The Intrinsic Value of Guitar Practise: How to Get the Most Mileage on Your Instrument

Learning to play guitar is an inherently rewarding pursuit. Having the ability to replicate your favourite music through guitar is not only exciting, but also has the ability to be therapeutic. However, it’s also easy to become hung up on the art of practise. The guitar presents a few unique challenges which makes it quite unique compared to many other instruments. Whilst it might seem tempting to throw money at the problem, looking for that final piece of gear that will allow you to sit down and focus on practising, addressing the root cause is a much more pragmatic, and albeit, less costly endeavour.

In this blog post I aim to provide three core solutions, that as a guitar player of 15 years alongside my work as a guitar instructor, could prove useful to unlocking the potential of the gear you already own. Not to mention, making the process all the more enjoyable and all the less frustrating.

Tip 1: Slow and steady wins the race!

It’s increasingly tempting to try and approach each facet of your guitar study with the approach of an F1 driver. This philosophy carries across to multiple areas, some examples including practising a part at full speed to begin with, or brushing over core concepts in pursuit of the final outcome.

Regarding the first point, it is perhaps often an issue of ego that pushes us to try and learn new parts at the recorded tempo. We strongly want to prove to ourselves that we have the innate ability to process new music within a very short period of time, that we end up neglecting the core skills that need to be developed in order to reach that level.

Take a step back, and have a look at the part you’re learning. Look at ways you can possibly break the part into smaller chunks, and approach each chunk as it’s own independent part. We’re super lucky that today, we’re long past the days of having to reset a needle on a turn table over and over again to hear a small part. There exists a variety of software that can not only allow you to select a small excerpt of music, but also slow it down!

The end result of undertaking this tedious process? You will not only have a better understanding of the part, and how it fits into the rest of what you’re working on, but you’ll also develop the technical facility to articulate the part correctly. It’s tedious, but it’s been a tried and true method for as long as people have picked up a guitar. Once you’ve got it nailed nice and slow, you can progressively increase your tempo. This allows you to go back and forth in speed, and further reinforce the part into your muscle memory.

Regarding brushing over core concepts, this is an area in which we’re all guilty. Within the pages of introductory guitar methodologies is a wealth of information regarding playing position, as well as strategies on improving technique, posture, and articulation. As an instructor I often find myself amazed with how many gaps I possess, let alone my students when it comes to core foundational concepts. It’s always worth taking that extra time to revisit some of those foundational ideas and theories, and approach them from the perspective of having more experience. Humbling, but certainly eye opening!

Tip 2: Sometimes the simplest of tools make the biggest difference!

Branching off from what was outlined in the previous tip, there are associated tools you can use in tandem with some of these practise philosophies!

First and foremost is the use of a metronome, but more specifically, the creative application of a metronome. There exists a great video of storied session player, Carol Kaye, showcasing how she employs a metronome within her own practise. Highlighting just the 2 and 4 beats, you’re able to make slight adjustments to how you push and drag the time, in turn making the metronome sound like its swinging! However, we can take this concept one step further and utilise the metronome to test our inner pulse. This was something demonstrated to me by one of Australia’s finest guitar players, Stephen Magnusson. Take away all the beats from the metronome, bar either the 2nd or 4th beat (4/4 time), and slow the metronome down as much as possible. From there you only have the one reference point, and the rest is up to your inner pulse to feel where you are in the bar. You can use this to test various subdivisions alongside how you process your internal time for interesting and albeit, humbling results. A difficult exercise, but rewarding nonetheless when executed correctly!

Moving into the 21st century, we now have access to even more varied tools which can greatly help us accelerate our progress when learning the guitar. The most notable (that I personally use) is a software tool called ‘Slomo’. Using this application, you’re able to take an MP3 or WAV file of recorded music and use looping and slowing down tools. This has been a godsend for developing transcription skills. As opposed to trying to learn everything at full speed, and either getting frustrated or repeating errors, this tool allows you to work in bite-sized pieces. Not only are you able to more precisely get the notes right, but you’re able to also hone in on the articulation and expression of the player you’re trying to transcribe (which is a solid 80% of what you should be focusing in on). Not only will your transcriptions greatly improve, but so will your ear and your ability to process intervallic movement and subtleties in articulation. These are essential skills, and the more you work at it slowly, the more likely you’re able to reach a stage where you can process this information much quicker, but just as accurately!

Tip 3: Reducing the scope of practise to more accurately hone your skills!

The scope of knowledge behind guitar technique, theory, and performance is so wide and expansive that often times it seems completely overwhelming. For the most part, that assessment is correct. It is overwhelming! There is often an emphasis to brush over certain concepts, in order to reach the final goal as economically as possible. However, so many of these concepts and theories are extraordinarily essential, and brushing over them will only act as a disservice in your musical journey.

The foremost example that immediately comes to mind is the way in which we learn material. There’s often an eagerness from beginner students to learn as many tunes as possible. What inevitably ends up happening, is that the student will learn all these tunes yet have an identifiably surface level understanding of the song, besides being able to play the song in a rudimentary fashion. Not only do I believe this stands as a disservice to great music, but also functions as a disservice to your development as a player. Going beyond learning a part and also understanding the harmonic movement, lyrics, the context of the tune and what it means and represents, ends up defining those that can simply perform a tune, and those who can EMBODY a tune. There is of course a place for being able to learn as many songs as possible, especially within a professional setting where time is money. However, within the practise room, taking that extra time to dive deep on that tune will provide a myriad of rewards down the line. In embodying the tune, you’re really embodying a history of musical development, which will only stand to inform the music you create yourself!

Beyond developing repertoire, this philosophy of ‘digging deep’ is equally applicable to all facets of your journey learning the guitar. As a concept it extends to technique, harmony, musicianship, and most importantly your development as a human! Learning guitar is really a delayed gratification activity. It takes years of work, and is a continual process that if you don’t maintain, will eventually slip away. In a world filled with instant gratification, taking the time and energy to learn any kind of instrument is a testament to your ability to trust the process and really develop and excel as a person.

Conclusion

Guitar, and music at large, is such a fascinating subset of human expression. It’s a time consuming and arduous process, with often very little immediate reward beyond the knowledge that no matter how hard you work, you will never fully ‘conquer’ the guitar. That in itself however is the most wondrous part of this journey. Practise, as an activity and even as a philosophical concept, is such a crucial facet of being human and engaging with an area of interest. The journey is fundamentally the end result, so ensuring that you’re able to get the most out of your practise and your instrument, should be of utmost priority. Always remember: take it one step at a time, be forgiving, and most importantly enjoy that you get to spend time doing this super cool thing!