The Complete Acoustic Guitar Method: Mastering Acoustic Guitar (2nd Edition): Guitar Book & DVD

This book meets advanced players where they actually are: ready to go beyond fingerstyle basics into the real working vocabulary of contemporary acoustic guitarists. The pairing of written instruction with video demonstrations hosted by Jared Meeker removes the guesswork from technique work that's genuinely difficult to self-teach from notation alone.

Opening this book signals a shift from learning what other composers have written toward understanding how to build your own musical ideas with intention and sophistication. The progression from technical exercises into modes, alternate tunings, and composition work creates a natural arc that honors both the mechanics of playing and the artistry of creating.

Guitarists who have completed the beginner and intermediate volumes in this series and are ready to deepen their technical toolkit and theoretical understanding. This is aimed at serious students and teachers seeking a structured path through jazz harmony, advanced fingerstyle and flatpicking approaches, and the fundamentals of composition and arrangement.

• Work through the speed and agility exercises in short, focused sessions rather than marathon practice blocks. These drills build muscle memory most efficiently with consistent repetition over several weeks.
• When exploring alternate tunings, record yourself playing in standard tuning first so you can hear how the shifted tonality changes the character of familiar phrases.
• Use the DVD demonstrations to observe hand position and angle for advanced techniques like slapping and tapping. Pause and rewind specific sections to isolate the mechanics before attempting them at tempo.
• Tackle one new mode at a time and apply it melodically over a progression you already know well before moving to composition work with modal frameworks.

Use this as the capstone method for a multi-level guitar curriculum, assigning it to students who have demonstrated mastery of intermediate repertoire and technique. The composition and arranging chapters work equally well as a bridge into songwriting instruction or as supplemental material for ensemble guitarists looking to contribute original material to collaborative projects.

• Speed and agility through targeted fingerboard exercises
• Jazz chord voicings and harmonic movement
• Advanced techniques including slapping, tapping, and fingerstyle variations
• Modal improvisation and modal melody writing
• Alternate tuning systems and their applications
• Basic composition and arranging principles for acoustic guitar
• Flatpicking technique and efficiency