Lesson question

[Lilly Palmer]

Hi everyone! So I am the epitome of a beginner and I have started from ground zero on learning from the Syn school. So far I LOVE IT! I do have a question and would like some feedback. I am currently learning the C major scale and I want to know how long you guys recommend staying on a certain lesson. I don’t want to move too quickly because I want to understand what I’m being taught. Do you recommend practicing a lesson for a while or moving right through once you grab the concept and then revisiting it… I’m having such a great time with this!

 

[idssdi]

It’s a good idea to stay ona subject until you can fully grab it theoretically and apply it. With applying I mean for example when you improv you can comfortably use a technique or certain scales without overthinking too much. Once you feel like you fully grabbed the concept and can apply it too you can move on to the next topic. This may sound boring but you can always try to learn a couple songs and spend 30 minutes on the lesson you’re at and then 30 minutes just having fun with some backingtracks or songs. Remember in the end having fun is one of the most important things!

 

[Jak Angelescu]

The way I would approach the lessons here is to stay about a week on each lesson. I tried to give myself a work schedule like I’m in school. Because I found out that staying on only one lesson a week got very boring. What I would do for you since you are a beginner, a spend about 30 minutes A-day on 2 lessons at a time and work on them for at least a week. This is about the time period that if you were to have a guitar teacher or be enrolled in a school they would then move you on to something else. Of course if you are struggling with something (you could be your own gauge with that) you would want to stay on it a little bit longer. As far as the C major scale goes, make sure that you truly understand the concept of it. Such as the formula, the notes on the neck and being able to play it over a backing track. I always recommend beginners to find the C Note on the guitar in other places and find the C major Scale pattern based off of that position. When you do that, you are forced to learn the notes everywhere on the neck and believe it or not you can construct pretty cool solos very quickly with it! I would also suggest that you write your own little solo, even if it’s only 15 seconds long just to make sure that you are able to either write or improv with it. It doesn’t have to be fancy at all! I am so excited to see your future progress!

 

[Brian Thibodeau]

I’ll give you an example of how I practice. I’m working on multiple things right now : finger independance, legato speed and stamina, alternate picking speed and economy picking speed. I also have some other things I “know” that I keep working on : major scale modes, 7th arpeggios, and the 5 pentatonic positions. So what my practice routine looks like is:
-Chromatic exercise from hell (1-2-3-4 with every finger combination. I think I saw Papa teach this exercise in one of the lessons)
-Every finger combination on 1 string with hammer-ons and pull-offs, at a constant tempo for 45 seconds each
-5 minutes of crossover picking exercises
-7 minutes of an economy picking pattern that goes through the major scale
-5 minutes of all the major scale mode patterns linked together starting with a root on the 6th string
-5 minutes of all the major scale mode patterns linked together starting with a root on the 5th string
-5 minutes of all the major scale mode patterns starting from the same root note on the 6th string
-5 minutes of all the major scale mode patterns starting from the same root note on the 5th string
-5 minutes of the Maj7th, min7th, dom7th and min7b5 arpeggios starting with a root on the 6th string
-5 minutes of the Maj7th, min7th, dom7th and min7b5 arpeggios starting with a root on the 5th string
-5 minutes of fooling around with the 5 pentatonic positions (one after the other, mix them up etc)
I do this everyday, with a metronome or drum track. I note what BPM I can play these exercises at after every practice, so I can see my progress and what I need to work on more.
So if I’m learning something new, let’s say I’d learn the whole tone scale or something. I’ll spend maybe 20 minutes a day on it for a week, until I’m somewhat semi-comfortable with it, then I’ll add a 5 minute practice period in my practice routine.
So spend the time you need to spend to feel comfortable-ish, then integrate that in your practice routine until you absolutely slay it. Then, keep doing it maybe once a week. There are techniques and theory that will keep coming back in upcoming topic you’ll learn.
As for the major scale, the theory behind it is the foundation for everything else you’re going to learn, so make sure you grasp it. Call out the notes out loud when going through it, then call out the degrees of each note. What will come of that is when you look at a new scale or mode and see a minor 3rd and minor 7th, you’ll be able to play it without having to look at a pattern or tab.
Learning music theory is like learning a new language. You can’t just memorize the words, you need to learn how to build and understand phrases. It can seem daunting, but remember, there are only 12 notes in western music
Edit: Don’t over do it, I’ve found spending 20-30 minutes a day on something yields more result than one 3-hour session a week.

 

[Lilly Palmer]

Wow you guys are so awesome!! Thank you so much for the advice! I absolutely love the input and it is so extremely helpful. I still feel like I’m throwing a ball with my non dominant hand haha! I really appreciate you guys taking the time to share your ideas and insight! Hopefully I’ll be back on soon with a video so you can see what I’m learning and hopefully give me some constructive criticism! Thank you again so much!