Sunday, June 22, 2008
Monday, February 25, 2008
Arpeggios!
I've begun exploring arpeggios lately. Not the standard variety, chord shape arpeggios. Those are so easy I use them with string skipping to warm up (hehe). I'm talking about along-the-fretboard arpeggios, played using first principles rather than 'shapes'. Take a look-
Amadd9 arpeggio (listen)
Amadd9! I love this arpeggio. Am is cool, but Amadd9!!! I've tried adding many tones to the standard major and minor arpeggios, and the 9th is my favorite.
Am arpeggio (listen)
This is a small melody rather than just an arpeggio. I used 9s in some places.
Gadd9 arpeggio (listen)
This is again a melody. Its in 7/8!!!
Next step is sweep picking. Yes, I still can't do sweep picking :-(
Amadd9 arpeggio (listen)
Amadd9! I love this arpeggio. Am is cool, but Amadd9!!! I've tried adding many tones to the standard major and minor arpeggios, and the 9th is my favorite.
Am arpeggio (listen)
This is a small melody rather than just an arpeggio. I used 9s in some places.
Gadd9 arpeggio (listen)
This is again a melody. Its in 7/8!!!
Next step is sweep picking. Yes, I still can't do sweep picking :-(
The Importance of Beat in Playing Lead
Until a couple of days ago, it was impossible for me to play very fast. I could pick fast, I could fret fast, but couldn't do the both of them together. It would fall apart. The two parts would get out of sync. Take for example, the Fear Of The Dark riff-
The 107 bpm was unmanageable for me. I could do it maybe when I was 'in the zone', but not regularly. It was like one hand would move faster than the other and it would all get messed up.
The solution IS to use a metronome, but I've never been such a metronome person. I use it to practice scales, but not songs. So, to better synchronize my left and right hand while playing fast, I figured I could headbang. No, seriously. It's just like tapping a foot. On the beat, you move your head forward. Just like those bass player types.
When you play rhythm guitar, it's mostly the right hand which has to use the beat and provide the rhythm. On the other hand, when playing lead, the left hand fingers move just as rapidly (sometimes must faster) than the right hand. So, synchronizing the two movements is a lot more important in lead playing. The only way to do this is to use an external beat.
With a beat, what happens is, your playing gets broken down into tiny fragments, each of which lies between two beats. Any mistake that you make will be limited to one fragment. The very next beat, you get synchronized again. This is in stead of playing the whole lead as one piece or a set of large pieces. If you make one mistake, that mistake will carry over to the rest of the lead.
I've been practicing headbanging to keep time for the last 2 days, and it works great. I can totally play the Fear Of The Dark riff at 107 bpm and beyond. 107 bpm translates to 428 notes per minute. I have never been able to do that before. I've tried the same technique in other places, like the triplets in the Fade To Black solo, also giving the same results.
So, that's how I learned how important a steady beat is in fast lead playing.
The 107 bpm was unmanageable for me. I could do it maybe when I was 'in the zone', but not regularly. It was like one hand would move faster than the other and it would all get messed up.
The solution IS to use a metronome, but I've never been such a metronome person. I use it to practice scales, but not songs. So, to better synchronize my left and right hand while playing fast, I figured I could headbang. No, seriously. It's just like tapping a foot. On the beat, you move your head forward. Just like those bass player types.
When you play rhythm guitar, it's mostly the right hand which has to use the beat and provide the rhythm. On the other hand, when playing lead, the left hand fingers move just as rapidly (sometimes must faster) than the right hand. So, synchronizing the two movements is a lot more important in lead playing. The only way to do this is to use an external beat.
With a beat, what happens is, your playing gets broken down into tiny fragments, each of which lies between two beats. Any mistake that you make will be limited to one fragment. The very next beat, you get synchronized again. This is in stead of playing the whole lead as one piece or a set of large pieces. If you make one mistake, that mistake will carry over to the rest of the lead.
I've been practicing headbanging to keep time for the last 2 days, and it works great. I can totally play the Fear Of The Dark riff at 107 bpm and beyond. 107 bpm translates to 428 notes per minute. I have never been able to do that before. I've tried the same technique in other places, like the triplets in the Fade To Black solo, also giving the same results.
So, that's how I learned how important a steady beat is in fast lead playing.
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Yo
Middle finger still hurting :-(
So I couldn't learn Back In Black. I'll do some power chord song in stead. Like Green Day. Here's a list of songs I plan to learn soon -
So I couldn't learn Back In Black. I'll do some power chord song in stead. Like Green Day. Here's a list of songs I plan to learn soon -
- AC/DC - Back In Black
- Green Day - Working Class Hero (I'm hoping this cover is all power chords)
- Guns 'n' Roses - Patience
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Again?? WTF!
It's happened again. First it was the picks. And now my Mom has thrown away my slide. I knew I'd have to face many problems learning guitar, but I didn't expect my Mom throwing away my guitar stuff to be one of them. :-(
On a side note, I couldn't learn a new song today, because my middle finger isn't callused any more, so it HURRRRRTS to play. I was going to learn Back in Black. Maybe tomorrow.
On a side note, I couldn't learn a new song today, because my middle finger isn't callused any more, so it HURRRRRTS to play. I was going to learn Back in Black. Maybe tomorrow.
Branching Out
OK. I never thought I would. But I am. I'm learning to play rhythm guitar. Swaroop's been learning guitar, and he's heading the rhythm way. He's getting pretty good at stuff pretty quick, and given how competitive I am when it comes to guitar, I just have to (have to, HAVE to, HAVE TO, HAVE TO!, HAVE! TO!) stay ahead. Plus, I have to teach him wotever I know, by compulsion. So... very confusing.
To start off, I learned Summer of '69 today. Complete waste of time. Learned nothing new. Apart from the muted strumming under the verse, the guitar parts are all pretty lame. Even the muted part isn't thaaaat good. I should've learned this one much earlier, when I might have learned something from it. Sadness.
A new song a day sounds good. Will help me build something of a repertoire. I should try to keep it varied though. Later.
To start off, I learned Summer of '69 today. Complete waste of time. Learned nothing new. Apart from the muted strumming under the verse, the guitar parts are all pretty lame. Even the muted part isn't thaaaat good. I should've learned this one much earlier, when I might have learned something from it. Sadness.
A new song a day sounds good. Will help me build something of a repertoire. I should try to keep it varied though. Later.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Still Alive
OK, wotever, the blog isn't cared for anymore. But I'm still playing. Here's wot I can do-
Rhythm
I've got a lonnnnnnng way to go. Here's wot I plan to learn-
Rhythm
- Basic strumming, singing while strumming, strumming select strings.
- Muting, left and right hand, for strumming and individual strings.
- Arpeggiating chords. Like, Nothing Else Matters or Fade To Black, and singing over arpeggios, although not entirely, as in Stairway To Heaven.
- Scales - all 5 pentatonic positions, although I haven't practiced them in a while. Major scale in 3 positions (Locrian, Ionian and Phrygian)
- Subdividing beats - I can subdivide beats into up to 6th note triplets at60 bpm playing the Locrian mode. That's 360 notes per minute.
- Solos - Nothing Else Matters complete. Beginnings of solos Fade To Black, Sweet Child O' Mine.
- Basic improvisation. I can stay in a scale. Doesn't necessarily sound good.
- Legato - My little finger is improving, although my thumb still plays a part when using it. I've been training my middle and ring fingers for tapping.
- Scales and diatonics - I just recently figured out about diatonic scales. Very cool stuff.
- Chords, of course - Making, naming, etc. chords.
- I can recognize very few intervals - perfect 5th, perfect 4th, tritone, unison (duh!), minor 2nd.
- I can transcribe simple, slow melodies. Did Silent Night, almost the whole of it.
- I now play with my thumb in the middle of the neck.
- Left hand fingers feel free, like, relaxed. Although not to the point where I can shred.
- My picking technique has improved, although I can't consistently change strings doing alternate picking, and string skipping is still a problem.
- My right hand fingers are also moving well for fingerstyle playing.
- I've been experimenting with slide guitar and overhand playing. Not very good at either.
- I can play for people now without messing up a lot.
I've got a lonnnnnnng way to go. Here's wot I plan to learn-
- Shredding
- Sweep picking
- String skipping
- Improvisation
- Transcribing
- Playing in odd time
- Sight reading
- Legato chops
- Harmonizing
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