Improve your phrasing

[ummagumma]

Every time I jam with my friends or when I'm just playing at home I always find myself using much of the same standard Blues licks every time. I think improvisation is one of the most important skills of guitar playing, but how do you improve your improvisation skills and phrasing? Any techniques or does it just come naturally..

Thanks

 

[Toenail-Tommy]

Re: Improve your phrasing

do a Dave Gilmour, and sing a little phrase or two...record it if you must, and then transcribe it to the guitar. This sounds like it will end up lame, but infact you mostly get nice results. Generally phrasing is kinda like singing... breathing, saying something, pausing, finishing it off, pausing repeating it, but with a slight swop or changing of words, then yelling it out and then softly appologising for yelling.....

 

[tone4days]

Re: Improve your phrasing

artificially limit your choices and see whatyou can make of it ... some suggestions to get you started ...

... only play one note on any given string before switching to a new note on a new string

... no bending

... start each phrase with your pinky

... play only half notes

... play alternating half-notes / quarter notes (have fun counting across the downbeat - that's the whole point )

good luck- have fun
t4d

 

[AmpliFIRE]

Re: Improve your phrasing

Every time I jam with my friends or when I'm just playing at home I always find myself using much of the same standard Blues licks every time. I think improvisation is one of the most important skills of guitar playing, but how do you improve your improvisation skills and phrasing? Any techniques or does it just come naturally..

Thanks

i'm in THE SAME boat as you. This thread has some great ideas already!

 

[Vasshu the humanoid typhoon]

Re: Improve your phrasing

Listen to players who has good phrases, steal a few of them, but most important nick the feel from it.
Recommends Larry Carlton and Holdsworth, Gilmoure, Keith Scott, Jeff Beck....

 

[Quencho092]

Re: Improve your phrasing

doesn't voice leading help add another dimension to soloing. I never got how to do that. Something to do with playing different triad chords using the tones of your root. ie: the 3rd, 5th, 7th etc. Just never got the knack of it. I guess this would help someone's phrasing.

 

[ummagumma]

Re: Improve your phrasing

Thanks for all the tips guys. David Gilmour is one of my favorite guitarists and that's one of the reasons I started the thread...his phrasing is so damn good!

 

[ummagumma]

Re: Improve your phrasing

do a Dave Gilmour, and sing a little phrase or two...record it if you must, and then transcribe it to the guitar. This sounds like it will end up lame, but infact you mostly get nice results. Generally phrasing is kinda like singing... breathing, saying something, pausing, finishing it off, pausing repeating it, but with a slight swop or changing of words, then yelling it out and then softly appologising for yelling.....

Wow...great advice Tommy. It works like a charm, Ijust hummed a few lines off the top of my head, played them and they sounded great!