each musician to compose 7 songs, “This Song Is For You” is one of the 28 original compositions our group composed.

Always take advantage of learning music theory from a professional and learn to reading music because it allows you to go much further with your musical career and ambitions.

Learn to Play Guitar in the Privacy of Your Own Home

Our guitar instructors come to you to give you personal one-on-one lessons in the privacy of your own home. We cover Dublin, San Ramon, Pleasanton, Livermore and all cities in east and south bay

X

Contact us for guitar lessons or more information at:

Guitar Confidence
4101 Dublin Blvd
Suite F, #537
Dublin, CA 94568

(925) 695-7060

guitarconfidence@gmail.com

Social Media

Social Media
Contact us