Hello from D.C.!

Introduce Yourself
#1

I’m Robb. I’ve been a guitar enthusiast and terrible player for most of my life. Now 45, I realize that my love of music and lack of any formal training or prior serious attempt to learn are at odds. I’m guessing my story is not at all remarkable and describes most players who had a guitar when they were in their teens, but never really learned to play other than power chord stuff (no dis here, love the power chord).

At present, I’m a decent player who can learn most songs from tab, excluding anything that is very technical or fast. I just have never been able to play fast and my picking technique is bad. And while playing at the speed of light is not my main goal, I realize that being able to play efficiently at an accelerated pace is necessary to be a good guitar player for the types of music I would love to be able to play. Ultimately, like everyone here I’m assuming, I want to be a good guitar player. I want to be able play well, compose good music, and not be lost if I sit in with other players. I know I have the physical and mental ability to do it, but I lack the requisite knowledge and technique.

So, any advice about where to dive in with specific exercises and/or advice to get started?

I’m reviewing the primer now and appreciate the concepts, however, I’m not getting a clear sense of how to work on the concepts at home. Maybe it is all at the end? Or is there somewhere else within cracking the code where I can find tutorials/exercises etc. I am aware that in the Yngwie section, for example, there is the 3NPS section to work on, but I’m assuming there must be more exercises to help tackle this concept than a broad overview.

Looking forward to the feedback and meeting everyone here. The pick-slanting concept really opened my eyes in a way that clicked and I’m looking forward to improving an aspect of my playing that has always been sloppy and inefficient. Cheers!

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#2

Hey Robb, welcome! From what we’ve found, there are so many variables with what your technique may look like currently, what you struggle with most, and what your goals are for what you want to play, that the more concrete detail you can share the better we may be able to help.

We do have all kinds of musical examples on our site, both in the instructional stuff like Pickslanting Primer and the seminars, and in our interviews with various players, but we tend to shy away from laying out a specific linear path of “here’s what to practice” because it can look a bit different for everyone.

One super useful thing we’d suggest to start is to head to the #technique-critique category and post some video of yourself playing, filmed with an angle as close as possible to what we get with the Magnet. You can put your phone on a tripod or prop it up on a chair nearby, just so long as we can get a clear view of your picking (in slow-mo video mode if your phone supports it). If you share some footage there we can try to get you some feedback! Posting a bit more about specific things you’d like to play will be useful too. Hope that helps :slight_smile:

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#3

Thanks, Brendan.

My musical interests are all over the place. I’d love to be able to master songs by Zeppelin, Rage Against the Machine, Lynyrd Skynyrd, AC/DC, Ozzy/Sabbath, anything really.

As of now, I think I can safely say that I don’t have a picking hand ‘technique.’ Starting from the ground up. What I’m really looking for is something to get me started; something that shows me in detail how to place my hand, movement specifics, and some exercises to work on these things. Put another way, If I uploaded a video I think the response would be, “yeah, start at the beginning, dude.”

As an example of the frustration I experience, “I Know a Little.” (Skynyrd) There is nothing extravagant about the notes or melodies, but Gaines played fast. I have never been able to play at his tempo accurately or consistently. Just the intro–I can’t do it. As I speed up the pick and left hand lose sync and the pick is never where it’s supposed to be. This is the song that originally came to mind when reading about CTC. So, how would I apply CTC to that intro and practice to get up to speed. If I can do it on that song, then I should be able to do it with others.

As an aside, I am a lifelong athlete with very good reflexes. While it’s possible that I just can’t play that fast, I don’t think there is any physical reason why. I am certain that it is a technique issue.

If I can, I’ll try to upload a video soon. But, really, I’m just trying to find a place to start and practice the technique so that I can move forward.

Thanks again.

Robb

1 Like
#4

Hello Rob and welcome to the community!

I am pretty sure you will love this place. Everybody is really helpful. Don’t hesitate to post a video of your playing if you have a decent phone/camera (something that I still have to do :sweat_smile:). You will receive quality feedback.

I also recommend the Masters in Mechanics interviews to widen your musical horizons!

Cheers \m/

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#5

Put another way, If I uploaded a video I think the response would be, “yeah, start at the beginning, dude.”

You’d be surprised, mate. This question has come up a few times and the community at large has discovered a few strategies to get people started. Troy and a few other luminaries on the forum will have some solid wisdom to dispense here but I think you’d find that folks here can get very specific with ideas if you were to post a video of you playing a passage that you’re struggling with. Try to grab a Code-Friendly camera angle with lots of light so we can see the picking movement.

My advice to someone who doesn’t know where to start would be to fret the 12th on your high E string and kick up a brisk tremolo-pick on that note. Find a speed where you can hold that note pretty at a consistent tempo. Film yourself doing this, then review the video (or post it here!) to figure out what mechanics and positioning you’re using to accomplish that motion. Once you have that knowledge, you can pick and choose material from the pickslanting primer that suits your style.

Using repeating patterns on a single string (IE Malmsteen 6-note pattern of McLaughlin 4-note pattern) is highly recommended to refine your picking style and focus on synching with the fretting hand without having to worry about string changes.

2 Likes
#6

Appreciate the responses. Will try to make a video to upload and start working through the MIM stuff.

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#7

Hello Rob,

I’ve been a guitar teacher for many years and I’ve had many students that came to me frustrated about not being able to play the things they wanted to.

Usually after going through the basics with them and explaining the concepts so it clicked in their minds, they made breakthroughs.

If you feel you are not making progress with videos and courses, I would recommend for you to look for a guitar teacher (either online or even better real life), because it makes a huge difference when you get immediate feedback on your playing and can ask any question you want.

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#8

Thank you, Nitro. I just joined CTC, so way too early to tell if I’m making progress or not. I have not made a lot of progress (beyond a certain point), in general, trying to teach myself. That’s why I was looking around for some instruction to open the door and ultimately decided to try CTC.

#9

Also, I feel like I should ask why I have to be Mr. Pink? (Reservoir Dogs reference, ignore if my “W” doesn’t appear to you in a big pink circle.)

#10

I tried to upload a video and got an error that says I can only upload image formats? (jpeg, gif, etc.) How do I upload a video?

#11

Ah I see you’re Mr. Pink no longer :slight_smile:

For videos, best way is usually to just upload to YouTube as an unlisted video. When you paste the video link into a post here, put it on its own line and it should show up nicely embedded. (Can’t upload here directly b/c we have limited server space, but luckily YouTube has no issues with that!)

#12

Got it. Thanks. Will post now.