Subject: Stuck In A Soloing Rut...
You are getting this e-mail because you subscribed to it on www.learn-to-play-rock-guitar.com. If you don't want to receive these e-mails any longer, go to the bottom of this message and click on "unsubscribe." Hey there Friend, Not too long ago a new subscriber told me a frustration he's having in his playing. It seems he's falling into the same trap many of us stumble into.Here's what Charlie wrote: "I want to solo over the fret board for easily and in Key. That said however, my solos just sound to me like I'm just putting scales together and that I'm aiming for the chord change target notes. A bit frustrated at this spot in my playing any thoughts?" I totally understand where you're coming from Charlie, as I have struggled with the same feelings of frustration. Everything I was playing sounded the same - the same tired pentatonic patterns, the same chord progressions. It was like I hit a wall and there wasn't a way through. I kept banging my head on it thinking I could just bust it down, but all I was just getting was a bloody forehead. It's A Habit Sometimes ya gotta step back and try a different approach. Whether that's something you do on your own or from coaching you receive, a fresh perspective can make all the difference in the world. Your playing ability is the sum result of habits you've formed over time since you picked up guitar. Every time you find yourself playing scale-like solos, it's because your fingers are in the habit of playing those scales. Don't get me wrong, scales are important to learn (and learn well), but as you've seen, they can easily become the unruly child, forcing themselves into everything you play. Habits are formed as a way to accomplish something. Every little habit we form is not for the purpose of performing the habit. It's the vehicle to get a result. We brush our teeth daily not because we like doing it, but because we want healthy, clean teeth. We end up playing the same riffs because we've gotten into the habit of not really listening to what we're playing - we go for the easy flow of a pattern versus making deliberate changes to our note choices. To break up a routine (or habit for that matter), it requires you to take some deliberate actions. Being the human animals we are, we are creatures of habit and it's tough to change. If there is something you don't like about a habit, or you want to drop it altogether, you've got to change your approach to the end goal that habit leads to. I had to make a conscious effort to quit playing consecutive notes like old scale patterns and force change on my fingers. I had to slow myself down and think about what I was doing on the guitar. When things start feeling stale and uninspired, you've gotta shake it up a bit. To get better. we often have to change our approach to the way we play. Depending on how you solo, there are some things you can do to break out of the scale-pattern blues. To Analyze or Improvise Before we go any further, a question: Do you typically jam freestyle over the chord progression (song), or do you take the time to analyze it a bit and think about what you want your solo to sound like? For most of us, I would guess that it's a free-for-all jam, making it up as we go. In other words, we use the song as a background to improvise our solos. There's nothing wrong with this approach, but like Charlie has found out, you can "improvise" yourself into a rut as your fingers get used to playing the same riffs over and over. Scales are great to know and excellent practice for building speed, but in the end they're a tool we use to spark creativity, not to take center stage. To be great at improvisation, you have to memorize the fingerboard - that's a given. You have to know the scales and all their modes, and you have to know where the notes of the key are, regardless of where you might be on the fingerboard. Great improvisation almost requires a technical mastery of the fingerboard. Often if your hands know the patterns, you can rely on the muscle memory to hit the right frets, but that won't necessarily get you out of the rut of scalar runs. It's not enough to have the scale patterns down, you really need to know where all the notes are on the neck. Scales will tell you which notes belong, but you still need to know where they are on the fingerboard. You also need to invest time in aural training. Your ears are as important as your fingers, and the better your ears recognize the intervals, the faster you'll be able to find them. The more deliberate approach is to analyze the song and chord progression so you can map out what you want to do with your solo. By knowing the chords and their construction, you can purposely select the target notes you'll play on each chord change and in between. Take some time to analyze a song from your favorite band. Write out the note choices from the lead and map them over the chord progression to get a visual on the layout of a successful solo. Think about why the note choices are effective over each chord and how these note move the listener emotionally. Another good way to start working out of a rut is to give your ears a break. Completely change what you listen to. If you're into metalcore, listen to some classical or bluegrass. Like progressive? Switch to jazz for a little bit. Give your ears a new perspective and you'll find your creativity start to widen. What to Do, Charlie... Charlie, since it sounds like you primarily improvise and obviously follow the fundamentals of soloing (looking to the tonic or root note of the chord for your note choice), why not consciously choose to land on the third, fifth or seventh note of the scale for the target chord? In fact, force yourself to consciously play ANY other note from a chord's structure as the progression changes. For example, if you're soloing over a progression of A and D chords, instead of "aiming for the chord change target notes" of A or D, try a C# note (the 3 note) to start your solo on over the A chord. Or perhaps G# (the 7 note)? When the progression goes to D, play an F# as your target note (the 7 note). Force yourself to stay away from the tonic note (for those that don't know, the tonic is the first note from the scale that gives the chord its name; the A major chord's tonic is the 'A' note) as your target, at least over the first strum of the chord. Playing something other than the tonic can change the emotional tone of your solo and create tension or release, giving the listener a much more interesting experience. I hope that helps some. It might be a good time to look at getting some outside help if you've been working at it alone. A fresh set of ears can pick up on things we might miss. Rock on, my Peeps! Peace~ Dave Dave "Eddie" Vance is a rock guitar enthusiast and gear nut. He has been playing guitar for over 30 years and enjoys tormenting the neighbors every chance he gets. When he's not slaving for the man, you can find him rocking out with his B.C. Rich Bich guitar, a cold beer and some sweet tunes. He also runs Learn-To-Play-Rock-Guitar.com, but you knew that already! Follow Learn To Play Rock Guitar:I welcome your feedback! Did you like today's message? What other topics would you like to see covered in my e-mails? Please let me know at: dave@learn-to-play-rock-guitar.com As always, please feel free to forward this email to a friend! I review products before recommending them. If you buy a product based on my recommendation, I will receive a commission. However, my emails also contain links that don’t require any investment on your part and are jam-packed with "juicy, guitar learnin' tastiness". We don't rent or share your name with anybody. Feel free to forward this issue to any friends you think would enjoy its contents. They will thank you. 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