The 1 tip that made you a better player...
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Bludave
New member
Re: The 1 tip that made you a better player...
1. Take lessons from a qualified and competent teacher
2. Practice your lessons a minimum of 30 minutes everyday and then play what you want for at least another 30 minutes
3. Practice with a metronome. bad tempo and timing is many players downfall
1. Take lessons from a qualified and competent teacher
2. Practice your lessons a minimum of 30 minutes everyday and then play what you want for at least another 30 minutes
3. Practice with a metronome. bad tempo and timing is many players downfall
tubeman87
New member
Re: The 1 tip that made you a better player...
The best advise I ever received was "If you don't feel like playing, don't force yourself."
There have been times where I've said "rain or shine I'm playing today" and when it can down to it I didn't "feel" like playing and still did.....awful.
Then there are those days where I just feel the need to pick up my guitar even for just 15min....some of the best playing.
The best advise I ever received was "If you don't feel like playing, don't force yourself."
There have been times where I've said "rain or shine I'm playing today" and when it can down to it I didn't "feel" like playing and still did.....awful.
Then there are those days where I just feel the need to pick up my guitar even for just 15min....some of the best playing.
JeffB
Let it B
Re: The 1 tip that made you a better player...
Expression...
And I don't mean guitar face...:eek13:
If you can learn to really attack the strings or lay back, and vibrato really well..you don't need massive technical chops to sound really good....people call it feel...but then again plenty of players who are accused of not having "feel" do what I mentioned above e.g. Yngwie for example.
This applies to both rhythm AND lead playing. Shake the crap out of your chords too. Throw in little nuances: adding a note here and there...emphasizing certain note/s in the chord over others, etc to basic power chords and the like.
Lets face it, I'm a pretty blah player in the grand scheme of things..I make alot of mistakes and I'm sloppy at times (I blame my ADD :laughing: ), yet people in music stores come up and compliment me quite often and I really think thats cos of the way I play dynamically...cos I certainly don't have any monster chops....I'm as dumbfounded as I can be about it...
When you go into a music store..who gets your attention as a good player? The dynamic player, regardless of style? or the kid/old guy who mindlessly plays nu-metal/blues/neoclassical phrases/scales over and over and over...
and over...
and over....
and over....
?
doesn't mean you should strive to be a 3 chord wonder, either... chops are good...but scales alone won't help you. There's plenty of GIT graduates who have monster chops (better than 99% of guitar players out there) and are boring as hell to listen to.
Expression...
And I don't mean guitar face...:eek13:
If you can learn to really attack the strings or lay back, and vibrato really well..you don't need massive technical chops to sound really good....people call it feel...but then again plenty of players who are accused of not having "feel" do what I mentioned above e.g. Yngwie for example.
This applies to both rhythm AND lead playing. Shake the crap out of your chords too. Throw in little nuances: adding a note here and there...emphasizing certain note/s in the chord over others, etc to basic power chords and the like.
Lets face it, I'm a pretty blah player in the grand scheme of things..I make alot of mistakes and I'm sloppy at times (I blame my ADD :laughing: ), yet people in music stores come up and compliment me quite often and I really think thats cos of the way I play dynamically...cos I certainly don't have any monster chops....I'm as dumbfounded as I can be about it...
When you go into a music store..who gets your attention as a good player? The dynamic player, regardless of style? or the kid/old guy who mindlessly plays nu-metal/blues/neoclassical phrases/scales over and over and over...
and over...
and over....
and over....
?
doesn't mean you should strive to be a 3 chord wonder, either... chops are good...but scales alone won't help you. There's plenty of GIT graduates who have monster chops (better than 99% of guitar players out there) and are boring as hell to listen to.
Butch Snyder
ObsoleteChickenPickingologist
Re: The 1 tip that made you a better player...
I had to realize, awhile back, that the right hand did more than just strum and pick. It carries virtually all the rhythm.
I had to realize, awhile back, that the right hand did more than just strum and pick. It carries virtually all the rhythm.
JeffB
Let it B
Re: The 1 tip that made you a better player...
which goes along with butch's right hand thing, get your timing down. playing lead is nice but you need to be able to drive a band with your rhythm chops
which goes along with butch's right hand thing, get your timing down. playing lead is nice but you need to be able to drive a band with your rhythm chops
fingerace
New member
Re: The 1 tip that made you a better player...
When you start surfing the internet for amps and guitars and effects and start searching for stuff just because you are bored (or you are just sitting watching TV), just stop for a moment. Stop and think that during the time you are doing this you could be improving your skills on the guitar.
Nobody told me this, but I caught (and still catch) myself doing this. I spend so many hours every day in front of a computer or a television screen that IF I used that time to practice, I would be a hell of a player!
When you start surfing the internet for amps and guitars and effects and start searching for stuff just because you are bored (or you are just sitting watching TV), just stop for a moment. Stop and think that during the time you are doing this you could be improving your skills on the guitar.
Nobody told me this, but I caught (and still catch) myself doing this. I spend so many hours every day in front of a computer or a television screen that IF I used that time to practice, I would be a hell of a player!
Jeffrec
New member
Re: The 1 tip that made you a better player...
Everyone has been right on the money. My 2-cents would be:
As Johnny Winter said: "Practice"...I do a lot of scales & finger exercises to increase coordination betwen the right and left hands. As Jeremy said, practicing your rhythm chops is real important.
Circular picking, as I learned from an interview with Roy Buchannan.
Jeff
Everyone has been right on the money. My 2-cents would be:
As Johnny Winter said: "Practice"...I do a lot of scales & finger exercises to increase coordination betwen the right and left hands. As Jeremy said, practicing your rhythm chops is real important.
Circular picking, as I learned from an interview with Roy Buchannan.
Jeff
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bungalowbill
Luckybastidologist
Re: The 1 tip that made you a better player...
Breathe....don't tense up and hold your breath if you are playing a fast or difficult passage. Stay loose.
Breathe....don't tense up and hold your breath if you are playing a fast or difficult passage. Stay loose.
T
these_go211
Guest
Re: The 1 tip that made you a better player...
^ great advice tom. relaxing my fretting hand is one thing that has helped a lot. especially with barre chords.
^ great advice tom. relaxing my fretting hand is one thing that has helped a lot. especially with barre chords.
CapoFirstFret
New member
Re: The 1 tip that made you a better player...
I got this from a Scott Henderson DVD...I think...maybe not..anyway
If you feel that you are overplaying and playing too many notes and not being lyrical enough with your playing, only play when you're breathing out and not when you're breathing in. Horn players can't play when they're breathing in, singers can't sing while they're breathing in. Breath with your playing, it'll make you think a bit more lyrically
I got this from a Scott Henderson DVD...I think...maybe not..anyway
If you feel that you are overplaying and playing too many notes and not being lyrical enough with your playing, only play when you're breathing out and not when you're breathing in. Horn players can't play when they're breathing in, singers can't sing while they're breathing in. Breath with your playing, it'll make you think a bit more lyrically
Re: The 1 tip that made you a better player...
That's really horrible advice for a beginner though, or actually anyone.
It's fine if you just decide you don't want to noodle for a few minutes that day, but otherwise bad bad choice.
The best advice I ever received was "Guitar playing is not an olympic sport."
The best advice I can give is, Record your self! Do it daily and do it constantly, listen for any errors in your technique or timing and work on them!
That's really horrible advice for a beginner though, or actually anyone.
It's fine if you just decide you don't want to noodle for a few minutes that day, but otherwise bad bad choice.
The best advice I ever received was "Guitar playing is not an olympic sport."
The best advice I can give is, Record your self! Do it daily and do it constantly, listen for any errors in your technique or timing and work on them!
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Jeffrec
New member
Re: The 1 tip that made you a better player...
Excellent! I forgot about that one. I remember D!cky Betts talking about that years ago.
Excellent! I forgot about that one. I remember D!cky Betts talking about that years ago.
wahwah
GumbyLoveologist
Re: The 1 tip that made you a better player...
There might be something for you in this equation. An average length song (about 4 minutes) at a moderate tempo (around 120 bpm) is around 120 bars. Of that, generally 8 bars would be a guitar solo, if there is one. The rest of the song you will most likely be playing rhythm. That's a ratio of 15:1. To be an effective guitarist in a band, I would recommend applying the concept of that ratio to part of your practice discipline. A great rhythm player who can play a cool solo is far more valuable in a band context than a great soloist with lousy rhythm.
Cheers.............wahwah
There might be something for you in this equation. An average length song (about 4 minutes) at a moderate tempo (around 120 bpm) is around 120 bars. Of that, generally 8 bars would be a guitar solo, if there is one. The rest of the song you will most likely be playing rhythm. That's a ratio of 15:1. To be an effective guitarist in a band, I would recommend applying the concept of that ratio to part of your practice discipline. A great rhythm player who can play a cool solo is far more valuable in a band context than a great soloist with lousy rhythm.
Cheers.............wahwah
