Practice & DAWs

So...after owning Macs for countless years Ifinally opened GarageBand this weekend - and very quickly revoltionized how I practice.

Rather than playing along to - and constantly rewinding - either the videos or backing tracks, I now download a copy of the track, slam it in the DAW and loop it. Am also using it to record my practice (I wouldn't say that I hear MORE when reviewing a recording, but I'm certainly aware of DIFFERENT things when doing so) and gamifying practice (run a loop whilst recording, record multiple takes, aim to get the best take possible). This approach is working great for tutorials with multiple parts (verse, chorus, solos etc) such as Rock L1.

I'm sure I'm not the only person to be doing this, so...any suggests as to how else to use it so as to enable great practce?

Thanks

That's cool!! Anything that makes practice more fun and productive is a huge plus!!

I haven't looped backing tracks in a DAW, but I have created a loop of a chord progression in the looper in my multi effects pedal. I've done this when trying to nail down a solo or to develop soloing ideas. VERY helpful.

I have also used something called Amazing Slow Downer on my phone to loop portions of a song, and perhaps slow it down. VERY handy when trying to learn a solo or a part of a song.

Back in the days of records and cassettes, you had to either get really good at dropping the needle accurately or hitting the "review" button on the tape deck to go back.

Originally Posted by: imccowatt

So...after owning Macs for countless years Ifinally opened GarageBand this weekend - and very quickly revoltionized how I practice.

...

...any suggests as to how else to use it so as to enable great practce?

Recording your playing to assess problem areas is always a great idea. And playing along with backing tracks is a great way to develop your sense of rhythm, timing & overall musicianship.

So, it sounds like you are doing a great job of using it to your advantage. Congrats!

Other potential uses:

Playing different voicings (inversions, different strings & registers) of the same chords, licks, parts to see what kind of musical effect it has.

Layering parts to see how different guitar tones & parts sit in an overall mix. It's quite surprising how different a guitar tone or part sound isolated versus in a full band mix.

Playing with more or less gain to see how well you adjust your pick attack & dynamics. And of course how it works in the mix.

Playing melodies or imrpovising over different chord progressions.

Your imagination is the limit! Have fun with it!

@maggior - thanks, I'll have take a look at "Amazing Slow Downer".

@ChristopherSchlegel - had to Google some of that - thanks for the ideas!

Originally Posted by: imccowatt

@maggior - thanks, I'll have take a look at "Amazing Slow Downer".

They have a phone app and a PC program. I'm using the phone app. The feature that really sold me on it is it will work with Spotify tracks!! A lot of the songs I have to learn for my band are songs I don't have in my personal music collection, so I'll put them in my "band setlist" playlist on Spotify. Of course you can also use it with music in your personal music collection.

You should definitely buy [u]Rocksmith 2014[/u] for your PC/gaming system.

They have [u]over 1000 licensed songs[/u] to buy. They start you out with 50 good ones. New packs are added every Tuesday for a reasonable price. Just this Tuesday, for instance, they added a [u]3rd[/u] song pack from [u]Green Day[/u]: https://youtu.be/hdN-cWbjAn8 You can buy the whole pack or single songs, though the bang/buck value is buying the whole pack.

The software allows you to SLOW DOWN a song to crawling speed which IS the correct way to learn a song. You can LOOP difficult sections until your [u]muscle memory[/u] and brain [u]evolves[/u] over the weeks/months (i.e. you ain't going to master EVH riffs no matter how many times you loop it as a beginner--like a bodybuilder, your fingers won't have the required speed or technique yet).

Additionally, they have something called "[u]Session Mode[/u]" that helps guide you with a scale to riff on using your imagination in any genre (i.e. blues, country, rock, etc) you prefer. The "band" follows your lead. Simply fantastic.

In addition, Rocksmith has "games" which allow to you build up your finger skills. They work really well.

To me, it's an indispensable tool that has helped me a lot and it's continually fun with the new songs added every week and the modes it has to improve your skills.

Check some of these vids out:

[u]60 Day Progress (learning songs):[/u]

[u]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NWZR3rh06c&list=PLkTijIFpb637_jSnwBpwghkRIQrNanu3t[/u]

[u]Riff Repeater (i.e. Looping):[/u]

https://youtu.be/oHEjyxAXOOg

[u]Session Mode (creative riffing help):[/u]

https://youtu.be/1mAehvLEzL0

[u]One of many Technique Improver "Mini Games":[/u]

https://youtu.be/FpuP1hUVPMs

https://youtu.be/c1XiDlgl7bU

All these ways to play Rocksmith helps with your muscle memory and makes it really fun with songs you love. There's enough songs to keep you busy for years.

It's not meant to be a replacement to what you learn here, but a great fun daily [u]supplement[/u] to your learning. It breaks the monotony of just using a looper through a DAW. That's for sure!

@dtagle, might take a look at the. Briefly considered during the search that ultiamtely led me here...of course the real challenge is figuring out which of the many directions / forms of practice are going to be of most use at any given time. That said, looks relatively inexpensive and may fill a useful niche as "go away and do something a bit different with the guitar for a while"!

@dtagle rocksmith is the bomb!! It's got to be one of the best resources out there for guitarists imo. I feel like it doesn't just teach you guitar, but teaches you how to practice, too. Practicing effectively is a bit of an art in and of itself.

Update: also finding the beat sequencer included in the iOS GarageBand app really useful for practicing rhythm. Its much more dynamic / progammable than (most) metronomes, and provides an easy visual reference as to where you are.

For example: revisiting some of the trickier rhythms in Rock Level 2, I've now created a few beat sequences based on the notation in the lesson which I then practice along to. As I get something under my fingers, I tend to change to keeping my own count over a simple beat.

It's quite useful for messing around visually to create new rhythms to try out and practice.