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Squeeze it out
(29 Aug 03)
Examples
Want some examples? Alrighty. Let's take a basic run in 8th notes, key of G major.
Check it out:
OK, this one starts on a downstroke. Once you can play it (memorize the pattern and the sequence, make sure you're playing even 8th notes, and pay attention to your accuracy. Make sure it sounds good!), the first variation / permutation would be to start with an upstroke.
So here we go, permutation 1: the same run, starting with an upstroke:
Now, we talked a lot about picking, but a lot of people still wonder about some aspects of it. Let's for example try to play the run with all downstrokes:
And, since a lot of people seem to have problems with the upstrokes, here's a good way to work on that: Playing with all upstrokes for a while!
Now, as I said, we can also move the same run to another key / area of the neck, or, as in the next permutation, simply up one octave:
A few words in between:
You are not supposed to play all these exercises straight after the each other. Don't print out the TAB and play through all the exercises as if it was some kind of an etude. Take each one, add more variations to it, work on each one by itself.
OK, what else can we do with our basic run? Move it back to its original position, and play it with a different rhythm... the first note being a dotted eighth, every other one being a sixteenth... shuffle-style.
Now, let's pick each note twice... double-picking! Start with a downstroke...
And also try starting on an upstroke:
Now, let's try yet another rhythm... eighth note triplets. Simply play each note three times...
Still interested in more variations? Well, let's accent certain notes... pick them harder. This may add more variety than adding extra notes or something... can make a run sound all different, even though you won't even really hear it in the Powertab-file.
First, let's accent the downbeats:
And, to twist yer brain a bit (well, ok, it's not THAT hard, but I've got another accent-exercise for ya shortly), accent all upbeats, which will alter the sound and effect of the run quite a bit:
Gee, who would've thought? =)
At first, we had one simple run (exercise), and now we have eleven different ones, each one focusing on a different problem or aspect of playing, ranging from picking to rhythm to dynamics. And those are not all of the possibilities we have, we can squeeze even more out of it. But that's up to you. I know that those exercises are not really "Terror Death Licks You Can Put Into Your Solospot To Get All The Girls In The Front Row". But they're definitely something that will keep ya busy for a while (depending on your level) and will help you to improve more things than just picking.
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Twist your fingers, twist your brain >> |
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