{"id":135146,"date":"2023-03-05T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-03-05T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/acousticguitar.com\/?p=135146"},"modified":"2023-10-02T13:58:44","modified_gmt":"2023-10-02T20:58:44","slug":"12-ways-to-challenge-yourself-and-discover-new-territory-on-guitar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/acousticguitar.com\/12-ways-to-challenge-yourself-and-discover-new-territory-on-guitar\/","title":{"rendered":"12 Ways to Challenge Yourself and Discover New Territory on Guitar"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It happens to all musicians, at any level of skill or experience: You hit a point where you\u2019re playing the same things every time you sit down with the guitar\u2014a limited repertoire of songs, progressions, and patterns that are familiar and manageable. Over time you become less attentive and engaged with the music, and you start feeling like you\u2019re on a treadmill\u2014going through the motions while looking at the same wall. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The musicians\u2019 path, for beginners and seasoned players alike, is all about continuing to move forward, learn, and grow. So how do you push yourself and regain the sense of momentum and progress? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I posed that question to a group of accomplished artists\/educators, and here they share some of their favorite exercises, strategies, and tricks for helping their students\u2014and themselves!\u2014get beyond the comfort zone and discover new territory on the guitar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Janet<\/a>
Janet Feld. Photo: Rupa K LLC<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Clean up the Changes<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Especially in the early stages of learning guitar, one major challenge is making clean chord changes while staying in time. Playing a song, you might hit trouble spots where you don\u2019t get to the next shape fast enough, so you drop the rhythm for a moment while resetting the fingering. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Janet Feld, a Boston-based performer\/teacher and staff instructor for the Passim School of Music, has long seen students hit this hurdle and offers three favorite exercises for getting over it\u2014by forcing them out of their comfortable habit of stopping and starting. \u201cI help them to the other side with exercises that don\u2019t give them time to think about what they\u2019re doing. Before each one, I let them know it will likely feel like I\u2019m making them practice their mistakes in a way that will piss off their inner Hermione,\u201d she says, referencing the high-achieving Harry Potter character.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Feld refers to her first exercise as strum torture, and she adapts it for different levels. For beginners, play a song you\u2019re learning extremely slowly and keep your strumming hand on the beat, even if you screw up the chords with your fretting hand. In her video demo, she uses the chords from \u201cAmazing Grace\u201d in the key of A, as in Example 1,<\/strong> played at the very leisurely tempo of around 30 bpm. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more advanced guitarists, play through one section of a song several times, much faster than you are comfortable with\u2014again, while maintaining the tempo even if you flub the fingerings. \u201cAfter three or four rounds,\u201d she says, \u201cplay it a bit slower, and it generally feels easier.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another exercise she recommends is to practice switching between the chords of a song with your eyes closed. This can help build trust that your fingers do, in fact, know where to go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, try the exercise she calls lift and drop. Take a short chord progression (in the video, she uses Em\u2013C\u2013D\u2013G from Neil Young\u2019s \u201cHeart of Gold\u201d). Fret the first chord; lift your fingers off the strings while retaining the shape; change to the next chord shape without touching the strings; and then drop that new shape onto the strings. If you don\u2019t land the shape exactly right, adjust your fingers only after<\/em> you drop onto the strings. And so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Larry<\/a>
Larry Baione<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Practice Scales<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Often, guitarists get comfortable in one zone on the fretboard and want to explore more of the neck. Working with scales is a great way to do that, advises Larry Baione, jazz guitarist and emeritus chair of the guitar department at Berklee College of Music. \u201cLearning scales helps us organize that ambiguous guitar fingerboard,\u201d he says. \u201cAnyone can easily see the C major scale on the piano, but it is a different story on the guitar.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Baione developed and teaches a Berklee Online course called Scales 101. \u201cI have seen great improvement in my students\u2019 technique, sound, time-feel, and connection to the instrument,\u201d he says. \u201cLearning scales gives us practical fingerings for playing melodies. And playing melodies with less effort and less unnecessary movement gives us more control.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are many ways to practice scales on guitar, from staying in one position to moving along a single string. One very beneficial exercise, Baione says, is playing three-octave scales. In his video demo, he plays a G major scale from the G on the sixth string, third fret, all the way up to G on the first string, 15th fret, as shown in Example 2<\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As you move up the neck, work on smoothly connecting the notes so you can\u2019t hear the shifts from second to seventh to 12th position, as indicated in the notation. \u201cPlaying three-octave scales is a challenge at first,\u201d he says, \u201cbut you will become more relaxed moving from one position to the next, and your coordination between your hands will improve.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Stash<\/a>
Stash Wyslouch. Photo: Mariel Vandersteel Wyslouch<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Practice Intervals<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Stash Wyslouch, a progressive bluegrass player and teacher of flatpicking styles, suggests another way to work with scales: by focusing on a specific interval.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Take, for instance, a Bb major scale in third position. Instead of ascending and descending the scale in steps, as in Example 3a<\/strong>, play each note and then the note a fifth above (or below, on the way down). So by scale degree, play 1\u20135, 2\u20136, 3\u20137, 4\u20131, 5\u20132, 6\u20133, and 7\u20134; descending, play 1\u20134, 7\u20133, 6\u20132, etc., as in Example 3b<\/strong>. This exercise, Wyslouch says, helps you get this interval under your fingers and into your ear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once you\u2019re oriented with the intervals, try improvising melodies based primarily on them. \u201cGo really slow and try to hear as the notes move,\u201d he advises. \u201cPush yourself not to just play the scale exercise but to move in different places with the new interval being the dominant ingredient.\u201d Example 3c <\/strong>shows an excerpt from Wyslouch\u2019s improvisation in his video demo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI always go back to this exercise,\u201d he says, \u201cand the more you develop as a musician, the more this exercise can develop with you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Jeffrey<\/a>
Jeffrey Pepper Rodgers<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Move a Melody Around the Fingerboard<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

One of my own favorite ways to explore new territory on the fretboard is playing a melody in different positions and keys\u2014without a capo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A simple melody works well for this purpose. In my video, I try it out with Stephen Foster\u2019s \u201cOh! Susanna.\u201d First, play the melody in as many octaves and locations as you can. In the key of C, the melody starts on the root (C), which can be found on the sixth string, eighth fret; fifth string, third fret; fourth string, tenth fret; third string, fifth fret; second string, first fret or 13th fret; and first string, eighth fret. In all these locations, work on creating fluid, vocal-like phrasing with hammer-ons, pull-offs, and slides, and add some bass notes and other supporting chord tones if you like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now transpose the melody into other keys. First go to the other most common guitar keys, G, A, E, and D, and again find the melody in different positions on the neck. For extra challenge, give keys like F and Bb a shot too. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Working with a melody like this is hugely helpful for developing the ability to play what you hear, and it\u2019s bound to lead you to new fingerings. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Adam<\/a>
Adam Levy. Erika Kapin Photography<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Follow the Form<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Studying the melody and harmony of a great song can yield many fresh ideas (see Here\u2019s How on creative covers, on page 38, for more). So, too, can mapping out the lyrics and form, points out guitarist\/songwriter Adam Levy, creator of Guitar Tips Pro video lessons and contributor to the recent AG<\/em> book Play Guitar Like the Great Singer-Songwriters<\/em>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI often recommend a transcribing exercise for my songwriting students, but not the way we often think of it\u2014i.e., writing down notes that someone else has played on a recording,\u201d he says. \u201cInstead, transcribe the lyrics to a song you\u2019re intrigued by. Lyrics to many songs can easily be found online, of course, but doing the work yourself requires active listening and can help you get a better sense of the song\u2019s architecture\u2014wordplay, rhymes, meter, song form, and so on.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With this transcription in hand, try writing an entirely new song using the same structure. \u201cThis helps you break out of writing in the same sorts of forms\u2014a rut that rookie writers often fall into,\u201d he says. \u201cThis exercise can also keep you from getting too hung up on finer details, like a particular word or melody note. Focusing on form gets you to zoom out a bit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Al<\/a>
Al Petteway<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Recast a Familiar Song<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Fingerstyle guitarist Al Petteway, author of many instruction books and videos, and Guitar Week coordinator at North Carolina\u2019s Swannanoa Gathering, offers an interesting idea for playing around with a song: take a familiar major-key song and change it to a minor key. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his video, he runs through the process with the traditional song \u201cThe Water Is Wide,\u201d creating off-the-cuff versions in multiple keys and tunings. Initially tuned to DADGAD, he works out the melody in G major, adds bass notes, and fills out the sound with additional chord tones. Play his opening phrase in Example 4a<\/strong>, then check out the minor version in Example 4b<\/strong>\u2014quite a dramatic change, and full of potential for development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From there, Petteway continues to check out other possibilities for the song: playing in D major (Example 4c<\/strong>) and D minor (Example 4d<\/strong>) in DADGAD, and finally in standard tuning in several keys and positions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019re bound to make mistakes figuring out all these variations, and that is really the point. \u201cMy number one goal is to have fun playing the guitar,\u201d he says. \u201cDon\u2019t worry about being perfect\u2014just worry about stretching your imagination a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"guitarist<\/a>
David Hamburger. Photo: Sarah Bork Hamilton<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Transcribe from Another Instrument<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

One surefire way to get out of the box on guitar is to take ideas and inspiration from different instruments. Play fiddle tunes, upright bass lines, piano chords, horn charts… whatever catches your ear. The beauty is that these parts are not defined by the mechanics of the guitar, so adapting them to guitar automatically pushes you into new territory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Blues fingerpicker David Hamburger, author of The Acoustic Guitar Method<\/a><\/em> and creator of the online learning site Fretboard Confidential<\/a>, says he\u2019s been finding all sorts of guitar inspiration from his latest musical endeavor: learning to play the drums. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTaking up the drums feels a little ridiculous, but that\u2019s what makes it exciting and fun, too,\u201d he says. \u201cIt gives me a chance to be a beginner again, where every little discovery or achievement is a thrill. Most surprisingly, learning the drums has given me new insight into what\u2019s going on when I play fingerstyle blues. The interdependence it takes to play a basic groove with the kick drum, hi-hat, and snare is nothing but a metaphor for driving the bass with your thumb while coordinating licks and chords on top with your fingers.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a sample of the kind of fingerstyle idea he\u2019s discovering thanks to drums, he shares Example 5<\/strong>. Rather than playing an alternating or steady bass, pick pairs of eighth notes on beats 1 (open fifth string) and 3 (open sixth string) with your thumb\u2014the kind of pattern a drummer might do on the kick. On the backbeats (2 and 4), play chordal riffs up in fifth position\u2014that\u2019s your snare. The result is a fresh, funky sound quite different from standard fingerpicking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In addition to discoveries like this, Hamburger says, \u201cI\u2019m now listening to even old familiar recordings with completely different priorities and hearing groove in a whole new way, which is giving me countless ideas for new things to try on the guitar.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Frank<\/a>
Frank Vignola. Photo courtesy of Roger Sadowsky<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Go Random<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If your goal is to break out of familiar patterns, what better way than to follow no pattern at all?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jazz guitar master Frank Vignola, prolific author of video courses on jazz technique and repertoire, suggest an exercise where you set a metronome and play random eighth notes\u2014moving all over the fingerboard, crossing strings, and playing whatever pops up, without regard to scales or keys or any other logic. Just focus on the clarity of the notes, and be sure to stay in time. Check out his video for a sample of how this might sound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNo preconceived thing,\u201d he says. \u201cJust keep playing! Try to make combinations you never do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Vicki<\/a>
Vicki Genfan with Luna VG Signature guitar. photo: Sean Vennett<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Get Lost<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Another fan of getting into the random zone is fingerstyle guitar soloist Vicki Genfan, creator of video lessons on acoustic guitar rhythm, tapping, open tunings, and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy college classical guitar instructor gave some wonderful advice,\u201d she says. \u201cHe told us to spend the first five minutes of any practice session playing things we\u2019d never<\/em> played before. It\u2019s not as easy as it might sound. I\u2019ve taken that suggestion and expanded on it over the past 30 years and have been sharing it with my students ever since. I call it rut-busting. Rut-busting helps us develop the ability to move away from the familiar and into uncharted places. It\u2019s a great aid in coming up with new ideas or riffs for songs or arrangements.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The rule of rut-busting is that there are no rules. \u201cPick up your instrument and allow yourself to explore it like you\u2019ve never seen or touched it before, like you\u2019re a child with a new toy,\u201d Genfan says. \u201cAny time you go back to a familiar pattern, chord, or riff\u2014try finding a new way to move your hands. There are no wrong notes, no wrong sounds. Pure exploration, pure fun. This gets easier the more you do it. Start with a minute and extend the time as you are able. It\u2019s really liberating!\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Using a less familiar alternate tuning is a great way to get into that exploratory space, she adds. That\u2019s what she does in her video demo in open-G tuning, playing two minutes of free-form tapping, slapping, single-note lines, arpeggios, and driving grooves, by turns dissonant and softly melodic\u2014and never predictable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One last piece of advice from Genfan: \u201cHave a recording device on. I promise you\u2019ll be glad you did.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Karen<\/a>
Karen Hogg. Photo: Charlotte Hunton<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Believe That You Can<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Most of the above tips focus on physical obstacles on the instrument\u2014breaking up patterns and finding new ways to traverse the fingerboard. Remember, too, that the learning process has many psychological aspects as well. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA lot of what holds people back has nothing to do with music, but with self-talk,\u201d notes Karen Hogg, a Connecticut-based teacher and author of method books for guitar and ukulele. \u201cIt\u2019s hard to manage your own self-talk. I\u2019ve seen so many times where people talk themselves out of stuff. They will say, \u2018Oh, I can\u2019t do this\u2019 or \u2018I can\u2019t write songs\u2019 or \u2018I can\u2019t improvise,\u2019 and you know damn well that they can.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hogg has faced this kind of self-doubt herself as a vocalist. \u201cI\u2019ve been playing guitar since I was ten, so that\u2019s so much a part of me, but the singing was definitely out of my comfort zone,\u201d she says. \u201cNo matter how other people might perceive it, in my head I\u2019m still like, I\u2019m not a singer. But I\u2019m learning to shift that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The key to getting past this barrier is just believing that you can, she says. \u201cA lot of times, getting out of the comfort zone is more about dealing with your internal dialogue.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Play for People<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Many guitarists are hesitant or resistant to performing, but playing in public is, no doubt, a powerful motivator for learning at any age or stage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re up in front of people, it forces you to practice, because you don\u2019t want to mess up,\u201d Hogg says. \u201cI try to put people in supportive environments. There are so many community-oriented events now for people at all levels\u2014Make Music Day is a big one. In the past couple years I\u2019ve had both adults and kids performing out in front of the music store where I teach. That\u2019s something where you don\u2019t have to feel, \u2018Oh, I\u2019m not a professional musician.\u2019 It pushes people beyond their comfort level, and they see that they survive afterwards. Life goes on though even if there are mistakes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From open mics to song circles to guitar clubs, opportunities to play a few songs in a low-key environment can be found just about anywhere. These events give you not only the impetus to practice, but feedback that can help guide your learning agenda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Guitarist<\/a>
Molly Miller. Photo: Anna Azarov<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Play With Someone New<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Performing may also connect you with fellow musicians to play with\u2014which is one of the most important and often underutilized things you can do to jump-start your learning, says Molly Miller, guitarist for Jason Mraz (and many others) and chair of the guitar department at Los Angeles College of Music. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u201cSo often we only stay in our comfort zone\u2014playing styles we know, with people we know (or only ourselves), in a space we\u2019ve been before, etc.,\u201d she says. \u201cI have found the thing that pushes me the most is playing with new musicians. I always get a little nervous. I practice. I think about what could I do with this person that is new. I always learn something from playing with someone else\u2014
whether that be a new song, a new groove, a new lick\u2014or it just helps me get over my fears and insecurities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCall up a friend,\u201d she advises. \u201cPost something online. Find someone new to jam with\u2014especially if it makes you a little nervous. That means you\u2019re doing the right thing!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moving Forward<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

All of us want to be good at whatever we do on guitar\u2014we want to play cleanly and confidently and expressively. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Continuing to get better on the instrument, though, depends on accepting and even embracing that when we challenge ourselves, we won\u2019t necessarily hit the mark right away. We\u2019ll make mistakes, stumble over a phrase or change, get a little frustrated. But from those awkward attempts will come new skills and new ideas that eventually, if we keep working at them, will fall within the comfort zone. Which means that it\u2019s time to stretch and explore again. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

See you out there on the trail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\"12<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"12<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"12<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"12<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
<\/a>\n

This article originally appeared in the March\/April 2023<\/a> issue of Acoustic Guitar<\/em> magazine.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We talked to a group of artists and educators who share their favorite exercises, strategies, and tricks for helping get beyond the comfort zone and discover new territory on the guitar.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":135781,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"video","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"We talked to a group of artists and educators who share their favorite exercises, strategies, and tricks for helping get beyond the comfort zone and discover new territory on the guitar.","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1667],"tags":[1606],"ppma_author":[1559],"class_list":["post-135146","post","type-post","status-publish","format-video","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-practice-performance-musicianship","tag-march-april-2023","post_format-post-format-video"],"blocksy_meta":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/acousticguitar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/The-Learning-Zone-12-Ways-featured_2.jpg?fit=1067%2C600&ssl=1","authors":[{"term_id":1559,"user_id":0,"is_guest":1,"slug":"jeffrey-pepper-rodgers","display_name":"Jeffrey Pepper Rodgers","avatar_url":{"url":"https:\/\/acousticguitar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/About-Us-8.jpg","url2x":"https:\/\/acousticguitar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/About-Us-8.jpg"},"user_url":"https:\/\/www.jeffreypepperrodgers.com\/","last_name":"","first_name":"","job_title":"","description":"Jeffrey Pepper Rodgers, founding editor of Acoustic Guitar<\/em>, is a grand prize winner of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest and author of The Complete Singer-Songwriter<\/em><\/a>, Beyond Strumming<\/em><\/a>, and other books and videos for musicians. In addition to his ongoing work with AG<\/em>, he offers live workshops for guitarists and songwriters, plus video lessons, song charts, and tab, on Patreon<\/a>.\r\n"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/acousticguitar.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135146","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/acousticguitar.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/acousticguitar.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acousticguitar.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acousticguitar.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=135146"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/acousticguitar.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135146\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":140245,"href":"https:\/\/acousticguitar.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/135146\/revisions\/140245"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acousticguitar.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/135781"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/acousticguitar.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=135146"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acousticguitar.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=135146"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acousticguitar.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=135146"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/acousticguitar.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=135146"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}