UnsungHeroGuitars
Fractal Fanatic
Bang on the money I'd sayPractice things you DON'T KNOW slowly and consistently. Attach your ear to your fingers.
Bang on the money I'd sayPractice things you DON'T KNOW slowly and consistently. Attach your ear to your fingers.
I've found a great source of guitar tutorials at
Yes. Thats why I think you need to go see a Guitar instructor first. Skip the books,video and tabs within your reach. Think of it as your paying someone to kick your @ss! :twisted
Those do indeed sound great... but as I recently discovered, whilst I can identify majors & minors in all keys etc etc and can 'work out' most musical issues, I've never been fluent in theory - indeed, to the point of not actually knowing the various positions of which you speak! One of the dvds I looked at focuses on this and I'll certainly be getting stuck into that and maybe then, your excellent recommendation might make a lot more sense
Yes, I believe that's very true. But the secret with practice is it takes consistency. 1 hour a day takes you much further than 8 hours on Sunday alone.I've also read and believe that one month of intense learning and practice will take your playing farther than many many years of sustained playing
I am, effectively, starting over... sort of.
I have struggled since to be able to hold an instrument (I play guitar, bass, and keys), and during the limited time I am able to spend holding an instrument each time, I am still struggling to "rehab" my playing... essentially, starting over. Frustrating does not begin to describe the feeling, but also... so very cool! Music is everything to me, and was my prime motivation for fighting for my life in the hospital. I love the tips in this thread! Thanks to the OP for starting it!!!
As GuitarDojo says .. Time Time Time.
The responsabilities of life that come with age are the enemy of improvement most times.
Don't give in to the easy way out and go to that old comfortable riff or chord. (like me) I know the things I need to work on just the dicipline is what I need.
Good comment thatCount me in. I dropped the instrument for a decade after college and didn't seriously pursue the instrument for nearly a decade after that.
Time is definitely an issue. I've come up with two ways to address that:
- Commit to spending some time each day on improving. If 15-20 minutes is all I can come up with, 15 minutes it is, but woodshedding consistently is more productive than binge practice.
Agreed (and hopefully observed!)I firmly believe that 30 minutes of focused practice is worth more than 3 hours of noodling. As you're more mature, you're more likely to have the self-discipline to practice correctly.
NiceNow, as a +50 guy, it's tapered off to 2-3 hours every single day, with few exceptions. I've taken a day or week or two off here or there and I can always feel it, but not as much as I used to. It just becomes a part of your life and lifestyle. My wife knows if I haven't been practicing because I'm grumpy as hell. It's what I do and who she married. My kids know me. It's just a part of the household. In the morning Dad practices, or whenever.
Thanks for your input SidivanReally, the positions are just where your first finger lies. So, "fifth position" is literally index finger on 5th fret, middle on 6th fret, ring on 7th, pinky on 8th. The awesome part about not knowing that stuff is how inspired you're going to be when you start learning it. The first time I changed keys without changing positions my world exploded into a vast universe of new sounds. That still happens as I go back and simply move things to different parts of the fretboard. For instance, if you're used to soloing in a song at the 12th fret. Try soloing down around the 5th fret instead. Same key, but totally different position. Suddenly those reliable patterns you've been playing for years have moved and you're forced to play using different notes, but in the same key.
I'd tend to think that can be trueI've also read and believe that one month of intense learning and practice will take your playing farther than many many years of sustained playing
Indeed JamieHaving a goal will make you focus on learning something new or improving something specific and help fight against the aimless noodling that tends to result otherwise.