Playing guitar is a hobby and a passion that is enjoyed by millions of people all over the world. For some players, learning a new technique or applying theory to their playing is a source of immense satisfaction. For others, recording the original compositions is the goal and to eventually share this work with a wider audience. Whatever your aspirations are for playing guitar, one fact is constant, and this is the need to practice.
Remember that practice sessions are vital for your ongoing progress and development as a musician. However, it is equally important to recognize that constructive and meaningful practice is the key to making noticeable gains in your overall playing. Put simply, you need to structure your practice so that it drives your learning across a range of techniques while learning theory that can help you develop as a musician. This article will explore three ways to get more out of your guitar practice sessions.
- Use high-quality tabs
One of the best ways to learn guitar and build expertise is to learn the work of other established artists. For example, if you enjoy rock music, you may wish to start learning simple classic rock songs, such as Smoke on the Water by Deep Purple, before progressing to more complex songs. Tailor the cover songs you learn to your overall level of playing. In addition, you must use a professionally produced guitar tab to learn the songs.
While you can find millions of free tabs online, you are often relying on amateur guitarists tabbing the song. Often these tabs will not be completely accurate and will result in you learning incorrectly or even playing the song in a different key. In short, use guitar tabs as part of your practice sessions, but ensure that you use reputable sites that focus on total accuracy.
- Build your improvisation skills when playing lead
For many players, building your improvisation skills is one of the most enjoyable parts of practicing guitar. A key way to achieve this is by playing along to guitar backing tracks. If you know the key that the music is being played in, you simply need to find a suitable scale in the same key and play along. Remember that in some forms of music (especially blues), the adage that “less is more” is important. You do not want to play as fast as possible to the track with little in the way of breaks.
Listen to the backing track first. Consider the chords that are being played and aim to “hit” these chord changes by playing the same note as you improvise. Mix up your soloing with a range of fast and slow playing. Remember that fast passages can be ideal for building momentum in a song as it moves toward a chorus. Try playing along to a range of different genres of backing tracks and adapting your style of play for each.
- Set yourself goals
As a brief final point, it is incredibly important to set meaningful goals for your practice sessions. Simply put, practice sessions with no definite focus or goal will slow your overall progress. It can be easy to focus on areas of playing that you enjoy or are already competent at, however, this will not help you to develop fully as a player. Consider a range of techniques that you wish to build competence in. For example, you may seek to master two-handed tapping to improve your lead guitar work or learn sweep picking. Set goals for this learning and you will find that you progress at a far greater pace compared to unstructured practice sessions.
