How to Really Increase Guitarist Productivity
Photo by bjortklingd
I get a lot of questions via Twitter about guitar goals and how to keep motivated, so I thought I’d write a post on guitarist productivity.
In the past I have done some things using discipline in order to accomplish a goal, but it never brought me what I wanted or what I expected. Later I realized why discipline didn’t work out for me.
Discipline is forcing yourself to do something you really don’t want to do in order to achieve a goal you think you do want. Doesn’t that sound strange to you? Well I’ve learned my lessons.
As a chinese proverb says: “The journey is the reward”. What it means is that you have to enjoy what you do all the way or make sure you enjoy it and forget about the destination or success what so ever.
Everything is about the journey, about what you are doing right now. Make sure you love what you do. It’s the number one rule to guitarist productivity and everything else in life.
Let’s get into it: Read More »
21 Must Have Online Musician Tools For Guitar Players
Today I present to you a list with 21 online musician tools so you don’t have to download or install anything. Just click the links and you’re up and running.
19 out of 21 tools are free to use. Most of them are virtual tools, a few of them are blogs but they can be a great tool as well.
The tools come quite in handy whenever you are practicing, playing, transcribing, improvising, songwriting or promoting.
I’m a major fan of cloud computing / Web 2.0 therefor I love online music rescources. It’s great to access these tools from any computer where I happen to be. It makes life a lot easier.
One of my personal favorites is tool #8 for improvising over blues backingtracks. They sound really cool.
In case you are going to copy/paste this list on a blog, a spreadsheet or mail it to someone, (which you are free to do) I wouldn’t want anyone to miss out on my own blog so that’s why I put Guitarhabits on #21.
Enjoy the ride and good luck with it.
For your convenience:
1 – Myna Online Audio Editor
wwww.aviary.com/…
Use Myna to remix music tracks and audio clips. Apply sound effects and record your own voice or instruments. Read More »
How to Make The Right Decision as a Musician
Photo by Aimee Heart
A few weeks ago a great bass player asked me to join him and two other muscians that I really admire to start a new band.
I was ecstatic. I said: “Yes of course, great, awesome!”
We met a few days later to talk about stuff like what kind of music we wanted to play, what our goal would be, how many gigs we wanted to play, where to rehearse, etc.
I was thrilled, but at the same time confused. I was in a dilemma.
The picture of me playing with those great musicians playing great music was awesome, but somehow it didn’t feel right. I was doubting and I was restless. I decided to let it rest for a while and leave it up to the universe.
I went through all the different scenarios in my head, the pros and cons and I still couldn’t figure it out.
I called him back and we talked for an hour and a half figuring out what was troubling me and we had a really great conversation. It helped me a lot, but still I couldn’t decide what to do.
I threw the dilemma back into the sky and after a week of going back and forth the answer slowly grew on me. In fact, I think the answer was already clear from the beginning, but I just didn’t want to see it or I didn’t want to believe it. Read More »
5 Famous Repetitive Classic Blues Rock Metal Guitar Licks
When I was a kid I used to transcribe solos of Stevie Ray Vaughan, Guns ‘n Roses, Led Zeppelin, Metallica, etc. And all those famous blues, rock, metal guitar players had one thing in common. They used repetitive guitar licks.
Repetitive licks create a sound where you feel like you’re playing really fast. Well maybe you are :) Besides that they just sound really cool. Those licks have made history.
The trick is too use them occasionally, but certainly not too often assuming that you want your solos to sound fresh and don’t want people to get bored out of their minds.
Use them in the middle of your solos when you are working towards a climax or you feel like you’re on a roll. Something like that.
The best way is to listen to those guys and see how they incorporate them into their solos.
Try not just to copy these licks but also change them around a bit. Create your own repetitive licks. Explore and evolve those licks.
These licks are played using A minor or A pentatonic scale.
You can use them over an Am chord progression or a blues rhythm in the key of A.
I always keep repeating this, because I think it’s important. Play the licks slow first and make sure you can play each lick perfectly clear before you build up speed.
Good luck! Read More »
12 Cool 3 Notes-Per-String Exercises to Rock On! Part II
Via Twitter I’ve received a lot of positive response and requests for a follow up on the “Cool 3 Notes-Per-String Exercises to Rock on!” post. I thank each and everyone of you.
It’s one of the most popular posts on Guitarhabits. I have a lot of fun in creating these licks so it’s my pleasure to present to you part II.
All of the exercises are licks you can incorperate in your improvisation or solos. Feel free to use them however you like. They are yours to take.
If you haven’t checked out part I yet, I recommend you to do so. Part I also explains the purpose of 3-notes-per-string exercises.
Tip: Practice each exercise with a metronome. Start at a slow pace and gradually increase the beats per minute.
Note: Don’t go any faster until you can play each note clear and correctly. It’s good for you.
Enjoy!
EXERCISE #1(in the key of E minor) e:-------------------------------------------0-3-5/6---------------------| B:-----------------------------------0-3-5-------------------------------| G:---------------------------0-2-4---------------------------------------| D:-------------------0-1-2-----------------------------------------------| A:-----------0-5-7-------------------------------------------------------| E:--0-10-12--------------------------------------------------------------|Read More »
Solid Tips to Prioritize Your Guitar Playing (Waterproof!)
Photo by Al-Janabi
A lot of people have difficulties with prioritizing their guitar practice. I did too. When I became a dad (best thing ever) I realized life was going to be busy.
I wanted to improve as often as I could, but often other things tended to come first.
I knew I had to become more efficient with my time would I be able to play guitar like old times and do other great stuff like writing a blog and working out.
Since then I have re-learned how to prioritize. I wouldn’t know how to live without playing guitar on a regularly basis.
Playing guitar gives me so much in return, while other things don’t have lasting value. The more I practice, the more I gain control over the instrument and the more and more and more I am loving it.
It’s funny how you can prioritize other things, that don’t really mean much to you, over the things you love most. We all do it sometimes. Some more than others, but once in a while you need a reminder to set things straight and reset.
Here are some solid tips to prioritize your favorite instrument and start enjoying it as much as you would like to: Read More »
