GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
I have created a new Mute Drill just for my BOOTCAMP SOLDIERS! This one is not for a badge. This is just to help you work on your mute. It's a very simple drill. Just palm mute the bridge, and take your fret hand OFF of the guitar entirely. This will force your palm mute to do all the mute work and show you if there are gaps in your mute. So try it as in the vid, just strike each string a few times, and move on to the next string. Make sure that you don't hear any other string other than the one you are striking. That's the point of this drill. To make sure that you can isolate all of the other strings with your palm mute.
if you notice that you hear other strings ringing, even when you are not striking them, adjust your palm mute angle/position until you find that sweet spot where your palm should be resting. This is the secret sauce folks. Once you sort this out, you won't have to worry about string noise getting in your way, even on our crazy open string licks that span several or all of the strings. It's a quick and simple drill that can really help you isolate any issues with your mute. give it a whirl!!
I have created a new Mute Drill just for my BOOTCAMP SOLDIERS! This one is not for a badge. This is just to help you work on your mute. It's a very simple drill. Just palm mute the bridge, and take your fret hand OFF of the guitar entirely. This will force your palm mute to do all the mute work and show you if there are gaps in your mute. So try it as in the vid, just strike each string a few times, and move on to the next string. Make sure that you don't hear any other string other than the one you are striking. That's the point of this drill. To make sure that you can isolate all of the other strings with your palm mute.
if you notice that you hear other strings ringing, even when you are not striking them, adjust your palm mute angle/position until you find that sweet spot where your palm should be resting. This is the secret sauce folks. Once you sort this out, you won't have to worry about string noise getting in your way, even on our crazy open string licks that span several or all of the strings. It's a quick and simple drill that can really help you isolate any issues with your mute. give it a whirl!!
Thank you verry much for this Todd..I think you spend a lot of time with your students..I am proud to be one of them
GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Im proud to have you Soldier!! I've been at this here at GMC for more than a decade and I love being here. I love teaching guitar and seeing folks make progress is the best part. You've been making great gains!! Keep it up
Sarge
QUOTE (azureus @ Apr 26 2021, 03:25 AM)
Thank you verry much for this Todd..I think you spend a lot of time with your students..I am proud to be one of them
Im proud to have you Soldier!! I've been at this here at GMC for more than a decade and I love being here. I love teaching guitar and seeing folks make progress is the best part. You've been making great gains!! Keep it up
Sarge
Hay Todd .. I am back .. I am doing better with the loss .. of my dog ..... this is nr 13 .. this is the hardest speed for me! .. faster I do better! .. is that normal? ... greetings
GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Well Fought!! This is a very tricky lick and it's one that we will re visit in various forms as you journey through bootcamp. It's one of my fave licks of all time. I use it in Solos and in warm ups, as a teaching lick, etc. It's a great way to work on precision/muting/picking/hand sync/etc. Also, once you put multi picking in, it really works both hands quite well.
Great job on doing each version of the multi picking!! It's a great way to work on hand synch and precision. It's a LOT of work for the hands. Doing any of this is a great warmup and goes well in every day practice as well. The better you can play this lick, the better you will be able to play just about everything else.
I use this Mission to diagnose any issues that might be going on in the hands. You've made some great progress and I can see some bits that we will work on as we move forward. You are doing great sitting in Classical position and your hand positioning is much improved from just the start of bootcamp. Also, your hand synch is much improved as is your mute! I do notice that you are still using a bit more picking power than you need which can burn out the hand when shredding. It's just something to work on as we go ahead. Also, your hand is still moving up and down as you traverse strings which is also natural and something we can work on. There are plenty of missions to isolate any bits that are getting in your way.
You've done well on this Soldier! Congrats on you MULTI PICKING!!
You just..
LEVELED UP!!!
Onward! Sarge
QUOTE (azureus @ Apr 28 2021, 09:33 AM)
Hay Todd .. I am back .. I am doing better with the loss .. of my dog ..... this is nr 13 .. this is the hardest speed for me! .. faster I do better! .. is that normal? ... greetings
Well Fought!! This is a very tricky lick and it's one that we will re visit in various forms as you journey through bootcamp. It's one of my fave licks of all time. I use it in Solos and in warm ups, as a teaching lick, etc. It's a great way to work on precision/muting/picking/hand sync/etc. Also, once you put multi picking in, it really works both hands quite well.
Great job on doing each version of the multi picking!! It's a great way to work on hand synch and precision. It's a LOT of work for the hands. Doing any of this is a great warmup and goes well in every day practice as well. The better you can play this lick, the better you will be able to play just about everything else.
I use this Mission to diagnose any issues that might be going on in the hands. You've made some great progress and I can see some bits that we will work on as we move forward. You are doing great sitting in Classical position and your hand positioning is much improved from just the start of bootcamp. Also, your hand synch is much improved as is your mute! I do notice that you are still using a bit more picking power than you need which can burn out the hand when shredding. It's just something to work on as we go ahead. Also, your hand is still moving up and down as you traverse strings which is also natural and something we can work on. There are plenty of missions to isolate any bits that are getting in your way.
You've done well on this Soldier! Congrats on you MULTI PICKING!!
GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
This is a very cool lick you are playing here Soldier!! It's just not the lick as it's written, but I think it's a very cood modification! it is along the same line and a very creative way to play this. You are using double strikes on the fretted and on the open notes from what I can hear. This is a great way to practice picking!!! In the MISSION 14 lick, I'm trying to get you to play the fretted notes only once each and the open string twice. This makes the lick a bit more tricky to play because you have to do two pick strikes for the open string and then a single pick strike for each fretted note. To make it even more trick, the first open note is just a single strike, then the pattern begins. Take a look at the tablature one more time.
I really dig what you are playing here and I think you will have no trouble with MISSION 14 lick as written. Give it one more go!!
This is a very cool lick you are playing here Soldier!! It's just not the lick as it's written, but I think it's a very cood modification! it is along the same line and a very creative way to play this. You are using double strikes on the fretted and on the open notes from what I can hear. This is a great way to practice picking!!! In the MISSION 14 lick, I'm trying to get you to play the fretted notes only once each and the open string twice. This makes the lick a bit more tricky to play because you have to do two pick strikes for the open string and then a single pick strike for each fretted note. To make it even more trick, the first open note is just a single strike, then the pattern begins. Take a look at the tablature one more time.
I really dig what you are playing here and I think you will have no trouble with MISSION 14 lick as written. Give it one more go!!
Sarge
Hay Todd ... so sorry for the mistakes !! .. maybe it will come .. by getting older ha ha .. I hope it is good now ... it is also a new guitar .. the cheapest Harley Benton!
GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Super Congrats on your new axe! Well Fought Soldier!! This is exactly what I'm looking for. Getting this picking pattern down can be tricky and you have adapted quite well to it. Also, your mute is solid!! I don't hear any string noise or unwanted notes. This is yet another lick that makes a great warm up and that is a great way to work on your straight line speed. spending some time with this lick and a metronome and bumping up the speed just a bit as you go is a really good way to make solid gains on your overall speed. You can push the speed farther than you can actually play to see what it's going to feel like once your hands catch up to it. it's always a good plan to try to come at it from above (playing faster than you can) and below (playing slower than you can and focusing on precision). I suggest this approach for just about every drill.
You clearly have this in hand Soldier.
FOR NEXT TIME: It still looks like your picking hand is putting a bit too much effort in to your picking which is something that I think we can fix that will allow you to play longer, faster, cleaner, etc. it's a tricky thing to work on just the picking hand. I would say spend some time just picking a single open string and take your left hand off the neck and point your eyes at your pick hand. Look closely at your technique and try to focus on using as little pick pressure as humanly possible. Find the point where you are barely touching the string at all. Probably lighter than you need to make a real strike. Once you find that, play with a metronome and work on just picking up/down stroke on that string locked in to a click. speed it up to find your new pick hand speed. This will be different than your combined hand speed when you are fretting notes.
For now you just..
LEVELED UP!!
Onward! Sarge
QUOTE (azureus @ Apr 30 2021, 08:27 AM)
Hay Todd ... so sorry for the mistakes !! .. maybe it will come .. by getting older ha ha .. I hope it is good now ... it is also a new guitar .. the cheapest Harley Benton!
Super Congrats on your new axe! Well Fought Soldier!! This is exactly what I'm looking for. Getting this picking pattern down can be tricky and you have adapted quite well to it. Also, your mute is solid!! I don't hear any string noise or unwanted notes. This is yet another lick that makes a great warm up and that is a great way to work on your straight line speed. spending some time with this lick and a metronome and bumping up the speed just a bit as you go is a really good way to make solid gains on your overall speed. You can push the speed farther than you can actually play to see what it's going to feel like once your hands catch up to it. it's always a good plan to try to come at it from above (playing faster than you can) and below (playing slower than you can and focusing on precision). I suggest this approach for just about every drill.
You clearly have this in hand Soldier.
FOR NEXT TIME: It still looks like your picking hand is putting a bit too much effort in to your picking which is something that I think we can fix that will allow you to play longer, faster, cleaner, etc. it's a tricky thing to work on just the picking hand. I would say spend some time just picking a single open string and take your left hand off the neck and point your eyes at your pick hand. Look closely at your technique and try to focus on using as little pick pressure as humanly possible. Find the point where you are barely touching the string at all. Probably lighter than you need to make a real strike. Once you find that, play with a metronome and work on just picking up/down stroke on that string locked in to a click. speed it up to find your new pick hand speed. This will be different than your combined hand speed when you are fretting notes.
For now you just..
LEVELED UP!!
Onward! Sarge
Hay Todd ...thank you for the explenation ...here is nr 15
QUOTE (azureus @ May 1 2021, 03:58 PM)
Hay Todd ...thank you for the explenation ...here is nr 15
GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Well fought Soldier! You are making good progress on these Missions. Each one helps to isolate a certain bit of playing. Some will focus on several things at once. You've got solid muting (a bit of a hand angle shift to make the back of the hand vertical on the bridge would help but we will work on that as we go.) Also you have good clean pick strikes and good hand synch.
This mission is about ECONOMIC PICKING, the DOUBLE DOWN STROKE. It's those two downstrokes in a row that leads of the drill. You play two down strokes which is great! however, I would like them to be played like a sweep where you drag the pick over both strings instead of playing as two separate notes. This type of lick is meant to prepare your hand for sweep picking. The good news is you have done more than enough to badge up and there are plenty of Missions upcoming where we can work on doing a "pick rake" dragging the pick across the strings in one motion.
For now you just..
LEVELED UP!!!
Onward! Sarge
QUOTE (azureus @ May 1 2021, 10:59 AM)
Hay Todd ...thank you for the explenation ...here is nr 15
Well played Soldier! This is a tricky pattern and very tricky to play even at a medium speed. You play it clealy and with precision which is what I like to see. Nice! You've got good form here overall but I think we can improve it just a bit.
In looking at your palm mute, it's improved! I think it could be just a bit better. I want you to try to straighten your hand out a bit and see if you can line up your palm with the bridge. Here are some pictures and a video to illustrate.
Your palm is curving off of the bridge a bit which leaves the fretting hand to sort out some of the muting. This is fine as long as we are not using an open string lick. At which point, we end up with string noise since the left hand isn't there to help.
This is a bit exaggerated but what I want you do try to avoid.
Here are a couple of picks to illustrate what I"m looking for. Of course, this is just a general suggestion. If you can create this as a habit it will help in general terms no matter what you are playing.
Id like you to try to do this one again and try to DOUBLE PICK (pick each note twice) This means the fret hand can keep the same speed and the pick hand has to work about twice as hard. Also, try to shift your mute just a bit per this vid and the pictures of possible.
Well fought Soldier! You are making good progress on these Missions. Each one helps to isolate a certain bit of playing. Some will focus on several things at once. You've got solid muting (a bit of a hand angle shift to make the back of the hand vertical on the bridge would help but we will work on that as we go.) Also you have good clean pick strikes and good hand synch.
This mission is about ECONOMIC PICKING, the DOUBLE DOWN STROKE. It's those two downstrokes in a row that leads of the drill. You play two down strokes which is great! however, I would like them to be played like a sweep where you drag the pick over both strings instead of playing as two separate notes. This type of lick is meant to prepare your hand for sweep picking. The good news is you have done more than enough to badge up and there are plenty of Missions upcoming where we can work on doing a "pick rake" dragging the pick across the strings in one motion.
For now you just..
LEVELED UP!!!
Onward! Sarge
Well played Soldier! This is a tricky pattern and very tricky to play even at a medium speed. You play it clealy and with precision which is what I like to see. Nice! You've got good form here overall but I think we can improve it just a bit.
In looking at your palm mute, it's improved! I think it could be just a bit better. I want you to try to straighten your hand out a bit and see if you can line up your palm with the bridge. Here are some pictures and a video to illustrate.
Your palm is curving off of the bridge a bit which leaves the fretting hand to sort out some of the muting. This is fine as long as we are not using an open string lick. At which point, we end up with string noise since the left hand isn't there to help.
This is a bit exaggerated but what I want you do try to avoid.
Here are a couple of picks to illustrate what I"m looking for. Of course, this is just a general suggestion. If you can create this as a habit it will help in general terms no matter what you are playing.
Id like you to try to do this one again and try to DOUBLE PICK (pick each note twice) This means the fret hand can keep the same speed and the pick hand has to work about twice as hard. Also, try to shift your mute just a bit per this vid and the pictures of possible.
Hay Todd.. first my 16 ..mission was not good? .. thank you for the detailed information about the muting! .. but now a question .. I've been trying to copy Ohmura's hand for a long time .. what I think is 1 of the Best ! he is my favorite player .. is it wrong of me? .. of course I am not doing well yet ... your hand stance comes very close ... but I have been practicing that slanting for so long! .. if I do it now has to change again .. I am a bit dreadful ... what is your opinion?
Hay Todd.. first my 16 ..mission was not good? .. thank you for the detailed information about the muting! .. but now a question .. I've been trying to copy Ohmura's hand for a long time .. what I think is 1 of the Best ! he is my favorite player .. is it wrong of me? .. of course I am not doing well yet ... your hand stance comes very close ... but I have been practicing that slanting for so long! .. if I do it now has to change again .. I am a bit dreadful ... what is your opinion?
Hay Todd ... is this what you mean by the picking hand position?
GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
YES! This is the technique that I'm trying to share with you It's a traditional "shred" picking technique. Many shredders prefer it since it doesn't burn out the arm. It reduces the amount of energy needed to shred. It's about using as little motion and as little energy as humanly possible. Also, notice how very little his pick hand is moving? It almost looks like its just barely twitching and he's starting the pick motion with his fingers and using part of his hand. That's what I'm trying to share with you I'm sure you will get there.
One thing about Ohmura, I would suggest that he choke up on his pick a bit. I suggest using only the very tip of the pick. Any more and you reduce precision. So when you are picking, the very tip is all that should stick out and address the string.
As for 16, it was good!!! I just wanted to see if you could modify your picking/muting as you did in that demo video and then double pick it!
1.)Pick light as you can for now 2.)Slant your pick. it should stick out at a right angle from your thumb and angle forward slightly. Since you are only using the very tip, you can let your hand rest in forward position and it should work well. He is giving a great demo in that video. 3.)Focus on just picking. Forget the fretting hand for a bit each time you practice, just look at your picking hand and try to emulate that video. Here is a video of me doing something similar. I'm not using any distortion.
BTW: I shared your video of demo picking in a thread where we are talking about technique. I hope this is OK with you Your technique is SPOT ON!
QUOTE (azureus @ May 3 2021, 09:39 AM)
Hay Todd.. first my 16 ..mission was not good? .. thank you for the detailed information about the muting! .. but now a question .. I've been trying to copy Ohmura's hand for a long time .. what I think is 1 of the Best ! he is my favorite player .. is it wrong of me? .. of course I am not doing well yet ... your hand stance comes very close ... but I have been practicing that slanting for so long! .. if I do it now has to change again .. I am a bit dreadful ... what is your opinion?
YES! This is the technique that I'm trying to share with you It's a traditional "shred" picking technique. Many shredders prefer it since it doesn't burn out the arm. It reduces the amount of energy needed to shred. It's about using as little motion and as little energy as humanly possible. Also, notice how very little his pick hand is moving? It almost looks like its just barely twitching and he's starting the pick motion with his fingers and using part of his hand. That's what I'm trying to share with you I'm sure you will get there.
One thing about Ohmura, I would suggest that he choke up on his pick a bit. I suggest using only the very tip of the pick. Any more and you reduce precision. So when you are picking, the very tip is all that should stick out and address the string.
As for 16, it was good!!! I just wanted to see if you could modify your picking/muting as you did in that demo video and then double pick it!
1.)Pick light as you can for now 2.)Slant your pick. it should stick out at a right angle from your thumb and angle forward slightly. Since you are only using the very tip, you can let your hand rest in forward position and it should work well. He is giving a great demo in that video. 3.)Focus on just picking. Forget the fretting hand for a bit each time you practice, just look at your picking hand and try to emulate that video. Here is a video of me doing something similar. I'm not using any distortion.
BTW: I shared your video of demo picking in a thread where we are talking about technique. I hope this is OK with you Your technique is SPOT ON!
GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
NICE!! Your palm mute is spot on Soldier. This is the technique as it is meant to played. Well done!!! your hand is centered and your using only half of the hand to pick and the back half of the hand to mute. So there are no gaps at all in your mute. This technique is very very very hard to adopt for many. You've adapted quite well to so congrats!!
Your double picking is very good hear. At the pace you were playing it the first time, it seemed perfect for a double picking approach. your strikes are clean and your hand position is very good. I can see a slight adjustment in your picking as well. Your not bending at the wrist nearly as much as previously which is a good thing imho. You still may be digging in past the string just a bit but we will work on that as we move ahead. I did notice your pickup switch looks like it's on the neck pickup but it's not a huge deal.
NICE!! Your palm mute is spot on Soldier. This is the technique as it is meant to played. Well done!!! your hand is centered and your using only half of the hand to pick and the back half of the hand to mute. So there are no gaps at all in your mute. This technique is very very very hard to adopt for many. You've adapted quite well to so congrats!!
Your double picking is very good hear. At the pace you were playing it the first time, it seemed perfect for a double picking approach. your strikes are clean and your hand position is very good. I can see a slight adjustment in your picking as well. Your not bending at the wrist nearly as much as previously which is a good thing imho. You still may be digging in past the string just a bit but we will work on that as we move ahead. I did notice your pickup switch looks like it's on the neck pickup but it's not a huge deal.
You got this one Soldier! You just..
LEVELED UP!!
Onward! Sarge
Hay Todd .. this is # 18 .... and sorry for the quality! it is very bad I know ... but yes ... not that important I think ......... I post here at nr 17 back because it has suddenly disappeared or am I wrong? ... greetings
GMC:er Posts: 25.297
Joined: 23-December 09
From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Well fought Soldier!! This is a great example of your progress. Your hand position is much improved and your picking is very solid. 17 looks very good. Your pick articulation has improved quite a bit. It's great that you made that progress before MISSION 18. Many Folks get stuck at 18 as it's all about just doing a solo. Some folks just can't solo. You did a great solo!! it's got a wide variety of licks, it's in time and in key. NICELY DONE!!!!
Take what you have learned here and use it on collabs and try to play with some backing tracks on youtube if you are not already doing it. It's all about being able to express yourself musically and you did a great job of it. Now that you have a good handle on your technique, it's time to take it to the next level. As you hit the next mission, see if you can use what you have learned to push the speed up just a bit while keeping control.
You've got this Soldier!!
You just..
LEVELED UP!!
Onward! Sarge
QUOTE (azureus @ May 8 2021, 03:35 PM)
Hay Todd .. this is # 18 .... and sorry for the quality! it is very bad I know ... but yes ... not that important I think ......... I post here at nr 17 back because it has suddenly disappeared or am I wrong? ... greetings
Well fought Soldier!! This is a great example of your progress. Your hand position is much improved and your picking is very solid. 17 looks very good. Your pick articulation has improved quite a bit. It's great that you made that progress before MISSION 18. Many Folks get stuck at 18 as it's all about just doing a solo. Some folks just can't solo. You did a great solo!! it's got a wide variety of licks, it's in time and in key. NICELY DONE!!!!
Take what you have learned here and use it on collabs and try to play with some backing tracks on youtube if you are not already doing it. It's all about being able to express yourself musically and you did a great job of it. Now that you have a good handle on your technique, it's time to take it to the next level. As you hit the next mission, see if you can use what you have learned to push the speed up just a bit while keeping control.
