Home » Forum » Hey there... »
Hello All, Trying to find my way!

Hello All, Trying to find my way!

garcam123 posted on Sep 16, 2015 #1
garcam123
Member
Posts: 2
Joined: May 27, 2015
I'm a recent learner and have been on the guitar for about a year now. Never been in a band or really played with anyone. I was an old chord banger and knew a few hacked rock songs. Bought this little Yamaha JR-1 in a street market in Tijuana and went home and looked online, How to play guitar! Well here I am!
I've got the major and minor and minor and major pentatonic scales and up to some arppaggios and I'm looking for something more than just playing scales, In fact, I'm sick of them! but I play them every day, it's all I have to do that and drink and puff a little, I play along with the music I listen to. I can find the key but can't really discover chords in songs, could use some help here. So I've found you and your tools, I need to learn how to use them so I can contribute. I'm sending a little money to Bernie Sanders, so I can add some for you guys, just help me learn to use your system....Thanks, I'm an old guy, I like Bobby Caldwell's music as well as Boz Scaggs and a whole slew of Latin performers Enrique, Romeo Santos, love Bachata! Julio, especially Ricardo Montanire! Looking forward to interacting with you! Gary
adu posted on Sep 16, 2015 #2
adu
SUPPORTER
Posts: 262
Joined: Feb 1, 2014
Hello Gary, nice to have you with us. Welcome onboard and have a lot of fun :)
Daddario EXL170
Daddario EXL170
Electric Bass String Set
22,90 €
iThis widget links to Thomann, our affiliate partner. We may receive a commission when you purchase a product there. Visit Shop
Rickplayer posted on Sep 16, 2015 #3
Rickplayer
Member
Posts: 990
Joined: Oct 16, 2011
Hi Gary and welcome to the loops no pressures here just play and enjoy
nilton posted on Sep 16, 2015 #4
nilton
Member
Posts: 374
Joined: Mar 25, 2012
Here is one tip for you. Instead of practicing scales with little musical content(or even worse, technical exercises with no musical content at all like the infamous spider), try to make execises that are based on music you like or want to learn. Any song can be turned into a challenging exercise, and most songs have passages that can be used as technical development.

Here are some steps for you to begin with:
1) Download the trial version of [url=http://www.guitar-pro.com/en/index.php?pg=download] Guitar pro[/url]
. It's free and you do not need the full version in the beginning.


2)Here is the way to use it: Open any song you want to learn. Enable the metronome and
have it on all the time. Listen to the song as its whole a number of times with eyes closed and focusing on both the song AND tapping your foot in sync with the metronome.

3)Just like when eating an elephant, take small bites.. IN Gp you can select any number of notes or measures (bars) and loop them over and over again. And here is the really good part. GP has a function called a "speed trainer (F9)" which loops the selection with an increasing tempo. You can set the start tempo, the final tempo and the amount of increase. One thing that is very important is to start [i]really[/i] slow (and i mean ridiculously slow and even slower than that). AND to tap your foot in sync with the metronome. That way you practice both your timing (which is one of the most important and most overlooked aspects of musicianship) And equally important, you avoid learning your own mistakes and repeating them over and over.

4)Once you have learned a song you can start practicing different aspects of it. prctice with your eyes closed and try to make mental renderings of the following aspects

a) The tonal aspects, try to hear the melody and/or the chords in your head while (or even slightly ahead) you are playing

b) The temporal aspects, have your foot tapping in sync with the metronome and first try to feel the strong and weak beats, all while plying of course. Then try to render how the notes are positioned relative to the beats. How does the impression of the piece change when you hold the notes longer or shorter than intended. How much can you shift a note in time without it sounding awkward?

c) The motoric aspects, Try to imagine your fingers move and fret and hit the strings with your eyes closed. This is especially useful when speeding up things.

d) If you are interested in theory you can imagine the functions and relations of the notes and chord while playing.

I hope this helps, if you want more specific help pm me
DannyK posted on Sep 16, 2015 #5
DannyK
Member
Posts: 213
Joined: Mar 7, 2014
Welcome to wikiloops! Have fun!
Shi posted on Sep 16, 2015 #6
Shi
SUPPORTER
Posts: 372
Joined: Feb 3, 2013
Hi Gary and a welcome to the loops from me too :)
Sophie posted on Sep 16, 2015 #7
Sophie
Member
Posts: 128
Joined: May 1, 2013
Welcome!!!
Dick posted on Sep 17, 2015 #8
Dick
SUPPORTER
Posts: 2940
Joined: Dec 30, 2010
Welcome to the loops, Gary!
I hope you'll find your ways about wikiloops - once you have some idea what is out there on wikiloops, and what suits you best or inspires you the most, and finally how to find that easily on the loops, you made it :)
There is a lot of quite enjoyable footage on how to browse the loops in the help section, too, I believe that will make dipping in easy for you.
Go for the fun, the feel-good-factor and the groove here, that's the best cure against too much dry practise IMO.
Fender AV II 63 TELE RW RED TRANS
Fender AV II 63 TELE RW RED TRANS
Electric Guitar
2.249 €
iThis widget links to Thomann, our affiliate partner. We may receive a commission when you purchase a product there. Visit Shop
wikiloops online jamsessions are brought to you with friendly support by:
user profile image
gracias a todos los músicos que colaboran en wikiloops, es interesante la sensación de saber, que alguien en algún lugar del mundo sabe de ti y de tu música, y lo mas interesante, compartirla, GRACIAS
carlottis

wikiloops uses Cookies and processes data in compliance with the GDPR,
as stated in our data privacy policy.