THREE SCREEN SETUP - My custom interface is organized to maximize the intake of information. In the upper left corner you get the picking hand from an angle that allows the viewer to see minute changes in movement. The upper left shows the full view of me and the guitar, and the bottom shows either the interactive fretboard or scrolling tab player.
INTERACTIVE FRETBOARD - Literally every note I play is displayed on the interactive fretboard. The display can be changed to show any chord or scale, and it displays chord names in real time in the upper right corner of the screen as I play them. Chords and scales worked on with the fretboard can be shared with the student and accessed using a free version of the fretboard app!
SCROLLING NOTATION PLAYER - With the built in notation player, I am able to stream songs and exercises to the student real time, loop sections, and control the speed of the song. This control from the teachers end allows the student to focus on the music while the teacher controls the rate of progress.
a picking technique that employs alternating downward and upward strokes in a continuous fashion. Exercises include crosspicking, string skipping, and pickslanting.
playing single notes on consecutive strings with a 'sweeping' motion of the pick, while using the fretting hand to produce a specific series of notes that are fast and fluid in sound.
a guitar picking technique designed to maximize picking efficiency by combining alternate picking and sweep picking. Enthusiasts include Yngwie Malmsteen and Eric Johnson.
Playing with a pick and one or more finger alternately or simultaneously. This allows guitar players who use a pick to play music which would normally require fingerstyle playing.
My name is Gaelan Bellamy, and I've been teaching guitar professionally for over 15 years. I have a degree in classical guitar and music theory from the University of Texas in Austin, and I've been performing nationally since 2007.
My passion for teaching is rooted in a deep curiosity for the physical mechanics of guitar technique. This curiosity has led me down the rabbit hole of practically every technique imaginable, and I pride myself in being able to explain and demonstrate these techniques in a concise, fun, and creative manner. Through years of experience, I have become extremely proficient at diagnosing problems within my students playing, and have had great success with reversing bad habits and creating consistent quality players. To date, I have had students go on to graduate from the Butler school of Music at UT Austin, Berklee College of Music in Boston, and the University of North Texas in Denton.
While teaching is a passion that has developed over time, performance and composition have been the driving force of my musical life. I am currently the lead singer and guitarist for the band Kaleider out of Austin, Texas, and was previously the lead guitarist for Distant Lights. Check out the video for Kaleider's single "High Above You" below.