For me it started with 10 years of piano lessons while growing up. When I started college at UMD (go Terps!) I traded the piano for a guitar, and began teaching myself (it's funny how perfect a guitar is for dorm life). With piano, learning classical & ragtime was fun — but I never was taught up to improvise or go off the rails. When teaching myself guitar, I really wanted to understand the "why" behind everything – which the music theory I'd learned from piano helped with big time! It was a blast to be able to play all of the music I loved listening to – at the time it was Dave Matthews, Joni Mitchell, Jack Johnson, Sublime, Cat Stevens, Bob Dylan, etc.

10 years after starting, I started writing up notes on each song I'd learn & the arrangements I put together... and soon after began recording video of each song I'd learn (for "note to self" YouTube tutorials). I kept at it, making a lesson a week for many years – and started taking it a bit more seriously based on the great feedback I was getting from aspiring guitarists who found my videos & notes helpful. In April 2022, I was finally able to full time with my teaching endeavors! It's a lot of work, but there's nothing in the world I'd rather do every day. Thanks Michael – you & your site are absolutely one of the biggest inspirations!

David Potsiadlo
playsongnotes.com