petelanger
Forum Replies Created
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@BarbaraM
I have this issue too or should I say I had it and now not as much. I think it has less to do with your pick, as long as your other chords sound good to you. For me the mini F especially has required some awkward contortions of the hand and as a result we might not get a full ring of each note in the chord.Sometimes my F has a bit of a “harp-like” sound if I transition to it from say a G (“Let it Be) This happens less now than it used to but it still rears it’s ugly head now and then and forces me to be less sloppy with my fretting hand. It’s easier to transition to the F from a C or using a base walk for example. I suppose it’s possible that some of these issues could be influenced by the equipment such as the guitar or your pick. I’ll let some others chime in….
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ignoring this, see post with subject “mute”!
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@mrmikedunnergmail-com I will try to reply to this post. There’s another very similar one which I’ll ignore.
Not much context was given with the question. I understand you are muting strings when you don’t want to. So I will assume this is with the fretting hand while forming chord shapes. This is very common, if you are a beginner, it’s a rite of passage in a way – earning your stripes to be able to play clean chords.
Hear are some suggestions, I’m reposting here from a similar question a while back:
- Position: you want to play in the best possible position for comfort and ease to place your fingers properly. This is something you can play around with, raising the neck up, adjusting the shoulder and elbow. Certain chords may require you to come at the fretboard differently.
- Pressure: when we’re learning we have a tendency to press very hard, trying to eliminate the buzzing or thuds. Getting the finger closer to the fret wire means less pressure will still work. We need to find that sweet spot where it’s a clean note but minimum pressure. This is still something I focus on everyday, because I still press to hard when making certain chords, like the D major.
- Light strings: make it easier by using lighter strings. This will change the tone, but there are lots of options and you might find you like the brighter sound. Also, every guitar has it’s “soul mate” when it comes to the marriage between the guitar+player and strings. I recently switched my favorite guitar to D’Addario EJ11-3D Light Guage and I was absolutely floored how beautiful my guitar started sounding to my ears.
- Tuning: @jorgemac should advise you here, but you can tune your guitar down a 1/2 step or even more, makes it much easier to fret. Great for practicing and I believe he said he slaps on a capo to play along with the challenges. I haven’t done this myself but I’m going to eventually.
- Nails: always have the finger nails on your fretting hand trimmed as short as possible. This is essential for beginner players.
- Based on your question I assume you are a new player. You may not have developed callouses on your finger tips. As you do, this will help with the issue of string muting.
- Make sure you are fretting with the tips of your fingers, the strings should be making their indentation marks about 1/10 inch (2mm) from the finger nail. Much further than that and you’re fretting with the pads and that’s going to cause muting.
- Time: learning to fret cleanly simply doesn’t happen in an hour, or a week or month. Some of more difficult shapes could take several months of doing it several times a day before your brain can direct your fingers adequately. I redirect you to #2 again because it is key. Play around with breaking the chord into individual notes and just fret those notes with finger you would be using in the chord. (make sure you are close to the fret wire). Release pressure and find where it still rings clean and starts to buzz. Over time you have to teach your fingers to press that hard and not much harder.
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The benchmarks repeat 3 times per year, since there are 4 and you have 1 benchmark week per month. The rest repeats annually. I like the format, it’s the perfect amount of repetition. Don’t forget each themed week really represents a whole bunch of songs and not just the one used as an example. TAC is really about teaching you to be a guitar player, not teaching songs.
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All you can do is try to do it the best you can. I am almost 2 years in this program and I can’t do this hammer without muting the lower string. I am a closer to hitting it if I use my pinky. It’s not that consequential since we are following up with another double stop. I’ll keep trying to do this, I know eventually I’ll get it like so many other moves that seemed impossible early on but now are totally in my wheelhouse!
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Amazing @Braden
You’re ready to tackle Alice’s Restaurant now!
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To maintain consistency I make sure I bring up the daily challenge learn video every day and at least start watching it. While that starts playing I go to my OneNote app on my laptop where I have all the TAB sheets for every challenge and bring up the lesson of the day. I grab one of my guitars and attempt the beginning of the challenge. I go as far as I can get in 10 -15 minutes then I mark complete.
I typically don’t watch the entire learn video since I am keeping my session short and just focused on doing as much as possible during those first 10 minutes. Later on if I am free to continue or if I am coming back later I will relax and take time to watch closely if necessary and maybe rehearse parts of today’s or another day’s lessons. I do more than one daily session on most days and I just do whatever song or exercise that interests me.
I just try to be very intentional at first. Some videos are more than 10 minutes long, if you watch all that you probably haven’t played very much.
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Yes, slowing it down helps so much. Sometimes the pace is very intimidating and we feel we must match Tony’s pace and if we go slower we’re not doing it right! Nothing could be further from the truth! When we go slow, our brains can soak it in better and continue learning after we’ve stopped playing….Yes, your brain is even learning guitar while you are sleeping!
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@Mitch123 you are correct, this question comes up frequently. There is no need to “fall behind” as the program is not linear. It is cyclical in structure. Sometimes they are more challenging than other times. You are not required to achieve a certain level of proficiency before moving on either; just do your best and mark complete. Tony does address this in the challenges, not every week but multiple times throughout the year he speaks to this topic.
Progress before perfection! Always keep moving onto the next challenge. It’s ok if you are only able to do a portion of it, perhaps only one measure. That is fine, still mark it complete all the same. There will be another take on the same skill and you might take it further on the next go! -
Do you mean $8?
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I am also soon going to be in my third year in TAC and still have some struggles of this kind Barbara. We are what we are, Seniors [that] Just Wanna Have Fun!
– queue Cyndi Lauper
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It doesn’t matter, you can come into the rotation any time. If you miss a week or two, it’s not a problem. Of course it’s best to play at least 5 days a week, personally I prefer 7 days but not everyone can.
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I know it’s tempting but try not to compare yourself to other players. You will have a unique guitar journey, unlike anybody else’s! We come in with different pre-learned skills and aptitude. Some are able to devote more time and some people pick things up faster than others.
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@the-old-coach thanks! I am not deserving. I really could be serving her with a lot more joy and compassion. I’ve really got to dig deep to keep doing this. You are right, the guitar is very much a release and distraction from the life of being a caretaker.
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That’s quite a story! Mine is similar in some ways, but no heart attack. In fact I am enjoying fabulous health in my senior years which is a tremendous gift from the Lord! Also wanted to play at age 11 or so but simply didn’t ask my parents for lessons. I didn’t start until I was 63! I am also taking care of my aging mother (93) who has been under my roof for almost 20 years. The last few years have been rough as her health has been deteriorating. I’ve been to the ER with her about a dozen times.