[BarbaraM]

Very nice, Braden! Your fingerpicking looks so natural and effortless! Wonderful performance!

[BarbaraM]

Don’t worry about keeping it to 30 days, it took me over two months before I felt ready to move on!

[BarbaraM]

I’m 73 and was right where you are nearly a year ago! I too, was frustrated with my seemingly slow progress. But all the repeated advice given (progress over perfection, be consistent in your practice, take it slow and in smaller chunks), I finally had a mind-set change, and realized guitar wasn’t learned in a day (or 3, 6, 12 months, etc.). No question I am better than I was a year ago, but I recognize now that I still have limitations in what I can do, particularly barre chords. But I have a bunch of songs to learn that use simpler chords, and am working on pick accuracy etc. Your goals are reasonable enough, if you are easy on yourself. If you haven’t already, try some or all of the skill courses accessed from the left side of the home page. They should help you get a better handle on some of the techniques offered in the weekly challenges.

Hang in there, you got this!

[BarbaraM]

Thank you all for your cheers and well-wishes! I hope and expect to continue to improve and yes, beat those barre chords into submission!

[BarbaraM]

Got it, thanks!

[BarbaraM]

I think I get what you are describing, basically pulling the fleshy part down and flat sort of? That sort of does work, but stretching my middle finger over to the low E string third fret brings it up again. And I have a small guitar! I do have one with a skinnier neck, but then I run into muting strings adjacent to the one I’m fretting, so I only use that for the one open D tuning challenge Tony has.

[BarbaraM]

Thanks, @petelanger, I’ll check those out.

[BarbaraM]

Thank you Loraine and Kyle, good to know I’m not alone! Yeah I think boredom with the same material was getting to me, made me sloppy even on the song I really like to play. I have a pennywhistle, could mess around with that for a bit, or try some fingerpicking on some songs I know only as chords, work on my “difficult” chords (not just barres!), just to break things up.

[BarbaraM]

Thank you, @jumpinjeff for that. I know when I get in a slump it’s just that, and maybe this is one. The thing is, what I most like to play is what I’m stumbling over now. Go figure.

Maybe it’s the long cold winter. Need some IcyHot for my fingers!

[BarbaraM]

Fretonomy isn’t free if you want to do anything useful with it, even though it says it’s a free download. Not too much, $25 a year, but on a fixed income that adds up. Probably a very good program otherwise.

[BarbaraM]

OK, I think I’ve got it. I tried it out on a couple of different keys, and I think my brain is having a lightbulb moment.

[BarbaraM]

Thanks for your detailed reply, and I should save it for later reference! But, no, I was only talking about the pentatonic scales; I know the other major, minor, mixolydian etc scales are a whole ‘nother ball of wax. One pattern at a time is enough for my old brain!

So, what you are saying the Cmajor pentatonic is related to the Am pentatonic (since it is the 6th of the key of C…?), so that is why the notes are the same? So, for example the major pentatonic in the key of G would have the same notes as the Em pentatonic? That’s where my confusion comes in. If I start the major C pent. with my pinky on the root note on the low E (8th fret), which is the first note played? the 5th fret (A)? And the minor C pent.? Starts with index on root and goes up?

I don’t remember this from FW, so I better take it again; I only understood about 20% of it the first time.

[BarbaraM]

Thanks! That seems to be the consensus from the rest too. As for what I mean by licks and single note playing, all that you mentioned. I don’t do badly on the rhythm lesson, but the chord transitions sometimes mess me up, as I have to think out of the chord box into the single-note box. I know it will come in time, but it gets frustrating as I think I’m at the stage where I know-what-I-don’t-know, and can’t wait to know it! 😉

Also, some chord transitions are extra hard for me as some chords I can’t form in the “normal” way due to mild arthritis, so normal transitions are sometimes awkward to execute.

[BarbaraM]

Yes Loraine, I love your detailed replies! You’ve been a great help to me before. Much of what you say though I already do–small segments of time, splitting things up, playing something else I’m “better” at in between lesson practice–and it does help. But what you said about finding backing tracks on Youtube, I never thought of that. Sounds like a good way to relax, too, as you said.

As for notes on the fretboard, I thought of making myself a chart to scale to look at periodically when I’m not playing (don’t want to make it a crutch).

And by the way, May your hand/wrist speed up its healing and be strong!

[BarbaraM]

Thanks, TerryG. I did that at first as well, too many things to keep track of! Then I read a book on training the musical mind written by a neuroscientist (The Laws of Brainjo, by Josh Turknett), and he says to drop the tab crutch as soon as you can. I try to do that, and I listen to the play-along by itself to get how it goes, but then executing it is the challenge. I still have days when I can’t get anything right even songs I know well. Patience and practice!