Thank you Sammi, Serena, Eiji, Hugo, Andy, Clay, Yuki, Johno, Linda and Jeff for being here! This thread is so awesome! I am also practicing Open G picking!
Truly this forum is becomiung an amazing community indeed! I am so happy to see everyone’s threads, everyone’s comments and conversations. This thread is so great to focus on “awareness” and “Slow playing” It is very difficult to play slower. Listening depth is getting better here. Now we can apply this to many other exercises. I am working on blues playing more lately.
Yes! You can jump in anytime! Even one minitue is good! Two minutes is so good too!
Keep your own pace and please be feel comfortable. Let’s keep going!
This thread is a great teminder for me to practice slower! I am so thankful!
Recording yourself is so good! I almost record myself everyday. I play same idea and record 2-3 times. Then I review each take until I really understand what ’s going on. I listen 4-5 times or more. (each take) I pay attetion on my picking touch and my left hand touch (how relaxed?) Dynamics and timing too. Each take is about one minute.
Nice soft picking Eiji! Yes! It is like meditation. Plesae don’t count! Try to feel a circle of motion! Very important not suvdivide rhythm. No need to be correct timing. Slow is better! Just feel it! Listen the 3rd one. That’s great one to start. The first one was a little too hard. Maybe you can go softer a little bit early.
I only can use “Celluloid” material. So smooth! I only use 1.00mm. I have been trying 0.75 mm too.
Tomo
Love this, thank you Tomo.
So positive, felt lifted like on a wave.
Like running and skipping, bouncing like a kid. haha.
Been in a lull, G string exercise lifted me out of the funk. Foundation practice before and after a long walk today.
Feel good now.
Music back in my head :)
Always so humbling to continue in any small way. Grateful.
Hi Sunil - Im just out of a funk too. It's amazing though. No matter what else is going on, your guitar will be there waiting for you like an old friend.
So true Matt; lifelong feels like.
Sunil and Matt. It's always a process of coming back....from sickness, injury, travel, or just the demands of life. Always coming back.
Love that Linda. Truth.
Reminds me of watching the kids learn to walk.
It's a controlled fall, again and again.
Haha.
Day 9 - in a new place, 6 string, and not my gear. Twisting up tuning pegs, trying to hear, one simple G, and not too clear. Tones are ringing, with space, well defined. Checking out that rhythm, with no sense in mind. Flat picking, lite touch, and low tone in time. All is good from the hood, keeping it real with one-more-G chime, letting it ring that sensible vibe, just one more time. - johno
Yeah John, because of the soothing quality of that G-chime I often go past the 2-minute mark.
Spring is a super busy time on the farm, so some days I'm limited to chromatic, a little R-3-7, and a bit of 1-string-1-finger exercises. But I always squeeze in the G-chime picking exercise. Such a great way to start the day.
Spring is super busy. Getting everything growing and up for the heat of the summer. Pepper plant seeds are kicked off and next is their final planting for the season. The guitar exercises are going well. R37 is getting more control. Spring is so fresh. Good to hear Linda :)
Thank you Sunil, Matt, Linda, Marcus and Johno for stopping by here.
Life is always ups and downs. No matter how hard you work…always something more! Not easy!
Guitar is slightly similar yet there are a lot of potentials as long as keep working! Great reward to inside of my soul.
Simple foundation like this (Open G with all down stroke with soft picking) and simple chromatic scale without any string noises. Very important for me. I practice 1212 chromatic everyday with my Epiphone arch-top guitar.
Yes! Guitar is so amazing! Guitar is always a great friend! I am so grateful. Guitar is a great listener to me.
Thank you! I love my Pickboy 1.00mm Celluloid pick. 1.00mm is so versatile for me.
Open G string. I try to use a tip of pick with flat angle. Yes! Let it ring and hit quick and soft!
Tomo
Beautiful, Serena. And such a cool guitar.
Love to see you practicing, Serena! I also really liked the limitation you set for yourself (a few minutes on the forum).
Since you asked for suggestions, I'm curious whether you've tried playing the whole notes without ghost-picking each beat. In other words, I see your picking hand move every beat, rather than picking once and letting the note ring out. So the suggestion: Don't worry about tempo or think 4 counts - Play whole notes and really listen and feel "the circle" Tomo describes.
Great work, Serena! Your dedication always inspires me! Thanks for the post.
Thank you Linda.
Great suggestion. I appreciate it Sammi.
So happy to see your video Serena! Your tone is so good!
It is very difficult but you don't want to stop that sustain / ringing tone right before you pick a note.
Idea is to play a longer note without couting too much. One note as a whole...circle motion so no need to be too precise about duration of notes. Then no muting, stopping that sustain / ringing tone. So time feel is super slow but the timing of picking is fast so that you don't stop that rining sound. It is very hard to explain this by words so I made this video.
Tomo
Ah this is so helpful!
Thank you Tomo, Serena and friends.
The flat (level) picking here that Tomo is showing is something that I end up thinking about when I do 1212 chromatic exercise. I keep worrying about if I am resting the pick on the string, or if the pick is bouncing on the string.
Cognition during exercises is interesting but I am just trying to think less, I think. Haa.
This video, everyone's videos and G string exercise helping a great deal.
Wow Tomo, Thank you. This video is fantastic for me. I think I was trying to put 10 different lessons into one. I got it now. I won't stop sound. I will feel the note but not move the body or count. I will start at 60 bpm and feel the 4 beats in a circle of motion with out spinning my chair lol. I appreciate the time you give us.
Right on Sunil. So much to think about that is why it is good to have your trusty notebook beside you with all the tiny details. Rock on.
Good point Serena.
I had not thought of adding this level of detail in my notebooks (I am using 3! each with a higher level of detail) but maybe I will now.
Thank you Tomo, I forgot to not worry!
Practicing this makes it easier in the moment.
G string exercise is such a lovely re-(re-re-)entry point! I was watching your Bass VI video and thinking I need to start learning diatonic triads.
But I am also working on Essential Theory G Maj backwards by thirds (Do-Mi, Te-Re,...)...walking to the coffee shop after first practice I realized I was playing first inversion diatonic triads backwards, just the root and third. Made me so happy haha!
Also practicing triads without looking made me practice everything without looking. Every lesson and effort is reflected in every other lesson.
Even with G string exercise I was thinking about pick position and feel and it carried into R73/R37 Bb Swing Groove exercise (I think someone else mentioned this above too)...
I love guitar, and foundation practice so much.
correction:
same except for diminished 7th.
Glad to be helpful! Guitar is so deep! Don't worry!
Tomo
I saw this quote from Leonardo on the internet and it reminded me of everything Tomo teaches (especially this exercise)….
Consistency Beats Complexity:
"Success lies in the relentless execution of the basics."
-Leonardo da Vinci
You don't need more information, you need more execution.
The basics are already known.
The difference is who repeats them long enough to master them.
Because success isn't complicated, it's consistent.
True that Rich. Solid basics make better structure on all facets. That is practical to improve. Tomo's practice is guitar genius by design. We are in a good place, lucky too.
-johno
Love that, Richard.
Nice words of wisdom Richard.
Thank you Rich for sharing this! I am so honored to be part of Leonardo's level!
One at a time and go deeper!
Tomo
Thank you Serena for sharing this video. Much better! Better tone and better pacing.
One note is so important! Great job! Sounded so good!
Tomo
Serena, thank you for the kind words above. I have learned a lot from your efforts -- moving the body to the rhythm, for example, earlier this year when you were working on R 3 7 swing groove ex I think. Also, the importance of repeatedly watching videos to understand subtleties.
I found this video and this thread, and the efforts of everyone here, to be deeply inspirational. Serena I liked the rounded tone of the G string, heard that, and the dynamics were nice, so quiet by the end.
I am working on doing the same. G string is tricky.
I went for a two hour walk this morning, I thought of the perfectionism I hold onto and realized nothing is ever perfect. There is only doing, and moving forward.
I think you have said this so many times Tomo. Deep lesson for me.
So I finally made a video, playing G string exercise.
On being my own teacher, I realized I might need to change strings and setup, slight buzzing. I am playing this 1961 reproduction because it is one of my favorite guitars -- my parents immigrated here to the states, my dad came first he arrived in 1961 after a long boat trip from the other side of the planet with a hundred dollars in his pocket (as he was fond of saying).
Also I am trying to play by not looking (inspired by not looking when playing vertical triads as Tomo suggested some time ago) so I am looking out the window and I hit D string unintentionally around 20 and 30 seconds. I also will work on dynamics, playing more softly, 2 minutes daily.
I hope to make more videos now. Thank you Tomo for so many kind words of truth over the last six months on Guitar Wisdom, and so many kind words over the last year or two on youtube. I am learning so much mostly about humility and gentle persistence of daily efforts, not to worry, kindness to self and others, and the absence of comparison, and patience with progress.
Thank you also to Kurt, Linda, Clay, Andy, Kazufumi, LaVoy, and so many other gw members who allowed me to comment on their efforts.
Peace; onward together.
Good stuff Serena!
You too Sunil!
Thank you Clay!
No need to say anything and great job here. Inspired me to keep going on this one
So happy to see your video! Great job and what a cool color guitar! Love it!
You're very welcome! Thanks so much for making this video! So much inspiration!
Tomo
Thank you Tomo!
Yes, the color, fiesta red!
I really love it!
It is cool how it changes during the day, reflecting the colors around it. Kind of like the silver Silver Sky.
Nice work Sunil, sounded pure. This has been fun to hear all the G tones we make. All kinds off colors. Your guitar has that catchy color, looks awesome. Good stuff!!
-johno
Thank you Johno, loving these kind words! They are keeping me going especially after R37 swing groove practice. Let's steam on together my friends!
Sunil!!! You did it! Thank you so much for taking the leap. Not so bad, right?
You all make this place what it is. Let's keep going and growing together :)
Awh thank you Sammi! Yeah...not so bad! I have never been so relieved to get so few views hahaha!
Just gotta tape it, and enjoy it as it is, then breathe, slow down, fix probs then tape again. Just as Tomo and you said all along!