New Lessons for July 2025

Check out new lessons, tunes, and techniques from Peghead Nation instructors.

By: Dan Gabel

July 1, 2025

Peghead Nation instructors have released hours of new instruction in their courses, and here are the tunes and lessons we’ve just published for July 2025. Join us in any course and get your first month free. Just use promo code Learn25 at checkout!

GUITAR COURSES

Contemporary Flatpicking Guitar with Grant Gordy

Dominant Seventh Chords: Grant shows you his method of creating three-note dominant-seventh V chords and how to transition to the I (tonic) chord, an essential skill for folk, blues, jazz, and bluegrass. He also introduces the A Mixolydian scale.

Irish Flatpicking Guitar with Flynn Cohen

The Leitrim Fancy: Flynn learned this great E minor/G major jig from the Bothy Band, one of the most influential ensembles to emerge from the energetic traditional Irish music scene of the mid-1970s. It’s an Irish session standard.

Western Swing Guitar with Matt Munisteri

Little Red Wagon: Matt explores soloing in Eb on the circle-of-fifths progression for “Little Red Wagon.” He teaches some of the lines that Hank Penny and his band played on their 1951 recording, which outline the chord progression beautifully.

MANDOLIN COURSES

Beginning Mandolin with Sharon Gilchrist

My Home’s Across the Blue Ridge Mountains: Sharon teaches Clarence Ashley’s bluegrass classic in the key of D. In addition to the basic melody and chords, you’ll learn some techniques for rounding out the sound and enhancing the groove.

Weekly Mandolin Workout with Ethan Setiawan

Melodic Improvisation: This month’s exercises are derived from the familiar fiddle tune “Big Sciota” in the key of G. These drills will help improve the way you begin and end solos and help you to tie together variations on a musical theme.

Swing and Jazz Mandolin with Joe K. Walsh

I’m Confessin’ In this lesson, Joe will teach you the melody to “I’m Confessin’” in the key of G, and use that as a springboard to discuss some of the finer points of jazz soloing, including how to use augmented chords, voice leading, and more.

Monroe-Style Mandolin with Mike Compton

Blue Ridge Mountain Blues: Bill Monroe recorded this standard in 1962, and it was the opening track of his Bluegrass Special album. Monroe’s classic solo primarily consists of arpeggiated lines played with all downstrokes.

Gypsy Jazz Mandolin Essentials with Aaron Weinstein

I Got Rhythm: This George Gershwin song is an enduring standard, with a chord progression so common in jams that it is referred to as simply “Rhythm Changes.” You’ll learn the chord progression and a basic solo in the key of Bb.

Old-Time Mandolin with John Reischman

Sugar in the Gourd: John learned this version of “Sugar in the Gourd” in the key of A from musician Paul Brown. He teaches the tune and offers some accompaniment ideas using two-finger chords on the low strings with open strings droning above.

The Advancing Mandolinist with Joe K. Walsh

“Sally Ann,” Mike Marshall Solo: This lesson focuses on Mike Marshall’s blistering solo for “Sally Ann” as he played it on the star-studded NewGrange album. Joe teaches the basic tune and then dissects the full mandolin break note-for-note.

Bluegrass Mandolin Fingerboard Method with Sharon Gilchrist

“I’ll Fly Away,” Descending Two-Octave Solo: In a previous lesson, Sharon taught a two-octave solo that moved up the fingerboard. In this lesson, she shows you a solo that does the reverse, starting up high and moving lower.

Octave Mandolin with Joe K. Walsh

“Just a Closer Walk with Thee” in G: This traditional gospel song is one of the all-time great melodies. Joe teaches the song in the key of G in two octaves, and shares ways to embellish and create variations on the tune.

FIDDLE COURSES

Folk and Bluegrass Songs with Lauren Rioux

Keep on the Sunny Side, Keys of C and E: Lauren teaches “Keep on the Sunny Side” in the keys of C and E in this expansion of her earlier lesson. She shows you how to use familiar hand shapes and fingerings to play in two octaves of each new key.

Old-Time Fiddle with Bruce Molsky

Ed Morrison’s Schottische: This month, Bruce teaches an untitled schottische in the key of D from Kentucky fiddler Ed Morrison. Schottisches are played for a bouncy couple dance that typically includes a series of short steps, hops, and pivots.

BANJO COURSES

Clawhammer Banjo with Evie Ladin

Chinquapin Hunting: The fiddle tune “Chinquapin Hunting” comes from Virginia fiddler Norman Edmonds. It’s a three-part tune in the key of A. The first part is crooked, with an extra half measure, and all three parts are short.

PLAY-ALONG RHYTHM TRACKS – Available to all subscribers. Guitar accompaniment video, downloadable audio, and chord charts for popular bluegrass, old-time, and roots tunes and songs.