Guidance with improving skills.

Hey guys,

I'm a university student and I've been playing guitar for a good few years now, but I'd like to improve my skills that further step and I'm finding it a little challenging at the moment. I have the motivation but I'm unsure what strategy and lessons would lead to the best results. My inspirations are Metallica, Led Zeppelin, Joe Satriani, Yngwie Malmsteen, and so on...

I've tried a few different practice schedules but I find that they become redundant and I dont notice a significant difference in my performance overall.

Could you guys offer some tips on how I can improve my sweeping/legato techniques?

Also, any suggestions on what kind of songs are good for improving skills that extra notch are greatly appreciated.

Lastly, I'm looking into taking metal guitar lessons over the summer. What kind of things should I be wary of when choosing an instructor, taking lessons? (I have taken lessons before but it was a few years ago.)

Thanks!!

p.s. anybody know any good instructors in the toronto area?

woah too many questions dude,

I can answer your question about legato

The best way to get strength and speed in all your fingers is to practice your hammerons and offs like trills for ages using all your fingers. sooner or later you'll be able to run up and down scales just using hammer-ons and offs.
The 'cheat' that Satriani uses a lot is to your picking hand around the neck and strinks near the headstock to mute them while playing legato. I've seen Vai use this sometimes too.

As for finding a teacher, be careful to do your research and pick one that specializes in the styles you like. Based on the info you gave it sounds like you are a hard rock/metal guy. Find a teacher that specializes in that.

keep practising. you probably wont notice the change unless you record your self playing a lick. Then practice it for a few weeks then record it again. Play them both back and you cant honestly say there is no change. The key is to practice with everything.

You can get a teacher but you don't have to. Use sites like this one to find out stuff. If it doesn't work, then get a teacher. I have tried with teachers and they never tell me what I need to know.

With sweep picking, try sweeping without freting first. If you are ok with the picking bit, try just playing a lick as fast as you can using alternate. If you are also good with your fretting hand, combine the two, practice and whah laa!

I don't know if any of that actually helps. Hope it does

Best advice I can give with regard to speed and accuracy is what works for me. Input the riff, run, scale or exercise in midi and put it on a loop. Play along with it at a slow pace then increase the speed by 5 bpms whenever you've mastered the pace. I use this method when I need to practice something I can't play and it works very well for me. Can't advise on instructors though cos I've never had one! ;-)

Finding a good teacher is important, it is also key to practice applying the techniques and theory you learn. Many players learn a lot of both but never take the time to learn how to use theory and techniques in real music.

learn all the intervals eg fouths fiths flart thirds and make riffs up out of these unusual changes in pitch.

u can also think about when the notes u r playin are also in the chord u are playin over, eg outlinin the chord. if u want to take this futher when u play over chords try to use chord tones (notes from the chord u r playin over, eg root 3 5 7 ), passin tones (a note that connects 2 chord tonnes this is usually chormatic), approach tonnes (notes that are one semitone below or above the chord tone and are played before it), and tensions( the 9 11 13 notes these are just the 2 4 6 notes). try to play tensions sparingly so they act as tensions, u can follow or precede them with either at leat an interval skip of a third or a rest.

if u can do this fluently it should jazz up ur solos and give u more controll over note choice.

Yes, sounds like you really need to find a good teacher who specializes in what you want to do. Make sure to ask him what types of styles he is most comfortable teaching and beware of teachers who claim to teach "all styles" A lot of times they are only mediocre at doing a lot of things rather than being an expert on a few things (which is what you want in this case)

Good luck!

Mike.

Originally Posted by: Fret spiderlearn all the intervals eg fouths fiths flart thirds and make riffs up out of these unusual changes in pitch.

u can also think about when the notes u r playin are also in the chord u are playin over, eg outlinin the chord. if u want to take this futher when u play over chords try to use chord tones (notes from the chord u r playin over, eg root 3 5 7 ), passin tones (a note that connects 2 chord tonnes this is usually chormatic), approach tonnes (notes that are one semitone below or above the chord tone and are played before it), and tensions( the 9 11 13 notes these are just the 2 4 6 notes). try to play tensions sparingly so they act as tensions, u can follow or precede them with either at leat an interval skip of a third or a rest.

Thanks for the help everybody!

Could you recommend any links where this information is presented?

Originally Posted by: tab_ishHey guys,

I'm a university student and I've been playing guitar for a good few years now, but I'd like to improve my skills that further step and I'm finding it a little challenging at the moment. I have the motivation but I'm unsure what strategy and lessons would lead to the best results. My inspirations are Metallica, Led Zeppelin, Joe Satriani, Yngwie Malmsteen, and so on...

I've tried a few different practice schedules but I find that they become redundant and I dont notice a significant difference in my performance overall.

Could you guys offer some tips on how I can improve my sweeping/legato techniques?

Also, any suggestions on what kind of songs are good for improving skills that extra notch are greatly appreciated.

Lastly, I'm looking into taking metal guitar lessons over the summer. What kind of things should I be wary of when choosing an instructor, taking lessons? (I have taken lessons before but it was a few years ago.)

Thanks!!

p.s. anybody know any good instructors in the toronto area?

You are ready for a big jump in skills. You say you,ve been playing for some time, and to me it seems you have reached that point where you realize the need for more understanding? Thats the key "understanding"! If you really want to beef up the skills, and go from avarage, to impressive take this advice= Look into basic music theroy, and get an understanding of how music works. Then study up on the musical layout of your gutiar,(where all the notes fall on the fretboard). Then get in key, put much effort on understanding musical keys, and how to play in key without drifting out into the twilite zone! And if you do drift out, find out why, and learn to stay in. It is most important to learn to stay in key all the way through the neck. I have never understood why any one could be satisfyed with only knowing a part of the neck, and being completly in the dark about those lonely, dusty, unused frets way down there. Even if you dont play certain areas of the fretboard often you should still know where the scale pattern is located in the key your playing in anyway,Top to Bottom, no excuses. I personaly have never felt acomplished in my playing untill I met these goals, and that is where the skills, and creativity will blast off in leaps, and bounds. As your studying these musical in's, and outs you will likly start to realize how the songs you have been playing for all these years were actually put together, and the lightbulb in your head will go off, and it will all be down hill from there!
I know this sounds hard, and it is. Being a acomplished gutiarist takes years of constant practice, but if you want it bad enough this in my opinion is the quickist, easyist way to get serious about it.
I am sure there are things I have failed to mention. So bottom line, start working towards really understanding your instrument, and the music it plays, and remember (whole step-whole step-half step-whole step-whole step-whole step-half step). Its all about "understanding"
As for the question on songs for good learning, I have found it better to study the artists making the good songs. All the artists in the columb on the left of screen in this site are wonderful!
As for instructors. 1st thing education. Make sure they know there stuff so you will learn correctly the first time, then if you get along well is also important to keep up your motivation. But thats just me.

I am from toronto and i am having the same problem...
I have always been pretty based in blues. I wanted to really break out and expand but i need the pointers. I was thinken a teacher would do the trick but this place is empty haha, just trees and syrup, well that ant true hehe

Have you tried any "Dajango Rienhardt" I found some tabs @ [url]www.tablorium.com >
& www.guitaretab.com. and I found the music @ "Raposdy".com ... even if you just learn the chords, do your own thing, We can allways add to our chord vocabulary. :cool:

Originally Posted by: rightturnonlyHave you tried any "Dajango Rienhardt" I found some tabs @ [url]www.tablorium.com >
& www.guitaretab.com. and I found the music @ "Raposdy".com ... even if you just learn the chords, do your own thing, We can allways add to our chord vocabulary. :cool:

Yeah, man - you need some jazz! :cool:

I think their is a guy named Slav Simanic in your area(Toronto). Do a Google search and check out his website for lesson info...great player and teacher.

Legato: I have a good exercise to strenghten legato, practice till u can do one handed

p=Pull of
^=hammer on

-12p0-12p0-12^13p12p0-10p0-10p0-10^12p10p0-8p0-8p0-8^10p8p0----
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-7^8p7p0-5^7p5p0-----------------------------------------------------
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i think its the 5th mode of "A" harmnic minor?
but if you play on b string not e wa-la....u have something that will go well over "E" harmonic minor "yngwie style improv, i will get to later"

Improvisings a tricky thing to explain how to do.
1. try learn the scales inside out. but try not to feel restricted another hard thing to explain or every time you improvise you will go up and down which can be very hard to leave.

2. In a way think of it like tony hawks games "lol yes" while you improvising occasionly you will do something you like alot..eg a combo in comparison
now note that and build on it get your repitoir of "combos" remeber how that "combo" sounded eg happy, sad...so you can expres your self while improvising. "also making up a starting lick help's alot."

3. you dont have to be playing notes the whole time, know when to hold ,slow down and speed up. learning relatives would help

4. find your own groove

But for yngwie style "neo classical" which is kinda like bach"the composer" .

Try learn most"all" the notes from E harmonic minor from 7th fret A string up wards on every string. Thats a good start. then you can bring it to lower notes using the exercise as above but played on B strings.
Then say u play in arpegiotic "is that even a word" use the 1st 3rd 5th notes of the scale. then keep moving up or down octaves.

Some of that may not make sence im realy tired atm
PS. you might not want to take advice from some one who just turned? 15 :(

I realy hope it helps.

*edit* something i missed out
~Dont just improvise of basic styles realy chanlenge your self. Even improvise in styles you may dislike,reggae and contry would be a good start as there a little diferent~

That's cool damaged.

This is very cool. I may recomend it to a student to play.

What was said above about focusing on theory, i completly agree with. I've been playing for about 6 years, and was stuck in a rut for about 1 1/2, up until about 6 months ago. I found a great, simple document that broke down most of the aspects of theory that you can apply in a simple manor. Start with a basic major scale, and understand how the others are built on top of that. Understand that a flat 3rd on a major arpeggio (1 3 5) will put you into minor arpeggio (1 b3 5). Start expanding the arpeggios (1 3 5 7 or 1 b3 5 b7) and see where those take you.

Its also important to understand which scales you need to be on on top of what chords, but this won't be very important until your writting your own stuff, or playing with a band.

Long story short, its most likely not a technique problem, its that your brain can't keep up with the speed of the music, so your fingers struggle with it. However, also make sure you look at your technique, and fix things like a 'floating pinky' or improve at palm muting, all of those things will help your articulation.

Thanks all! I hadn't come on here in a few days, but all the advice is encouraging. I'm currently taking some flamenco lessons as well at the moment....good stuff!

for me, i always put in mind that " it's not what you know, it's how you apply it". there are a lot of people who know a lot of things but can't put their words into actions. :D so learn to apply what you know. :D