Hey Friend,
Over the past few days, more folks have responded to the the “freeform versus focused” email inquiry.
Hmm, looks like the freeformers are taking the lead (as I originally suspected)!
That doesn’t really change my view though...
Whether you’re a freeform player or a focused player, there are benefits to be had by checking out the practice routines of “the other side.”
I think our friends that use both approaches have the right idea, and the rest of us can learn a lot from them.
So let's look at what each “side” might do during a practice session.
Benefits of Being a Focused Player
If you’re a focused player, you might:
Have a practice calendar or journal
Plan each lesson out beforehand
Actually follow the specific lesson plan
Keep track of different measurements such as speed and accuracy, how much time you practice something, etc.
Block time for each exercise
Use a metronome religiously
Know exactly what you want to accomplish in each session (a goal)
There is a certain beauty in the disciplined approach that freeformers often overlook.
We can’t avoid the fact that music is a very structured “language” that requires some study to understand it.
You can play random notes, but it doesn’t usually sound very good. You need to learn the framework if you hope to do anything more than play a couple campfire songs.
And to learn the framework, it requires memorizing a few things like:
Basic scale patterns
Basic chord shapes
Basic strum patterns
Then you must repeat these in order to cement them in your mind and hands. I’ll even go as far to say that IF you want to become more than a casual player, you should keep track of your progress so you can gauge your progress.
“If you can’t measure it, you can’t improve it.” ~ Peter Drucker
As a focused player, you are more likely to improve faster because you can actually measure those improvements. You have proof at your fingertips - hard evidence that your efforts are giving results.
I know in my own case, the mindset of “good enough” was usually just that - good enough.
But that’s not how I want to be as a player. A more disciplined practice routine would allow me to build skills more quickly and probably provide me more satisfaction when I play. I’d feel more like I was actually getting somewhere!
And while committing to a more structured routine might feel like you’re strapping on a straight jacket (Oh, the drama!), you will begin to experience what I have - the ‘exercise’ actually begins to transform the session from tedious to enjoyable.
When you focus in on one specific ’task’ such as practicing a scale as perfect as possible, or directing your total awareness on the exact placement of your finger on the string, and you notice it begin to become automatic, you’ll feel some endorphins kick in.
Benefits of Being a Freeform Player
When you stack up all the pluses there are to following a disciplined, focused practice routine, it might seem like us freeformers are just goofing around when we sit down to play.
And I’d say (at least personally) that is true… to an extent.
Am I being too lazy to develop/follow a structured practice? Or am I just undisciplined? Maybe.
I suppose at this point I could use an excuse like, “Work requires me to be disciplined and structured, so I don’t want to do that when I’m playing guitar.”
And as I read that I realize how ridiculous that excuse is!
Music follows natural laws of physics - you can’t deny it, and you can’t fight it, no matter how "loose, wild, and free" you want to be!
But there are good reasons to have some unstructured playing time built into your routine.
You get to test-drive the skills and techniques you’ve been practicing
It allows you to “kick off the training wheels” a bit and just play
It frees your creativity to discover new ways to play things
You can have “happy little accidents” (Bob Ross) that reveal cool sounds
Just jamming is fun - practicing shouldn’t be a chore!
New songs and ideas require creativity, and if you’re too rigid in your routine, it doesn’t let you do any exploration. It’s great to have solid clinical skills, but to make new music, you need to give yourself freedom to "step out of your lane.”
If you think about it, there aren’t any “new” sounds musically, at least from the traditional sense of melody and harmony (and rhythm, for that matter).
But artists (and yes, if you play guitar, you’re an artist, even if you don’t consider yourself at that level yet) come up with new songs ALL THE TIME.
There are unlimited to ways to combine and manipulate sounds. And each one of us has a unique, one-of-a-kind brain and body, so we will react to and hear sounds differently than every other creature on the planet.
Sure, there are commonalities, but you will hear subtle, distinct sounds in a song that I’ll miss. Or a riff will affect you in a different way.
Think about it…
A chord progression using G, C, and D chords can be played a million ways. You and I would hear the chords played, but you would think one melody, and I might think of a counter-melody or a harmony to your melody.
Or I could get an idea for the percussion while you imagine a cool bass line.
What Do You Think?
Creativity is one of the reasons we learn to play an instrument in the first place. But in order to gain the skills you need to capitalize on your creative expression, you’ve got to dedicate time for learning your way around the fingerboard.
Would you be interested in exploring the different practice approaches more? Like receiving a practice prompt from me and trying it out on your own?
Let me know by replying ’YES’ or ’NO’.
Happy practicing!
Peace~
Dave
P.S. If there’s enough people that want to practice “together,” we could even do a Zoom call to answer questions or talk more about practice styles.
Let me know “YES” or “NO.”
Have a great weekend!
| 
