Guys Advice On Improving My Playing Speed

[drjones]

Re: Guys Advice On Improving My Playing Speed

Can I suggest that if your setting aside 2 hrs a day to practice, dont waste the whole time working on scales.

LEARN SONGS DUDE.

Don't be the guy that when you someone sees that you have a guitar and asks you what you can play, your stuck scratching your head and all you can say is, "Well I can play scales at 160 BPM to a metronome". Besides guitarists not many people give a toss how fast you can play.

Scales and technique are important, but only so much as they help you improve to play songs. But if your practicing 2hrs your probably a lot quicker than you give yourself credit for. Having said that, practicing scales/chromatics and alternate picking every day against a metronome will improve your dexterity no end. A quick search on the net will land you heaps of examples of exercises that will help you improve.

Good luck with it.

 

[anewdefguitarist]

Re: Guys Advice On Improving My Playing Speed

if you listen to any one quote, listen to osensei's...wow dude! seriously, good argument. in that same direction, would you rather listen to somebody feed you 1,000 notes in 3 seconds and say "wow, thats fast, ...but what the hell was the point?" or someone who can play one note for 30 seconds and bring a tear to your eye, or make your fist clenched in rage...my philosophy is
a. serve the song 1st solo if it needs it
b. dont play 10 notes when 4 will do make it something ANYBODY can grasp i think you'll get much more positive feedback
c. its sounds corny, but play from your ****in soul man! i'll admit, i never really appreciated dime until he was gone...but listening to some of his freestyle solos, im blown away, i always wrote him off as some 80's metal guy who just played 654535465 notes as fast as he could, and used his whammy bar to the point of neck bending...but then i actually listened and gave him a chance, and wow. you can really "feel" what he's playing...it just so happens theres about 3000 notes you can feel. speed will come with practice, but dont forget the feeling. make it bleed.

 

[daemon barbeque]

Re: Guys Advice On Improving My Playing Speed

The only Speed limit has to be your imagination.If you really like to play fast ,go for it.If some people could not understand the notes and melodies you play...it's not your problem.
Guitar playing is emotion ,and everybody feels different.So you have to learn to play with your own emotions.That's my only goal on guitar.
Marty Friedman is a great example.He knows how to play fast and emotional.

I don't like to work on scales and whatnot.I concentrate on my ideas ,that are "not" playable for me.And i practice till i can play them fluently!And i take professional help when needed.
Play slow ,sleep well ,let your brain accept and learn every move you did on your last practice.Don't practice more than 30 minutes.You can practice several 30 minutes with some brakes.But Guitar is fun and you have to keep that fun!
The most important thing about it is to hearing yourself ,judging yourself objectively and record stuff.It will help to hear how you progress and how you can make yourself even better!

 

[Whistlepig]

Re: Guys Advice On Improving My Playing Speed

I'm probably the slowest player here and I use the word player generously lol.
But I use Power tab editor. Just pick a song you want to burn on. Down load it. Watch it playing. It helps me.
:smokin: