Instructor Tips Of The Day
Some food for thought!
Valuable pieces of wisdom gathered from the Instructor's Corner are collected & updated in this section. Take a look, and if you find something inpiring, jump inside and follow the thread link to see what our instructors had to say about it in our forum!. Sometimes, some good advice in time is better than a hundred hours of practice :)
Tip Of The Day #1, David Walliman
A note in itself doesn't mean anything unless it is played in reference to another one ...
Tip Of The Day #2, Ivan Milenkovic
Stay focused when practicing ...
During a live show focus on what you are playing rather on all the people around you. If you make a mistake just make a short pause in playing when that happens (on bass) and focus on the next note you need to play..Don't "look" behind.
Whenever possible, practice in front of a mirror. It may help you to have good posture and easily spot any tension you may have, but are unaware of while concentrated on practicing.
Tip Of The Day #5, Andrew Cockburn
Spend some time thinking about how you hold your pick ...
Tip Of The Day #6, Jerry Arcidiacono
Don't learn only from videos and tabs. Try to find chord progressions and simple melodies with your ear as well.
Tip Of The Day #7, Muris Varajic
Theory is just a way to explain what is it that you're playing
Don't look at it as a "book of rules"
Tip Of The Day #8, Marcus Siepen
"If the volume in your rehearsal room is very high, wear ear plugs, it might not be very "rock'n'roll", but it protects your hearing."
"Always start practicing new techniques as slow as you can. If it doesn't sound good slow, it won't sound good fast either."
Tip Of The Day #10, Nemanja Filipovic
"Always sleep the night before you have to sing..it is so important that you rest your voice that way..."
Tip Of The Day #11, Jerry Arcidiacono
"When you're playing with other musicians - also keyboard players - be sure that all of you are using the same tuning reference. The A note at 440Hz is not the only choice."
Tip Of The Day #12, Daniel Robinson
"Attitude attitude, attitude. This can get you thru the most extreme difficulties in your playing. If there is a particularly difficult section of a song that is at the extreme edge of your ability, don't think to hard about it. I have found more times then not i can cover up any small mistakes i might make just by playing with attitude, rather then trying very hard to cover up my imperfection. Trust me, if you have attitude the audience probably won't even notice."
Tip Of The Day #13, Danilo Capezzuto
"It is good to put some foam between the amp head and the cabinet, because the vibrations can damage your amplifier."
Tip Of The Day #14, Harris Sopovic
" When you come to a point where you feel that you've lost all inspiration and aren't improving your guitar playing, Take a break for a few days and do something completely different. That way you will give your skills and inspiration some time to grow. And next time you pick your guitar up, things will feel much better !"
Tip Of The Day #15, Henry Dietzel
"Do not keep pressure on the guitar neck. "
Tip Of The Day #16, David Wallimann
"When creating a lead guitar part, put the instrument down and sing the kind of lead you want to hear."
Tip Of The Day #17, Ivan Milenkovic
"Work on chords as much as you work on solo passages."
Tip Of The Day #18, Muris Varajic
"Nylon strings need more time for tuning compared with steel strings, have that on mind when changing strings before gig or recording session. "
Tip Of The Day #19, Bogdan Radovic
"Bass line should evolve through the song.If you have a song that have repeated parts like chorus etc you could make them interesting by changing the line slightly there."
Tip Of The Day #20, Marcus Siepen
"Never (NEVER!!!) put drinks on your amplifier, many good amps died like that."
Tip Of The Day #21, Pablo Vazquez
"Always be honest with yourself when you are practicing!"
Tip Of The Day #22, Trond Vold
"Treat your guitars like friends. Be careful of exposing them to high temperature changes and humidity. This goes especially for acoustic guitars."
Tip Of The Day #23, Muris Varajic
"Lacking of inspiration is perfectly normal thing for every musician, do not push it if it doesn't work, take a break,even longer one, day or two."
Tip Of The Day #24, Daniel Robinson
"When gigging remember to have fun, even though it is your job, the people coming to see you are not there to judge you, they are there to have fun. So have fun with them."
Tip Of The Day #25, Ivan Milenkovic
"Carry two new spare sets of strings, if you can , in your guitar case all the time. "
Tip Of The Day #26, Andrew Cockburn
"Practice sitting AND standing"
Tip Of The Day #27, David Wallimann
"Always bring some spare picks to give to the fans when gigging out..."
Tip Of The Day #28, Marcus Siepen
"It is better to impress your audience with a simple lick that is well played instead of a very tricky one that you can hardly play, so be aware of what you can play and practice the rest at home, not on stage ;-)"
Tip Of The Day #29, Bogdan Radovic
"Know your equipment and when you are playing a gig with unfamiliar equipment be prepared and bring your own if you can (amp, mics etc)..People in audience will judge the band based on what they hear , they don't know if the bad-on-stage-equipment is to blame.."
Tip Of The Day #30, Pedja Simovic
"Learn at least couple (3, 5 or more) licks for major, minor and dominant chords. All you need to do is move them up and down and you have them in 12 keys now. This will help you when improvising and it will create signature licks for your own style of playing"
Tip Of The Day #31, Muris Varajic
"Try to match your gear with your playing/style."
Tip Of The Day #32, Daniel Robinson
"When composing songs, try to think about all the possibilities around you for sounds and effects. Between myself and my band mates we have so many toys, instruments and gadgets to choose from we can come up with very unique things. Some of the most interesting sounds in songs from the past were made with the mundane objects around you in creative ways. For example, the clanking metal sounds in Metal Gods by Judas Priest was made by a tray of forks and spoons being shook. And multi tracked like 15 or 20 times to get that sound. Or another great example, is Billy Squiers tune "The Stroke" that bass drum is not a bass drum at all, its a huge cardboard box being beat with a screwdriver with lots of plate reverb on it. Just be creative."
Tip Of The Day #33, Ivan Milenkovic
"During practicing fast patterns it is good to take mini breaks (<30seconds) at higher tempos and play a few chords between changing the tempos. It will make fingers rest a bit and help push the limit further with more precision."
Tip Of The Day #34, Marcus Siepen
"If you use a wireless system, always have a cable with you as a backup. "
Tip Of The Day #35, Nemanja Filipovic
"Always burn your old projects on a disk.Never throw away anything creative,sometimes when you look back - things can sound better than they sounded in the past."
Tip Of The Day #36, Muris Varajic
"Nylon strings need more time for tuning compared with steel strings, have that on mind when changing strings before gig or recording session."
Tip Of The Day #37, David Wallimann
"Expand your vocabulary by listening to another instrument in a different musical style and try to reproduce it on the guitar. "
Tip Of The Day #38, Andrew Cockburn
"Less is more ... don't try and fix a song with complex additions if the basics aren't right"
Tip Of The Day #39, Marcus Siepen
"Alcohol doesn't make you play better, it only takes away the ability to realize about your own mistakes."
Tip Of The Day #40, Bogdan Radovic
"When learning songs , learn them from beginning to the end! Practice being patient , try not to loose interest when you are half way through the song (or anything else).Be persistent and try to finish things to the end."
Tip Of The Day #41, Andrew Cockburn
"When restringing a Floyd Rose, use an eraser or wood block to fix the bridge."
Tip Of The Day #42, Ivan Milenkovic
"Always take some time to carefully read the manuals of any software you buy. No matter how easy it is to use it, there is always something that can help you get to know the software better and avoid troubles in the future."
Tip Of The Day #43, David Wallimann
"Always bring some spare picks to give to the fans when gigging out..."
Tip Of The Day #44, Marcus Siepen
"We'll fix it in the mix" is the biggest lie in Rock'n'Roll, if you record an instrument with a bad sound it will still sound bad in the mix, so make sure you do a proper soundcheck.
Tip Of The Day #45, Jerry Arcidiacono
"Drop D tuning means that you tune your E low string down to the D note."
Tip Of The Day #46, Ivan Milenkovic
"If it hurts - stop practicing."
Tip Of The Day #47, Bogdan Radovic
"Remember to have "rest" days in your practice schedule. Make it once or two times a week when you won't play guitar at all, rather mentally study theory etc. That rest will prove as beneficial as actual practice, you need to allow your brain to rest and grasp all the new stuff you learned."
Tip Of The Day #48, Andrew Cockburn
"The thicker the string the better the tone, the harder the bend"
Tip Of The Day #49, Pedja Simovic
"Learn at least couple (3, 5 or more) licks for major, minor and dominant chords. All you need to do is move them up and down and you have them in 12 keys now. This will help you when improvising and it will create signature licks for your own style of playing"
Tip Of The Day #50, Andrew Cockburn
"If you can't get a gig - make one yourself! Rent a hall, invite all your friends and charge them enough to cover expenses. That way you get a sympathetic audience, real gig experience and something to build on for the future."
Tip Of The Day #51, Ivan Milenkovic
"In studio focus on the goal of the job, try to figure out exactly what needs to be done and do it effectively. Studio time is precious."
