I'm Stuck.

[Elmer]

No matter what you do...don't give up. You know why? Even if you play everyday the same tunes, you are improving.

It is the same as growing your hair. You look in the mirror everyday and you don't see it grow. But one day you see that your hair really did grow. After that it takes a while again for you to see that is grown again. Same with guitar playing. Once in a while you say to your self (or think) darn, that sounded pretty cool, I am getting better.

 

Never Give up.

[Markini]

Yep, I feel like I am at a plateau at the moment, but I still keep practising. I had friends over for an informal jam Sunday. I was hot , sweaty, kind of tired and developing a headache. The guys asked me to do a lead on my Tele. I struggled through it, but tried to put my heart into it, I missed several noted in my own mind. After it was over i thought to myself that was really mediocre lead job.

 

I looked up and my friends were just staring at me, I go what? What they said next was: that was some exceptional lead, sounded great! Please play more. I thought to myself they must be joking, but I kept my mouth shut and said thank you. ( I still thought it was weak)

 

Lesson here is you don't know how your music impacts others. All my friends state they have a seen and heard steady improvement in my guitar playing, but to me I have barely improved at all.

 

Music is objective to the person playing it, but subjective to the listening audience.

 

It was hot again last night but I still practised.

[brad1]

 

Music is subjective to the person playing it, but objective to the listening audience.

 

 

Hmmmm...interesting.

I rather think it's the other way around.

Music is objective to the person playing it, but subjective to the listening audience.

 

But hey.....it's all subjective. :)

[Versatile]

Get singing...!!

 

Choose something easy

 

Find an 'open mic' venue...do it first visit or second visit

 

Meet and jam with the friendly folks there...they have all been starters once

 

Your life will then move up a gear...and your musical priorities will re-focus

 

V

 

[milod]

I think Markini makes an excellent point.

 

"We" mostly are trying to better our technical and lyrical abilities and are quite often concerned when we feel we don't meet a mental standard within ourselves.

 

Others are listening simply to some stuff we're doing and likely have an entirely different perspective on our playing.

 

On the other hand... I think it's awfully hard at times in our lives when we feel we're plateaued when actually we should perhaps simply lean back and enjoy playing more smoothly and relaxed material we already do rather well.

 

I remember years ago how horrid I felt as the other two guys in the "country" trio were messing with a technical disaster on the drum set and to keep some sort of movement, I did "Me and Bobby McGee" with an AE, just simple bum-shush pickin' - and we were told that we should do more of that sorta thing. Heck, I wasn't even concentrating on playing 'cuz I was worried about the drums and us looking stupid onstage. <sigh>

 

Life playing music can surely be interesting.

 

m

[zigzag]

I think all of those suggestions are great, but I think the best is to take lessons for a year or so, then take time off to apply what you've practiced, then take lessons again. At some point, you will be able to teach yourself. Learning prevents stagnation. Playing with others, esp. those who are more advanced, is a great learning experience AND fun.

[CowboyBillyBob1]

One other thing I just thought of that I do often is to choose a melody and try and play the single notes on your guitar. Start off with something like Amazing Grace. Finding the tab is cheating. When you start to get better at this I guarantee your solo's will be better because you are playing what you hear in your head and are not confined by a box pattern or scale shape.

[Markini]

Had a bit of dyslexia in my last post, I edited it.

 

Back to topic. Gotta agree with Milod. When I slow down and relax and keep it simple, it usually results in my best recordings.

Or just plain relax.

 

I think that any guitar player regardless of being a beginner or a pro is never quite content with their level of playing. Satisfied maybe but truly content I don't think so. Eric Clapton even remarks on the mistakes he makes and has said himself he always wants to play better. I believe he is 64 and still practises daily.

 

Now I am content at times when I sit back and just play for myself and no one else, just to relieve stress. As far as improvement goes, it is hard to measure. In general we are all our own worst critics.Whether you take lessons or learn new songs to freshen up your skills, I believe you have to have a guitar in your hands every day, even if its only 10 minutes. A break is ok too, but too long and your skills erode rapidly.

 

Paraphrasing the great Segovia: " When I miss 1 day of practise I notice it, when I miss 2 days my wife notices it and if I miss 3 days my audience knows it."

[milod]

Markini...

 

Clapton's even older than I am - horror of horrors for both of us, him and me. WWII was still "on" at the time.

 

He was born March of '45. I was born a few months later. <grin>

 

And... Leo Kottke was born a month after me in the same year.

 

Another thing... Our age group lacked, I think, some of the greater technical flexibility of our elders in the live radio and stage era, but by the time "we" were listening to music it seemed there was only one way to go, and that was the emerging simultaneous combining and splitting of rock and country. So I think our age group probably had more really talented folks getting into music and going into a new world of small combos to develop much more aggressive but more focused guitar technique.

 

We tend not to give credit where credit is due for about two generations of that live radio bunch who could do about any style of music and guitar playing, and sound good at it. The "hillbilly" guy in one half hour might end up doing jazz chords up and down the neck with perfect ease while singing harmony on a swing tune.

 

I sometimes think the mediocre player of that radio era was a far better schooled professional musician than many of the following generations shredders and folkies alike.

 

Yup, definitely myself included. I listen to some Joe Pass interviews... Frankly even if I had the capability to play anything he did, which I certainly do not, I'd still not know 10 percent what he knew about "music."

 

m

[brad1]

Had a bit of dyslexia in my last post, I edited it.

 

Cool. I thought it might have been a case of that. Because your arguments were all aiming at that. That's why I was confused.

[FirstMeasure]

I think all of those suggestions are great, but I think the best is to take lessons for a year or so, then take time off to apply what you've practiced, then take lessons again. At some point, you will be able to teach yourself. Learning prevents stagnation. Playing with others, esp. those who are more advanced, is a great learning experience AND fun.

Oh yeah! Playing with other that are better or more experienced than your self is one of the bets ways to get out of a stagnant rut. Schooling you can't get at school.

[10K-DB]

Maybe try to play stuff thats a bit more challenging than what you have been. Jazz is a good place to see and hear new inspirations and styles that may evolve into your own style someday. I play to recordings of players who are much better than me,,and that gives me a "goal" to reach. I dont always get there,,but I always learn something new along the way.

[Tman5293]

Thanks for all of the advice, ideas, and suggestions guys. I'm going to try and apply as much of this as possible to my playing. Lots of really good info here too.

 

It's great to know that I got someone to ask when I don't know where to go next.

[Izzy]

Get an inexpensive Yamaha and learn to play the piano. Buy as gooda Jazz or P as you can afford and learn to play bass. Buy a good drum machine, learn to program drums. Get something that records music, some form of multitrack recorder, one that'll do at least two at a time and allow you to bounce. Start recording stuff, stupid stuff, dumb stuff, ideas, bad ideas, other peoples ideas, just start playing those other instruments and record stuff.

 

rct

 

I was going to suggest learning another instrument. My uncle played drums for years, then he went on to piano. Recently he sat at the drums at a friend's house (since he hasn't owned a set for years) and he was surprised that he was BETTER at drumming than he had been when he stoped. He figured he'd be out of practice and suck...turns out letting go of drums and taking piano amde him a better drummer in the end. He is getting a set now.

I had the same thing happen to me. I had a piano all my childhood then I went to guitar, recently I got a keyboard and I am better at piano now than I was before. Give it a shot! Learning a new instrument is fun :)