As we progress further in these lessons, it becomes more and more important
to have daily practice time, since we're starting to cover some really tricky
material. Power chords can take a while to get used to, so I suggest making
a habit of playing them regularly. Here's a suggested use of your practice
time for the next few weeks.
- Make sure your guitar is in tune (review how
to tune).
- Warm up by playing the chromatic scale,
forwards and backwards, several times. Play slowly, use alternate picking,
and make sure each note rings clearly.
- Play the E phrygian scale from lesson
two several times, paying careful attention to detail.
- Review the names of notes on the sixth
and fifth string. Try calling out a random note (eg. C), and trying
to find that note on BOTH the sixth and fifth string. Memorize at least
two other notes, and their positions on each string.
- Work on your power chords. Make sure your
ring finger is positioned well on the appropriate fret (it is the finger
that most often makes power chords sound bad). Try sliding from chord
to chord, and try moving from the 6th string chords to the 5th string
chords.
- Review all nine major and minor chords
we've learned. You should really be close to memorizing all of these
chords by now. Pick two chords, and practice moving from one to the
next quickly and smoothly. Then, pick two new chords, and repeat the
process.
- Spend some time working on this week's new
strumming pattern. Also, be sure to revisit the patterns from lesson
two and lesson three. Try switching
from chord to chord while using these patterns.
- Work on playing that pesky F major chord.
Don't give up until it sounds perfect. Try playing some of the songs
listed on that page.
- Try to play all of the songs above. They have all been chosen to help
you work on a particular aspect of your guitar playing, so although
they are fun to play, they will still help you improve greatly.
We are starting to build up a large archive of things to practice, so if
you find it impossible to find the time to practice all of the above in
one sitting, try breaking up the material, and practicing it over several
days. There is a strong human tendency to only practice things which we
are already quite good at. You'll need to overcome this, and force yourself
to practice the things you are weakest at doing.
I can't emphasize strongly enough that it is important to practice everything
we've done in these four lessons. Some things will undoubtedly be more fun
than others, but trust me, the things you hate doing today are probably
techniques that will become the basis for other things you will love to
play in the future. The key to practice is, of course, fun. The more you
enjoy playing guitar, the more you'll play, and the better you will get.
Try to have fun with whatever you're playing.
In lesson five, we'll learn a blues shuffle,
names of sharps and flats, a barre chord, plus more songs! Hang in there,
and have fun!
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