Some scripts for videos about playing mistakes and habits for guitar players Fundamental playing mistakes guitar video
For you guys, mainly autodidacts. There are a myriad of things we can do wrong on the guitar and we need to polish this until we got a shiny finish on our playing. There are things related to the rhythm, sound and many not related to actually playing but behaviour like listening, turning down volume, competing.
Pressing to much will produce notes out of tune, they will be to sharp (never flat).
buzzing occurs when you press not hard enough. This may especially happen with chords and runs you don't control very well.
Pressing not near the fret in direction of the ringing string may produce buzzzing sounds.
Using the right plektrum and correlated technique is imperative.
A hard plek helps getting strong dynamics but is not so easy to handle.
A soft plektrum will make less noise but dynamics are not that easy to handle.
Pay attention to the position you pick. Near to the bridge results in a crispy tone.
Near to the fretboard is a warmer tone.
It is easy to make noise with the plek. using distortion most of the noise get's suppressed, so practise with a clean sound to get a clean tone.
Notice when you are creating unwanted overtones. Some of them are not ok in the musical context. I.e. on a minor chord you create major thirds on the root note. That hurts the ears.
You move to much one finger, usually the pinky is like crazy raising or put under your fretboard.
Damping is a subtle technique, very much used for good dynamics and rhythmic play.
For a good damping you need to put your palm in the right position.
Left hand muting is much used in funky comps and good bass play.
Bending, essential for the blues man must be secure. Sing the note you want to reach
Only play when you are expected to play. It is the most troubling thing I encounter when guitar players run off into the reals of some excercise while someone is explaining something.
Done playing? Turn down the volume knob. Avoid feedback, avoid noise when you touch your instrument.
Learn to listen to others, keep calm, concentrate on how they play, how is the phrasing, what are the notes envolved. Can you hear if it is a minor, major, diminished stuff?
Ever listened to yourself? Do it, listen to what you play. If you can't listen to yourself then at least record what you are doing and listen to eat after playing. Are you playing on beat, out of beat.
Again, make music, make people dance. It is not about your skills but about making music. If it is just about your skills you should become a circus artist.
If you play with many others you need to give room to the other instruments playing. You are not that special and everything should be in function of making music, not exhibiting the big ego. You can limit chords by not playing roots, fifth.
as with limiting chords to the essential, the same rule applies to playing with effects. The more effect the more chaos.
Play fast, but not to fast. Playing to fast without being in time is horrible. And fast is out, make music, don't show off with lightning speed. A little trick: build into your phrasing some very fast runs, maybe once an evening. People will believe that you can do it and, more importantly, understand that you don't want to. It's a choice of style.
Making music is about, yeah right, making music. Have fun. Make mistakes and have more fun.
Like playing fast or extremly witty, making music is not a competition. It is, drum-roll, tada... about making music.
Play firm, clear, don't play unsecure. You want that people hear you. You have something to say, say it. And remember, people actually don't now what you are going to play. So, no wrong is possible.
If you haven't any idea on what to play, don't play. It is that easy. Stand still, listen to what is going on, and then, perhaps, you get the flow and can start making music.
Try to avoid habits, like sliding down every time you finished a phrase. It's like the "ehm" when someone talks. Annoying and doesn't serve any real purpose.
Make pauses, you don't need to play all the time. If you have a real nice phrase then let it stay in the room. Let it live and breath, don't kill it with a new phrase.
Give space to everyone. Enough said. It is your turn.
Only raise speed when you are playing clean. Remember to listen to yourself.
Excercise with a metronome, but don't overuse it. Slow songs need a free interpretation of rhythm. Try to understand how to play before or after the beat.
There are skills that are not really essential while playing a song, but however important. Skills like tuning, melodic memory.
Try always tuning by ear when playing at home. Use dOpen tunings to train your tuning skills.
By ear you can tune wrongly when using flageoletts. You have to know that the quints and quarts are actually not clean.
Yeah, lot pf training, scales up and down. Patterns and more patterns. But is this music or painting by numbers?