Practice log 12-06-2021

I’m still expanding my chord vocabulary, now with Robert’s „Rockin‘ My Blues » rhythm lesson in E. The rhythm lesson is amazing, I love it, but the E7, A7 and B7 were the most difficult chords resp voicings for me so far!

Especially the E7 played on the D, G and B strings with muting the high E string. And the change from E7 to A7 was difficult at first and therby not forgetting to mute all the unwanted strings.

A big challenge for me! I have a lot of practice time behind me and there is still a lot to do. I’ll keep working on it until it sounds good.

But I’m so glad that I was able to make a 1st recording (at 110 bpm instead of 120 bpm).

Birgit

Great progress!  I see you moving with the beat and feeling the groove.  And the old saying, "Speed will come" means that you must have the wisdom to play at the speed in your limits, and then increase. 

Birgit, Mary Had a Little Lamb is a swinging song with a lot going on with the guitar playing over the rhythm.  It's a Very Challenging upbeat tune.  Given that challenge, keep going, but set the guitar aside and swing your head/body and tap the beat with your hands while humming the notes.  Once you have that, hum and tap the notes with your hands on your legs or desk top.  THEN... Then pick up the guitar!

When you pick up the guitar, just play the chord strums like you are the rhythm section.  There is a whole lot of funky syncopation in the chord strikes.  Take a brake and them play only the individual notes.  Rock On!!!

That's sweet! You are 2 bars ahead though. Can you hear when the bass goes to the next chord? My advice is to listen to the track first. Hum the rhythm you intend to play, to the track, without a guitar. That should help! Thanks for posting - I love it!

@robert, thanks a lot for your kind words 😊. 

And thank you for your hint with the 2 bars. I always appreciate the support.

I’ll listen carefully to my recording and I’ll analyse that and in the new year I’ll present a 2nd recording with everything I can improve.

I’m always thrilled that you simplify challenging songs in such a way that they still sound very good and also enable beginners to find a starting point.

This version is still a challenge for me, too, that’s good!, but otherwise I would never have found my way to „Mary had a little lamb“.

Even if I can’t get beyond this version technically, it‘s so much fun to play! I’m grateful for that.

Birgit

Posted by: @bluesiline

Even if I can’t get beyond this version technically, it‘s so much fun to play!

That's the way!

Practice log  01-05-2022

After a quiet Christmas break at home I resumed my guitar practice.

I’m still working with dyads on GB strings (Robert’s lesson « Small Blues Chord Tricks »). I’ve made up my mind to really stick to learning dyads! What I noticed is that it is a little bit easier for me when I use a funk rhythm.

I’m also about to practice Robert’s « Comping the Blues 1 – Key of A »  from his lesson « Voicing & Comping the Blues ».

I love the jazzy sound of the A9, A13, D9, D13, E9 and E13 and it makes so much fun learning to play these chords over a 12 bar blues.

It doesn’t look that difficult, but it is still a challenge for me to switch between the 9ths and the 13ths. But it gets better and better.  I will present a video in my next practice log.

Birgit

Practice log 01-11-2022

Here is my first trial of Robert’s «Comping the  Blues 1 - Key of A » from his lesson «Voicing & Comping the Blues».

It’s a big challenge for me practicing these beautiful chord voicings (A9, D13, E13 for the first 12 bars and A13, D9 and E9 for the second 12 bars).

But after many many attempts I’m glad that I was able to make a first recording over 24 bars and a few more at 100 bpm.

Now I can see that I have a lot to work on:

-      Playing the chords cleanly

-     More steady movements of my strumming hand

-     Getting a looser strumming hand

I stay tuned to improve my playing,

Birgit

@bluesiline Always a lot of respect the way you practice.
Well done Birgit! A warm applause from Holland. 👏👏👏👏👏👏

Practice log 01-26-2022

In December 2021, I had a discussion on the forum on double stops with Robert and Clayton. I mentioned that I regularly loose my courage when I try to practice them and that I can’t get into the « start » mode. I regularly gave up.

However, Robert and Clayton encouraged me to try it again. I promised to give a feedback and here it is:

I worked hard to get a new start on double stops. In this context I have to mention that Robert’s wonderful lesson « Funky Blues with Licks and Rhythm – YL31“, helped me a lot. I was very touched by this lesson and so I gave it a try. I simplified the lesson and adapted it to my restricted skills.

Here is my very first recording at 100 bpm.

There is still a lot to do until it sounds good, but I’m very happy that I made a start.

In December, Clayton said to me: « I promise you an infection of double stops that will always be part of your playing. And that infection leads to such ear training, expression, and freedom on the fretboard. »

Thank you, Clayton, I’ve been infected, YES, and now I try my best to improve my playing.

Birgit

That is fantastic, Birgit!  I know that double stops can seem overwhelming but your efforts are proof that they are not so complicated.  Infectious indeed, welcome to the double stop club, it sounds great.

And big cheers to you modifying the lesson to reach your performance AND POSTING! 

Next stops ( 😎 ) Slides and/or hammer on (I saw some hammer on action in your video) from a double stop position lower on the fretboard, and THEN, Glorious Sixths.  There is no cure for what you have caught.  You've Got The Power.

That is great to see! You are getting the hang of it, more and more. My observation is that your right hand position can be improved. I know this is hard to change overnight, but I believe it would be easier for you if you rest your palm on the bridge and on the thicker strings that you are not playing. I'll try and make a quick video about this.

@bluesiline in one word Fantastic Birgit love this!
Tonight i take a bite from a great piece of Switzers Milka chocolate. 😀 

@blues-lover 

Thanks a lot, André, for your kind words. Your support always puts a big 😊 on my face.

I’m glad I did this step again because double stops really do something with me. The beautiful sound keeps me focusing on the rhythm and pushes me forward, so to speak, although everthing is still in „slow motion“ and I need more practice to get a good sound.

I’m convinced that this is the right way for me to better feel and express the groove of a song in the future.

Thanks for your solidarity – I hope you enjoyed the swiss chocolate 😊,

Greetings to Holland,

Birgit

@bluesiline Your Welcome Birgit!
You deserve compliments with all your hardworking guitar exercises

Yeah we enjoyed the Swiss chocolate! My wife and are both addicted, so we must share it! 🤣 

Birgit, I started working on a different lesson that will be easier. This one you are doing is actually a bit hard technically. The 5 single notes I play with my hand planted on top of the strings, but the double stops are "free strum" style. That's tricky. 

In general, you would play double stops with the hand planted on top of the strings. It's much easier.

I am thinking I will do a longer lesson on playing through the most common modes, using only double stops, on EB, BG, GD, DA, AE string pairs. It would a pretty long lesson but very useful. It's very powerful to know this stuff so you can play it without thinking.