Hey everyone I have been playing for almost a year now and I notice that the past month or so I am not progressing like when I first started.I really wanna see some improvement so I can be ready to be in a band and play some tunes.
When I first began I was hooked!I played like 5 to 12 hours a day.Now lately I play maybe two hours a day.I think I should be playing more but I haven't had challenge or anything lately.
Usually my practice goes like this.....Warm up a little on some easy song then Just play some other solos!Most of the time I just practice improvising in the key of C major.Do yall think I should be like practicing things like vibratos and alternate picking alone or just keep with what I am doing? Help me get outa my rut please! thanks :D
I lost count of the number of times I felt in a rut and then elated about my playing.
it happens all the time. so become aware of it. I was going to say get used to it, but that is not the case.
when I am on a plateau, and that is what you are experiencing, I continue to practice and play.
I try to learn another song. play along with CD helps learning greatly. find inspiration.
try not to be passive or automatic about your playing. I get lazy sometimes and start a song and drift off at a hard spot only to begin another piece to end the same way.
really bad habit, but it is honest.
at some moment you will find yourself out of the rut and playing stuff you had not thought of before.
it just happens. that is why we stay in this game.
I think you might want to get a bit more disciplined in your approach. Maybe start working on some songs you like. There's usually parts in every song that are a little difficult that will force you to learn technigues you may not be good at such as hammer-ons, pull offs, vibrato, sixteenth notes etc.
The other way is to specifically practice those skills by themselves. Work with a metronome, scales, arpeggios, the list is endless.
"It's all about stickin it to the man!"
It's a long way to the top if you want to rock n roll!
I lost count of the number of times I felt in a rut and then elated about my playing.
it happens all the time. so become aware of it. I was going to say get used to it, but that is not the case.
Yup. Me too.
The last two times this has happened I started doing something new. The new thing I've tried is to put down the guitar for a bit and I'm going out and looking for music to 'LISTEN' too. For me I'm looking for music I wouldn't normally be inclined to listen too. Like really old blues, classical, yeah like Mozart or Bach, some older classic Rock stuff.
What I'm trying to learn to do is to listen to music. Now that I'm (cough) a musician, at least a budding one. I've noticed a difference between enjoying the music (on the radio or from CDs) to really listening to music. I think there's a difference. I'm finding a new appreciation for it. I'm paying attention to the chord progressions (can't tell what key by ear yet), how the music is structured, all those things with a more 'learn-ed' ear become clearer and clearer. Currently I'm looking for some jazz to listen to some genuine improv.
Anyhoo my point is, I'm finding some inspiration. I'm finding new ideas, I'm learning by 'hearing' what others do or have done.
That said, my goals have also changed. Before I wanted to be able to play a few of my favorite cover songs, (which I still work on), but now my goals are to write my own music, not necessarily the lyrics, but the music. I want to create my own songs, to speak in my own voice with my heart and soul, not copy somebody else's.
Good luck with your 'dip' keep at it and soon you'll rise to another plateau. :)
Research is what I'm doing when I don't know what I'm doing. - Wernher Von Braun (1912-1977)
What ever approach you use, just keep playing and keep it fun. Thats why you play a guitar not work a guitar, although sometimes you have to work to be able to play. :?
"Work hard, rock hard, eat hard, sleep hard,
grow big, wear glasses if you need 'em."
-- The Webb Wilder Credo --
Remember the saying "No pain No Gain", it's not all fun sometimes you have to work at it!
"It's all about stickin it to the man!"
It's a long way to the top if you want to rock n roll!
I think it's just a part of the business you know?
I hit a little plateau for a while, and then last night it was like magic. If you keep playing through the ruts, you'll eventually have one of those nights (or days) when your fingers just can't do wrong. It's definitely a new breath of life for guitar players.
Life is my friend
Rake it up to take it in
Wrap me in your cinnamon
Especially in Michigan
...well I could be your friend- RHCP
As Fripp himself once said, "Some days are better than others."
Brain-cleansing music for brain-numbing times in a brain dead world
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I had one of the good days last night, I managed to find the name of a song from a movie I had seen as a kid, the only thing about the movie one song, so I managed to find the name of the song... and it took all of 10 minutes to play the song, Urban Struggle by the Vandals, and unlike most songs, I will remember how to play this one for the rest of my life. But the nice thing is, it's a song that sounds hard but was actually pretty easy for me (it's rough on the frettin hand though, power chords kill me though playing bass has improved my hand strength a lot for power chords). Gettin the words down... now that might be harder...
Remember the saying "No pain No Gain", it's not all fun sometimes you have to work at it!
But isn't the working at it part fun as well? I think it is.
"Work hard, rock hard, eat hard, sleep hard,
grow big, wear glasses if you need 'em."
-- The Webb Wilder Credo --
