I have fingering problems?


caponi14
Registered User
Joined: 09/29/08
Posts: 369
caponi14
Registered User
Joined: 09/29/08
Posts: 369
02/14/2009 5:33 pm
Hello guitartricks, your awesome! :)
I have a problem that you can maybe help me with?

Iv been playing for 6 months, and iv started to improvise alot with licks in the Pentatonic scales. I can play pretty fast licks (sometimes :confused: )??
But it seems for the last few weeks like I have lost a little feeling for the strings, and my fingers are getting slower and sloppy?
Do anybody know why this is?

Please, it would really help alot?!
# 1
JeffS65
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Joined: 10/07/08
Posts: 1,602
JeffS65
Registered User
Joined: 10/07/08
Posts: 1,602
02/14/2009 11:23 pm
I'd guess that you're getting ahead of yourself. I've mentioned in other parts of this board that I used to be a pretty serious player in the day but put it down for a while. Recently picked it back up but don't have the practice time now I did 'in the day'. Like a bike, I still know all the licks but my hands aren't back up to speed. I notice that when I get rippin' a little now that it is not with the same physical confidence I had when I committed time every day and did so for years.

My thought is that you've built up some skill after 6 months and that is a great thing. However, you fingers work both on actual strength and also muscle memory and it sounds like you are pushing just outside those boundaries.

Especially when you are improvising, you might understand where you want to go intuitively but that muscle memory and the brain/hand connection is still forming. That take time to connect.

In addition to knowing scales and how they work with chords etc, if you're playing bluesy stuff (since you'd said you've been focusing on pentatonic), know the blues scale variation and also start digiing in to the blues lick vocabulary. With most rock playing, it has been built on a vocabularly of licks. Like talking, if there weren't certain patterns formed, you would talk gibberish. I would poke around some of the blues lessons on this site to pick some up. Improvising is so much of making it up as you go but being able to string together learned elements of playing from the various styles' licks in to something that becomes uniquely your own from that vocabulary.

My thoughts (from a rusty old player).
# 2
liarcangel
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Joined: 02/06/09
Posts: 11
liarcangel
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Joined: 02/06/09
Posts: 11
02/16/2009 3:17 pm
I would agree with this guy above me. I have had a similar issue occur from time to time when i take a few months off from the really fast soloing styles and spend time on thick chords and more slowhand playing styles. But like he said, if you just develop the muscles, and continue to train your hands to do what your head cant quite see yet you'll push through it. The other question I would have is are you having issues with your pick hand or fret hand primarily? This could be just me, but the pick hand seems to be very much the limiting factor when I start picking up speed, and if you have the same issue it is absolutely a matter of developing the muscles, and really reflex into the hand. Good luck!
# 3

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