guitarists guide practicing

8/13/2019 Guitarists Guide Practicing

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1

The idea for this lesson came about after years of giving private guitar instruction. People love

play music, and the guitar is probably the single most popular instrument to play. And why not? Its

relatively easy to get started, its portable (you can take it anywhere), but mostly its just plain fun.

However, after learning a few favorite songs or a cool riff we remember from our childhood, most of u

want to improve and get to the next level. The biggest hurdle I ran into was that students didnt really

understand how to practice. They knew whatto practice but the howwas always the real problem. Man

times Id sit in the room with them and spend the entire lesson actually practicing along with them.Every time I did that they would leave the room a better player than when they entered - all because w

practiced hard together.

Hopefully, you will take the ideas, exercises and pieces that I teach in this lesson and apply the

to your own playing. If you do, you will see amazing results.

Enjoy!

P

The tune The Monaghan Jigcan be heard on my CD,Naked Pop. This and other CDs are

available on my website www.petehuttlinger.com. Come on by and drop me a line to let me know

how youre doing on these tunes.


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2

Practice Makes Perfect?

A scene from a typical guitar lesson:

The student shows up at the local music store ready to show the teacher all that he/she has learned durin

the previous week and to get some new material to learn in the coming week. The teacher comes up from

the back of the store to greet the student and show him/her back to the teaching studio. As the student

gets the guitar out of the case a light conversation takes place about nothing in particular. Then the lesso

begins.

Teacher: So, tell me what youve been practicing this week.

Student: Man, Ive worked really hard. I practiced everything. Every piece.

Teacher: Thats great! Play something for me.

Student: What do you want to hear?

Teacher: Whatever youre most comfortable with.

Now the student starts to play and after a few measures the piece starts to fall apart. Nothing is smooth.

Nothing is connected. The hard passages are still unplayable and this is where the music stops altogethe

Try it again, the teacher says with encouragement. After all, everybody gets nervous.The student starts over and once again the same thing happens.

Hey, no problem. Why dont you try another piece?

The teacher is still sounding positive, though he fears the worst is about to happen and it does. The

next few frustrating minutes are tough for both student and teacher. Neither can understand why, after

practicing all week, there is no improvement.

Finally, the teacher says, Tell me how you practice.

I play for an hour everyday and two hours on Sundays.

Yes, but what exactly do you do when you practice?Well, I sit down with my book and I go through everything.

You play everythingeach time you practice?

Yeah.

But youve got ten pieces that youre working on. What do you when you get to a difficult passage? Do

you stop and work out fingerings and chord changes and position changes?

No, I just go back to the beginning and start over.

Aha!

Does any of this sound familiar to you?

Nobody ever taught me how to practice. I was one of those kids who just played and played all the time

and figured it out on my own. Unfortunately, not everybody has the time to do this.


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3

Thoughts about practice

The principles of good practice apply to all instruments not just guitar.

Time management:

You must have a goal with each practice session. It may be to learn a new scale, or a new section of

tune, or a whole new tune. But be realistic about your time and dont bite off more than you can che

If youve only got 30-60 minutes, then plan on getting something small under your fingers really weIt will be much more productive to work only on the verse or the bridge to a new song and get it dow

so you play it correctly every time rather than trying to do the whole thing over and over and keep o

making the same mistakes. Then, next time you practice, work on the next section before putting th

two sections together.

Fixing Problem Spots:

Here is where many of my students have had problems. They would come in for a lesson and play a

tune for me, but it would be riddled with mistakes. Id have them play the tune again and the same

mistakes would happen. I realized they were playing the tune from beginning to end every time they

practiced, so they were never isolating the problem spots and fixing them.

What you have to do is:

Recognize where the problems are. Play the piece, and when you make mistakes make a note of

where they occur.

Go back and play just the section that is giving you a problem. Figure out what is going wrong. Is it

left hand fingering? Is it right hand fingering? Are you playing the piece too fast to get through the

hard parts?

Once you figure this out, take a measure that is giving you trouble and work only on that spot. If the

whole measure is too hard then just do half the measure. When you get half the measure down, begion the 2ndhalf of the measure only. When you have that down, go back to the 1 sthalf and get that

back. Do the 2ndhalf again too. Now put them together. DONT BE A SLACKER! MAKE SURE

THAT YOU ARE PLAYING CORRECTLY BEFORE GOING ON. The work you do here will mak

a huge difference later on.

Using A Metronome:This can be tricky. I got my first metronome when I was 15 and the first time I sat down to play with

it, I was convinced it did not work. I told my teacher and he suggested that I bring it to my next

lesson. I brought it and when I started playing along, my teacher assured me (with a smile) that ther

was nothing wrong with my metronome. I had absolutely no natural sense of time, nor any idea ofhow to use the metronome.


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4

Rhythm Changes

These chord changes are very important in Jazz and Pop music. I've given them to you in 3 keys.See how many you can write out and learn on your own.

The form of this tune is often referred to as AABA.

Try these exercises:

Whole notes 4 clicks per note

Half notes 2 clicks per note

Quarter notes 1 click per note

Eighth notes Two notes per click

Sixteenth notes 4 notes per click

Play a rhythm part to a tune. Try a rhythm part that has a few fills.

Practice going back and forth from rhythm to a fill to rhythm again. This will help you to internalize

the beat and make your friends a lot happier when you jam with them.

Metronome exercises should be separate from other practice routines. You dont have to have your

instrument with you, you can have your metronome in your car and sing to it. Once you understand the

beat you can start using it to help your overall playing.

Building speed:

This can happen very quickly if you use your metronome diligently every time you practice. There

are many speed exercises you can do, whatever your instrument.

A) Scales in all keys with multiple fingerings.

B) Tunes. These can include whatever it is you are into. It can be be-bop, fiddle tunes, Celtic jigs

and reels or Bach violin sonatas. Whatever music gets you excited is what you should be working on

here. However, I do recommend doing lots of scales, as they will help you with all kinds of music an

will help you gain a deeper understanding of your guitar.

Transposition:

TakeRhythm Changesand transpose it to as many keys as possible. Write the chords down as yougo along and practice each one as you write them. You dont need to read music to be able to do this

Just write the names of the chords with some rhythm slashes (4 to the measure). Its fun and it will

help you learn a lot about your guitar in the process.


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5

Rhythm Changesin B

CA1

Bfl Gm Cm F Bfl Gm Cm F5

Bfl B E Em B/F F BA9


Bfl B E Em B/F F BB17

D G 21

C F A25


Bfl B/D E E B/F F B


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6

Rhythm Changesin G

CA1

Gfl Em Am D Gfl Em Am D5

Gfl G C Cm G/D D GA9


Gfl G C Cm G/D D GB17

B E 21

A D A25


Gfl G/B C C G/D D G


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7

Rhythm Changesin C

CA1

Cfl Am Dm G Cfl Am Dm G5

Cfl C F Fm C/G G CA9


Cfl C F Fm C/G G CB17

E A 21

D G A25


Cfl C/E F F C/G G C


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8

Major Scales in Closed Position

&b

F Major 2nd Position

1

2

4

1

11 3 5

2

4

1

2

2 33 5

4

1

2 4

2 3 55

2 4 1 2

1 33 5

&b

4 2 3 4

5 3 15

2 4 2 1

3

5 3 2

4

2

1

4

5 3 25

2

1

4

2

3 15 3

w1

1

&n44

C Major 2nd Position

2

4

1

2

2 33 5

4

1

3 4

2 4 55

2 4 1 2

1 33 5

4 2 1 4

5 3 15

&

2 4 3 1

3 5 4 2

4

2

1

4

5 3 25

2

1

4

2

3 25 3

1

2

4

1

21 3 5

w2

3


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9

44

G Major 2nd Position

2

4

1

2

2 33 5

4

1

3

4

2 4 55

1

3 4 2

32 4 5

4 1 2 4

2 3 55

2 1 4 2

3 25 3

4 3 1

4

5 4 25

3

1

4

2

4 2

5 3

1

4

2

1

2 5 3 2

w2

3

#44

D Major 2nd Position

4

1

3

4

2 4 55

1

3 1 2

2 32 4

4 1 2 4

2 3 55

2 1 4 2

3 25 3

#

1 3 1

4

2 4 25

3

1

4

3

4 25 4

1

4

2

1

25 3 2

2

4

1

3

2 43 5

w4

5


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10

# # 44

A Major 2nd Position

4

1

3

4

2 4 55

1

3

4

1

2

2 4 6

3 1 2 4

2 3 54

1 3 4 3

2 4 5 4

# #

1 4 2 1

25 3 2

3 1

4

3

4 26 4

1

4

3

1

2

5 4 2

4

3

1

3

5 4 2 4

w4

5

Major Scales in Open Position

& 44

C Major Open Position

0 2 33

0 10 2

0 1 33

1 03 1

&

02 0

3

2 03 2

03 1 0

0 21 3

w

3


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11

G Major Open Position

0 2 33

0

0 2 4

0 1 32

0 2 3 2

03 1 0

2 04 2

0

3 2 0

3 2 0 2

w

3

#

D Major Open Position

00 2 4

0 2 32

0 2 3 2

03 2 0

#

2 04 2

04 2 0

3 2 0 2

0 2 43

w

0


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12

# #

A Major Open Position

00 2 4

1 2

2 4

00 2 3

2 4 2 0

# #

3 2 02

14 2 0

4 2 0 4

2 0 2 4

w

0

# # #

E Major Open Position

00 2 4

1 22 4

01 2

4

0 22 4

# # #

4 2 04

2 0

2 1

4 2 14

2 04 2

w

0


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13

Play very slowly at first. Start by keeping your fingers directly over, and very close to, the strings. Then

keep your fingers on the string as you go. When you get to the fourth note you should have four fingers

on the 1st string. Then only lift the finger you need to play the next note on the 2nd srting, when you get

to the fourth note on the 2nd string you should have four fingers on that string. Etc.

After and only after you are very comfortable with the first part of the exercise then use yourmetronome to do this as a speed exercise. Shoot for a half note equaling 160!

& 44

1 # # # #

1 2 3 41 2 3 4

# # # #

1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4

# # # #

1 2 3 41 2 3 4

&

# # #

2 3 4 52 3 4 5

# #

2 3 4 52 3 4 5

# # # #

2 3 4 5

2 3 4 5

&

# # #

3 4 5 6

3 4 5 6

# # # #

3 4 5 63 4 5 6

# # # #

3 4 5 63 4 5 6

Left Hand Exercises


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14

Also play this exercise starting with all four

fingers on the string. Then, taking your

fingers off one at a time, play 4th finger, 3r

finger, 2nd finger, 1st finger. Go to the next

string, place all four fingers on the string an

start again. Etc.

&

# # # #

4 5 6 74 5 6 7

etc.

# #

4 5 6 7

& 44

2 # # # #

1 2 3 41 2 3 4

# # # #

2 3 4 52 3 4 5

# # #

3 4 5 63 4 5 6

&

# # # #

4 5 6 74 5 6 7

# #

5 6 7 85 6 7 8

# # # #

6 7 8 96 7 8 9

&

# # #

7 8 9 107 8 9 10

# # # #

8 9 10 118 9 10 11

# # # #

9 10 11 129 10 11 12

Also play this exercise starting with all four fingers on the string. Then, taking your fingers off one at atime, play 4th finger, 3rd finger, 2nd finger, 1st finger. Go to the next string, place all four fingers on the

string and start again. Etc.


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15

Monaghan Jig

86

A

1

jEm

00

47 7

Em

00 0

4 77

jEm

00

47 7

D

07 0 7

9 9

5

jEm

00

47 7

Em

00 0

4 77

Em

3 0 05 0

7

D

0 7 09 9 9

..

..

B9

Cmaj

00 80 11

7

Cmaj

0 0 011 7 7

Cmaj

00 7 0

77

D

0 7 09 9 9

13

Cmaj

0

0 80 11

7

Cmaj

0 0

011 7 7

Cmaj

3 0 05 07

D

0 7 09 9 9

EBGDAE

Standard Tuning Arranged by Pete Huttlin


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16

..

..

C17

Em

7 0 08 8 0

9

Em

78 8 8

9 9

Em

7 0 08 8 0

9

D

57 7 7

7 7

21

Em

7 0 08 8 0

9

Em

7 08 8 8

9

Em

3 0 0

5 07

D

0 7 09 9 9

Exercise based on Villa-Lobos Etude(for Right Hand)

44 ..

..

..

..

..

..

R.H. fingering: p = thumb, i = index, m = middle, a = ring

1 p

i

p

i

p

m

i

a

00

0 02 2

20

m a i m p

i

p

i

00 0

0 02 2

2

01

2 24 4

30

01 1

2 24 4

3

EBGDAE


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17

..

..

..

..

..

..

5

00

0 0

2 22

0

0

0 00 0

2 22

#

20

2 2

1 10

2

# 2

0 02 2

1 10

..

..

..

..

..

..

9

00

0 02 2

23

0

0 00 0

2 22

# #

00

1 12 2

24

# 0

0 01 1

2 22

..

..

..

..

..

..

13

55

5 57 7

75

55 5

5 57 7

7

#

55

7 75 5

76

55 5

7 75 5

7

..

..

..

..

..

..

17

7

89 99 9

77

7

8 89 99 9

7

7

79 99 9

77

7

7 79 99 9

7


18/28

18

..

..

..

..

..

..

21

#

77

8 8

7 79

7

#

77 7

8 8

7 79

b n

012

10 10

12 1211

0

n b

012 12

10 10

12 1211

..

..

..

..

..

..

25 #

#

011

9 911 11

100

# #

011 11

9 911 11

10

#

010

8 810 10

90

#

010 10

8 810 10

9

..

..

..

..

..

..

Continue chromatically down the neck until29 b

b

02

0 02 2

10

b b 0

2 2

0 02 2

1

33

0

00 02 2

20

#

0 12 11 12

8 12 129

# # #

11 12 11 12 8 98 9

# #

9 10 6 76 7 2 3


19/28


20/28


21/28

21

&

b b

3 4 33 4 3

1 1

#

b

3 4 33 4 3

1 1

b

3 4 3

1 1

&

b

b

3 4 33 4 3

1 1

#

b

3 4 3

3 4 3

1 1

b

3 4 31 1

&

1a

b b b

1 3 11 3 1

2 2

etc.

b b b

1 3 1

2

1b

b b b b b

1 4 11 4 1

2 2

etc.

b b

1 4 1

2

&

1c

b b b

3 4 33 4 3

2 2

etc.

b #

3 4 3

2

1d

# #

1 2 11 2 1

3 3

etc.

# n

1 2 1

3


22/28

22

&

1e

b b b b

1 4 11 4 1

3 3

etc. b

1 4 1

3

1f

# #

2 4 22 4 2

3 3

etc.

2 4 2

3

&

1g

# # #

1 2 11 2 1

4 4

etc.# #

1 2 1

4

1h

b b b

1 3 11 3 1

4 4

etc.

b b b

1 3 1

4

&

1i

b

2 3 22 3 2

4 4

etc.

b b

2 3 2

4

Transcription: Peter Huttlinger Inscription: Peter Huttlinger


23/28

23


24/28

E

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guitarists guide practicing

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