Braden
Forum Replies Created
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Hey @myknicks60gmail-com nice job on a great tune! Really liked it. playing and singing was great.
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Hey @jerrygriffiths389gmail-com thats a great question. Tony does introduce a lot of different variations of fingrstyle, not just Travis picking. Some of it is blues and other times when hes profiling a particular song. So I think you will definitely get some ideas here. My other suggestion is to pick a song you like that has a particular picking you like and then find a how to play version on Youtube. There are a lot of good teachers on there (and some not so good) and unless the song is really obscure, youre likley to find a few versions that will be at your level of playing, or ideally just slightly above. Pick one you like and put in the time and effort. Now youve learned a new song and also a distinct pattern that you can use down the road.
Personally Travis is my go to, mainly because its th first i learned and so many tunes use it. And I just really like the way it sounds, in all its variations. But Ive also learned a lot of different fingerstyle by learning specific songs that have a very different pattern.
Last thing…keep it simple, doesnt have to be fancy. For eg a basic arpeggio can sound really beautiful.
Anyhow I liked your question and hope this might give you some ideas. Main thing my friend is to keep on pickin and you will bust through that wall. And trust the process.. the more you do it, the sooner it will happen. Good luck and rock on!
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The hard truth…yeah it might be. This isnt for everyone. Not sure what the stats are but many if not most people quit guitar within the first year. They have the dream, try to live it for awhile, but get frustrated because it doesnt come quickly enough and then the guitar goes back in the closet.
Learning any instrument is hard. It takes a long time and not everyone is willing to put that time in. You have to ask yourself two things: how bad do you want it, and whats it worth to you. The second question carries the most weight…it means many things: how many hours of practice are you willing to put in, are you willing to accept that youre going to suck a lot, and that progress is slow and in small steps. Answering these questions for yourself should help you decide what to do.
And maybe the most important thing is are you able to have fun and enjoy the process in spite of the struggle? If youre really not enjoying it, then whats the point. Maybe time to find another hobby.
But i hope you decide to stick with it. If youre like most of us youve probably wanted to play for a long time. If thats the case then my advice is dont hang it up. But keep your expectations realistic. The rewards are there brother. But youv got to pay your dues. Good luck and all the best!
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Some weeks are more difficult than others. Tony does this to appeal to players at different levels. If, as a beginner, you find a week is beyond your skills, like others have said do your best, give it your ten minutes and then hit complete and dont stress. Then spend at least another ten minutes practicing something else that you have learned and feel more comfortable with. Chances are the next weeks challenges will be easier. Remember learning to play guitar is hard. It takes committment and time, and like @Bayvu2 said you get out of it what you put in. If your goal is to progress more quickly, you have to play more. The more you play, the better you get. Keep at it bro and enjoy the ride.
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Great job @Moose408 ! Nice cover of such a good song. Well done bro
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Hi Barbara great question this can be hard to do when you learn a song you develop that muscle memory and its hard to deviate from what you learn initially and get so used to playing. Like Skyman says start with very simple things, eg instead of fretting and plucking a note use a hameron and or pull off, slide or bend up to a note. When youre strumming your chords, throw in a random hammer to see how it sounds or even just lift a finger and alter the voicing of the chord. PLay around with it but keep it simple. When transitioning between chords keep your runs to only one, two or three notes (remember when you are doing this it changes the timing ie instead of struming the chord on the beat you are hitting those individual notes). Same with any licks you want to throw in, keep them short and simple. And practice slow, slower that even seems comfortable. When you go too fast at the beginning its easy to get mixed up and frustrated.
You can also always try a different strumming pattern or rythmn and tempo than what the song calls for and what you have already learned. Sure that will change the vibe of the song but remember its ok to put your own twist on any song and you might find something you like….you have to have a very open mind and kind of let yourself go to find that groove.
I also think the better you know the song the way you initially learned it, the easier this becomes. If you can play the song almost without thinking about it, that will free your mind up to add some new things. So my advice is to keep on practicing and drilling in the songs you know, but at the same time continue to get very comfortable with the other skills and techniques. Start slow, keep it simple and with lots of repetition you’ll be putting them together naturally. Be kind to and patient with yourself as you go. As they say, embrace the suck. Remember youre doing something most people only think about.
Last thing…remember how versatile the D chord is, especially on the E string with your middle and baby fingers. Get them moving good and you can add a lot of spice to any song that has a D in it, and as you know there are many.
Again I love your question…really got me thinking about this …of course this is what we are all striving for…to put it all together and make our songs sound as interesting as possible. Im in no way an expert but heres a few thoughts. Hope they might be helpful to you. Rock on sister
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Great playing Loraine! Good job on a classic tune. Nice right hand too…nice and loose! Rock on sis
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Hey @Philb my old man used to say getting old isnt for wimps and now i know what he meant! Good luck with the knee and quick recovery. you’ll be skippin around in no time on your new knee. Very nice playing…really smooth and light on your fingers. Two great songs and thanks for the intro to Frijid Pink too! Rock on friend and be well
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Hey Chris if youve just started playing what youre describing is very normal so dont stress about it. Your hands and fingers are not used to moving this way and are kind of fighting against these strange movements and positions youre forcing them into. As you keep at it you will develop a new muscle memory and your hand/fingers will start to relax and the positions will come easier. Do lots of stretching and independent finger exercises to help the progress. Right now your fingers arent used to doing things individually (like fretting different strings) but with time you will develop more strength and control. With time and lots of practice. Remember learning guitar is hard and is a long game. But its well worth it if you have the drive to stick with it. You will get better! Hope this helps
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This is a great converstion, thnks for posting @Aservire ! Cool to hear about everyone’s approach and thoughts. Making music is so personal and everyone does it their own way. But its also communal and we’re inspired and can learn so much from others.
Tons of great advice here but just to add my two cents…be careful of ‘perfect’ or ‘mastering a song’. I can play and sing an hours worth of songs from beginning to end but i wouldnt say that Ive really mastered any of them. Dont get me wrong i can play them pretty good but perfect is still a ways off.
I love Coach’s point about learning vs practicing. Even though I have learned a song, its imperative that I continue to practice it, especially if my goal is to get closer to mastering it. You can learn a song fairly quickly depending upon difficulty, but practicing it is a much longer process. A few times Ive left a song on the shelf for too long that has a specific fingerstyle and its like “damn i forget how to play this”. Can always figure it out again, but the longer I leave it the harder it is to get it back. So I spend half my time learning new songs (usually 3-5 on the go, alternating between them) and half my time practicing those Ive already got under the belt. And its always a long game…Ive got songs that I learned years ago that Im still working on to improve.
Also agree its important to learn the whole song. That doesnt mean you have to have the lead solo, or any other tricky parts, but if you can, learn it from beginning to end. Start with a version thats at your current level or just above. And then once youve learned the song you can add stuff as you practice and get better. If you only learn the beginning of a song or the main lick/riff, it gets boring after awhile and you miss out on the sense of accomplishment of learning the whole thing.
If a song has distinct parts eg intro, chorus, solo, finish, base runs, etc etc., I’ll always break it up into chunks and work exclusively on each part. Once Ive drilled each part in then I’ll put them all together. For me this is especially important when I’m at the very beginning of learning any particular tune. I do the same thing when its time to bring the singing in.
Bottom line…again depending on degree of difficulty, and how much time put in, I can learn a song pretty quickly. In other words I ‘know’ how to play it. Can I play it well? Not at all, that where the practice comes in. And like they say, practice makes perfect…or at least good enough.
And of course the most important thing is to have fun with it, pat yourself on the back regularly, keep your expectations realistic, and be patient and kind to yourself.
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lol thats awesome. Got him on right now…havent a clue what its about but growing on me. I’ll keep listening! Thanks man. all the best
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Hey @petelanger thats great! Sounds like youre having a blast and thats what its all about brother. That D chord is so versatile and tons of fun! And youre right, those moves are used in so many classic songs…Old Man, Dead or Alive, Hasnt Hit Me Yet, Cant You See, and one of my favs.. Grand Funk Railroads Closer to Home: Im Your Captain. But now Im curious…what 70s song have you been been rockin out to?!
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Thats excellent and sounds like youve got a good plan. And a good attitude…remember to cut yourself some slack when its not going so good and also pat yourself on the back when it is. The only other thing I would suggest is if you can, spend some practice time away from TAC too. If you can squeeze in another 20 minutes work on your chord transitions, scales and just doing the things you like that youve already learned. For eg get the G D C Em chords under your fingrs and spend time switching between them with a simple strum pattern. Go slow at first, the speed will naturally increase as you get better. Get comfortable with this and it will take you a long way. Youre doing great man! Rock on!
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Glad to help Chris and good for you to have a few years in i read somewhere that a high percentage of people who start guitar quit before the first year is out so pat on the back for you. it takes awhile for the hands to adapt but with lots of repetition they will… repetition is key in all of this, the more you do it the quicker you develop your guitar hands.
And you nailed it re chord changes. Most people can learn chords fairly quickly. Even on the first few lessons you can usually get G D C Em under your fingers. The real skill necessary for playing songs is not so much playing chords, its moving from one to the next ie playing a progression. You have to get to that next chord very quickly. While theres many exceptions, most songs can have anywhere from 3 – 5 chords so you have to be able to switch between these chords very quickly, almost immediately. Thats the main skill you need to focus on and develop, assuming of course your goal is to play songs. To practice this i pick just two chords and switch them back and forth while strumming a basic rythmn. You can use any strumming pattern you like but maybe keep it easy so youre not focusing too much on your right hand. Your main attention should be your left hand. Hold one chord down and strum a four beat measure and then switch and strum another measure. Go back and forth for about five minutes and then pick two other chords. rinse and repeat. Most songs are 3-5 minutes long so you have to be able to play a progression for that long. Thats why I do each pair of chords for about five minutes without stopping.
Sometimes when im playing something that, even tho i know it very well, i sort of drift off and kind of forget what chord is next. Only takes a second to remember but that throws my rythmn and timing off. Plus i may rush to the next chord and screw it up. So i always try to think ahead…anticipate what chord is coming up next. Do this on the last half of each measure and your fingers will get a good start on the upcoming change.
This two chord switch exercise will be good for your strumming and timing as well. Re keeping your right hand going while youre switching, dont worry if you strum open strings for a beat during the chord transition. In other words keep that right hand going while your switching. Hitting those open strings just for a beat or half a beat actually sounds pretty cool. As you get quicker it wont be as necessary, you’ll be able to switch on the beat. But like I say I think just a quick hit on those opens strings can add a little extra to the transition so i sometimes do it intentionally.
Main thing my friend is repetition. Whatever it is youre working on, you have to do it over and over and over again. Embrace the suck and remember Rome wasnt built in a day. And sorry for the long post…once I get going…but i hope it makes some sense and is maybe helpful. rock on bro
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Wow Pete that was awesome Stanley is great! So cool…guys like that blow me away and almost make me want to throw my guitar in the lake…but i wont 🙂 thanks for sharing bro.
And welcome to TAC @evuljeanne . Youre in a good place. Once you learn the 1 4 5 chord progression in key of G ie G C D Em Am you can start playing hundreds of your favourite songs. Like Pete says TAC teaches the bones of songs but also skills and techniques which are invaluable to a guitarist. Youtube has a ton of good teachers who teach songs at all levels from beginner to more advanced. Personally I do both…Im a big fan of TAC and have learned a lot but I pick up just as much from learning songs. And at the end of the day youve got a song under your belt. Rock on sister and enjoy the ride!