Monthly Archives: February 2020

What I Learned From Knowing Great Musicians

28 Friday Feb 2020

Posted by in Guitar & Music

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Often times I get a parent who asks me how much their son or daughter should practice in order to get really good on the guitar. And, I have to be honest, as soon as I hear how much and how long I already know that someone is sizing up their effort.

This way of thinking makes sense on the surface, but it’s an improper way of looking at it.

Guitar is an animal. We never really master it completely. And, the guitarists I know that became very proficient at it play CONSTANTLY, or at least have spent a big part of their life playing CONSTANTLY. Yep, that’s the secret.

It almost takes an obsession of sort to just LOVE the entire process of playing the instrument.

This is why I see young players get good extremely fast and that is because they are able to put in a lot of time playing. They go to school, eat and play guitar. That certainly was me, too.

But, with enough time with the instrument in your hands and keeping your focus on the guitar, everyone can achieve a good level of proficiency. This is absolutely true. I see it happen all the time!

99% of my students want to get good and simply enjoy playing the guitar in order for them to play their favorite songs, write and/or record their own songs, be able to jam with friends, a band and just get closer to the music they love – metal.

So, I say go for it … play as much as you want!

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”
– Aristotle

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Piggy Bank & Your Guitar

11 Tuesday Feb 2020

Posted by in Guitar & Music, Inspiration & Motivation

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One idea, or rather analogy, that helped me as a practicing musician over the years was one of a piggy bank. But, not one you put money in, but one that holds the currency of guitar practice.

Whenever I practice guitar I imagine depositing practice currency into the piggy bank. When you practice a lot, you deposit a lot of currency into it.

You see, once you start gigging a lot, playing professionally even, you will be doing a lot of travelling to gigs or shows. If not travelling, you’ll be doing other tasks that will allow you to do music.

When you are not able to practice, you can imagine yourself taking out some of the practice currency. This sounds imaginary, but being a musician works very much like that.

When flying to other continents and generally being in a band, you sometimes spend more time at the airports or vans than with the guitar in your hand. This is why its important to have the practice curency in the bank because you will need to draw on it. But, in order for it to carry you, it must be there first. Thinking in above terms can also be a very motivating factor to play your instrument more.

It’s a simple idea, but one that has helped me in the past as much as it helps me today.

The Hidden Secret Of A Metronome

06 Thursday Feb 2020

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What Is The True Hidden Secret Of A Metronome?

The metronome conversation comes up often with my students and I always do mention to them that I have used the metronome myself a lot – especially in my major woodshedding/college days.

But, I have to say that I think many guitarists think of a metronome not in full light. What I mean by that is that most think of a metronome as a speed building tool. And, yes it can be that, too. But, it is actually something even more important.

The real secret of the metronome is that it also a SLOOOW Down tool! Yep, the strength of it is not what most associate metronomes with.

How it works.

If I have a guitar phrase that I know I can perform more cleanly and in time, I can take my metronome and choose a click tempo that is where I sort of play the lick. I get this in a ballpark. Then, I slow it down considerably and I make sure that I understand where every note lays. This way there are no surprises whatsoever when I play my lick up to tempo. I burn in the notes slow, feeling that slow tempo, working through all my finger position changes, going over and over while getting to understand what I am playing 100% percent. This is how you play anything lightning fast with conviction because you can also play it slow perfectly. Playing something slower than you are comfortable with prepares you for faster takes later.

Remember: Slow To Smooth, Smooth To Fast.

So, just remember this lesson because it’s a good one.