i aren't getting any better

  • Thread starter Thread starter gibsonguy09
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Rokket said:
Not to put words in his mouth, but:

I think he was referring to your capacity to learn. Everyone has a different capacity. Some learn fast and remember, some not so fast. Some forget what they learned if they get away from it for a time.

Also, if someone is lazy in one aspect of their life, what's to say that they are not lazy across the board. I find that a lot of guitar playing, or really any instrument, is in the attention to the smallest details. You can't skip over them, or you will not be as effective...


Believe it or not i don't care about school really i care about my music though. Wheni tab out a song i go over it a thousand times and make sure it is perfect. I have to write down the exact notes on the finger picking not just fingerpick the d chord or what ever. So i put a lot more time in my music.

p.s. o get straight b's in school so I am not stupid (my learning capacity isn't low) :D
 
Rokket said:
Not to put words in his mouth, but:

I think he was referring to your capacity to learn. Everyone has a different capacity. Some learn fast and remember, some not so fast. Some forget what they learned if they get away from it for a time.

Also, if someone is lazy in one aspect of their life, what's to say that they are not lazy across the board. I find that a lot of guitar playing, or really any instrument, is in the attention to the smallest details. You can't skip over them, or you will not be as effective...

That is exactly what I am refering to. Also, it's a matter of respect. When I have to read thing 4 and 5 times to figure out what is being asked, it's a waste of my time and very childish.

Remember, if you won't put forth an effort, neither will we. Just ask yourself, how many people didn't even view this thread because of the way it was written.
 
I think there's a tricky balance between creativity and self discipline that's different for everybody. And since guitar takes physical and mental skills it's kind of like combining gymnastics, math and poetry all together.

Then there's understanding your own learning style.

Tim
 
gibsonguy09 said:
Wheni tab out a song i go over it a thousand times and make sure it is perfect. I have to write down the exact notes on the finger picking not just fingerpick the d chord or what ever.
Try listening to your guitar playing as music, instead of as a language to be read. Listen to how it sounds, and make changes by the sound, not by memorizing marks on a piece of paper. Close your eyes and play and listen.

Anyway, hang in there. If you keep working at it, it will come to you. Cyrokk is right - learning is saccadic (jerks and spurts) and even though at some point it doesen't seem like you are making progress, you are, and you just have to keep at it until you get through that.
 
Thanks everyone for the help! I will type like i actually would if i was trying. Last night i was really bored so i figured out the solos in "Knockin on Heavens Door".
 
arcaxis said:
Are you by chance carrying over some of your typing skills to your guitar playing? Playing the guitar or any instrument for that matter, you need to get the spelling and punctuation correct. Slow down, play the right notes with correct timing and build up gradually. Relax and enjoy the practice. If you get frustrated with the way you're playing, take a break from it for a few days or a week.

Thanks but have you read all of the other posts? I have only heard that same stuff a billion times! I am typing write now.
 
gibsonguy09 said:
Thanks but have you read all of the other posts? I have only heard that same stuff a billion times! I am typing write now.

no, your'e not :p


but thx for starting this interesting thread ... I hope I can get something out of it as well :D
 
Just wanted to compliment gibsonguy09 on his recovery from STS (sloppy typing syndrome).

Seriously though, it takes balls to keep your composure when criticized for something as personal as how you communicate.

Tim
 
Close your eyes and flow...don't think about theory, scales, finger positionings, precision...or worry about sloppiness. Just lay back and groove off the top of your head. If you do that enough, you will be able to play the chops that are in your head....nothing else will improve you as much as setting yourself free...free from having to look at a piece of music or tab, freedom from watching your left hand while you play, freedom from having to think about the correct position on the neck to do the run you have planned to do next.

The things you are freeing yourself from all invole the analitical side of your brain....the mortal enemy of the creative side of your brain.

If you have never just shut your eyes and flowed on the guitar...it will sound like shit to start with. You will hit bad notes and won't be able to find your way around the fretboard...you will want to open your eyes and get you bearing...fight the temptation. You have plenty of time to play and look at what you are doing.(and be consummed by what your left hand and right hand are doing, and need to do next) This is flow time im talking about....when you flow, you don't give a shit whatsoever about what your hands are doing, all you care about is what your ears are hearing and your soul is feeling.

if you don't already do this, invest some time daily (or at least weekly) in this. I guarantee you will make alot of progress on the guitar.
 
YOu may hate the band (being a young guy into punk/metal), but get a Beatles songbook. Ignore the old Beatles (pre-Revolver/Rubber Soul), and ignore the sappy ballads (Let it Be, Long and Winding Road, Hey Jude etc.), and focus on some of their more bizarre and complex tunes (Oh Darling, Happiness is a Warm gun). Like I said, you may not like the band, but they did some amazing guitar work if you consider the time. Tough chord changes, time signature changes within songs, key shifts etc.
 
jimistone said:
Close your eyes and flow...don't think about theory, scales, finger positionings, precision...or worry about sloppiness. Just lay back and groove off the top of your head. If you do that enough, you will be able to play the chops that are in your head....nothing else will improve you as much as setting yourself free...free from having to look at a piece of music or tab, freedom from watching your left hand while you play, freedom from having to think about the correct position on the neck to do the run you have planned to do next.

The things you are freeing yourself from all invole the analitical side of your brain....the mortal enemy of the creative side of your brain.

If you have never just shut your eyes and flowed on the guitar...it will sound like shit to start with. You will hit bad notes and won't be able to find your way around the fretboard...you will want to open your eyes and get you bearing...fight the temptation. You have plenty of time to play and look at what you are doing.(and be consummed by what your left hand and right hand are doing, and need to do next) This is flow time im talking about....when you flow, you don't give a shit whatsoever about what your hands are doing, all you care about is what your ears are hearing and your soul is feeling.

if you don't already do this, invest some time daily (or at least weekly) in this. I guarantee you will make alot of progress on the guitar.


I try to do that when i play the interlude in church. I challenge myself by looking into the crowd non-stop and see if i mess up. I know if i mess up their it is more serious than at home. So i have to make sure i don't mess up. That helped me a little bit because now i can play without looking on most of my songs (i can't on"knockin on heavens door's" solo yet though :( )
 
cstockdale said:
YOu may hate the band (being a young guy into punk/metal), but get a Beatles songbook. Ignore the old Beatles (pre-Revolver/Rubber Soul), and ignore the sappy ballads (Let it Be, Long and Winding Road, Hey Jude etc.), and focus on some of their more bizarre and complex tunes (Oh Darling, Happiness is a Warm gun). Like I said, you may not like the band, but they did some amazing guitar work if you consider the time. Tough chord changes, time signature changes within songs, key shifts etc.


How can you hate the beatles. The are the ones who started rock and roll!
(besides elvis but that was different in my opinion) I have heard they have some pretty sweet guitar music in their books i think i will haver to go pick one up now :D
 
gibsonguy09 said:
How can you hate the beatles. The are the ones who started rock and roll!
(besides elvis but that was different in my opinion) I have heard they have some pretty sweet guitar music in their books i think i will haver to go pick one up now :D

I knew there was something I like about you (other than your screen name) :cool: Check out Hal Leonard's "The Beatles Complete Scores" http://www.musiciansfriend.com/srs7/fg=84/g=bv/search/detail/base_pid/900655/
 
Just my opinion but if you're not improving, you're not practicing properly and likely don't have a proper routine down. It's not the amount of time it's the frequency and having a difinite routine that helps you improve. Proper practice with a metronome. Proper practice demands that you are aware of your hand position, sitting position, sight reading. You need to be able to ask yourself and answer honestly: " am I doing this the way the teach showed me?" Be cautious of end gaining. Don't expect to get better by taking short cuts. Excercises are done for a reason and cutting corners with them will get you nowhere. You need to be clinical and regimental at your practice. At first this might seem extremely boring but keep your goals in mind. Think of it like going to the gym. You don't do it becaue you will look good tomorrow. You do it because you know it's good for you and as a benefit, you will look healthier in the future.
 
wait... what are you having troubles with... guitar or grammar?
 
tilinmyowngrave said:
wait... what are you having troubles with... guitar or grammar?

Like i said before. Read all of the other people that has told me that. I am trying harder now to type right instead of the wasy i talk to my friends on the internet! Don't say anythingif you don't have anything that'll help me
 
lol im joking i agree, it usually is annoying stuff correctly :p
 
tilinmyowngrave said:
lol im joking i agree, it usually is annoying stuff correctly :p


Yah it takes to long to type most of the time to type
 
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