GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
The good news is you've got this!!!! I see what you mean about losing stamina. You are doing just fine at first. I can't see your left hand to start with so better framing of the first shot would help, but then towards the end your hands lose traction and it sorta falls apart. However, if you would have just cut the video before that, it would have been just fine. For progress videos (just to get some feedback from me) leaving mistakes in there is fine. For MISSION VIDEOS, where you want me to look at it for badging up to the next level, It should show both hands the entire time, and be free from mistakes.
Keep in mind, you have hundreds of Missions to get through. As you go, your hands will adapt and earn more stamina and speed So playing each Mission well, will get you where you want to go. Even if you dont play each mission "Fast". Fast comes from repetition and there are 400 Missions so there is plenty of repetition ahead.
Your Picking looks good here and you have good hand synch! I'd say slow down just a pinch so that your hands are not so tense. It's that tension that will KILL your endurance. You'll notice when I'm playing a fast passage, I barely look like I'm using any force at all. As a result, I can keep it up forever. My hands don't get tired.
Here is a quick demo. Just some random shreddery.
QUOTE (Potsau @ Jan 21 2020, 05:08 AM)
Hi Sarge
many work there for Right Hand. Loosin Always Stamina at the whole end. But I can now just trigger my Right Hand to watch out. Trying to Speed up later. 3 Hours of practising.
This one was some Kind of Challenge.
Therefor I got many problems at the treble part of the Guitar. 10. to 46. Strings
GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Thanks!!! The key to being able to pick with precision and speed is to find your "zen". A calm place in your mind where you can let your hands speed up or slow down without tensing your body. This just takes practice. Once you get used to it, you will be able to play as fast as you want for as long as you want. Sarge
QUOTE (Potsau @ Jan 22 2020, 04:43 PM)
Hi Todd
Your picking is really impressive. thx for your critics, now I really know what to do to get straight through. (new songtext 😅?)
I really did feel something sometimes. Then it raises to high tension in my mind (not my hands) like a risk bar and my hands not connected with my Zen or Mojo anymore. Got this feeling already many years ago. Lost it and trying to find again.
Please dont be Angry. Im sorry. This is my weakness. Trying to reach the highest Level. I really try to Speed down. But than the Feeling Comes true and the Velocity rises.
GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Congrats on sorting out your fingering/picking/muting, it's all there!!!! There's only one problem. The speed drifts up. In much later missions, this sort of thing wouldn't be an issue. Here at the start I really need to see that you are able to play without drifting in terms of your timing. Does that make sense? I'm sure that you can. I just need to see it in a Mission Video. You can use a metronome to help keep you on an steady track, even if you don't record the metronome itself I just need to hear you play this bit without drifting faster or slower. I hate to send you back to fight yet again. I should have been more clear in my last critique. Just a few bars would do it. You don't need to travel all the way up the neck, just a few bars where you play at a steady speed without drifting faster or slower. You are ready for the next Mission Soldier! We just have to sort this vid out first. Sarge
QUOTE (Potsau @ Jan 23 2020, 04:54 AM)
Please dont be Angry. Im sorry. This is my weakness. Trying to reach the highest Level. I really try to Speed down. But than the Feeling Comes true and the Velocity rises.
GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Well Fought Soldier!! I can see the metronome going and your playing looks to be consistent with it. It sounds smooth and evenly played which is what I need to see in order to badge ypu up! Let's Debrief!! MEDALS OF HONOR
*PALM MUTE STEADY ON: Your Palm mute is good at what it's meant to be doing which is preventing string noise. Cheers there! I did notice that it looks like you've developed a habit of not planting your palm on the bridge. As a result, you are muting over the strings instead of over the bridge. This is a habit that will not serve you as you progress. In future Missions, try to plant your palm on the bridge as you can see me doing in the vids. It's the best placement for it given what we are trying to do in these Missions.
*PICKING STEADY ON: Your picking is very even and solid as it should be. It will get more controlled and steady as we go. I wanted to ask what type of pick you are using? For our Missions, a thickness of 1.0mm is suggest and it should have a point. Many pointy picks are available, jazz picks, petrucci picks, etc. Having a pick with zero bend/flex is crucial and the point will help a lot with precision. If you are already using a 1.0 mm jazz pick, then it's sorted
*ENDURANCE: I have not had a chance to really see your endurance on display until Mission 4 and I'm impressed. This Mission is one that can burn your arm off if you are not doing it correctly which is sorta the point of Mission 4. if one tries this mission using the STIFF ARM picking technique, for example, it won't last long. The good news is you are picking from the wrist not the elbow! Well done. You may have to re train your hand a bit as you shift your palm to rest on the bridge instead of on the strings in the middle of the guitar.
You are ready for the next Mission Soldier!! You just..
LEVELED UP!!!! Sarge PREVIEW OF MISSION 5.
You've got the pattern down which is a great start. When you put your mission vid up, make sure you are planting your right hand on the bridge instead of picking over the neck pickup. Also, it sounds like you are having a pinch of drift as you may be playing near the edge of your ability. By the time you make your mission vid, you may be able to play at this speed and do it with precision. If you find you are still feeling a bit out of control, just back off the tempo a pinch for the Mission vid.
QUOTE (Potsau @ Jan 24 2020, 05:32 AM)
Ok Todd
I tried this piece 5. Estimated practice time 90minutes
Thanks for badging up, 🤟 Thx for the great critics. Next thing I really does not recognized tge right position of right hand. I tried many things. Only positioning on bridge for complete damb palm muting. I ve never learned a good position of a rest point for my right hand. I knew there is a lack. But did not know anything. Not before a Hint. 🥳 I will go on and be prepared for the absolutely nightmares of picking. Come on 😏
GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
The Jazz III is a fine choice. Nice and pointy and not to much bend/flex. One tip on picking, make sure you barely dip the pick point past the strings. Don't pick too deep. Especially for what we are doing, I'm trying to train your picking hand to use fairly shallow picking and just use the very tip of the pick and not let the tip go far beyond the string. E.G. The space between the string and the guitar is the gap that the pick should just barely enter. The more deep one does pick, it slows the time to recover for the next pick strike.
Right hand position is very important. We need to work on getting you a good habit of resting your right hand on the bridge. Even if you are not muting, hold the hand right above the bridge so that you just need to drop the hand down just a bit to get a solid mute. Picking over top of the neck pickup isomething to be done just for getting a specific tone. It's not where you want to keep your hand for practice. Once you develop a better habit on this, everything will get a bit easier. Try it on the next Mission! Sarge
GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Progress!!! You are getting it soldier. Let's Debrief.
MEDALS OF HONOR
*TRAVERSE: String Traverse is a tricky thing. It's easy to stumble on it. You start out playing really well. It's only near the end that it starts to get a little wonky. It's not enough to prevent you moving on. It's worth mentioning though as you may be pushing your Mission vids just a pinch beyond your actual ability. You need to push in order to progress. If you see a run getting sketchy, you may need to slow down just a pinch temporarily. *PACE: You have solid pace the entire way. Not rushing or lagging. [/size] [size=2]*ARTICULATION: You are not picking from the elbow which is great. It's easy to stiffen the entire arm and elbow pick which is a bad habbit and hard to break. You are articulating the pick very well. I would suggest trying to reduce the overall range of pick motion just to keep things as minimal as possible which reduces the amount of time required to make the next pick strike. TIP TO TRY : I'd like to introduce you to "Thumbless" technique. Just pull your left thumb off of the neck when playing the next drill. It takes some getting used to. It prevents you from using too much pressure and wearing out your hand. When you fret hand gets tired, it starts to miss notes. It's only natural. Going thumbless will extend your endurance and teach your hand to use the finger tips. Give it a try! This one is sorted. you just...... LEVELED UP!!!
MISSION 6 PREVIEW
Thanks for the preview on 6! You have the lick going well. I do notice that it seems to get unstable toward the end. You may be playing it just a pinch beyond your ability. The way to fix that is with repetition and thus increase your ability, by slowing down the metronome to the point where you can play it clean, then building up speed a few BPM at a time. Make sure your picking hand is synched up with what your fretting hand is doing and it should work just fine! I think you are very close!! Todd
QUOTE (Potsau @ Jan 28 2020, 06:07 AM)
There I go
Why is it reversed?
Here is Mission 5 at 126bpm
I tried no6
My 1st target is that I can Play the neclassical etude no1 by Marcus.
I know he wrote that it is an easy piece but there is a lot Right Hand technique. I dont think it is an 5. I would say its a 7. Do you confirm?
GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Well Fought Soldier!! Nicely done. Let's Debrief! MEDALS OF HONOR
ALT PICKING: Your doing great on your Alternate Picking here. This is a pure alt picking drill which is a foundational skill. Being able to alt pick and keep hand synch is critical for moving forward. Nice! MUTE: Very solid work on the palm mute. Also critical. It's very easy to let the mute go soft and end up with string noise. Good job on keeping a steady mute! Being able to mute while doing tricky picking work is also a foundational skill that we will use quite a bit. SYNCH: Right/Left hand synch is the core of this drill. If your synch is off, the entire thing will fall apart. This drill is great at revealing any drift in hand synch as there is no space in between to allow for any mistakes. One missed strike sticks out. You have made great progress even since your preview vid! Congrats! I also noticed your thumbless technique and must say well done. It's a great way to play, especially when learning a new lick. When learning new things and trying to play them briskly, the body automatically tries to tense up. A good way to combat this is to pull the left thumb off the neck which prevents the hand from being able to tense up. It resets tension on the hand so that when you place the thumb back, it serves as a guide not as a clamp. It's the natural trend of the left hand to clamp down that ruins endurance. Being able to play with a relaxed hand is the key to being able to play with precision and speed and endurance. Well done!
You've got this one sorted Soldier. Your improving quite quickly! Onward! You just.. LEVELED UP!!
Sarge
QUOTE (Potsau @ Jan 29 2020, 05:24 AM)
Great.
Now I started with 8th at 208
Thumbless. Trying to reduce Right Hand moving.
Next approx at 144 16th
All thumbless
last at 152 16th
Also I reduced the Speed to where i am. To recover more safety
GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Form here is top notch! If this were on Electric I'd be grading it right now! Speed is good and precision is spot on. Not missing any notes, notes losing synch. Also looks like you could keep this up for days! Nice! Sarge
GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Well fought!MEDALS OF HONOR ALTERNATE PICKING MADNESS - Alternate Picking is the core of these drills. It's a foundational skill. You really can't move ahead without it. Yours is coming along nicely!! One quick tip. At the risk of wrecking a perfectly good guitar pick, get a very sharp knife (don't cut yourself of course) and shape the tip of a single guitar pick to a very fine tip. Then play this drill just for kicks. Compare it to your regular pick. I've found the sharper the better. TRAVERSE IN STYLE - In addition to Alternate picking, this requires nearly non stop string traverse. Miss it one time and the lick falls apart. That's a big part of shredding. Being able to play at high speed with consistency and across strings without losing pace. Shredding a single string lick is sometimes easier, except for Mission 6 of course which is built to be hard. Good traverse skills!
SILENT AS DEATH - Palm muting is always critical. You are doing a good job keeping noise at bay!! I notice you are muting the high strings with your fretting hand and low strings with your pickig hand. Your picking hand is angled up and not flat on the bridge. This is fine until we get in to licks that require you to take your left hand off of the guitar. In those licks you'll start hearing noise. Try to spend a bit of time each day planting your picking hand palm on the bridge and not lifting while picking. Playing over the middle of the guitar is a hard habit to break, but it's possible. In the end, if you can't break it, you can still be a great player. Look at marty friedman. Worst right hand technique i've ever seen and he's a MONSTER player. Still, it's something that will make everything to come much easier.That said, you just...
LEVELED UP!!!! *SPEED UP REVIEW
You did quite well on the speed up!! I did notice your thumb position shifting as you played in a single position indicating a bit of pressure on the thumb. The thumb is just a guide for the hand but it wants to become a clamp when things speed up. It's a natural reaction that you can train your hand to stop doing over time. If you look at the hands of very fast players it looks like they are barely using any effort at all. They have trained their fingers to use the minimum force needed and thus the tension doesn't slow them down and they have endurance for days. This is where the thumbless technique comes back in. When pushing the speed, try to pull that thumb clear off the neck of the guitar, you may have to pull the guitar in to your body with your right arm. When your hand is planted on the bridge, it can help pull the guitar in and keep it stable since the thumb is not there to help. So thumbless helps in several ways.
Sarge
QUOTE (Potsau @ Jan 31 2020, 10:34 AM)
With my classical I did it with 133.
This one is at 120
Next one is at 126. I feel more safety at this Speed but some Tension. I want this for briefing.
but there is a lot Right Hand technique. I dont think it is an 5. 
.
