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How to get better at guitar

jakeworth.com

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Re: How to get better at guitar

#101

Post by aanet »

smcameron wrote: post #79
RyanOD wrote: post #44

Obscure "learn it by ear" guitar story... Upon hearing Eruption for the first time, the story goes that Tony MacAlpine learned to play the finger tapping section by PICKING IT because he didn't know finger tapping was a thing. Only after seeing Van Halen in concert did he realize what Eddie was doing. If memory serves me right, I read this in either Guitar Player or Guitar World magazine back in the late 80s or early…

Similarly, Ben Travers didn't have a delay pedal, so learned to pick the delayed parts on Pink Floyd's "Run like hell" when he was younger, since taken to ludicrous speed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CY0_HG8J5M

Ben Travers playing is mental!! Thx for the track. Needed it today.

<3

Re: How to get better at guitar

#102

Post by zozbot234 »

yousif_123123 wrote: post #100
tkgally wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Learning formal music theory helped me a lot when I was a teenager playing guitar and piano, and having absorbed all that theory more than fifty years ago helps me to continue enjoy playing and improvising music now. But over the years I realized that there were gaps in the Western classical theory I studied. A relatively small one is that I never systematically studied jazz harmony, and I still don’t have a good sen…

I may be wrong but I don't think there is a theory of melody in as there is go harmony or counterpoint. A good melody can't be constructed from rules. That's what makes them magical. As I write this, I think when a melody sounds good it's likely related to the implied harmony in the notes being used, and obviously the expectations the listener gets and how they're handled. But I don't think there is a system of const…

I'd say that once you understand practical harmony, counterpoint, diminutions, common schemata, some basic elements of form, you've pretty much understood what classical music theory has to say about melody too. There's definitely an element of playing with expectations in a fully "creative" and rule-free way, but knowing the theory underneath is how you understand what the expectations are.

Re: How to get better at guitar

#103

Post by socalgal2 »

analog31 wrote: post #48
freetime2 wrote: post #32

This brought to mind a quote from Ira Glass: > Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, I wish someone told me. All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your…

I'm a jazz musician, and my kids are both professional classical players. I've asked them why they don't learn to play jazz. My daughter described pretty much what Glass is saying here. She calls it "fear of sucking." She knows what good jazz improvisation sounds like, and trying to make herself do it is pretty discouraging. Not that there's anything wrong with loving and playing classical music, which is a factor to…

"Dude, sucking at something is the first step at being sorta good at someting" - Jake the Dog

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gu8YiTeU9XU

Re: How to get better at guitar

#104

Post by zoogeny »

I learned this way myself without being told. I was gifted a nearly ruined classical guitar that my mom took to a music shop and a guy got into working condition for $20. I then listened to every record, cassette and CD in our house looking for any guitar I could hear, especially individual notes, and learned dozens of songs.

It is painstaking and tedious, but it works. I look back on that time, the first few years I played, and I am genuinely surprised at some of the difficult songs I worked through in this way.

But now, over 30 years later and still playing regularly, I almost never do a note-for-note transcription of other peoples playing. I tend to either just get the gist of the harmony and melody by listening and get into the general ballpark. I often use ultimate guitar or other tab sites just for an outline of the chords (or download sheets from real books for jazz).

But my aim is always to fully memorize a piece, from beginning to end, so I can play it without any reference. That, for me, is the goal. Any way I get there (tabs, sheets, ear, demonstration, etc.) works fine in my books.

Re: How to get better at guitar

#106

Post by Affric »

al_borland wrote: post #34
Affric wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I can’t imagine stopping every note. I think it is pretty good practice for me to never stop if one can avoid it. I used to stop all the time, when I made a mistake, between repetitions, when I finished the piece. I agree about ear to fretboard.

I think you need both. If you never stop or slow down, it's hard to build the proper muscle memory to improve and get more accurate. However, it's also valuable to practice playing through mistakes to finish a whole song. Mistakes happen, and if you're playing for a crowd you can't just stop and start over.

I repeatedly play the same phrase though.

Re: How to get better at guitar

#107

Post by grogenaut »

gritspants wrote: post #66
analog31 wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm a jazz musician, and my kids are both professional classical players. I've asked them why they don't learn to play jazz. My daughter described pretty much what Glass is saying here. She calls it "fear of sucking." She knows what good jazz improvisation sounds like, and trying to make herself do it is pretty discouraging. Not that there's anything wrong with loving and playing classical music, which is a factor to…

I picked up Violin as an adult, have done recitals, and I suck. Being able to suck and find joy in something anyway even if you're not top nth percentile is a valuable life skill.

I tell my Mentees one of the greatest skills is getting good at not being good at something. Being comfortable being uncomfortable.

Re: How to get better at guitar

#108

Post by shermantanktop »

crtified wrote: post #21

One truth I've observed from decades of keen hobbyist involvement in guitar music and playing is that a lifetime of music is largely an individual journey. The fact that some players learn by transcribing, while others learn by jamming, and yet others learn by rote theoretical study, or 10-hour practice sessions, etc, is a big part of the variety which results in the wonderfully varied tapestry of music styles and ap…

That’s it.

The individual who has a breakthrough often feels compelled to call it a “system” and start telling others about it.

The great advice someone has is just what worked for them. It will probably work for others, especially if it repeats common advice, but it won’t work for everyone.

Re: How to get better at guitar

#109

Post by shermantanktop »

Slow_Hand wrote: post #30
BizarroLand wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My music teacher said that practice does not produce perfection, only perfect practice produces perfection. If you mess up, redo the part you messed up correctly 5 times in a row. And, don't just practice the easy stuff. You have to challenge yourself to grow.

Yes. Put another way: Slow is smooth. Smooth is fast. And as my music professor once said: "If you sound good while practicing, then you're not practicing."

Guess I’m practicing right

Re: How to get better at guitar

#110

Post by qotgalaxy »

H1Supreme wrote: post #47

Recognizing melodies by ear is a hugely useful skill, but I can't help but think it's going to be nearly impossible to do without a sound foundation in music theory. Tabs are, in large part, paint-by-number. Lots of guitarists out there are only interested in learning a song. Regardless of key, mode, or what the notes actually are. And, tabs satisfy that group by saying: "Play this fret on this string". To write tabs…

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