Addressing my weaknesses

[ch willie]

It became clear to me this past weekend that I have a glaring weakness with up and down strokes when picking arpeggios. I always knew it but somehow didn’t want to admit that it’s a problem. Instead of giving up and ignoring it, I’ve worked on it three days in a row, and I plan to do exercises every day to get better at it. That may seem a minor task to some of you, but after having played only intermittently these last six months, I’m getting back down to playing and learning again. It’s a big leap for me for many reasons. Thanks to all of you for your advice and concern during this last year. I just might be over a guitar crisis.

[Offshore Angler]

I've been at this guitar playing game a long time and I've found one universal constant: The people who are the best at it are the ones that work at it the hardest.

Any fool can get the hand skills. Don't believe me? See for yourself. Go to Guitar Center on a Saturday.

One of the biggest traps an aspiring player can make is when they get some modest skills, and then start lensing everything they hear and trying to play through their own skills rather than extending the skill set they have. 99% of the frustrated players I meet have fallen into this trap.

Chuck

[renderit]

I suck at that (alternating strokes in an arpeggio) as well. Also, my vibrato is done more in a "trill" style as I never really learned it right. I can bend the snot outta the strings, I just can't do a vibrato that's worth a crap. Don't know why.

[Offshore Angler]

I suck at that (alternating strokes in an arpeggio) as well. Also, my vibrato is done more in a "trill" style as I never really learned it right. I can bend the snot outta the strings, I just can't do a vibrato that's worth a crap. Don't know why.

Make sure you're using your wrist and not your fingers to make the vibrato, and also learn to make sure your vibrato is in time with the music. Think "Mississippi Mississippi, etc.

No charge.

Chuck

[renderit]

Make sure you're using your wrist and not your fingers to make the vibrato, and also learn to make sure your vibrato is in time with the music. Think "Mississippi Mississippi, etc.

No charge.

Chuck

Yeah, I know that from years of people telling me that! I can do the reverse (flop my thumb side BACK), just not the finger side up! I.e.: I can do it backwards very well! What do you mean "think Mississippi, Mississippi"? I'll try ANYTHING including standing in the front yard naked at midnight waving dirty socks over my head.

[Offshore Angler]

"Mississipi" is a technique form the Suzuki music instruction method. It's used to teach 16th note rhythms. Count out the beat, 1,2,3,4 and then change the numbers to Mississippi's, and you'll have your 16ths timing down.

On guitar, timing is everything and it's what separates great players from mediocre ones. Anybody can get the correct notes in sequence if timing isn't required. Most aspiring guitarists will push the beat during the meedley meedley parts and it sounds disconnected to the music. Even when on a total shred, you need to keep your timing. It's more subtle but just as important on vibrato, and to make a solo with delay perfectly fit you need to tap the tempo on the delay first. If not, your vibrato and delays get out of synch and you lose that "natural" sound.

Timing is everything.

Chuck

[renderit]

Thanks for that. I didn't understand. But I still can't get to the Mississippi portion of the lesson, much less the meedely meedeley part. I just feel like my wrist won't do it physically. I guess I need to reevaluate maybe how I'm holding the thang. Getting pretty discouraged. Played for years, always feel worthless when I get to that. But I can wiggle it like a violin which has taken it's place in my playing...

[S. Cane]

I think alternate picking arpeggios and vibrato are probably two of the most common difficulties us guitar players have to face.

They're easy to try and very hard to make right.

I myself still struggle to do both "perfectly".

[Offshore Angler]

Thanks for that. I didn't understand. But I still can't get to the Mississippi portion of the lesson, much less the meedely meedeley part. I just feel like my wrist won't do it physically. I guess I need to reevaluate maybe how I'm holding the thang. Getting pretty discouraged. Played for years, always feel worthless when I get to that. But I can wiggle it like a violin which has taken it's place in my playing...

Don't bend your wrist, you twist it. Watch videos of B. B. King. he was the master. Vibrato is easy if your technique is correct. If it's wrong, you'll struggle.

You're not bending the string, you're just massaging it on the fret. If you can discern a pitch change of more than a few cents you've gone way to far. Vibrato's subtle. It's really as much about adding sustain as anything else.