jumpinjeff
Forum Replies Created
-
dont forget that your top is braced so you have to turn it upside down an lift a hitch as you shake. this allows the pick to get over the top braces as it exists the hole. You can almost get a feel for where the pick is as you lift and shake thereby angling the guitar to guide the pick toward the hole. Method #2: If your hands are small you can loosen your strings and reach inside or find a kid with small hands.
-
I don’t specifically remember the patterns but I would venture to guess they are related to chord shapes. Take a look at it through that lens and see if it becomes clear. I like the topic: patterns. It is an exercise in fractiles. Patterns of patterns of patterns. It is another way to understand. Keep going and you may get your questions answered along the way. I found Tony to be clever in how questions are raised and then answered. It was motivating tactic for me.
-
I am so sorry Terry! I think you found the perfect solution to a whacked situation….work on the mental. Dive in deep on the Fret Whiz. Keep your routine if possible but change the practice from physical to mental. Sending healing vibes your way! I wish there were something more I could do! You could start a thread…healing with theory. Now that would be cool….when you are feeling better.
-
@Scott_NB : Great question regarding position. I have given this about 11 years of thought. The answer is both. Yes push through and adjust the guitar as needed. The perfect way to hold if I am going for both comfort and sound is a 2or3 inches from my hip resting on my leg with the guitar leaning forward 12 degrees or so making the guitar point slight toward the floor as oppossed to the way most new players play tilting the guitar toward the ceiling. The reason most new players use this uncomfortable position is because they want to see the strings and the fingers. Tilting the guitar down gives your fingers relief from the acute angles opening them up for an obtuse angle interaction. 25 degrees may not seem like much, try it out, pay attention to that high E string, see if that corrects it….the down side?….cant see what your fingers are doing. Eventually this will not matter but I relied heavily on what I could see early on in my journey so I understand its importance for learning. My son had a teacher who told him to play looking in a mirror in order to see what his fingers were doing while correcting posture. I never did it but it made sense. The next part is the tough part to say only because when I was early in the process I hated hearing it….focused time in the saddle is the only way to make it happen. Getting myself into shape for playing the guitar was like doing the Splits. Too fast or too much and get hurt. It does not happen in one day and it is more of a change in practice on a daily basis that allowed the gain in flexibility so I could make the sound I want to make. Stretching properly is as important now to me as learning theory or a new skill! This is where understanding pain vs discomfort comes into play. My tips hurt like heck when they were soft….”discomfort” (no lasting effects beyond the experience and likely necessary to advance). My shoulder, elbow, wrists, neck, back, aches past when I stop playing…Pain (leading to tendonitis). Remedy: stretching. Slow stretching where you barely feel it. This is unlike athletic stretching for sore muscles. Think silly putty…slow stretch you can barely feel and it stretches forever….too fast and it snaps. This is how I learned how to turn my arm seemingly inside out in order to play the guitar. Tension is the enemy. Playing the guitar is the practice of reducing tension while under load. As my accuracy and precsion improved my effort necessary to make the desired sound was also reduced. All effort becomes directed to sound production and there is no wasted tension. Magic! not a trick but a practice.
-
There is five day challenge here that targets what you are seeking.
https://tonypolecastro.com/courses/finger-stretch-5-day-challenge/
-
Hi Barbara! I read you post! There was definitely something different and then I read @Loraine ‘s post and she saw it clear as day and then I did as well. You have transformed yourself into a player….a can do player…. majorly inspiring! Take a moment, and if I were there I would pat you on the back. I recognize you BarbaraM….you may have just crossed the biggest hurdle I found in my path. Congratulations and many many thanks for sharing your journey which leads me to being a better player myself!!!
-
I feel you Loraine. chronic pain changes you. Changes how your brain is wired. I know.
I am sending cleansing C chord vibes your way followed by healing D vibes…D maj (not minor. It is a long road. Sometimes we shlog alone, sometimes together. More fun in a group!
GET WELL!!
-
I think we are tilting on two different axis. The only way I can see more strain on the wrist if you tilted the headstock lower to the floor. I can see that would be problematic. I am talking about the flat plain of the guitar. Keep the head stock elevated to a comfortable position then tilt the guitar so that the sound hole is no longer pointing out perpendicularly but so that it is actually pointing down a little. The top of the guitar body tilts away from your body while the bottom remains in place. You will feel contact with the front edge of the guitar corner resting on you leg, the trailing edge (the one closest to the body does not touch your leg.) The extreme 90 degree shift would put the guitar face down with the strings in you lap and you woud be looking at the flat back. In this position you need zero wrist flexion! You would not hear anything obviously due to the muted strings. Some where in between the two you might find the place that you feel good about how the wrist is flexing.
-
You earned it the old fashioned way Barbabara! I am just so tickled I was able to observe in darn near real time, the birth of a “Can Do Player”. Thank goodness I will never be done progressing….that would be the moment true boredom would begin its creep. I would be creeping up on speed and boredom would be creeping up on me… : )
-
Hi I couldn’t tag you in the response above. I think this will give you the alert for a reply.
-
I think there is another distinction….the hammer-on raises pitch and the pull-off lowers pitch. One captures the string and one releases the string. I hope that makes sense! : )
-
It is a couse in the “Skills” section. In my menu, the icon shows as music notes.
-
@albert_d : spot on! Part of my process was learning to identify muscle fatigue vs. Ligament and tendon pain from inflammation. Like you stated, the answer is getting flexible through stretching combined with managing tension. I stretch everyday, every session, sometimes several times a session if I am not getting a result from multiple attempt with genuine effort. I also had to learn to strech body parts that are more bone and Ligament/tendon than muscle: the hands and fingers. I call it silly putty stretching. Do it slowly barely introducing tension as the tissue relaxes. I was always surprised at how much more range of motion I could get using this technique. Do it fast and it snaps and you are back to a previous level. Okay….it doesn’t really snap but it doesnt do anything either. It is very different than the stretching I learned for athletic purpose on my larger muscle groups. Ice is amazing therapy for sore fingers and hands. It is darn near free and it has no side effects. If you are getting sore tendons, ice and rethink your motion. This is where tension free playing comes in…..find the least amount of pressure necessary to make the sound you desire. You will save wear and tear on your joints. There is an accuracy/precision component to this and that is where consistency in the Daily Challenges provided what I needed. I learned to play through the discomfort of muscle f fatigue. If I start to feel pain (Joints), I have to address it either by technique change or position change or If it is a reaching challenge….flexiblity training…SILLY PUTTY style! Eventually over time you will be able to stretch your wrist elbow and shoulder just by stretching your thumb. Kinesthetic awareness is built on time and repetion. Keep us posted on your progress, @pfilippettibhaircraft-com .
-
Spot on @petelanger . Could be the greatest benefit of the Daily Challeges is they gave me the habit of guitar. Today, it would almost make me ill (withdrawl? : ) , of a kind) if I did not put my hands on a guitar.
-
I am grateful to be able to extend the courtesy that many extended me all along the way. I learn as much chatting with you as I do searching the internet for “guitar tricks” a practice I completely abandoned due to lack of results. This is better.