"Chop" Building?
- Thread starter y2stevo
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Sly_D
New member
Re: "Chop" Building?
Well, I listen to my favorite players, try to learn their best chops, and practice them until my fingers bleeds... and then find some cool backtracks and improv until my finger bleeds
Improv is good because you end up finding your own chops and phrasing.
And every cool lick you learn from someone else enriches your playing background.
I don't think there's any other way... practice is the key word. Patience and determination. Like anything else in life, if your half-assed, you won't improve much.
I'll stop before I sound like your dad
Well, I listen to my favorite players, try to learn their best chops, and practice them until my fingers bleeds... and then find some cool backtracks and improv until my finger bleeds
Improv is good because you end up finding your own chops and phrasing.
And every cool lick you learn from someone else enriches your playing background.
I don't think there's any other way... practice is the key word. Patience and determination. Like anything else in life, if your half-assed, you won't improve much.
I'll stop before I sound like your dad
\m/(00)\m/
HeadBanginologist
Re: "Chop" Building?
find your root of your progression and play chord tones. thats what i do
find your root of your progression and play chord tones. thats what i do
TwilightOdyssey
Darkness on the edge of Tone
Re: "Chop" Building?
Steve, you need to have serious discipline if you're gonna push your playing to the next level. Improvising will help with your compositional skills, as will jamming with a band (it's like "live theory"), but you need dedicated practice with a metronome.
I've been teaching guitar for years, and I always start with the basics, even with my own daily routine. Simple chromatic picking exercises that will take you up and down the strings and neck, picking every note in time, is a good way to start. Then move on to scales. Do you know all 8 scale positions for the Major and Natural Minor Scales? Do you know how to link modes together? This is a good place to start.
Then move on to more advanced stuff like arpeggios (again, there are 8 arpeggio positions to go with the scale positions). Then you move on to string skipping picking exercises, and 3-string arpeggios.
Then work on legato, tremolo work, vibrato, bending in key, and two handed tapping.
Lastly I usually work on a sight-reading exercise and chord work ...
Yeah, it takes a long time to do all this. But it will pay off in the end.
Oh, by the way: what's your T-shirt size? I'm going to send you a TO shirt with the CD!!!
Steve, you need to have serious discipline if you're gonna push your playing to the next level. Improvising will help with your compositional skills, as will jamming with a band (it's like "live theory"), but you need dedicated practice with a metronome.
I've been teaching guitar for years, and I always start with the basics, even with my own daily routine. Simple chromatic picking exercises that will take you up and down the strings and neck, picking every note in time, is a good way to start. Then move on to scales. Do you know all 8 scale positions for the Major and Natural Minor Scales? Do you know how to link modes together? This is a good place to start.
Then move on to more advanced stuff like arpeggios (again, there are 8 arpeggio positions to go with the scale positions). Then you move on to string skipping picking exercises, and 3-string arpeggios.
Then work on legato, tremolo work, vibrato, bending in key, and two handed tapping.
Lastly I usually work on a sight-reading exercise and chord work ...
Yeah, it takes a long time to do all this. But it will pay off in the end.
Oh, by the way: what's your T-shirt size? I'm going to send you a TO shirt with the CD!!!
Hot _Grits
Buttery Toneologist
Re: "Chop" Building?
I agree with Twilight, learning the major scale in all 7 positions is a massive tool for being able to get around the neck and find stuff that will work melodically.
the best thing you can do is listen to your favourite players, isolate small chunks of what they do and work on playing along.
Above all, listen to the timing of good players. Listen to how they fit their lines over the rythm of a piece, and listen for when the choose to not play. The spaces are as important as the notes. I cannot stress this part enough, it's the one thing I always hear hobbyist/developing player not doing enough work on.
I agree with Twilight, learning the major scale in all 7 positions is a massive tool for being able to get around the neck and find stuff that will work melodically.
the best thing you can do is listen to your favourite players, isolate small chunks of what they do and work on playing along.
Above all, listen to the timing of good players. Listen to how they fit their lines over the rythm of a piece, and listen for when the choose to not play. The spaces are as important as the notes. I cannot stress this part enough, it's the one thing I always hear hobbyist/developing player not doing enough work on.
\m/(00)\m/
HeadBanginologist
Re: "Chop" Building?
listen to twilight
listen to twilight
JammerMatt
New member
Re: "Chop" Building?
8 positions? I've been doing the standard five. Are the other three the "three-note-per-string" positions?
My shirt size is Large. Sign me up for a TO CD. I'll PM you my address when you're getting ready to ship.
-Matt
8 positions? I've been doing the standard five. Are the other three the "three-note-per-string" positions?
My shirt size is Large. Sign me up for a TO CD. I'll PM you my address when you're getting ready to ship.
-Matt
Vasshu the humanoid typhoon
Unseen
Re: "Chop" Building?
I play, never liked practising riffs and others peoples stuff.
I know scales, quite a few arpegggios, chords that I still use, equally I have forgotten just as much, rhythm in your playing and lines that connects over the chords.
Meaning finding the notes that connects the piece, earpractise is a great thing.
I play, never liked practising riffs and others peoples stuff.
I know scales, quite a few arpegggios, chords that I still use, equally I have forgotten just as much, rhythm in your playing and lines that connects over the chords.
Meaning finding the notes that connects the piece, earpractise is a great thing.
Lee
New member
Re: "Chop" Building?
Ya know when you are walking down the road and you hear some chords in your head and you whistle an improvised solo to them? Do you think scales and modes? Or do you whistle what you hear in your head?
Well that is how you should play guitar - play what you hear in your head.
Take the C scale: CDEFGABC. Now play that over and over on (say) the 5th fret. Play it up and down. Now get used to the intervals bwtween the notes by playing well-known tunes. Now get used to the sound of the chromatic notes betweeen the notes of the scale (ie F#,C# etc).
Now extend from one octave to three.: CDEFGABCDEFGABCDEFGABC
Armed with the knowledge above you can play any tune/melody/riff that has ever been written.
Now slide that info up or down a fret or two and you are playing in all of the other keys.
When you play the notes above to the Am7 chord you are playing in the relative minor.
(C-Am; G-Em; D-Bm).
There you go. Any solo that has ever been written is covered by the stuff above.
Forget modes and stuff - dead end for people that can't hear music in their heads.
Learn to 'whistle' the guitar. Play it as you would whistle it by hearing the notes in your head as you play them.
Lee
Ya know when you are walking down the road and you hear some chords in your head and you whistle an improvised solo to them? Do you think scales and modes? Or do you whistle what you hear in your head?
Well that is how you should play guitar - play what you hear in your head.
Take the C scale: CDEFGABC. Now play that over and over on (say) the 5th fret. Play it up and down. Now get used to the intervals bwtween the notes by playing well-known tunes. Now get used to the sound of the chromatic notes betweeen the notes of the scale (ie F#,C# etc).
Now extend from one octave to three.: CDEFGABCDEFGABCDEFGABC
Armed with the knowledge above you can play any tune/melody/riff that has ever been written.
Now slide that info up or down a fret or two and you are playing in all of the other keys.
When you play the notes above to the Am7 chord you are playing in the relative minor.
(C-Am; G-Em; D-Bm).
There you go. Any solo that has ever been written is covered by the stuff above.
Forget modes and stuff - dead end for people that can't hear music in their heads.
Learn to 'whistle' the guitar. Play it as you would whistle it by hearing the notes in your head as you play them.
Lee
Last edited:
Number One
New member
Re: "Chop" Building?
Improv to lots of songs. The more different the songs are the better, and u can get a general feel of scale patterns from different songs, and oftentimes find new patterns that u can use in future improv. But knowing your scales is definitely where u start.
Improv to lots of songs. The more different the songs are the better, and u can get a general feel of scale patterns from different songs, and oftentimes find new patterns that u can use in future improv. But knowing your scales is definitely where u start.
Re: "Chop" Building?
i'm like this
i never practise my solos, only technique.
when i do a solo i just improvise the entire thing...
the plan is to get away from doing "licks" which are an easy way out if all your gonna do is string a few together.
The best way to learn how to improvise is to just do it... theres no other way to learn.
thats the only lesson i got out of the alan holdsworth video i watched, rest of it bored me
Lee said:
i'm like this
i never practise my solos, only technique.
when i do a solo i just improvise the entire thing...
the plan is to get away from doing "licks" which are an easy way out if all your gonna do is string a few together.
The best way to learn how to improvise is to just do it... theres no other way to learn.
thats the only lesson i got out of the alan holdsworth video i watched, rest of it bored me
y2stevo
New member
Re: "Chop" Building?
Medium,
Wow thats quiet a few posts more than i expected Cheers..
I dont think Determination or anything like that is a problem, i think its the fact that really ive only been properly playing for the last few months..Even tho Ive been "playing" for nearaly 3 years, I was one of those unfortunates to be sucked in by the commercial garbage and the power chord bands(not that there al bad but there not very creative and technical guitarists)Only latley ive been listnening to good music.........I do practise with a metronome and Know Modes (but very rusty on them) and Pentatonic scale in all 5,..
but the one thing i completly overlooked was actually learning songs..I Never really realised that that seemed to be the key..Even tho its pretty damn obvious...
Cheers All.. Thanks alot :laugh2:
Medium,
Wow thats quiet a few posts more than i expected Cheers..
I dont think Determination or anything like that is a problem, i think its the fact that really ive only been properly playing for the last few months..Even tho Ive been "playing" for nearaly 3 years, I was one of those unfortunates to be sucked in by the commercial garbage and the power chord bands(not that there al bad but there not very creative and technical guitarists)Only latley ive been listnening to good music.........I do practise with a metronome and Know Modes (but very rusty on them) and Pentatonic scale in all 5,..
but the one thing i completly overlooked was actually learning songs..I Never really realised that that seemed to be the key..Even tho its pretty damn obvious...
Cheers All.. Thanks alot :laugh2:
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