and my best advice would be about the opposite lol. Well I might agree with the “wing it a FEW times.”
I cant give you a checklist but I would pick a really basic skill and set about to master it or at least double your current skill on it. if you are doing the Yngwie thing then maybe of course the Yngwie 6 note pattern is a great place to start. Get it fast and smooth on one string then start moving it between multiple strings etc.
Then of course youll want to start tackling actually 3nps type string crossing Yngwie style, or if you want to do 2wps then youll move onto stuff like the Paul Gilbert lick or better yet, simplified versions of it such as:
E------------5–7--5--------
B–5--6–8------------8–6-
That one extra note gives you way more time to work out those string switches
or try some of the various one way loops such as Gilbert sixes etc
I think there are multiple ways to approach improvement. I sort of like the way of picking one basic thing and spend 80% of your time on it…as opposed to spreading yourself too thin goofing off with many things at once. Once youve greatly improved your skill on that one thing, say the Yngwie 6 string lick, youll find the next things come way easier etc.
Me personally, I have had great improvement recently just megadosing on repetitions done at various speeds. of course, not everyone wants to practice 13-15 hrs per week which is what ive been averaging.
if I only had one or two hrs per day I think id pick a basic bread and butter skill and start off with about 150-200ish reps done slowly and in perfect control and then id leave that particular lick alone until the next day. (or do a morning session, then again later in the day) of course then youd move on to other things in that session but maybe you try to keep things in the same related family. For instance 40 minutes of variations of the Yngwie 6 note pattern followed by 20 minutes of just jamming or whatever. After a week of intense Yngwie 6 note single string practice your coordination may have tremendously improved.
Next day. check the lick you did the 200 reps on and see if indeed it feels somewhat easier and smoother today. It should. The body adapts…thats what all of this is about. So now do it again but a little faster. STAY RELAXED as you increase the speed.
Maybe start to throw in other metronome exercises such as gradually seeing how fast you can work up to without making too many mistakes.
for me, once the mistakes start, or once the tension starts to rise, you have done enough as far as the “pushing for speed” aspect. The speed will come as you gradually build up your avg practice speed while keeping the hands relaxed.
Its interesting because I have heard people diss metronome practice and also “slow” practice…but you wonder if they have ever really given it a try? I think a one week experiment on your part would be a great learning experience for all of us. Take a good basic lick. Do 100 to 200 smooth controlled reps. go to other stuff perhaps. Next day it should feel smoother. Do your same 100-200 reps a little faster. Maybe at the end of that day work it up and see how fast u can get it before it falls apart. FINISH WITH SOME SMOOTH CONTROLLED REPS THOUGH. Dont let the fast mistakes be the last thing you give your brain before you stop for the day. Continue on for a week gradually getting that smooth mistake free form faster etc. Check your top speed at the end of that one week. Could be interesting
id follow the 80/20 rule for the speed of practice too. 80% “slow” and controlled, mistake free, tension free reps versus 20% of pushing for speed and “winging it”. I see the winging it aspect as more of testing where you are at and when u do get lucky and bust out some fast clean stuff you then know whats possible and you can gradually work your way to that form to where it becomes “normal” for you
I put “slow” in quotes because its really a BS term that we throw around. No ones talking about micro speeds here. We are talking about a very controlled speed where you dont make mistakes and where you dont have tension. That ‘slow’ speed wont stay slow for too long long. the body adapts. Gradually your “slow” starts to catch up to your speed burst speed.
again, my 2 cents worth, people make WAY too much out of the mantra of “but slow form isnt the same as fast form”. Of course there is truth to it but again, how slow is “slow.” As you gradually build up your practice speed the form naturally improves and becomes more efficient.
