Power to the Pinky Podcast

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 25: PIMA Pattern Welcome back! Today we’re putting everything together with a full episode dedicated to one of the most versatile and musical fingerstyle tools you’ll ever learn: the PIMA pattern. We’ll break down classic quarter-note PIMA exercises, introduce the “inside-out” pattern (P-I-M-A-M-I), and then apply both patterns to a set of foundational chords — E mi...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 24: IMA Speed & Control Welcome back! Today we’re shining a spotlight on your I–M–A fingers — the core of clean, expressive fingerpicking. In this episode, we’re diving into how to build real speed, accuracy, and control in your upper fingers. We’ll break down basic finger rolls like I–M–A and A–M–I, talk about proper string approach (including why you don’t wan...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 23: P in PIMA — Thumb Training Welcome back! Today we’re dedicating an entire episode to the “P” in PIMA — your thumb. This little powerhouse is the bass player of your right hand, and mastering it will open the door to smoother patterns, cleaner grooves, and eventually full Travis picking. We’ll talk about why the thumb owns the E, A, and D strings, how to build re...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 22: Fingerpicking Posture Welcome back! Today we’re zooming in on one of the most important elements of fingerstyle technique: your posture. In this episode, we’ll break down exactly how to position your hand for relaxed, efficient, beautiful fingerpicking. We’ll talk wrist angle, tension (or the lack of it!), thumb placement, how to properly curl your I–M–A fingers...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 21: Intro to Fingerpicking + PIMA Welcome to your first deep dive into fingerstyle technique. In this episode, we’ll break down the fundamentals of proper picking-hand posture, introduce the PIMA system, and explore how to apply all of it musically around a simple E minor chord. You’ll also hear a bit about how I first got into fingerpicking and why it became such a...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 20: The A Natural Minor Scale Welcome to The A Natural Minor Scale — where we unpack one of the most expressive and essential sounds in all of music. In this episode, we’ll explore what makes the natural minor scale unique, the intervals that give it that moody, melodic flavor, and the notes that make up A Natural Minor. Plus, we’ll walk through a bunch of different...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 19: The World of A Minor Welcome to The World of A Minor — where we step into the moodier side of music theory and explore how A minor paints emotion across your fretboard. In this episode, we’ll dive into what makes A minor the relative minor of C major, the notes that form its natural scale, and how simply shifting your tonal center can completely change the vibe...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 18 The CAGED System: Exploring the “D” Shape in the Key of C If you’re ready to connect chords, scales, and arpeggios across the neck, the CAGED system is your roadmap. Today we’re zeroing in on the “D” shape—and we’re staying in the key of C so you can see how everything lines up in one position. 🎧 What You’ll Hear: ✅ How the open D major chord shape forms the ba...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 17 The CAGED System: Exploring the “E” Shape in the Key of C If you’re ready to connect chords, scales, and arpeggios across the neck, the CAGED system is your roadmap. Today we’re zeroing in on the “E” shape—and we’re staying in the key of C so you can see how everything lines up in one position. 🎧 What You’ll Hear: ✅ How the open E major chord shape forms the ba...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 16 The CAGED System: Exploring the “G” Shape in the Key of C If you’re ready to connect chords, scales, and arpeggios across the neck, the CAGED system is your roadmap. Today we’re zeroing in on the “G” shape—and we’re staying in the key of C so you can see how everything lines up in one position. 🎧 What You’ll Hear: ✅ How the open G major chord shape forms the ba...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 15 The CAGED System: Exploring the “A” Shape in the Key of C If you’re ready to connect chords, scales, and arpeggios across the neck, the CAGED system is your roadmap. Today we’re zeroing in on the “A” shape—and we’re staying in the key of C so you can see how everything lines up in one position. 🎧 What You’ll Hear: ✅ How the open A major chord shape forms the ba...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 14 The CAGED System: Exploring the “C” Shape in the Key of C If you’re ready to connect chords, scales, and arpeggios across the neck, the CAGED system is your roadmap. Today we’re zeroing in on the “C” shape—and we’re staying in the key of C so you can see how everything lines up in one position. 🎧 What You’ll Hear: ✅ How the open C major chord shape forms the ba...

Intervals: The Building Blocks of Melody & Harmony Once you’re comfortable with scales and chords, it’s time to zoom in on the space between notes: intervals. Intervals are the DNA of music—every melody, every chord, every harmony is made from them. In this episode, we’ll demystify intervals so you can hear them, identify them, and use them to level up your playing and songwriting. 🎧 What You...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 12 Diatonic Chords in C Major Once you’ve got the C major scale down, the next step is learning how chords are built from it. In this episode, we’ll explore the diatonic chords in the key of C major, how to understand their qualities, and how to start writing your own progressions using them. 🎧 What You’ll Hear: ✅ The chord qualities that naturally occur in C majo...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 11 Welcome to the Key of C! The key of C major is where it all begins with no sharps, no flats, just the foundation for so much music theory and playing. In this episode, we’ll break down why C major is so important, how its scale structure works, and how it connects to the bigger picture of understanding music. 🎧 What You’ll Hear: ✅ Why C major is considered the...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 10 Learning the Notes on the Fretboard (Without Losing Your Mind) Trying to memorize all the notes on the guitar fretboard can feel overwhelming — but it doesn’t have to be. In this episode, I’m sharing practical, no-fluff strategies for finally getting confident with the fretboard in a way that actually sticks. 🎙️ This one was sparked by a great question from liste...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 9 Advice I’d Give My Younger Guitar-Playing Self If I could hop in a time machine and give my younger self some honest advice about guitar playing, what would I say? In this episode, I’m diving into the lessons I wish I had known earlier — from practice habits to mindset shifts, and everything in between. 🎙️ This one was sparked by a thoughtful question from listene...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 8 A Walkthrough of my Songwriting Process! Songwriting can feel like magic orrrr a total mystery. In this episode, I’m pulling back the curtain on my personal songwriting process: where ideas come from, how I turn them into full songs, and what I do when inspiration doesn’t strike. 🎙️ This one was sparked by a thoughtful question from listener Michael: “What’s your...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 7 Talking About My First Guitar (and Why It Mattered So Much) Everyone remembers their first guitar — the quirks, the struggles, the excitement of learning that first chord. In this episode, I’m taking it back to where it all started for me: my very first guitar. 🎙️ This one was inspired by a great question from listener Drew who asked: “What was your first guitar,...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 6: How to Get Better at Hammer-ons on Guitar Struggling to get your hammer-ons to sound clean and strong? You’re not alone! Good news, it’s totally fixable. In this episode, I’m breaking down how to improve your hammer-ons with specific exercises, technique tips, and a few practice hacks that helped me get more fluid and expressive with my playing. This one’s inspir...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 5: How to Overcome Shyness as a Musician Ever feel like your nerves get in the way of your music? You're definitely not alone. In this episode, I’m opening up about my own journey with shyness and stage fright, and sharing the tips and mindset shifts that helped me get more comfortable performing and putting myself out there as a musician.  This episode was inspired...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 4: Music School & My Favorite Acoustic Guitar Brands Ever wondered if you have to study music professionally to be taken seriously or even just to feel confident in your craft? In this episode, I’m diving into my own background: whether I went to music school, what I really think about formal education in music, and how it shaped (or didn’t shape) my path. I’m a...

Power to the Pinky Podcast - hosted by Taylor Marberry! A preview of what's to come! Send any questions to taylormarberrymusic@gmail.com

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 3: Taking the Leap Into Music Full-Time Ever dreamed of making music your full-time gig, but felt totally overwhelmed by fear or self-doubt? In this episode, I’m opening up about what it really feels like to take that leap, with the excitement, the fear, and especially the worry that people might not like what you create. This conversation was sparked by a thoughtfu...

🎸 Power to the Pinky – Episode 2: 15 Minute Practice Plan Can you really get better at guitar in just 15 minutes a day? Absolutely! I will show you how to breakdown practice for a 15 minute sesh! One of my listeners, Melody from New York, asked how to structure a 15-minute guitar practice session, and I’m breaking it down with beginner and advanced players in mind. Whether you're just picking up...