practice?

[oh_the_blood]

how do you guys practice to get better and for how long?

 

[ibanezrocks]

To really get better its good to set out goals for yourself every time you pick up a guitar, say to yourself in the next hour I want to practice blank, then practice blank until you get to the level of blank you desire and keep a really strict practicing schedule.
I got tired of that really fast, although it does work incredibly well, but the way I practice is just whenever I'm sitting down I have a guitar on me, I can noodle around, practice scales, whatever I feel like doing really, and I play about 2 or 3 hours on an average day.

 

[Dave_M]

Concentrate on a few related things at a time. If your rhythm playing is sloppy then get a metronome and work on changing chords. If its theory and technique your after then concentrate on that. Play, read, learn and play some more then repeat.

 

[azraelswings]

Plenty

In all but the most busy of times, I practice for about 1.5-2 hours each day (considering only guitar, excluding singing and songwriting).

I warm up for 5-10 minutes by playing the chromatic scale, ascending and descending, and a bouncy little chord warmup.

I work through a bunch of exercises with a metronome. Some people say that you should play any exercise at the fastest speed at which you can play it cleanly. I disagree. When I first start playing any given exercise, I begin by finding that speed (let's say its 100 bpm). I set my goal for the day at 4 bpm above that speed (104) and play through the exercise at that goal speed for a few minutes. I'll increase the metronome speed by 8 bpm (112). This is not a comfortable speed. I do my best to play in time, mistakes and all. Then I drop the speed down 4 bpm (108) and play through the exercise. It's still probably not comfortable, but easier than the previous speed. Finally I drop it down to my goal speed and see if I can play at that speed comfortably and cleanly. I then record my goal speed for the next day, which is either the same speed or 4 bpm above it if I played today's goal cleanly.

I go through the same process with a few rhythm exercises (strumming and palm muting). As I'm learning new licks, I'll use this same process if I can't play them at the goal speed.

For rhythm, I'll try to find new chords voicings, dress up old ones with hammers and pulls, any groovy lesson I find in a magazine.

I make it a point to jam a bit each day, sometimes over rhythm tracks I recorded, or midi tracks.

Last, I'll list a few songs I'm working on and practice them.

Although I practice singing and writing each day, that's all for the guitar end.

Hope this helped.

 

[oh_the_blood]

wow, sounds awesome guys, thanks. any idea where i can get some good warm up scales online? or anything free that will help my playing online?

 

[mr_coffeekiller]

Always keep a practice diary so you have a constant progression and you can look back on it to see if there's anything you missed/how far you've came etc.

And yeah, get a metronome!

 

[ez_willis]

wow, sounds awesome guys, thanks. any idea where i can get some good warm up scales online? or anything free that will help my playing online?

There is a plethora of scales and theory info here .

 

[oh_the_blood]

thanks so much
i really appreciate that.

 

[azraelswings]

wow, sounds awesome guys, thanks. any idea where i can get some good warm up scales online? or anything free that will help my playing online?

www.all-guitar-chords.com has a scales section

Make sure you play using a scale rather than just playing the scale. Practice it up and down, yes, but play patterns, skip notes, and (perhaps most importantly) play genuine melodies in a particular scale. Playing scales will do wonderful things for your chops, but if chops are all you take away from scales, you're selling yourself short.

 

[ez_willis]

Work on the major and minor modes , it will make practice gratifying.

 

[Hard2Hear]

scales, modes, theory..blah.

Get a band together and start rockin out together. Nothing will teach you any better than actually getting out and doing it. The less time you spend in your bedroom and the more time you spend playing with other people the better you will be.

While prepping new songs for touring we generally play together about 6-8 hours a day for "practice". While actually creating songs in the studio it's more like 10-12 hours per day.

H2H

 

[ez_willis]

scales, modes, theory..blah.

Get a band together and start rockin out together. Nothing will teach you any better than actually getting out and doing it. The less time you spend in your bedroom and the more time you spend playing with other people the better you will be.

While prepping new songs for touring we generally play together about 6-8 hours a day for "practice". While actually creating songs in the studio it's more like 10-12 hours per day.

H2H

Ever hear 4 or 5 young bucks that don't know how to play their instruments rockin' out with the amps on 11? They might live next door to you, be careful.

 

[Hard2Hear]

I have no problem with that. I'd happily produce their group, record them a demo and CD to take with them, and send them on their way to rock stardom.

When I started in my first group I didn't know what a single chord was called. I got with 3 other guys and we rocked as hard as we could. We practiced together for about 3 weeks before our first show. Then once we started playing we were playing 2-3 shows a week within 3 months. Girls loved it and thought it was the best thing ever. Now I'm a pro and know all I'll ever need to. When I tour, I play 5-6 times a week. Girls love it and think we're the best thing ever.

I don't play for geeky guys. I leave that for the vais and satches of the world. And jazz musicians.

H2H

 

[ez_willis]

I have no problem with that. I'd happily produce their group, record them a demo and CD to take with them, and send them on their way to rock stardom.

When I started in my first group I didn't know what a single chord was called. I got with 3 other guys and we rocked as hard as we could. We practiced together for about 3 weeks before our first show. Then once we started playing we were playing 2-3 shows a week within 3 months. Girls loved it and thought it was the best thing ever. Now I'm a pro and know all I'll ever need to. When I tour, I play 5-6 times a week. Girls love it and think we're the best thing ever.

I don't play for geeky guys. I leave that for the vais and satches of the world. And jazz musicians.

H2H

Thats cool for you, seems to have worked out. Thing is, some people are striving to be better musically for themselves, not the girlies. The nature of his question shows a desire to become a better player so telling him to get out there and go for it might not be what he was looking for. The world would be a boring place if the only music out there were the Ramones. But what the hell do I know, you're the actual professional.

 

[onlyfingers]

Let's remember, at the early stage of the Hard2Hear/EZ Willis debate, that Certs is a breath mint and Certs is a candy mint. It is important to have a mechanism to expose ourselves to new things to learn in music, and work with them (usually on our own) to learn them and learn how the "new thing" fits in with the other things we have picked up. At the same time, scales are not music, and, as Azrealswings said, using the scale should be a next step after (or during) learning the scale. Ultimately, though, if performing or collaboration is in the cards, practicing with others is where the rubber meets the road, and a whole new set of skills get added to the kit bag. The better your foundation is, the more facile you will be when the group gets together. For example, I know chord shapes, and strum chords written on top of the staff. If the chord letters aren't written there, there is nothing I can do. The bass player who just joined us asks what key the song is in, and just starts playing. He's spend more time on scales and theory than I have. Both of us practice on our own, but what really counts is what happens when we get together.

 

[ez_willis]

Let's remember, at the early stage of the Hard2Hear/EZ Willis debate, that Certs is a breath mint and Certs is a candy mint. It is important to have a mechanism to expose ourselves to new things to learn in music, and work with them (usually on our own) to learn them and learn how the "new thing" fits in with the other things we have picked up. At the same time, scales are not music, and, as Azrealswings said, using the scale should be a next step after (or during) learning the scale. Ultimately, though, if performing or collaboration is in the cards, practicing with others is where the rubber meets the road, and a whole new set of skills get added to the kit bag. The better your foundation is, the more facile you will be when the group gets together. For example, I know chord shapes, and strum chords written on top of the staff. If the chord letters aren't written there, there is nothing I can do. The bass player who just joined us asks what key the song is in, and just starts playing. He's spend more time on scales and theory than I have. Both of us practice on our own, but what really counts is what happens when we get together.

I'm not even talking about reading music, I'm talking about which notes will work together while playing over a given chord progression. Practicing scales/modes is also great for dexterity and cordination, or it's not, I really could care less, I know how to play, I was just trying to help a player out who is eager to learn some better chops.

 

[EddieRay]

Practice? I think I heard of that stuff.

 

[azraelswings]

Who do you tour with, if you don't mind my asking?

 

[oh_the_blood]

i do practice with my band frequently, i just dont know how to maybe get more creative with my guitar playing or start adding some sweet solos.

heres the band by the way.

www.myspace.com/turdfergusonhxc

its just pop punk but id like to make it more technical.

 

[XLR]

Always keep a practice diary so you have a constant progression and you can look back on it to see if there's anything you missed/how far you've came etc.

Hey... I do the same thing. Helps me know what worked and what didn't.

tim