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Artist interviews

Folk Friend meets Tiffany Schaefer - harp and guitar Irish duet

Folk Friend Meets Tiffany Schaefer- How to accompany The Castle Jig on harp (duet at the end!)

This year, in honour of St. Patrick's Day, I got together for a Zoom call with the amazing American harpist ...
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Folk Friend presents : Writing fingerstyle in DADGAD with special guest Jordan Lively

A few months ago I released a book of fingerstyle arrangements and soon after I ran a competition, in which ...
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Folk Friend meets Duncan Cameron – tunings, Canadian folk music styles, accompanying songs and more!

Last week I had the pleasure of talking to Duncan Cameron, a Canadian singer, multi-instrumentalist and Youtuber from Ontario, Canada ...
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Celtic music theory

Chord inversions for Irish guitar free video lesson

Inversions for Irish guitarists part 2: chords in A major for Ger The Rigger

Here's another video from Folk Friend Celtic Guitar Tutorials, celebrating the release of my latest book (see below) with a ...
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How to combine the dorian and aeolian modes for Irish backing guitar lesson

The best kept secret about Irish guitar chords in minor keys. Ssshh!

In this week's free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend, I'm going to be letting you in on a little ...
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Very first Irish guitar lesson: the ultimate top 5 tips for beginner Irish guitar accompaniment

https://youtu.be/K-2QuP35y70 In this free lesson from Folk Friend I'll be running complete beginners through the top 5 tips for complete ...
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How to add jazz chords to folk guitar part 2

Jazz chords for Irish guitar lesson 2 – the ionian, dorian, mixolydian and aeolian modes

This is the second free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend covering tetrads or four note "jazz chords". This week ...
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How to add jazz chords to Irish guitar backing PART 1: The three types of seven chord

In today's free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend, I'll be running you through the three families of 7 chords ...
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Easiest way to pick chords for Celtic guitar accompaniment

How to pick chords for Irish / Scottish music in the dorian, mixolydian or aeolian modes- Folk Friend

In this week's free Irish / Scottish / Celtic guitar lesson, I'll be finishing off my series of videos about ...
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Easiest way to pick chords for Celtic guitar accompaniment PART 2

In my previous free guitar lesson I showed you how to pick the right chords for Irish / Celtic music ...
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How to pick guitar chords for Irish and Scottish music

Easiest way to pick chords for Celtic guitar accompaniment by ear – Folk Friend

In this week's free Irish guitar lesson I will be showing you the easiest way to pick chords for a ...
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How do the modes work for Irish and Scottish guitarists

Ultimate guide to Celtic/Irish music theory part 2 – how to find chords for any mode

Hello again, and welcome to part 2 of my guide to scales, modes, and chords for Celtic backing guitarists! In ...
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Guitar scales and chords for Irish and Scottish folk music

Ultimate guide to Celtic music theory for beginners 1 – scales and chords for major keys Folk Friend

Hello again, and welcome to part 1 of my guide to scales, modes, and chords for Celtic backing guitarists! In ...
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Cord scales for modes

Inversions for Irish guitarists part 2: chords in A major for Ger The Rigger

Here's another video from Folk Friend Celtic Guitar Tutorials, celebrating the release of my latest book (see below) with a ...
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Very first Irish guitar lesson: the ultimate top 5 tips for beginner Irish guitar accompaniment

https://youtu.be/K-2QuP35y70 In this free lesson from Folk Friend I'll be running complete beginners through the top 5 tips for complete ...
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Get the DADGAD guitar sound without retuning from standard EADGBE

How to get the DADGAD guitar sound without retuning! Partial capos for beginners

This free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend covers partial capo-ing, the easiest way to get the classic sound of ...
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Easy chord shapes for Irish tunes in E minor

Learn these easy guitar chord shapes to accompany Irish / Celtic tunes in E minor

In this free Celtic guitar lesson I'll be showing you one really simple shape which you can move around to ...
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How capos work and partial capoing for Irish and Celtic folk guitar

In this video I respond to a message from Claire who wanted to know how capos work. I also show ...
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How to pick chords for Irish / Scottish music in the dorian, mixolydian or aeolian modes- Folk Friend

In this week's free Irish / Scottish / Celtic guitar lesson, I'll be finishing off my series of videos about ...
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Easiest way to pick chords for Celtic guitar accompaniment PART 2

In my previous free guitar lesson I showed you how to pick the right chords for Irish / Celtic music ...
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Folky Fridays - Free Scottish and Irish guitar lesson live stream, every Friday from 5:30 UK time (GMT)

Folky Fridays #4 – Interesting chord progressions and music theory – Irish jig in the dorian mode

I'm sorry that I was cut off by a technical difficulty so didn't have time to look at the other ...
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django Reinhardt chords for Irish traditional music on guitar

Using Django Reinhardt’s Gypsy Jazz guitar chords for Irish tunes in the dorian mode

This week's free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend will be delving into some of the shapes popularised by Django ...
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Top Ten guitar practice tips for Irish, Scottish and Celtic guitarists – Folk Friend

It can be difficult to get started learning Celtic backing guitar. There is so much to learn, from ear training, ...
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DADGAD

How to accompany Ramnee Ceilidh – Irish DADGAD guitar lesson PLUS news about the Folk Friend tour!

https://youtu.be/ctkSdAvDObM In this video I'll be showing you how to accompany one of my favourite Irish reels, Ramnee Ceilidh in ...
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Nye and Mitzi – Irish fiddle and guitar jam with DADGAD guitar lesson commentary

https://youtu.be/leQPIJj0hJk My latest business venture (alongside Folk Friend and Finale Guitar) is now open! You can find out more about ...
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Nye and Felix play Irish reels – with DADGAD guitar guide commentary

In this week's free DADGAD guitar lesson from Folk Friend, I'll be running you through some of the techniques I ...
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Whistle and Irish DADGAD guitar jam with free guitar lesson commentary

Irish DADGAD backing guitar lesson – Nye and Alexa play jigs with commentary

This week I've decided to post a little clip of myself and my mum jamming through a new set of ...
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Free Irish DADGAD guitar lesson - chords for the Kesh Jig

Beginners’ Guide To Celtic DADGAD Accompaniment – part 2 – The Kesh Jig and another handy slide-able shape!

https://youtu.be/LHt7rVuDJsc Welcome back to part 2 of the Folk Friend Beginner's Guide to Celtic DADGAD Accompaniment! This video series will ...
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Complete Beginner's Guide To Irish DADGAD Guitar - free guitar lesson video course - Folk Friend

Complete Beginner’s Irish DADGAD guitar accompaniment lessons part 1 – picking chords in D major

It's nice to be back making videos at Folk Friend HQ! I've finally finished my latest book, The Beginner's Guide ...
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Free Irish DADGAD fingerstyle guitar lesson - learn Ger The Rigger (polka)

Beautiful and easy Irish polka arrangement in DADGAD tuning – Ger The Rigger with free tab

This week I'll be teaching you to play an easy DADGAD fingerstyle arrangement of one of my favourite Irish polkas, ...
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The most useful scale eer for beginner DADGAD guitarists- free fingerstyle guitar lesson

The most useful scale ever – beginner DADGAD fingerstyle guitar lesson

In this week's free Irish / Celtic guitar lesson from Folk Friend, I'll be showing you the most useful scale ...
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Folky Fridays #42 – A “by ear” approach to DADGAD backing for folk tunes with almost no theory!

In this week's Folky Fridays free online guitar lesson live stream from Folk Friend I will be showing you a ...
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Very first Irish guitar lesson: the ultimate top 5 tips for beginner Irish guitar accompaniment

https://youtu.be/K-2QuP35y70 In this free lesson from Folk Friend I'll be running complete beginners through the top 5 tips for complete ...
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Drop D

Folky Fridays #52 – A short guide to drop D tuning, with power chords, triads and tetrads+!

This week's Folky Fridays free online guitar lesson live stream from Folk Friend will be all about drop D tuning ...
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John Doyle guitar lesson - chords in drop D tuning for Irish guitar

John Doyle guitar style guide – all parts including chord shapes for drop D tuning, chromatic techniques and reel strumming patterns

I've been putting this one off for a while, but it's finally time to examine the style of one of ...
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Very first Irish guitar lesson: the ultimate top 5 tips for beginner Irish guitar accompaniment

https://youtu.be/K-2QuP35y70 In this free lesson from Folk Friend I'll be running complete beginners through the top 5 tips for complete ...
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Top Ten guitar practice tips for Irish, Scottish and Celtic guitarists – Folk Friend

It can be difficult to get started learning Celtic backing guitar. There is so much to learn, from ear training, ...
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Beginner’s Celtic guitar lesson in drop D- as used by John Doyle, Paul Brady, Arty McGlynn, Tim Edey…

This free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend covers one of the most popular tunings out there; drop D. This ...
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Ear training

The best kept secret about Irish guitar chords in minor keys. Ssshh!

In this week's free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend, I'm going to be letting you in on a little ...
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How to pick chords for Irish tunes in the dorian mode

How to choose guitar chords for Irish tunes part 4 – dark minor keys (the aeolian mode)

In this week's free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend I'll be running you how to pick chords by ear ...
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Learn to pick guitar chords by ear in the mixolydian mode

How to pick Irish guitar chords for beginners – PART 3 – tunes in the mixolydian mode

In this week's free Irish guitar tutorial from Folk Friend I will be running you through a very popular modern ...
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How to pick chords for Irish tunes in the dorian mode / minor keys

How to pick Irish guitar chords for folk tunes – part 2 – Minor keys (dorian mode)

This week on Folk Friend's weekly Celtic guitar tutorial video I'll be running you how to pick chords for Irish, ...
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How to pick Irish guitar chords by ear - part 1

How to pick Irish guitar chords by ear for complete beginners PART 1- tunes in major keys

This week's free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend is for complete beginners who want to learn how to accompany ...
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Very first Irish guitar lesson: the ultimate top 5 tips for beginner Irish guitar accompaniment

https://youtu.be/K-2QuP35y70 In this free lesson from Folk Friend I'll be running complete beginners through the top 5 tips for complete ...
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Easiest way to pick chords for Celtic guitar accompaniment PART 2

In my previous free guitar lesson I showed you how to pick the right chords for Irish / Celtic music ...
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Easiest way to pick chords for Celtic guitar accompaniment by ear – Folk Friend

In this week's free Irish guitar lesson I will be showing you the easiest way to pick chords for a ...
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Top Ten guitar practice tips for Irish, Scottish and Celtic guitarists – Folk Friend

It can be difficult to get started learning Celtic backing guitar. There is so much to learn, from ear training, ...
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What is swing? A guide to hornpipes and reels for beginner folk backing guitarists

This free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend covers "swing" and shows you exactly what is actually going on. It ...
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Finger style

Folky Fridays #53 – The easiest way to write fingerstyle arrangements for tunes in G and E minor

This week's Folky Fridays free online guitar lesson live stream from Folk Friend will be covering a very simple way ...
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Folky Fridays #43 – Comparing arrangement options in DADGAD and EADGBE

In this week's Folky Fridays free online guitar lesson live stream from Folk Friend I will be responding to a ...
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Beautiful and easy Irish polka arrangement in DADGAD tuning – Ger The Rigger with free tab

This week I'll be teaching you to play an easy DADGAD fingerstyle arrangement of one of my favourite Irish polkas, ...
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The most useful scale ever – beginner DADGAD fingerstyle guitar lesson

In this week's free Irish / Celtic guitar lesson from Folk Friend, I'll be showing you the most useful scale ...
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Folky Fridays #41 – 1 hour to arrange McMahon’s Reel for Irish Fingerstyle guitar in DADGAD tuning

In this week's Folky Fridays free online guitar lesson live stream from Folk Friend I will be attempting to write ...
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How to play John Fahey - Sligo River Blues on acoustic guitar

How to play John Fahey – Sligo River Blues on guitar

This week's free guitar lesson from Folk Friend is responding to a request from Shane Tully who asked for a ...
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Buried My Wife And Danced On Her Grave DADGAD fingerstyle Irish guitar arrangement

DADGAD fingerstyle guitar lesson: I Buried My Wife And Danced On Her Grave

This will be the last free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend for 2020, but I'll be back with loads ...
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Top Ten guitar practice tips for Irish, Scottish and Celtic guitarists – Folk Friend

It can be difficult to get started learning Celtic backing guitar. There is so much to learn, from ear training, ...
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How to write Irish fingerstyle guitar arrangements

How to write Celtic Fingerstyle Guitar Arrangements and ARRANGEMENT COMPETITION – Folk Friend

This week Folk Friend is running a competition to celebrate the release of my latest book, Irish Tunes for Fingerstyle ...
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Folk Friend presents : Writing fingerstyle in DADGAD with special guest Jordan Lively

A few months ago I released a book of fingerstyle arrangements and soon after I ran a competition, in which ...
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Jazz chord theory

Folky Fridays #40 – What makes a great sounding Irish guitar chord progression?

In this week's Folky Fridays free online guitar lesson live stream from Folk Friend I will be running you through ...
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The secret to jazz chords in Irish folk guitar

The secret to using jazz chords in Irish trad guitar – tetrads part 3 from Folk Friend

https://youtu.be/cLXgfUrDqNk In this week's free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend I'll be showing you how you can use your ...
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Jazz chords for Irish guitar lesson 2 – the ionian, dorian, mixolydian and aeolian modes

This is the second free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend covering tetrads or four note "jazz chords". This week ...
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How to add jazz chords to Irish guitar backing PART 1: The three types of seven chord

In today's free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend, I'll be running you through the three families of 7 chords ...
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V - I chord progressions for Celtic guitarists

V-Is: most important chord progression in Celtic guitar!

Hello viewers! I had a comment from Ed Wright last week asking about chords for V-I progressions, so in this ...
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Folky Fridays #4 – Interesting chord progressions and music theory – Irish jig in the dorian mode

I'm sorry that I was cut off by a technical difficulty so didn't have time to look at the other ...
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Dennis Cahill Irish Guitar Lesson Part 1

How to play Irish guitar like zen master Dennis Cahill – part 1

In this video I'll be running you through an Irish folk guitar chord progression and unusual strumming technique used by ...
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Using Django Reinhardt’s Gypsy Jazz guitar chords for Irish tunes in the dorian mode

This week's free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend will be delving into some of the shapes popularised by Django ...
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Top Ten guitar practice tips for Irish, Scottish and Celtic guitarists – Folk Friend

It can be difficult to get started learning Celtic backing guitar. There is so much to learn, from ear training, ...
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learn to play irish guitar like Dennis Cahill

Dennis Cahill Guitar Tricks – Accompanying The Old Bush Reel with “vague” and contrapuntal chords

I had a lot of positive feedback from the first Folk Friend Irish guitar lesson covering the unusual playing style ...
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Picking patterns

Top Ten guitar practice tips for Irish, Scottish and Celtic guitarists – Folk Friend

It can be difficult to get started learning Celtic backing guitar. There is so much to learn, from ear training, ...
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Funky jig picking pattern – beginner Irish guitar tutorial

This free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend continues where last week's left off, with a super funky Irish jig ...
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Easy finger picking accompaniment for jigs – free Celtic guitar lessons from Folk Friend

This free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend show you how to accompany jigs on acoustic guitar with a simple ...
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2 Super easy reel and Irish song finger picking patterns – easy Celtic guitar lesson for beginners

This week's free guitar lesson from Folk Friend covers two super easy guitar finger picking patterns. They can be used ...
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Clawhammer reel picking pattern tutorial

In this week's free Irish guitar accompaniment lesson from Folk Friend, I'll be showing you an unusual clawhammer picking pattern ...
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Strumming patterns

How to accompany Ramnee Ceilidh – Irish DADGAD guitar lesson PLUS news about the Folk Friend tour!

https://youtu.be/ctkSdAvDObM In this video I'll be showing you how to accompany one of my favourite Irish reels, Ramnee Ceilidh in ...
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The "Faith" Pattern - a free guitar lesson covering a funky strumming pattern for Irish reels

The “Faith” funky reel strumming pattern

Welcome back to another Celtic guitar accompaniment tutorial from Folk Friend! This week I'll be demonstrating the "Faith" strumming pattern ...
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Folky Fridays #46 – loads of reel strumming patterns including “half time” for trad guitarists!

In this week's Folky Fridays free online guitar lesson live stream from Folk Friend I will be having a look ...
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How to strum polkas- free guitar lesson from Folk Friend

How to strum polkas on guitar for complete beginners!

In this week's free guitar lesson from Folk Friend, I'll be showing you two easy strumming patterns you can use ...
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Learn to add triplelts to slip jigs on Irish guitar

How to play strummed triplets in slip jigs – Irish guitar accompaniment tutorial

In this free beginner Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend, I'll be showing you how to incorporate strummed triplets into ...
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How to strum jig triplets -- rhythm variation for Irish and Scottish guitar

How to play triplets in jigs – Irish guitar strumming tutorial

In this week's free beginner Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend, I'll be showing you how to add strummed triplets ...
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Very first Irish guitar lesson: the ultimate top 5 tips for beginner Irish guitar accompaniment

https://youtu.be/K-2QuP35y70 In this free lesson from Folk Friend I'll be running complete beginners through the top 5 tips for complete ...
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How to strum a waltz – easy folk guitar strumming pattern lesson

This free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend will show you how to strum waltzes and songs in the 3/4 ...
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How to play Raglan Road by Van Morrison and The Chieftains on guitar

In this free Irish guitar lesson from Folk Friend I'll be showing you how to play Raglan Road. Written by ...
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Learn this alternative jig strumming pattern for funky Irish guitar!

In this free Irish guitar lesson, I'll be replying to a comment from Olivier Castel who wanted to know what ...
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Styles of great guitarists

John Doyle guitar style guide – all parts including chord shapes for drop D tuning, chromatic techniques and reel strumming patterns

I've been putting this one off for a while, but it's finally time to examine the style of one of ...
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