Beginner Guide Paths Lesson Plan

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READ THIS FIRST IF THIS IS THE FIRST TIME YOU FOLLOW OUR LESSON PLANS!


Contents

Alexiaden93's BEGINNER LESSON PLAN


This is a BEGINNER GUIDE for DEVELOPING ESSENTIAL SOLOING TECHNIQUES

LESSON LEVELS: 2 - 6


Hello everybody. I have been looking at already made lesson plans and I've seen some very good ones so far. I would like to post a very thorough lesson plan for anybody who's somewhere around level 2 and wishes to get to somewhere around level 6. The lesson plan will consist of a PATH OF POPULARITY to follow, consisting of melodies incorporating several techniques and aspects of guitar playing, as well as a PATH OF ENLIGHTENMENT designed to develop one or two techniques - focusing on your weakness in other words.


Now note that you do not have to choose one path or the other. This lesson plan is designed so that you primarily follow the Path of Popularity in the order of appearance, and wherever you meet a hindrance, merely check the path of enlightenment for help.

For example, if you are practising Muris' Beginner Solo in D (level 4), but lack the bending and vibrato technique needed, check the "Bending & Vibrato" section in the Path of Enlightenment and do every lesson in the order of appearance until your technique is strong enough.

I recommend that you practise the lessons within each category following the order of appearance.



PATH OF POPULARITY


LESSONS WORTH PRACTISING


Level 2

- Making Great Leads the Easy Way - David Wallimann (level 2)

- Jumping Around - Beginner - Muris Varajic (level 2)

- Minor vs Major - Beginner - Muris Varajic (level 2)

- John Frusciante Style Lesson - Gabriel Leopardi (level 2)

- Melodic Solo in Gm - Carlos Carrillo (level 2)

- Slow Melody Lesson - David Wallimann (level 2)

- Jazz Swing Lead Lesson - Muris Varajic (level 2)


Level 3

- Rock Solo - Beginner - Trond Vold (level 3)

- Slow Soloing Lesson - Trond Vold (level 3)

- Guitar Loves Piano - Piotr Kaczor (level 3)

- Harmonic Minor for Beginners - Muris Varajic (level 3)

- Pentatonic Licks - Beginner - Muris Varajic (level 3)

- You Ready? - Collab Lesson - Marcus Lavendell (level 3)


Level 4

- Pentatonic Rock Cliches - Gabriel Leopardi (level 4)

- Creating an Atmosphere - Ivan Zecic (level 4)

- Volume Control - Phrasing - Piotr Kaczor (level 4)

- Beginner Solo in D - Muris Varajic (level 4)

- E Minor - Melodic Solo - Muris Varajic (level 4)

- Iron Maiden Style Lesson - Gabriel Leopardi (level 4)

- Combining Different Scale Positions - Ivan Zecic (level 4)

- Epic Metal Rhythm Guitar - Lian Gerbino (level 4)

- Themes from Quarterworlds of Fantasia - Emir Hot (level 4)

- Eddie Van Halen Style - Muris Varajic (level 4)

- Three Level Solo, Beginner - Marcus Lavendell (level 4)

- Neoclassical Three-Level-Lesson - Beginner - Marcus Lavendell (level 4)

- Nocturnal Visions - KMC Metal (level 4)

- O Holy Night - Adolphe Adam - Marcus Lavendell (level 4)


Level 5

- Historical Failure - The Riffs - Marcus Lavendell (level 5)

- Iron Maiden Style Lesson 2 - Gabriel Leopardi (level 5)

- Hammer On Dude - Marcus Siepen (level 5)

- Neoclassical Etude #1 - Marcus Lavendell (level 5)

- John Petrucci Melodic Solo 2 - David Wallimann (level 5)

- Slow Rock Guitar Solo - Jose Mena (level 5)

- Heavy Metal Rhythm & Solo Exercise - Hisham Al-Sanea (level 5)


Level 6

- Steve Lukather Style Lesson - Muris Varajic (level 6)

- Iron Maiden Masterclass - Gabriel Leopardi (level 6)

- Iron Maiden: The Trooper - Gabriel Leopardi (level 6)

- Neoclassical Etude #2 - Marcus Lavendell (level 6)

- Paganini Inspiration - Lian Gerbino (level 6)

- Jumping Around - Intermediate - Muris Varajic (level 6)

- Neoclassical Three-Level-Lesson, Intermediate - Marcus Lavendell (level 6)

- Three Level Solo, Intermediate - Marcus Lavendell (level 6)




PATH OF ENLIGHTENMENT


FOCUS ON TECHNIQUE & THEORY



GETTING STARTED



Know your guitar - (level 1)

- First Steps (series) - Andrew Cockburn


In these series Andrew introduces you to the guitar world. Go through all of it:you now have the opportunity to strengthen your terminology and basic knowledge to facilitate further learning.


Adjusting and setting-up your guitar - (level 1)

- Guitar Tuning (tutorial) - Ivan Milenkovic

- Restringing the Guitar (tutorial) - Ivan Milenkovic

- Changing Pickups (tutorial) - Marcus Siepen


Although this is an optional section, knowing how to fix your guitar will save you both time and money, so I strongly recommend taking a look at these two tutorials.


Software - (level 1)

- Exploring Guitar (tutorial) - Juan M. Valero

- GuitarPro 5


Use these softwares to learn scales, chords and songs, and don't forget to compose music yourself; this way you can apply your musical knowledge and adapt the song to your technical level.


Studio and recording - (level 1)

- Recording Lessons 1 & 2 (tutorial) - Kyle Logue

- GMC Video Recording (tutorial) - GMC Community


Setting up your studio can be tricky, but with some advice, recording both audio and video can become very simple. Here you can learn how to record audio (for songs) as well as video (if you want to post something on YouTube or for the REC programme).

Warming up - (levels 2-3)

- Warming up (tutorial) - Marcus Siepen (level 2)

- 3 Minutes Warmup (lesson) - Dejan Farkas (level 3)


As explained very well by Marcus, warming up is crucial, both for your performance as well as your hands' health. Warm-up strategies vary amongst musicians, so feel free to make your own warm-up routine. Here is Chris Evans' warm-up schedule:

- Warming Up Etc, How I do it (forum) - Chris Evans


Finger workouts (levels 2-5)

- Right Hand Basics (series) - Danilo Capezzuto

- Hands Synchronization (series) - Danilo Capezzuto


These two lesson series are actually set at levels 3-5, but in my opinion they should be used no matter what level you are at. If it's too difficult, slow down: the main thing to remember is that these are exercises to build up strength and coordination in both hands.


- Finger Independence (series) - Danilo Capezzuto

- Little Finger Work-out (lesson) - Dejan Farkas (level 2)

- Pinky Exercise (lesson) - Sinisa Cekic (level 4)

- Little Finger Etude (lesson) - Dejan Farkas (level 4)



TECHNIQUES



Alternate Picking

- Speedpicking/alternate picking basics (101 - tutorial) - Kristofer Dahl (level 3)

- Speedpicking/alternate picking practise patterns (101 - tutorial) - Kristofer Dahl (level 3)


Make sure that you follow both of the lessons to understand how alternate picking works. When you feel confident enough to carry on, here are a few lessons to develop your technique by application.


- Alternate Picking - Thirds (lesson) - Muris Varajic (level 4)

- Alternate Workout (lesson) - Muris Varajic (level 5)

- Picking Exercise (lesson) - Trond Vold (level 5)

- Alternate Picking - My Approach (lesson) - Jose Mena (level 8)


Although Jose's lesson is rated level 8, his spoken video (#1) is very helpful, and you can always practise the song at a lower tempo.


Economy picking

- Economy Picking (series) - Danilo Capezutto

- Economy Picking Mechanics (lesson) - David Wallimann (level 6)


These lessons may seem advanced, but again: practise at low speeds to get the general feel for the technique. Don't rush things.


Sweeping

- Sweeping Basics (tutorial) - David Wallimann (level 4)

- Sweeping Basics Lesson (tutorial) - Pavel Denisjuk (level 5)

- Triad Arpeggios Etude (lesson) - Ivan Mihaljevic (level 5)

- Sweep Picking Lesson - Muris Varajic (level 3)


Tapping

The lazy man's guide to speed.


- Tapping Lesson 1 - The Basics and Beyond (101 - tutorial) - Kristofer Dahl

- Tapping Lesson 2 - Randy Rhoads style variations (101 - tutorial) - Kristofer Dahl

- Tapping Lesson 3 - Two-Handed (101 - tutorial) - Kristofer Dahl

- Clean Tapping Etude - Lian Gerbino (level 4)

- Van Halen Tapping Style - Beginner (lesson) - Joe Kataldo (level 4)

- Power Metal Tapping (lesson) - Lian Gerbino (level 5)

- Tapping Lesson - Gabriel Leopardi (level 6)


Legato

Legato is basically playing multiple notes without picking every note, creating a flow in your playing. Legato can be sliding and bending, but most people think of hammer-ons and pull-offs.

Using legato you can play faster and smoother, but it takes time for your fingers to become strong enough. You need to practise both hammer-ons and pull-offs before adding them together to get a complete legato phrasing going on.


- Pull-offs Lesson - Muris Varajic (level 3)

- Left Hand Only Exercise (lesson) - Dejan Farkas (level 4)

- Legato Lesson - Muris Varajic (level 3)

- Little Finger Etude (lesson) - Dejan Farkas (level 4)

- Legato Exercise (lesson) - David Wallimann (level 5)

- Legato Etude (lesson) - Pavel Denisjuk (level 6)

- Legato and Picking (series) - Muris Varajic


Bending & Vibrato

Have you seen Marcus Lavendell's videos ? If you have, then you will probably know what a controlled vibrato will do to your music. Start practising this technique, as well as bending, early on, and you won't regret it.


- Vibrato (series) - Marcus Lavendell

Check out part 1 of Lesson 3 in this series to hear what the master has to say about vibrato.

- Classical Ballad Bending Techniques (lesson) - Ivan Milenkovic (level 4)

- Hard Rock Bending & Vibrato - Ivan Mihaljevic (level 5)

- Expressive Touch (lesson) - David Wallimann (level 5)


Anything can be played with vibrato. Use it as much as possible, and remember: USE YOUR WRIST AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE !

You will feel an almost tickling pain at first, but don't give up. With regular practice, the pain will become smaller and eventually go away, at the same time as your vibrato becomes more controlled and wide. Use a metronome, and stop if it becomes painful. You need time to get used to the motion.


Lesson Plan by member Alexiaden93