Skizik's Thread, for Gab's Army Options

[Skizik]

Hey mate =)

Sorry its been so long since I posted I'm definitely due to give you an update - first off don't worry I have been practicing... A LOT =)

Here is an update of how and what I have been practicing and some questions for you...please take your time answering there is no rush I have plenty to continue working on until I hear from you.

For the level 1 acoustic songs I have been focusing on Lanigan's ball, House of the Rising Sun and Drunken Sailor. I've been practicing both the leads and the rhythms with a metronome and with the backing tracks and I'm almost 100% on these now...its just the rhythms that I am trying to perfect before I post the RECs...I could probably post them all now and expect a 7 or 8 but I want to give it a few more days or a week and get them up to 8-10s. I have also been practicing malaguena (the level 2) and all of the major scale progressions with metronome and with backing tracks as well as that minuet piece that I first posted for you...I never played that with a metronome before and now I do every time and it has made me A LOT better at that song.

Here are my questions for these:

Lanigan's ball and house of the rising sun - How important is it that my picking hand does the up-pick and down pick exactly like the instructor? I basically do with lanigan's ball except in like 1 or 2 spots....house of the rising sun he ONLY uses down picks....I notice that I use both up and down but I can easily do it using only down picks if this is really important.

With the Major Scale Chord progressions I usually practice every one each day....do you think it would be a better idea to choose 1 key signature per day and only practice that one multiple times? I was thinking that this might help with my ear training and being able to hear the sound of the chords in my mind's eye better this way.

I have been singing A LOT and I have gotten surprisingly good....so good in fact that I think I may do lead vocals for my band while I continue to get better at guitar. I have noticed that I sometimes have trouble keeping the beat with my hands or feet especially in spots where the music stops and its just vocals....because of this I have been tapping the beat EVERY time I hear a song and while I sing and play guitar...I have gotten much better at stomping the beat while playing and this is helping both my singing and my guitar A LOT. I now automatically start tapping the beat every single time I hear a song lol. I am going to look for more rhythm exercises and try to find more songs that use just basic chords so I can practice different rhythms.

I am going to start learning some new songs so that I don't get bored with what I am practicing...I really like some of your level 2 acoustic stuff....namely the goo goo dolls exercise and the rhythm exercise in drop D....these may be a bit tough for me at first but do you think its okay to start those or should I continue to stick with just level 1 stuff for now?

I'm going to be getting an electric guitar very soon...Within 4 weeks at the latest...I think that this will help me a lot since there are a ton more electric exercises on the site and I will have more of a variety to practice for beginner pieces.

Since I haven't been posting RECS and probably wont for another week I can upload some vids of what I have been practicing for you if you would like.

Thanks again for all your help man things are going well I cant wait until I get better....I feel like it is taking me a long time to perfect these level 1s I'm just hoping that this is normal and that soon I will begin progressing faster....

You are at GuitarMasterClass.net

Don't miss today's free lick. Plus all our lessons are packed with free content!

Don't miss today's free blues, jazz & country licks. Plus all our lessons are packed with free content!

[Gabriel Leopardi]

Hi mate! Great to hear from you!! Here we go!

Lanigan's ball and house of the rising sun - How important is it that my picking hand does the up-pick and down pick exactly like the instructor? I basically do with lanigan's ball except in like 1 or 2 spots....house of the rising sun he ONLY uses down picks....I notice that I use both up and down but I can easily do it using only down picks if this is really important.

Yes, it's important to use alternate picking technique because you'll need this technique for trickier stuff. Also, the accentuation and overall feel is different when comparing down picking with alternate picking. You don't need to play it exactly like the instructor, you can use other combinations but this is a solo for alternate picking technique.

With the Major Scale Chord progressions I usually practice every one each day....do you think it would be a better idea to choose 1 key signature per day and only practice that one multiple times? I was thinking that this might help with my ear training and being able to hear the sound of the chords in my mind's eye better this way.

What do you mean but "every one"? When practising scales is really helpful to practice it over chords and backing tracks. Play it up and down but also try to create phrases and melodies.

I have been singing A LOT and I have gotten surprisingly good....so good in fact that I think I may do lead vocals for my band while I continue to get better at guitar. I have noticed that I sometimes have trouble keeping the beat with my hands or feet especially in spots where the music stops and its just vocals....because of this I have been tapping the beat EVERY time I hear a song and while I sing and play guitar...I have gotten much better at stomping the beat while playing and this is helping both my singing and my guitar A LOT. I now automatically start tapping the beat every single time I hear a song lol. I am going to look for more rhythm exercises and try to find more songs that use just basic chords so I can practice different rhythms.

Great to hear this! It so valuable for a guitarist to be able to sing. And you'll avoid lots of headaches that can come by working with singers!! hahaha keep going!

I am going to start learning some new songs so that I don't get bored with what I am practicing...I really like some of your level 2 acoustic stuff....namely the goo goo dolls exercise and the rhythm exercise in drop D....these may be a bit tough for me at first but do you think its okay to start those or should I continue to stick with just level 1 stuff for now?

It's ok to work on those level 2 lessons. I have lots of these. Level 3 can be a bigger jump but there are many level 2 lessons that are good second steps for beginners.

I'm going to be getting an electric guitar very soon...Within 4 weeks at the latest...I think that this will help me a lot since there are a ton more electric exercises on the site and I will have more of a variety to practice for beginner pieces.

That's great! It sure will! By the way, this previous work on acoustic is very helpful. Then, we will focus on other elements.

Since I haven't been posting RECS and probably wont for another week I can upload some vids of what I have been practicing for you if you would like.

Sure! You can upload videos here every time you'd like to receive my feedback or at least my check on your progress.

Thanks again for all your help man things are going well I cant wait until I get better....I feel like it is taking me a long time to perfect these level 1s I'm just hoping that this is normal and that soon I will begin progressing faster....

I'm really happy to know that you are focused. Your hard work and focus inspires me. Keep going!

You are at GuitarMasterClass.net

Don't miss today's free lick. Plus all our lessons are packed with free content!

Don't miss today's free blues, jazz & country licks. Plus all our lessons are packed with free content!