You play guitar for a while, you're on track and then out of nowhere, suddenly, does not seem to matter what you do-you simply can not seem to make any progress!
Here are some tips to help you get your guitar playing back on track.
1. Put the guitar away for a day, week or even one month.
Go for a total and complete abstinence from the guitar. You might even want to take a step further and also to avoid listening to music too.
When taking a break from music, playing guitar and usually will begin to get those strong "gotta play" urges.
When you resume playing guitar you can look with fresh eyes.
2. Learn a song from a different style of music.
Let's say your favorite guitar playing style is rock. Learn to play jazz guitar, singing a blues song, a country song, a reggae track, or a classical guitar, singing, etc.
You can find something in a very different style than usual, you can play or learn something that is similar or related styles.
If your ears are in good condition know the song by ear. Otherwise, find a sheet music for the song.
Bear in mind that a great source for underutilized sheet music is your local library. If you live in a small town visit the nearest major town library. Also remember for college and university libraries.
3. Mathaina guitar theory.
I remember when I started to play guitar. You could not have paid me to learn guitar, theoretically. Everything you wanted to do was to learn my favorite songs and improve my technique. But then I realized that my plays could only go so far and if we do not have idea about what I did.
After more than 25 years of teaching, I can safely say that for most guitarists, the greatest discoveries and rut busters from learning the guitar a theory.
The big issue is that you do not have to go in this hardcore. Simply learning the basics of guitar theory will have a huge impact on your playing.
When you do not know guitar, theoretically, is like wandering around in a huge mansion with the lights off. With knowledge of the theory guitar is like you find and switch on the lights turned!
4. Emphasis on guitar technique.
Another great thing to do to catapult your guitar playing to the next level, is to focus exclusively on your guitar technique.
What you do is set aside either an entire practice session, or an entire week of practice sessions and do nothing but work on technique.
So, we'll work on alternate picking, hammer-ons and pull-offs, tapping, sweep picking, finger-picking exercises and stretching.
We do any work on songs, or anything else-you just practice technique.
After you have made your return to your regular practice routine.
5. String ignore do some exercises.
Still in the field of technology, a big rut-buster is to work for ignoring string exercises. These exercises are more guitarists seem to forget to use.
String skipping exercises will improve your pick-hand technique, the goods-hand technique and coordination.
6. Learn to play horn parts on the guitar.
This is an excellent. I am not talking about learning to reproduce the sound of car horns on guitar, I am talking about learning to play SAX, clarinet, oboe, trumpet or parts on the guitar.
The first thing you will discover, especially if you learn some jazz pieces, is that most lines horn does not sit very well with the guitar. What I mean by that is that they do not sit very well under your fingers. So when you play a Charlie Parker sax solo guitar for you really need to work!
The other cool thing to do with horn sections is to try to match the wording as much as possible. This will give you all kinds of fresh ideas for your playing lead guitar.
7. Learn guitar piece for piano.
You have three choices. You can learn the chords and melody for piano part and to arrange for guitar, or you can create an arrangement whereby you both.
When you do what you do afterwards so-called "chord melody" style. Create a system in which you play two chords and melody together. Classical guitarists do this all the time and you'll hear solo jazz guitarists use this technique.
It is kind of like «one-man-band" approach to guitar playing. It's fun to play and always sounds cool!
8. Learn a piece for violin and guitar cares.
This can also be much fun. Take a Bach, Mozart, Paganini or track and arrange parties for violin guitar. These songs sound really cool for guitar and will have a great technical guitar work.
9. Mathaina guitar new scales.
If you know the scale is only the minor pentatonic, it's time to look at the larger world of guitar scales. As you learn new scales will give your fingers a few new challenges and more importantly will give yourself some new tools for creating killer guitar solo.
When you think about it, a guitar solo is just a melody that uses one or more guitar scales that work well in the evolution of reach.
So if you want more variety in your solo guitar, guitar learn some new scales.
Also, be sure to learn about these multiple guitar fingerings scales. Different scale fingerings will give you a different melodic ideas. The other cool thing is when you know many ways to play the same scale as the guitar, you can connect them together and cover the entire fretboard in the key. This is a way for the creation of these large fretboard-burning licks.
10. Practice guitar scales new ways.
Yes, learning new guitar scales are great, but merely to exercise the front and back are quite boring. Practicing scales in thirds, fourths, fifths and sixths are good. But we must also practice using different scales and more elaborate melodic patterns and sequences.
11. Learn some new guitar strings.
Let's face. In most popular songs, 80% of the parts involved playing guitar chords. This means that the overwhelming majority of your playing, especially if you're in a band, has to do with chords.
So spend some time working on new guitar strings.
Get a good guitar chord book, if you do not already have one, and decide that they can learn new chords 3 each week. This means that you will learn 12 new guitar chords each month. As you can imagine, this would add quickly. In one year we have added 144 new guitar chords in your vocabulary.
The key when you can learn these new guitar strings is that we must find a way to use them.
If you learn a new chord, and therefore have no way to use it, is like learning a new word and never will be able to use it in conversation. In a short period of time will have forgotten the word. The same is true with strings, if you do not use them you'll forget how to play.
Just play and enjoy what your doing and practice hard you'll get better and better in your guitar playing.
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Showing posts with label lesson. Show all posts
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Monday, September 1, 2008
Friday, August 22, 2008
Learn guitar solo techniques
There is no real best way to learn guitar solo techniques and the best guitarists in the world learned their trade in many different ways. Some, like Jimi Hendrix, learned from watching and listening to others play, and tried to copy them using their own cheap guitar. Other books purchased to teach them, while others followed video courses. Some might even provide personal tuition, but they all had something in common.
They all understand the importance of techniques that will help make it easier playing guitar. Nobody was ever really good not knowing that, by learning these techniques could turn a note into three or four others, or to hold onto a note long after lesser players have lost theirs.
Many of these techniques were acquired, not taught as such, and on the basis that someone had to have played the first vibrato note, many of the major players who invented their own way of playing solo guitar. These techniques can now be taught via video, since it would be extremely difficult to do using traditional learning guitar book.
Guitar solo techniques must be proved by the results they produce. We know the sound intended to be confident that plays correctly. What are these techniques, and how are they playing? Ready to learn how important it is to learn from video, and how difficult it is to do with written instructions.
The hammer for
This is a technique used by almost all solo guitarist, and is a means to accelerate your game playing two or more notes from a pick of a string. You pick the string and play the normal note, then quickly to hammer out a different commodities for the next note, before ending the string vibrations. You can do this two or three times before losing the sound. It is important to play this hard and fast, and the string formed right in goods for the note to sound right. How should be healthy? Like two or three notes played quickly, one after another. It is much easier to show a video and hear the sound.
The Spider Walk
This is a technique which you play a commodities index you, with your next media, then the next string your ring finger with a recommendation merchandise with your pinkie, then move to another string and do it again. spider basically you can walk around the neck and up and down the frets. Not only is this a good exercise to keep your finger supplements, but can also be used for some quick riffs, while using pentatonic scales. Bass guitarists also use it very much, and still is better than proving explained in writing.
There are many, many others, but should be able to see now how even relatively lucid descriptions of the techniques are inadequate as a teaching tool, and that the video demonstration, or a personal demonstration if you find someone to do it for you, is infinitely preferable. You could run a really good hammer-spider on foot or by these descriptions? Do not need to know what they should sound? Doubt.
The best way to learn the techniques is solo guitar from the video, and a very good way to have access to video through an online guitar membership site. There are such sites online that offer tutoring through a series of videos offered by one of the many guitar instructors who specialize in specific rhythms playing. We want to learn blues techniques from a heavy metal specialist, or how to make a massive on-stage for your new sound or Gibson Start from the classical guitarist.
This is what you could get, but with only one guitar instruction videos, and that is why a guitar membership site is better than a lump sum payment for a single material. These sites allow you to visit as many times as you want, and change the instructions from one person to another, as suits you.
You can find a teacher that the vast majority of teaching in these techniques, while another is better at walking you through the scales, especially those needed to
Despite the fact that the video is one of the best ways to learn the techniques solo guitar, there are various video formats, composition and guitar sites probably offer better value that what we are offering can be more easily adapted to your specific needs . can be more easily tailored to your own specific needs.
They all understand the importance of techniques that will help make it easier playing guitar. Nobody was ever really good not knowing that, by learning these techniques could turn a note into three or four others, or to hold onto a note long after lesser players have lost theirs.
Many of these techniques were acquired, not taught as such, and on the basis that someone had to have played the first vibrato note, many of the major players who invented their own way of playing solo guitar. These techniques can now be taught via video, since it would be extremely difficult to do using traditional learning guitar book.
Guitar solo techniques must be proved by the results they produce. We know the sound intended to be confident that plays correctly. What are these techniques, and how are they playing? Ready to learn how important it is to learn from video, and how difficult it is to do with written instructions.
The hammer for
This is a technique used by almost all solo guitarist, and is a means to accelerate your game playing two or more notes from a pick of a string. You pick the string and play the normal note, then quickly to hammer out a different commodities for the next note, before ending the string vibrations. You can do this two or three times before losing the sound. It is important to play this hard and fast, and the string formed right in goods for the note to sound right. How should be healthy? Like two or three notes played quickly, one after another. It is much easier to show a video and hear the sound.
The Spider Walk
This is a technique which you play a commodities index you, with your next media, then the next string your ring finger with a recommendation merchandise with your pinkie, then move to another string and do it again. spider basically you can walk around the neck and up and down the frets. Not only is this a good exercise to keep your finger supplements, but can also be used for some quick riffs, while using pentatonic scales. Bass guitarists also use it very much, and still is better than proving explained in writing.
There are many, many others, but should be able to see now how even relatively lucid descriptions of the techniques are inadequate as a teaching tool, and that the video demonstration, or a personal demonstration if you find someone to do it for you, is infinitely preferable. You could run a really good hammer-spider on foot or by these descriptions? Do not need to know what they should sound? Doubt.
The best way to learn the techniques is solo guitar from the video, and a very good way to have access to video through an online guitar membership site. There are such sites online that offer tutoring through a series of videos offered by one of the many guitar instructors who specialize in specific rhythms playing. We want to learn blues techniques from a heavy metal specialist, or how to make a massive on-stage for your new sound or Gibson Start from the classical guitarist.
This is what you could get, but with only one guitar instruction videos, and that is why a guitar membership site is better than a lump sum payment for a single material. These sites allow you to visit as many times as you want, and change the instructions from one person to another, as suits you.
You can find a teacher that the vast majority of teaching in these techniques, while another is better at walking you through the scales, especially those needed to
Despite the fact that the video is one of the best ways to learn the techniques solo guitar, there are various video formats, composition and guitar sites probably offer better value that what we are offering can be more easily adapted to your specific needs . can be more easily tailored to your own specific needs.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Three Mistakes On Playaing Guitar
To play guitar Well, you must learn all that is to learn more about playing guitar. Although I believe that this important aspect in theory, I can not stress the importance of positive thinking. If you want to achieve success at all, you must restore the situation to think positive thoughts.
This is the lesson especially for top performers Harp guitar. It gives some of the indicators, which have the right type of thinking so that they may be able to start playing solo guitar is good enough.
1. Urgent
One of the main components of the failure is that impulsive. There will come a time when a player is the beginning of Harp and haste Affairs, who want to achieve more quickly. This is because you know that there are many things you should know.
If you are interested in results, and you want fast results, are willing to give you everything and pressure in an attempt to learn as much as you can in a very short time. However, this is a surefire way to fail. You must be patient until they understand that everything can process as i. Even if you can compress All you need to know about one day, and this is not a very effective way to learn to play the guitar.
What you must do is to break these enormous tasks in smaller bite-sized tasks and give you time to learn from them. Slowly, and will be able to play guitar. The patient is the key.
2. Low self-esteem
Pesimistichno Another thought is that once low self-esteem. When you have low self-esteem, we tend to think for themselves modest. In such cases, you are afraid of making mistakes. However, the more they are afraid, the more mistakes you make.
Improve your thoughts, so you are more able to cope with such problems. Change of mindset so that you can take to make mistakes. Tell yourself to make mistakes is not something zasramen. In fact, making mistakes and improve on them will make to plan better guitar.
You should be able to play before a small audience and take their criticism to heart and improves its weakness. Do not take you seriously negative comments, which ends with low self-esteem. Remember that making mistakes is good, but only if you take these comments and improve upon them.
3. Payment for
Harp contractors of the project sometimes not focusing on the tasks at hand and this is training to play guitar, too. You have many things you want, or what to do, you have to do them all at the same time. For example, much of your free time is spent on means of entertainment.
What is your goal? If your goal is to play the guitar and needs to concentrate on the tasks in hand. Reducing the social activities of the first. Find a suitable place to practice your guitar. Then practice your guitar and when you can. When improvements are made, then you can slowly increase your social activities to the way it was before.
Remember, in an attempt to learn to play guitar is difficult, especially if you start a player Harp. I take this advice, what if he does not play guitar improve their capabilities. This should be the main lesson is very guitar for beginners, before pausing in the theoretical aspect of learning to play guitar
This is the lesson especially for top performers Harp guitar. It gives some of the indicators, which have the right type of thinking so that they may be able to start playing solo guitar is good enough.
1. Urgent
One of the main components of the failure is that impulsive. There will come a time when a player is the beginning of Harp and haste Affairs, who want to achieve more quickly. This is because you know that there are many things you should know.
If you are interested in results, and you want fast results, are willing to give you everything and pressure in an attempt to learn as much as you can in a very short time. However, this is a surefire way to fail. You must be patient until they understand that everything can process as i. Even if you can compress All you need to know about one day, and this is not a very effective way to learn to play the guitar.
What you must do is to break these enormous tasks in smaller bite-sized tasks and give you time to learn from them. Slowly, and will be able to play guitar. The patient is the key.
2. Low self-esteem
Pesimistichno Another thought is that once low self-esteem. When you have low self-esteem, we tend to think for themselves modest. In such cases, you are afraid of making mistakes. However, the more they are afraid, the more mistakes you make.
Improve your thoughts, so you are more able to cope with such problems. Change of mindset so that you can take to make mistakes. Tell yourself to make mistakes is not something zasramen. In fact, making mistakes and improve on them will make to plan better guitar.
You should be able to play before a small audience and take their criticism to heart and improves its weakness. Do not take you seriously negative comments, which ends with low self-esteem. Remember that making mistakes is good, but only if you take these comments and improve upon them.
3. Payment for
Harp contractors of the project sometimes not focusing on the tasks at hand and this is training to play guitar, too. You have many things you want, or what to do, you have to do them all at the same time. For example, much of your free time is spent on means of entertainment.
What is your goal? If your goal is to play the guitar and needs to concentrate on the tasks in hand. Reducing the social activities of the first. Find a suitable place to practice your guitar. Then practice your guitar and when you can. When improvements are made, then you can slowly increase your social activities to the way it was before.
Remember, in an attempt to learn to play guitar is difficult, especially if you start a player Harp. I take this advice, what if he does not play guitar improve their capabilities. This should be the main lesson is very guitar for beginners, before pausing in the theoretical aspect of learning to play guitar
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Major pentatonic in a easy way
Home like pentatonic minor pentatonic: periods of major pentatonic is 1 2 3 5 6 1. This may include a large scale in cdega C. distinguish between large and small scale is small scale with flatten the third interval. Below are the most frequently in building a common framework for large pentatonic scale:
Home pentatonic happiest votes and not widely used in blues and rock as minor version of the scale. They sound good for the main conductors, cables and electrical energy. In some cases, large and small scales used in the same song, with a large rock used for chorus, verse of a minor.
There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to tables and unilateral action. At it is a matter of personal choice and style, as long as it sounds good, go for it. But you will find that if you use that scale is very simple in appropriate forms, together with progress in this chord sounds good in most cases.
Chord progress on the basis of small chord would sound good with minor pentatonic drew major nerves would sound good with a large scale. For information on the sanctioning of nerves, please go to the section of our site in order rope.
Small pentatonic
Small pentatonic scales are widely used in classical and contemporary rock. Pentatonic strong understanding of how work schedules and can be used to create riffs and solo work is very important. It is also usually the easiest and most people, tables, the study of the first.
I think you know how to read the section on this basic lesson. If you are not exposed to the department then must review the lesson on guitar tab for reading before moving.
Small pentatonic scale, consisting of the following periods: 1 B 4 5 B7 1. The main periods will be acdeg thousand Noting that there are 5 forms within the patterns of pentatonic scales.
5 is the fifth of discontent is the root note and the main domain name that identifies the type of simple or significant periods. This table above is the size and format used in rock, blues and music from more methods. If you move all in the construction of attitudes, even the guitar and play the same format would pentatonic A B minor. Also, if you slide in the bottom of the form of two full Potions your g pentatonic minor.
This practice-wide format several times a day, and move to different sites or switches, for variety. Many of the most popular rock Licks, resulting in this form. If zapochvash to play guitar basic training in one formation, and this is optional.
Home pentatonic happiest votes and not widely used in blues and rock as minor version of the scale. They sound good for the main conductors, cables and electrical energy. In some cases, large and small scales used in the same song, with a large rock used for chorus, verse of a minor.
There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to tables and unilateral action. At it is a matter of personal choice and style, as long as it sounds good, go for it. But you will find that if you use that scale is very simple in appropriate forms, together with progress in this chord sounds good in most cases.
Chord progress on the basis of small chord would sound good with minor pentatonic drew major nerves would sound good with a large scale. For information on the sanctioning of nerves, please go to the section of our site in order rope.
Small pentatonic
Small pentatonic scales are widely used in classical and contemporary rock. Pentatonic strong understanding of how work schedules and can be used to create riffs and solo work is very important. It is also usually the easiest and most people, tables, the study of the first.
I think you know how to read the section on this basic lesson. If you are not exposed to the department then must review the lesson on guitar tab for reading before moving.
Small pentatonic scale, consisting of the following periods: 1 B 4 5 B7 1. The main periods will be acdeg thousand Noting that there are 5 forms within the patterns of pentatonic scales.
5 is the fifth of discontent is the root note and the main domain name that identifies the type of simple or significant periods. This table above is the size and format used in rock, blues and music from more methods. If you move all in the construction of attitudes, even the guitar and play the same format would pentatonic A B minor. Also, if you slide in the bottom of the form of two full Potions your g pentatonic minor.
This practice-wide format several times a day, and move to different sites or switches, for variety. Many of the most popular rock Licks, resulting in this form. If zapochvash to play guitar basic training in one formation, and this is optional.
Song Lyrics Make Whole Singer
Music is one of the various types of these days, depending on each of your decisions and selection. With a variety of music, to reach more people interested in this part of entertainment, and more attention Texts of songs. Young people and adults get caught in a text of the song has become important to them. People are not in such seizure of MIC with singing on stage. Lyrics of today's real meaning to be adopted in real life for people, and therefore affect them.
This is the creativity that many people love music and music in general see the artist's important to get a place of music composed song today. Lyrics of a song today is the most important thing that people caught search today when opening the web. There are many sites available today that provides Texts of songs at any moment. With the increasing demand of the lyrics of a song is the reason why the demand of these sites is very high.
Music lovers can look for Texts of the songs of old songs, please, but also something where they could not find them? Maybe this is the belief that it would be many people, especially if these songs are not included in the list of classic old songs that many are looking to this day. Is it possible that demand is limited to looking Texts of songs for old songs! Where can I find that possibly be?
There is no other place in the world of the Internet where you can find all the lyrics and music. You can look at this part of the song, performer and the name of the film or any other relevant information for a picture of the search box. If you do not remember the words that begin, you can easily his choir to help in the search tunes. With regard to participation in some places, leaving people to learn more about the places where you can get old Texts of songs they might be useful for others as i.
With Texts of the songs can sing with the music or even singing the role of Karaoke. May just have fun and pleasure of all. It is difficult to refer to all in accordance with Texts of songs in hand, certainly put up more of pride for us in the crowd.
Depending on the type and, of course people do point to know the whole song for their own satisfaction. Messages and morality are mostly, based on experience and logical decisions made along the way. Undoubtedly, some people will not accept the fact that addicts tunes, one of the reasons why the search for them online. Just the same, and the right to obtain a set of lyrics and music and song, it's important, secret or hush.
It is based on generation and ensure that people themselves are aware that these lyrics to the full satisfaction of their own. Ethics and messages contained in this song inspires the listener and music lovers know the song in full, and that is why they seek Texts of the songs of World Wide Web. If you have any information about the song, classical music, feel free to share with brother
This is the creativity that many people love music and music in general see the artist's important to get a place of music composed song today. Lyrics of a song today is the most important thing that people caught search today when opening the web. There are many sites available today that provides Texts of songs at any moment. With the increasing demand of the lyrics of a song is the reason why the demand of these sites is very high.
Music lovers can look for Texts of the songs of old songs, please, but also something where they could not find them? Maybe this is the belief that it would be many people, especially if these songs are not included in the list of classic old songs that many are looking to this day. Is it possible that demand is limited to looking Texts of songs for old songs! Where can I find that possibly be?
There is no other place in the world of the Internet where you can find all the lyrics and music. You can look at this part of the song, performer and the name of the film or any other relevant information for a picture of the search box. If you do not remember the words that begin, you can easily his choir to help in the search tunes. With regard to participation in some places, leaving people to learn more about the places where you can get old Texts of songs they might be useful for others as i.
With Texts of the songs can sing with the music or even singing the role of Karaoke. May just have fun and pleasure of all. It is difficult to refer to all in accordance with Texts of songs in hand, certainly put up more of pride for us in the crowd.
Depending on the type and, of course people do point to know the whole song for their own satisfaction. Messages and morality are mostly, based on experience and logical decisions made along the way. Undoubtedly, some people will not accept the fact that addicts tunes, one of the reasons why the search for them online. Just the same, and the right to obtain a set of lyrics and music and song, it's important, secret or hush.
It is based on generation and ensure that people themselves are aware that these lyrics to the full satisfaction of their own. Ethics and messages contained in this song inspires the listener and music lovers know the song in full, and that is why they seek Texts of the songs of World Wide Web. If you have any information about the song, classical music, feel free to share with brother
Friday, February 29, 2008
Writer's Block & Overcoming It
Man, I don't care about architecture.Don't be getting' funny on me. Humour is unacceptable, you're reading this to learn damn it. Oh well?as always, to kick-start this lesson I'm going to explain what a writer's block is first. Have you ever reached a stage in your writing 'career', I suppose, where everything is coasting along quite smoothly, but then suddenly you find you can't write anymore? (And it will be exactly like that in the severest cases - can write can't write, just like the flip of a coin).
Have you ever suffered from a milder case, where you experienced an inability to write anything that - when being honest - could be termed "good"? Well, then I believe you've suffered from a writer's block. Maybe you still do. Are you currently suffering a drought of creativity and imagination? I think it's time for some rainfall, don't you? Are you downright tired of this lull that has suddenly come over you? Well damn; overcome it.
I am a satellite; I'm out of control.
It's a Queen reference, "Don't stop me?oh oh oh" - ah sheesh, forget it. Perhaps, even though you've realised your writing is lacking lately, you keep on writing. You're thinking, "This can't go on forever". That's exactly what you're thinking? Man, you're a genius. This is one of the most effective ways (in my experience) of overcoming writer's block. See, I had this problem recently where the writing wasn't exactly up to par, but I kept on writing?and you know what? I wrote one of the best songs I've ever written when I forced myself to write it. And I know that that goes against everything I've told you, but if it works why doubt?
Let's get this straight? You want me to write a song about my hand?I'm just taking it as an example, but if you want to do it, I won't stop you. Now what exactly am I talking about? Well, anyone heard the Incubus song, "Nice To Know You"? Mmm?it's about his hand going numb (you know, Pins and Needles). So what I'm saying is, take something completely ordinary and then make it symbolic. It's another sure-fire way to break out of a rut. Just symbolise, and think about your writing. This is one of those relaxed times where instead of feeling emotion, you think about what you could write, and the best way to express something.
Have you ever suffered from a milder case, where you experienced an inability to write anything that - when being honest - could be termed "good"? Well, then I believe you've suffered from a writer's block. Maybe you still do. Are you currently suffering a drought of creativity and imagination? I think it's time for some rainfall, don't you? Are you downright tired of this lull that has suddenly come over you? Well damn; overcome it.
I am a satellite; I'm out of control.
It's a Queen reference, "Don't stop me?oh oh oh" - ah sheesh, forget it. Perhaps, even though you've realised your writing is lacking lately, you keep on writing. You're thinking, "This can't go on forever". That's exactly what you're thinking? Man, you're a genius. This is one of the most effective ways (in my experience) of overcoming writer's block. See, I had this problem recently where the writing wasn't exactly up to par, but I kept on writing?and you know what? I wrote one of the best songs I've ever written when I forced myself to write it. And I know that that goes against everything I've told you, but if it works why doubt?
Let's get this straight? You want me to write a song about my hand?I'm just taking it as an example, but if you want to do it, I won't stop you. Now what exactly am I talking about? Well, anyone heard the Incubus song, "Nice To Know You"? Mmm?it's about his hand going numb (you know, Pins and Needles). So what I'm saying is, take something completely ordinary and then make it symbolic. It's another sure-fire way to break out of a rut. Just symbolise, and think about your writing. This is one of those relaxed times where instead of feeling emotion, you think about what you could write, and the best way to express something.
I am relaxed! Boris, find me a new anger therapist now!For some people, another way to overcome it is to write music instead of lyrics. This goes back to the point about having yourself in a totally relaxed frame of mind?You see, whenever you're making music sometimes you'll just sing some sort of melody to your chord progression. And often, you'll be singing words that you're making up on the spot. So record yourself doing this! You can then type up/write down - see what I did there, the lyrics and edit them so that they flow and make sense. Self-induced creative injury? Sounds like a failed suicide attempt. Occasionally a writer's block can be brought on by the writer's themselves. I mean, maybe they've been writing too much lately and have just used up all the material that they were thinking about expanding songs out of. For those people I would suggest going outside and chatting with some friends. There were other people I had in mind when I thought up this section of the lesson though. And that is the lyricists who also happen to be musicians. Suddenly, the area of focus, which they put all their effort into, has changed. Instead of lyrics it now happens to bemusic.
I kind of had a similar experience recently. I was playing lots of scales, learning theory and generally playing guitar more than usual - I. e. I played for like 6-7 hours in one day. This all in an attempt to get better, which is what we're all trying to do, in some form or another. Whenever your endeavour to become amazing at guitar (or any other instrument) increases, you'd think you'd lose focus on lyrics. And technically this is true, because all your attention shifts to the more musical side of the creative process. But in truth, if this is the case, then all your really doing is depriving yourself of the time to write. So now I'll let my experience do the talking, and try and remove anything humorous from the lesson; I'll replace it will philosophy.
I kind of had a similar experience recently. I was playing lots of scales, learning theory and generally playing guitar more than usual - I. e. I played for like 6-7 hours in one day. This all in an attempt to get better, which is what we're all trying to do, in some form or another. Whenever your endeavour to become amazing at guitar (or any other instrument) increases, you'd think you'd lose focus on lyrics. And technically this is true, because all your attention shifts to the more musical side of the creative process. But in truth, if this is the case, then all your really doing is depriving yourself of the time to write. So now I'll let my experience do the talking, and try and remove anything humorous from the lesson; I'll replace it will philosophy.
Other Things.
Try listening to new music (radio)?or reading new novels
Can I write both lyrics and music?To write you must be in a certain frame of mind - more precisely, one where you feel relaxed and at ease with writing what comes to you. To get into this state of mind, you must allow yourself a certain amount of time to write. You must think, okay now, I'll dedicate myself to producing some lyrics. Now is my time.
Musicians are people. People conform to human nature.We feel the temptation to shift our focus into music or lyrics. Sometimes, we feel it's too hard to do both. In truth, it's not; trust me. But before you can allow yourself to practice both making music, and writing lyrics, you must allow the time for both. If you can't write lyrics now, write them later. But don't deprive yourself of the time.
Closing Comments.
I wish you luck with your karate, (breaking that block)/overcoming that lull/whatever you would like to call it. Because in truth, musical, or lyrical... the creativity and inspiration is within you. The hardest part s finding that out, and then finding out what to do with it.
Try listening to new music (radio)?or reading new novels
Can I write both lyrics and music?To write you must be in a certain frame of mind - more precisely, one where you feel relaxed and at ease with writing what comes to you. To get into this state of mind, you must allow yourself a certain amount of time to write. You must think, okay now, I'll dedicate myself to producing some lyrics. Now is my time.
Musicians are people. People conform to human nature.We feel the temptation to shift our focus into music or lyrics. Sometimes, we feel it's too hard to do both. In truth, it's not; trust me. But before you can allow yourself to practice both making music, and writing lyrics, you must allow the time for both. If you can't write lyrics now, write them later. But don't deprive yourself of the time.
Closing Comments.
I wish you luck with your karate, (breaking that block)/overcoming that lull/whatever you would like to call it. Because in truth, musical, or lyrical... the creativity and inspiration is within you. The hardest part s finding that out, and then finding out what to do with it.
Writing Songs & Lyrics Based On Experiences
Ok, there are a few different aspects of writing I noticed while reading friend's lyrics and my own. I first realized that everybody has a certain style of writing. I know this is a pretty obvious statement, but then I thought about what caused different styles of writing.
My theory is that certain style of writing first depends on what style of music you like. Obviously if you like punk rock, you are most likely to be writing lyrics to a punk rock tune.
The second thing your style depends on is whether you’re a guy, or a girl. To be honest, girls ARE more emotional than guys are. Sorry my fellow ladies but you know this is true. If writing feelings about a recent break-up, a guy’s point of view would tend to have more anger than sadness, like a girl’s lyrics may. (But luckily today, the genre "emo", short for emotional, has emerged. Male artists all over are able to express their feelings of sorrow and heartbreak through this genre.)
The last thing I advise you to know and remember is that my song writing technique is truly spiritual. In other words, using my technique, a song will turn out to be just a piece of one’s truest feelings, so don’t even try to write a song in a room full of people.
The best thing to do is to go to a place, alone, where you feel most comfortable. For most, this would be their bedroom, but for some who share a bedroom, the most comfortable place may be the bathroom, with locked doors. What ever floats your boat will work.
The purpose for this is that a relaxed environment provides a place where it is easy to connect with your-self. Only you know your deepest secrets, and your truest feelings. Which means only you can write a unique song which is based on your feelings, thoughts, opinions, and point of views.
After you have followed what I recommended to you, it is time to follow the lesson. To tell you the truth, the advice I gave you above is the lesson itself, which means we are almost done! 8^D!
My theory is that certain style of writing first depends on what style of music you like. Obviously if you like punk rock, you are most likely to be writing lyrics to a punk rock tune.
The second thing your style depends on is whether you’re a guy, or a girl. To be honest, girls ARE more emotional than guys are. Sorry my fellow ladies but you know this is true. If writing feelings about a recent break-up, a guy’s point of view would tend to have more anger than sadness, like a girl’s lyrics may. (But luckily today, the genre "emo", short for emotional, has emerged. Male artists all over are able to express their feelings of sorrow and heartbreak through this genre.)
The last thing I advise you to know and remember is that my song writing technique is truly spiritual. In other words, using my technique, a song will turn out to be just a piece of one’s truest feelings, so don’t even try to write a song in a room full of people.
The best thing to do is to go to a place, alone, where you feel most comfortable. For most, this would be their bedroom, but for some who share a bedroom, the most comfortable place may be the bathroom, with locked doors. What ever floats your boat will work.
The purpose for this is that a relaxed environment provides a place where it is easy to connect with your-self. Only you know your deepest secrets, and your truest feelings. Which means only you can write a unique song which is based on your feelings, thoughts, opinions, and point of views.
After you have followed what I recommended to you, it is time to follow the lesson. To tell you the truth, the advice I gave you above is the lesson itself, which means we are almost done! 8^D!
In the rest of the lesson, I would like to tell you how to write from your personal experiences, and give you some ideas. If you are having trouble figuring out what to write about, don’t get frustrated. Start with ideas that you feel strongly about. Many amazing songs and lyrics can come from:
• a recent boyfriend/girlfriend break-up,
• a recent death in the family,
• moving away from home,
• a fight between you and your parents or a best friend,
• a divorce between your parents,
• or just feeling down.
Well, since I gave you some ideas to think about, now I’ll tell you how to write songs and lyrics based on your experience. This part is quite easy. First, clear your head of everything except that experience, whether it is good or bad. This should be easy to do, if you followed my advice and you’re alone in a comfortable room.
The next thing you want to do is start writing down everything you are feeling inside about your experience. Write down your emotion about it, what you think of it, why it makes you feel that way, and anything that pops into your head.
Doing this could even open your mind to feelings you didn’t realize you felt. That is why this is good to do when you’re under stress, it relieves a lot of negative feelings, even the ones stuck inside of you that you couldn’t see.
The next thing you want to do is start writing down everything you are feeling inside about your experience. Write down your emotion about it, what you think of it, why it makes you feel that way, and anything that pops into your head.
Doing this could even open your mind to feelings you didn’t realize you felt. That is why this is good to do when you’re under stress, it relieves a lot of negative feelings, even the ones stuck inside of you that you couldn’t see.
After a few or more pages, reread what you wrote down. Look at that sheet, and say hello to the rough draft of your song! Now all you have to do is put things together. Here is an example:
This is the actual list of emotions that I wrote after Brian broke up with me:
• “I lived off your love for so long, that when you left me, it felt like nothing was holding me from falling every day.”
• “The hardest thing to see is the love of your life, leave you to chase after a girl who is already taken.”
• “I will always keep this letter because there will be a time I will have to look back and see how I got through the hardest thing that I’ve ever had to overcome in life.”
• “Some day I will look back at this letter with pride as I say, ‘Wow, it was me who made it through that?!? Jeez, I can make it through anything’”
From this list of feelings came the lyrics to my first song...
“I used to think that I could never live without your love.
• “I lived off your love for so long, that when you left me, it felt like nothing was holding me from falling every day.”
• “The hardest thing to see is the love of your life, leave you to chase after a girl who is already taken.”
• “I will always keep this letter because there will be a time I will have to look back and see how I got through the hardest thing that I’ve ever had to overcome in life.”
• “Some day I will look back at this letter with pride as I say, ‘Wow, it was me who made it through that?!? Jeez, I can make it through anything’”
From this list of feelings came the lyrics to my first song...
“I used to think that I could never live without your love.
But with time I realized I’d rise above.”
“What I use today, Is all the heartbreak that you gave,
“What I use today, Is all the heartbreak that you gave,
To get over the things that keep me down.
And now I know I’ll never have to frown.”
I changed it up a bit and added a tune to it since I wrote it, but for my first lyrics, I’d say that it’s not all that bad right? Well Now that I have given you some advice and a few examples try my way out! It may seem like a lot, but you’ll realize that it’s a lot easier than it seems. In fact it’s the easiest technique I’ve ever used! Let me know how it goes for you!
I changed it up a bit and added a tune to it since I wrote it, but for my first lyrics, I’d say that it’s not all that bad right? Well Now that I have given you some advice and a few examples try my way out! It may seem like a lot, but you’ll realize that it’s a lot easier than it seems. In fact it’s the easiest technique I’ve ever used! Let me know how it goes for you!
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Give time
If you ask any good songwriters how they write their music and how long it takes, you won't find many of them that will just say "I knew exactly what I was gonna write even before I sat down and picked up my guitar. From there it was just a matter of minutes." I would find it very hard to believe if someone told me that, regardless of who it was.
I sat down once and wrote a song in 20 minutes, and you know what... It was cr@p! I've come to learn that if you just settle for whatever you can come up with in less than an hour, it usually won't be a great song.
I mean think about it, not only do you have to come up with the words for the song, you have to write the music too. For some people that may be a little more talented than others, writing the music could take 30 min. Or 3 days, or even 3 weeks. Whenever I sit down to write a song, I just go to a quiet spot in the house and just start playing, I don't think about what time it is, or what else is going on, I just think about the song. I'll play around until I finally get an intro to the song. In the intro, it's up to you whether you write chords or a certain lead riff. From there the music can pretty much write itself as long as you just take your time with it and try not to really think about it too much. Once you get the music written, practice a couple of times so that it sticks in your head and you get a real good feel for the song.
Now on to writing the lyrics. What I normally do, and this works (for me at least), is just play the music and sing whatever comes out of my head. If you're not satisfied with it, or you just don't think it fits the song, then start over and try it again. once you get a start to the song the verse is done before you know it.
This is when you actually have to think about what the entire song is going to be about or what it's going to revolve around. just do the same thing that i said in the previous paragraph and start writing the 2ns verse or the chorus, whichever comes next in the song.
From here, it's smooth sailing. Just take your time with the song, if you get stuck just play what you have up until the part where you're stuck and keep trying to add something onto it every time. You'll eventually have something finished and you can just take it to the band after you're done and mold it from there.
I sat down once and wrote a song in 20 minutes, and you know what... It was cr@p! I've come to learn that if you just settle for whatever you can come up with in less than an hour, it usually won't be a great song.
I mean think about it, not only do you have to come up with the words for the song, you have to write the music too. For some people that may be a little more talented than others, writing the music could take 30 min. Or 3 days, or even 3 weeks. Whenever I sit down to write a song, I just go to a quiet spot in the house and just start playing, I don't think about what time it is, or what else is going on, I just think about the song. I'll play around until I finally get an intro to the song. In the intro, it's up to you whether you write chords or a certain lead riff. From there the music can pretty much write itself as long as you just take your time with it and try not to really think about it too much. Once you get the music written, practice a couple of times so that it sticks in your head and you get a real good feel for the song.
Now on to writing the lyrics. What I normally do, and this works (for me at least), is just play the music and sing whatever comes out of my head. If you're not satisfied with it, or you just don't think it fits the song, then start over and try it again. once you get a start to the song the verse is done before you know it.
This is when you actually have to think about what the entire song is going to be about or what it's going to revolve around. just do the same thing that i said in the previous paragraph and start writing the 2ns verse or the chorus, whichever comes next in the song.
From here, it's smooth sailing. Just take your time with the song, if you get stuck just play what you have up until the part where you're stuck and keep trying to add something onto it every time. You'll eventually have something finished and you can just take it to the band after you're done and mold it from there.
Composing Original Riffs
Hello everybody. I didn't know what to write about, so I decided, "What the hell, I'll teach the masses about some tips that may help with their songwriting." However, as stated by the name, this isn't for lyric writing, but rather, for original riff writing. What is a riff? Well, simply put, it is either an arpeggio, chord or some other type of progression that is not a "lick." A lick is usually a two to three second lead piece, connected with other licks. Now that I've filled your brain with some guitar lingo, lets begin. The following are some ways to go about writing riffs.
1. Write through inspiration.What the heck do I mean by this? I mean listen to a song you really like (or maybe just one that everybody else likes) and then grab your thunder - axe (the term I like to use meaning "guitar") and start playing something. Try not to look at the tab for the song though. Now, I want you to just play something, at either the same tempo and timing, start at the same starting note as the song (or something similar), play with the same feel or whatever you want. Just think of something from the song that you really like, and just sort of fool around until you get somewhere. My favorite approach with this method is starting in the same general area of the fretboard as a riff you really like. And yes, doing it this way means you will probably have to look at a tab, but you don't want to copy the song, so just simply glance at the tab, and then begin. Good riffs are something you have to fool around with to get good at. I'll give you some examples of riffs I have made that complement this approach (songs used for inspiration will be named first, then the artist, and then the description):
- Sweet Child O' Mine (Guns N' Roses) - one of my first and in many people's opinions, my best one, came from me starting at the twelfth fret area, and making an arpeggio riff with some distortion. Sounds sort of space-ish. This song was made when I was learning arpeggios.
- Black Dog (Led Zeppelin) - again, another riff where I started in the same area (technically known as "The Key" of a song), and created sort of a blues-ish, jazz-like riff, but still sounds very different from the original song. Not as fast paced as Black Dog, but a great riff none the less.
- Hotel California (The Eagles) - this riff was made from the "feel" of Hotel California, rather than using the same key, which in this song's case uses a capo at the fifth fret (the key of A). Great rock riff, that sounds as though people could dance to it.
1. Write through inspiration.What the heck do I mean by this? I mean listen to a song you really like (or maybe just one that everybody else likes) and then grab your thunder - axe (the term I like to use meaning "guitar") and start playing something. Try not to look at the tab for the song though. Now, I want you to just play something, at either the same tempo and timing, start at the same starting note as the song (or something similar), play with the same feel or whatever you want. Just think of something from the song that you really like, and just sort of fool around until you get somewhere. My favorite approach with this method is starting in the same general area of the fretboard as a riff you really like. And yes, doing it this way means you will probably have to look at a tab, but you don't want to copy the song, so just simply glance at the tab, and then begin. Good riffs are something you have to fool around with to get good at. I'll give you some examples of riffs I have made that complement this approach (songs used for inspiration will be named first, then the artist, and then the description):
- Sweet Child O' Mine (Guns N' Roses) - one of my first and in many people's opinions, my best one, came from me starting at the twelfth fret area, and making an arpeggio riff with some distortion. Sounds sort of space-ish. This song was made when I was learning arpeggios.
- Black Dog (Led Zeppelin) - again, another riff where I started in the same area (technically known as "The Key" of a song), and created sort of a blues-ish, jazz-like riff, but still sounds very different from the original song. Not as fast paced as Black Dog, but a great riff none the less.
- Hotel California (The Eagles) - this riff was made from the "feel" of Hotel California, rather than using the same key, which in this song's case uses a capo at the fifth fret (the key of A). Great rock riff, that sounds as though people could dance to it.
Needless to say, this is quite a good approach to use. However, it works better when you are first starting out, or not so good, because:
1) It gives you something to practice to help "you" get better and;
2) You will learn techniques as you learn how to play, and you will practice them, and practice songs with them in it.Thus you will make a song similar (maybe). Plus, you may not be able to play the song inspiring you anyway, so there will be no need to worry about copying, now will there? You don't have to be a begginer, but I find it easier to use this approach when you are.
2. The "Holes" Method.I call this method the "Holes" method because it's like this. You make an original riff, or a riff of some kind, try to add to it, but it doesn't go with it, (thus you fall into a hole) but you still think it has potential (you come out of another hole). I have done this many times, although I don't plan to use any of the riffs I can remember. However, this method is powerful, because you are trying to make riffs for one song, and many of your failed attempts become riffs for other songs. One riff I tried to use to complete the "Black Dog" inspired song mentioned above, kind of went with it, but didn't. So now, if I want, I have another riff in my repretoire of original ones. So remember; you may want to keep those riffs that you thought were garbage, and make something of them. One major advantage to this method, is if you want to make an album with similar, but different sounding songs, that you want to define your "unchanging sound." Anyway, thats an idea.
1) It gives you something to practice to help "you" get better and;
2) You will learn techniques as you learn how to play, and you will practice them, and practice songs with them in it.Thus you will make a song similar (maybe). Plus, you may not be able to play the song inspiring you anyway, so there will be no need to worry about copying, now will there? You don't have to be a begginer, but I find it easier to use this approach when you are.
2. The "Holes" Method.I call this method the "Holes" method because it's like this. You make an original riff, or a riff of some kind, try to add to it, but it doesn't go with it, (thus you fall into a hole) but you still think it has potential (you come out of another hole). I have done this many times, although I don't plan to use any of the riffs I can remember. However, this method is powerful, because you are trying to make riffs for one song, and many of your failed attempts become riffs for other songs. One riff I tried to use to complete the "Black Dog" inspired song mentioned above, kind of went with it, but didn't. So now, if I want, I have another riff in my repretoire of original ones. So remember; you may want to keep those riffs that you thought were garbage, and make something of them. One major advantage to this method, is if you want to make an album with similar, but different sounding songs, that you want to define your "unchanging sound." Anyway, thats an idea.
3. "Open" up.Use open notes in your songs, even when you are at the 15th fret, you may come up with something that can blow people out of the water, just by adding an open note or two. I have a couple good riffs that use open notes in them, and they sound great. Good for making more "evil" sounding songs. Eddie Van Halen uses lots of open notes in his soloing, so why not use them in your riffs?
4. Find your groove and favorite stuff.Okay, now I'm sure that many people, like me, have a "favorite chord" that they just love. Whether it be the E minor, or the F diminished, you can find chords that you just love so much, and think, "Damn thats good. Lets make some tunes out of it." And thus, a dynasty will begin. Or at least, a whole new outlook on making your riffs. Take me for instance. I just love the a minor chord (preferabally the open one) because it sounds great, has many other places to go that are easily accessible (Asus, AMaj, A7, Am7 etc) and just overall appeals to my ear. I also like suspended chords in general, as they have that great tone that I find just right. Anyway, you can make great riffs, using just one chord letter. I made a very memorable riff, starting with our friend the A minor, and adding sevenths or what not. Not too many songs use a one chord type of riff, so it may be a good thing to check out.
4. Find your groove and favorite stuff.Okay, now I'm sure that many people, like me, have a "favorite chord" that they just love. Whether it be the E minor, or the F diminished, you can find chords that you just love so much, and think, "Damn thats good. Lets make some tunes out of it." And thus, a dynasty will begin. Or at least, a whole new outlook on making your riffs. Take me for instance. I just love the a minor chord (preferabally the open one) because it sounds great, has many other places to go that are easily accessible (Asus, AMaj, A7, Am7 etc) and just overall appeals to my ear. I also like suspended chords in general, as they have that great tone that I find just right. Anyway, you can make great riffs, using just one chord letter. I made a very memorable riff, starting with our friend the A minor, and adding sevenths or what not. Not too many songs use a one chord type of riff, so it may be a good thing to check out.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
5. Use unorthodox means.Great riffs are just waiting to be unlocked. however, you may have to do some sneaky things to find them. You can try stretches that you can barely make, and make some good arpeggios out of them, or you can make some odd chords that you don't think exist (which, they do) or play with techniques or styles that you would never use. Experiment.
6. Let your fingers do the walking.One of the best methods, is improvising. You don't even have to be good at improve, you just have to be playing. I have many great riffs made when I was talking to my friends, or watching tv. Just get relax, don't think about it and play. Just play. I can almost guarantee that one day, when you aren't thinking about what you are doing, you will come up with something that sparks your attention.
7. Unleash your emotion.The most obvious method is to play what you feel. If you are feeling sad, play the guitar, and you will most likely come up with a sad riff. A great one to use (especially if your girlfriend/boyfriend breaks up with you; or better yet dumps you. Not trying to be a jerk, but it's the truth.
8. Conclusion.To conclude, I just want to say that, these are just ideas that you may never have thought or overlooked. If you already knew about these, then all the power to you. I hope I have sparked your interest and influenced your composition skills at least a little bit. One thing I didn't mention is to try moving open chords to higher frets. You an make numerous original riffs like this. Anyway, don't give up; you'll find at least one good riff.
6. Let your fingers do the walking.One of the best methods, is improvising. You don't even have to be good at improve, you just have to be playing. I have many great riffs made when I was talking to my friends, or watching tv. Just get relax, don't think about it and play. Just play. I can almost guarantee that one day, when you aren't thinking about what you are doing, you will come up with something that sparks your attention.
7. Unleash your emotion.The most obvious method is to play what you feel. If you are feeling sad, play the guitar, and you will most likely come up with a sad riff. A great one to use (especially if your girlfriend/boyfriend breaks up with you; or better yet dumps you. Not trying to be a jerk, but it's the truth.
8. Conclusion.To conclude, I just want to say that, these are just ideas that you may never have thought or overlooked. If you already knew about these, then all the power to you. I hope I have sparked your interest and influenced your composition skills at least a little bit. One thing I didn't mention is to try moving open chords to higher frets. You an make numerous original riffs like this. Anyway, don't give up; you'll find at least one good riff.
Your growth
As the years go by in the life of a player, there are two kinds of growth we can experience. Both are necessary for our development as musicians and guitarists. I call them Vertical Growth, and Horizontal Growth.
Here is a common scenario. A person comes in for lessons after already playing for awhile. Maybe they have played for a year, maybe a few years, maybe many years. I say, "play something for me, something you are comfortable with". Now a few different things may happen. They may play nicely, strumming and singing, maybe even throw in a few runs. So I see that for the level they are at, they play well. I then try to find out what they are here for. "What do you want to do, that you find you can't do."
They may say "Well, I play lots of things, but I play them all the same way. I want to learn how to do chord melody solos, more interesting chords and strums, and also improve my fingerpicking so I can try some classical.". In other words, they want to move to a higher level as a player. They want to make VERTICAL GROWTH. They don't want to continue to learn new songs and play them the same way. That would be HORIZONTAL GROWTH. Everyone can always make Horizontal Growth, even on their own. You just learn more material, but you don't actually play any differently, musically or technically.
Vertical progress as a player is the tough one. It requires what is usually considered "work", although I have always found it enjoyable, although challenging. Here is another even more common scenario. Someone comes in for lessons after playing for awhile, and when I ask them to play, they make a couple of excuses, and then they play really badly! Then I ask them to play something else, and they play that really badly! This is the person unable to create Vertical Growth. The reason they cannot raise their level as a player, is because they don't know how to practice to solve problems and achieve results! Also, because of this, there is no solid foundation of technique for Vertical Growth to be built upon. So there is only Horizontal Growth, more things played the same way, in this case, badly.
Do you know how many young players I've seen who play only the beginning of a hundred songs, and play them badly? Lots. Or how many people playing classical who go from piece to piece, struggling with and mutilating pieces as they go? Lots. It is sad, and unnecessary. If you love the guitar, and are dedicated to your own development as a player, if you are dying to play the way the guitarists you admire play, you must know how to create Vertical Growth. This is done through an understanding of HOW TO PRACTICE. I am of course talking about REAL PRACTICE, not repetitive "run throughs" that only re-enforce the muscle tensions causing the problems you already have.
From my experience as a player and as a teacher, it is extremely difficult to create Vertical Growth, once bad, or insufficient practice has locked in tension and bad habits. The good news is, it is not impossible. In fact, the word difficult is not the best word. I use it only because we have such a tendency to under estimate the intensity of concentration it takes to undo past damage. A better word is challenging. And if you want to keep getting better and better as a guitarist, you'd better learn to love challenges! As Mark Twain said "Life is one damn thing after another", and that is what playing and practicing are. One damn problem to deal with after another. But as we learn to actually deal with and solve those problems, what a sweet reward we earn.
In fact, it is not the problems we face in our playing that are really the obstacle to our growth. It is the growing feeling of frustration and helplessness we experience as time continues to go by, and we see no fundamental improvement. We start to feel helpless. We may not admit this feeling to ourselves, we only notice that, for some reason, we are beginning to lose our motivation to practice.
When we learn how to really practice, we start to feel powerful. Problems and challenges don't frighten us, they excite us. Because we know that we can look forward to those problems getting smaller and smaller, weaker and weaker, as we continue to apply the Principles of Correct Practice.It is important to realize that the quality of our Vertical Growth determines the quality of our Horizontal Growth. Any ability we have gained as players has been our Vertical Growth. If our Vertical Growth has been shaky, with weaknesses built in, (which was true of myself, and I think, most players), that shakiness will be in everything we play, so our Horizontal Growth doesn't do us much good, it just keeps us busy, feeling like we are making progress because we are learning a new song or piece. This is why so many teachers turn the page and assign new material to a student, even though the student can't play the material from this week. The teacher doesn't really know how to create Vertical Growth, and so is trying to keep a feeling of movement going. Most students, if they are paying attention, will catch on to this.
If Vertical Growth is strong, than all new material learned will be strong, and will help you grow as a musician, as you absorb new music, and are able to play it well. This is the kind of Horizontal Growth we want.
If you want to learn how to have this Vertical Growth as a regular experience for you, I invite you to visit www.guitarprinciples.com and learn more about "The Principles of Correct Practice For Guitar." It is the approach I have found to work for myself, for my students, and anyone else who actually understands it, and uses it
Here is a common scenario. A person comes in for lessons after already playing for awhile. Maybe they have played for a year, maybe a few years, maybe many years. I say, "play something for me, something you are comfortable with". Now a few different things may happen. They may play nicely, strumming and singing, maybe even throw in a few runs. So I see that for the level they are at, they play well. I then try to find out what they are here for. "What do you want to do, that you find you can't do."
They may say "Well, I play lots of things, but I play them all the same way. I want to learn how to do chord melody solos, more interesting chords and strums, and also improve my fingerpicking so I can try some classical.". In other words, they want to move to a higher level as a player. They want to make VERTICAL GROWTH. They don't want to continue to learn new songs and play them the same way. That would be HORIZONTAL GROWTH. Everyone can always make Horizontal Growth, even on their own. You just learn more material, but you don't actually play any differently, musically or technically.
Vertical progress as a player is the tough one. It requires what is usually considered "work", although I have always found it enjoyable, although challenging. Here is another even more common scenario. Someone comes in for lessons after playing for awhile, and when I ask them to play, they make a couple of excuses, and then they play really badly! Then I ask them to play something else, and they play that really badly! This is the person unable to create Vertical Growth. The reason they cannot raise their level as a player, is because they don't know how to practice to solve problems and achieve results! Also, because of this, there is no solid foundation of technique for Vertical Growth to be built upon. So there is only Horizontal Growth, more things played the same way, in this case, badly.
Do you know how many young players I've seen who play only the beginning of a hundred songs, and play them badly? Lots. Or how many people playing classical who go from piece to piece, struggling with and mutilating pieces as they go? Lots. It is sad, and unnecessary. If you love the guitar, and are dedicated to your own development as a player, if you are dying to play the way the guitarists you admire play, you must know how to create Vertical Growth. This is done through an understanding of HOW TO PRACTICE. I am of course talking about REAL PRACTICE, not repetitive "run throughs" that only re-enforce the muscle tensions causing the problems you already have.
From my experience as a player and as a teacher, it is extremely difficult to create Vertical Growth, once bad, or insufficient practice has locked in tension and bad habits. The good news is, it is not impossible. In fact, the word difficult is not the best word. I use it only because we have such a tendency to under estimate the intensity of concentration it takes to undo past damage. A better word is challenging. And if you want to keep getting better and better as a guitarist, you'd better learn to love challenges! As Mark Twain said "Life is one damn thing after another", and that is what playing and practicing are. One damn problem to deal with after another. But as we learn to actually deal with and solve those problems, what a sweet reward we earn.
In fact, it is not the problems we face in our playing that are really the obstacle to our growth. It is the growing feeling of frustration and helplessness we experience as time continues to go by, and we see no fundamental improvement. We start to feel helpless. We may not admit this feeling to ourselves, we only notice that, for some reason, we are beginning to lose our motivation to practice.
When we learn how to really practice, we start to feel powerful. Problems and challenges don't frighten us, they excite us. Because we know that we can look forward to those problems getting smaller and smaller, weaker and weaker, as we continue to apply the Principles of Correct Practice.It is important to realize that the quality of our Vertical Growth determines the quality of our Horizontal Growth. Any ability we have gained as players has been our Vertical Growth. If our Vertical Growth has been shaky, with weaknesses built in, (which was true of myself, and I think, most players), that shakiness will be in everything we play, so our Horizontal Growth doesn't do us much good, it just keeps us busy, feeling like we are making progress because we are learning a new song or piece. This is why so many teachers turn the page and assign new material to a student, even though the student can't play the material from this week. The teacher doesn't really know how to create Vertical Growth, and so is trying to keep a feeling of movement going. Most students, if they are paying attention, will catch on to this.
If Vertical Growth is strong, than all new material learned will be strong, and will help you grow as a musician, as you absorb new music, and are able to play it well. This is the kind of Horizontal Growth we want.
If you want to learn how to have this Vertical Growth as a regular experience for you, I invite you to visit www.guitarprinciples.com and learn more about "The Principles of Correct Practice For Guitar." It is the approach I have found to work for myself, for my students, and anyone else who actually understands it, and uses it
Incredible Lightness
In my essay "Discover Your Discomfort", I urged you to become aware of the sensations of discomfort you experience while practicing and playing. The reason is very simple. Until you do, you will not be able to be aware of the sensations (that is, your mental awareness of the physical feelings in your body) a good player has, the sensations that you must have to play well. I call this sensation, or feeling in the body, "The Incredible Lightness". I call it this, because once you experience it, and allow it to grow by Correct Practicing, well, it's Incredible. This feeling of lightness is what makes fast, accurate playing possible. Unfortunately, because of ignorance of how to practice correctly, far too many players create for themselves "The Incredible Tightness".
I will quote myself to bring this point home:"The relative state of tension or relaxation in the muscles is one of the hardest things to be aware of. I once saw a person play with so much tension in her right shoulder that it was up to her earlobe! Always trying to be helpful, I pointed this out to her when she finished. As she let her shoulder down a few inches to it's normal position, she told me I was wrong, she wasn't tense, but very relaxed!
The reason she felt this way is because we very quickly become used to whatever we experience, and consider it normal. We never question whatever tensions we experience in learning new skills on the guitar, and in fact consider it part of the doing of it. And it often is, but it doesn't have to continue to be that strenuous. We can learn to do the movements with less effort.
However, when we first try something, it is often not possible to do it without a lot of excess tension. The mistake is, we assume that the tension is inevitable, and never realize we can get to a point where we can get the result we want without all the huffing, puffing and straining. Often, more stretch or muscle development is required, which will come with a correct approach.
Of course, as we continue to try the new skill, and assume the effort we feel must be that way, it becomes ingrained into our approach, and gets worse. So we have a vicious circle, that leads to frustration and bad playing.
So extra tension in the muscles, which every advanced player knows is the number one cause of playing difficulty, becomes a blind spot for us. Usually we are only aware of the result of the tension, which is that mistake we just made. Often it happens we are not even aware of that, because we start to filter out those unpleasant reminders of our troubles. A As you will see shortly, the correct approach to dealing with "mistakes" caused by tension, is to repeat the movement extremely slowly, with a great focus on keeping all muscles relaxed. With each repetition, the muscles learn the relaxed way of moving to produce the result you want.
"So you see, it is lack of understanding of how the body/mind functions, and lack of honest attention while practicing, that gets us in to trouble. You must start to observe your own "Tightness", and replace it with "Lightness", then you will see your level as a player change upward, what I call Vertical Growth. Since many players have no idea what this lightness feels like, here is a very simple way to connect with it. You must then begin to cultivate this feeling in actual playing. Believe me, it feels good! In fact, when you see a good player "making it look easy", it's because it is easy, when you have the "Incredible Lightness".
Let's discover "The Light Finger"The first step in finding "The Incredible Lightness" is to discover The Light Finger. The Light Finger is the completely relaxed finger, brought to the string, and touching the string, with only the weight of the finger. It does not press the string down until told to do so. To discover the sensation of the Light Finger, do this:
- Raise your arms in front of you, without the guitar, and take hold of the index finger of your left hand with the thumb and index finger of your right hand. Completely relax the left index, and wiggle it around with your right hand. This is the Light Finger.
- Touch the palm of your right hand with your left index. Raise the left index two inches from the palm. Now let it drop by it's own weight back to your palm, touching it very lightly, with no pressure. This is how the finger feels when it first touches the string.
- Now hold the guitar, paying attention to the being comfortable and relaxed throughout the body, and slowly raise your relaxed left arm up to the neck, bringing the hand up so that the index finger is lined up with the ninth fret. Have your fingers in a relaxed curl over the 6th string. Allow your Light, relaxed middle finger to fall to the 6th string, behind the 10th fret, so that it touches the string, but applies no pressure. Look at the string under your finger, and see the distance between the string and the fingerboard. Make sure the string does not get move at all down toward the fret.
- Raise your finger an inch, and then bring it back to touch the string again in the same way. Do this over and over, touching the string with the Light Finger, bringing it away, and touching it again. This is called Finger Flapping. Do this a few times with each finger every day. Make sure you keep the inactive fingers as relaxed as possible while touching the string with the active finger. This will get you used to the feeling, and over time, very sensitive to the feeling of complete relaxation.
This light feeling is how your fingers will be when they first touch the string to play a note, and it is the feeling they will return to when they release from a note. It enables them to be prepared for their next job. Many people never have this light feeling, and play with tense fingers all the time, and their playing suffers greatly because of it. This exercise is what I call a Foundation Exercise, one that should be done regularly, no matter how long you have been playing. It will continually act to increase your awareness of the correct and necessary sensations you must have in order to play well. Learning how to bring this feeling in to all playing situations is often a tricky matter, and there is much else to know, but we have to start somewhere!
Here is why. Speed, or the ability to execute movements rapidly and accurately, is simply the result of continuous correct practice that promotes "The Incredible Lightness". If you are creating "The Incredible Tightness" when you practice, you will suffer because of it. Think of walking and running. Does a little kid have to practice running? No, it just happens after balance is mastered, and the ability to place one foot in front of the other, and have all the body parts work together to keep the movement going. After the two year old gets that down, don't worry, he'll be running!
In closing, let me say that all the preceding is founded upon the first two Principles of Correct Practice. I will state them pretty formally, and they apply to all instruments. Principle of Correct Practice #1: Your aware, thinking mind is your primary practice tool. Principle of Correct Practice #2: Control of the fingers is developed by infusing conscious awareness into the muscles through the mechanism of attention while practicing. Remember, as in all things in life, you get out of it what you put in to it (and believe me, it makes me feel pretty old to hear myself saying that, but it's the truth). So read this over and over, and do the exercise, and apply these understandings to your practice.
I will quote myself to bring this point home:"The relative state of tension or relaxation in the muscles is one of the hardest things to be aware of. I once saw a person play with so much tension in her right shoulder that it was up to her earlobe! Always trying to be helpful, I pointed this out to her when she finished. As she let her shoulder down a few inches to it's normal position, she told me I was wrong, she wasn't tense, but very relaxed!
The reason she felt this way is because we very quickly become used to whatever we experience, and consider it normal. We never question whatever tensions we experience in learning new skills on the guitar, and in fact consider it part of the doing of it. And it often is, but it doesn't have to continue to be that strenuous. We can learn to do the movements with less effort.
However, when we first try something, it is often not possible to do it without a lot of excess tension. The mistake is, we assume that the tension is inevitable, and never realize we can get to a point where we can get the result we want without all the huffing, puffing and straining. Often, more stretch or muscle development is required, which will come with a correct approach.
Of course, as we continue to try the new skill, and assume the effort we feel must be that way, it becomes ingrained into our approach, and gets worse. So we have a vicious circle, that leads to frustration and bad playing.
So extra tension in the muscles, which every advanced player knows is the number one cause of playing difficulty, becomes a blind spot for us. Usually we are only aware of the result of the tension, which is that mistake we just made. Often it happens we are not even aware of that, because we start to filter out those unpleasant reminders of our troubles. A As you will see shortly, the correct approach to dealing with "mistakes" caused by tension, is to repeat the movement extremely slowly, with a great focus on keeping all muscles relaxed. With each repetition, the muscles learn the relaxed way of moving to produce the result you want.
"So you see, it is lack of understanding of how the body/mind functions, and lack of honest attention while practicing, that gets us in to trouble. You must start to observe your own "Tightness", and replace it with "Lightness", then you will see your level as a player change upward, what I call Vertical Growth. Since many players have no idea what this lightness feels like, here is a very simple way to connect with it. You must then begin to cultivate this feeling in actual playing. Believe me, it feels good! In fact, when you see a good player "making it look easy", it's because it is easy, when you have the "Incredible Lightness".
Let's discover "The Light Finger"The first step in finding "The Incredible Lightness" is to discover The Light Finger. The Light Finger is the completely relaxed finger, brought to the string, and touching the string, with only the weight of the finger. It does not press the string down until told to do so. To discover the sensation of the Light Finger, do this:
- Raise your arms in front of you, without the guitar, and take hold of the index finger of your left hand with the thumb and index finger of your right hand. Completely relax the left index, and wiggle it around with your right hand. This is the Light Finger.
- Touch the palm of your right hand with your left index. Raise the left index two inches from the palm. Now let it drop by it's own weight back to your palm, touching it very lightly, with no pressure. This is how the finger feels when it first touches the string.
- Now hold the guitar, paying attention to the being comfortable and relaxed throughout the body, and slowly raise your relaxed left arm up to the neck, bringing the hand up so that the index finger is lined up with the ninth fret. Have your fingers in a relaxed curl over the 6th string. Allow your Light, relaxed middle finger to fall to the 6th string, behind the 10th fret, so that it touches the string, but applies no pressure. Look at the string under your finger, and see the distance between the string and the fingerboard. Make sure the string does not get move at all down toward the fret.
- Raise your finger an inch, and then bring it back to touch the string again in the same way. Do this over and over, touching the string with the Light Finger, bringing it away, and touching it again. This is called Finger Flapping. Do this a few times with each finger every day. Make sure you keep the inactive fingers as relaxed as possible while touching the string with the active finger. This will get you used to the feeling, and over time, very sensitive to the feeling of complete relaxation.
This light feeling is how your fingers will be when they first touch the string to play a note, and it is the feeling they will return to when they release from a note. It enables them to be prepared for their next job. Many people never have this light feeling, and play with tense fingers all the time, and their playing suffers greatly because of it. This exercise is what I call a Foundation Exercise, one that should be done regularly, no matter how long you have been playing. It will continually act to increase your awareness of the correct and necessary sensations you must have in order to play well. Learning how to bring this feeling in to all playing situations is often a tricky matter, and there is much else to know, but we have to start somewhere!
Here is why. Speed, or the ability to execute movements rapidly and accurately, is simply the result of continuous correct practice that promotes "The Incredible Lightness". If you are creating "The Incredible Tightness" when you practice, you will suffer because of it. Think of walking and running. Does a little kid have to practice running? No, it just happens after balance is mastered, and the ability to place one foot in front of the other, and have all the body parts work together to keep the movement going. After the two year old gets that down, don't worry, he'll be running!
In closing, let me say that all the preceding is founded upon the first two Principles of Correct Practice. I will state them pretty formally, and they apply to all instruments. Principle of Correct Practice #1: Your aware, thinking mind is your primary practice tool. Principle of Correct Practice #2: Control of the fingers is developed by infusing conscious awareness into the muscles through the mechanism of attention while practicing. Remember, as in all things in life, you get out of it what you put in to it (and believe me, it makes me feel pretty old to hear myself saying that, but it's the truth). So read this over and over, and do the exercise, and apply these understandings to your practice.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
rhyme
All about rhyme. Why? Because I believe rhyme is probably the most abused and misused tool in the world of lyric writing. And I intend to correct this; at least for some up and coming writers.
Throughout this lesson, my main intention is to teach you how to use rhyme so that it is beneficial to your work, like enhancing flow and other reasons, (like grounding weirdness; giving off that story-like effect; verse linkage etc).
Soon I'll give some examples and using those as my starting point, I'll start to explain what you can do with rhyme, and what you should never do with rhyme. (That may make this sound like it is a "Do/Don't" article, but it will never be as clear cut as that).
Before you read my thoughts on whether the rhyming was used to better the work, and how it did so, it would be advantageous for you to read the examples and form some opinions of your own.
Example #1.
This example of, what I believe to be, cringe-inducing rhyming is the first verse of the Pink Floyd classic, 'Time'.
"Ticking away the moments that make up a dull day
You fritter and waste the hours in an off hand way
Kicking around on a piece of ground in your home town
Waiting someone or something to show you the way"
So what's wrong with it? Well, my main problem with it is all the similar syllable sounds. Really, though, it makes me cringe when I hear it. (Which is really a shame, as the melody is wondrous). Look closely at the lyrics and you'll see it says "way" twice and "waste" once. And these words sound almost identical when sung.
Now, you probably think I'm making a big deal out of nothing, but one of the things that you really should avoid in songs is ending two or more lines with the same word. I sincerely mean that, because the majority of the time a repeated word will sound idiotic. It's as if the person who was writing the lyrics couldn't think up an additional word that rhymed with - in this case - 'way'.
Another thing to be wary of - unless you're lyrical ability is highly advanced - is conventional rhyme schemes and rhyming couplets. You should look at the rhyme pattern here; it's a ridiculous AABA. It doesn't even sound abstract, it just sounds like the lyric writer (Roger Waters) was stoned or drunk or having an out mind experience when he wrote it.
To be fair though, it's not all bad and therefore I shouldn't be so negative. I have found positive things to comment on in these lyrics such as that third line. Look at it. From a lyrical perspective, it's a truly sublime piece of writing. Mainly because of the observation - which appears to be comparing us to animals - and also because of the 3 internal rhymes. (Internal rhyme - two or more rhyming words contained within one line. )
Another positive aspect of this particular verse is that the rhyming couplet is almost cliched, and therefore fits the topic perfectly. (I'm not being sarcastic). It seems like the rhyming couplet - due to the simplicity of it - was intended to give off that 'dull' feel that is talked about within the verse, and even if that is not the case, it's an interesting technique that you could take into account when working on your own writing. Following on? I said earlier that you should be wary of rhyming couplets until your lyrical ability has advanced to a supreme level. Well now, I'm going to give you an example of simple, standard rhyming couplets used perfectly.
Example #2.
This example is from a Jeff Buckley song, entitled "Eternal Life".
"Eternal life is now on my trail,
Got my red glitter coffin man, I just need one last nail
While all these ugly gentlemen play out their foolish games
There's a flame on the rise that screams my name"
What is there to say about it? Well, for starters, that first rhyming couplet is unusual and very original, and then the second one is more conventional - possibly even cliched. But the thing is, if you surround conventional rhymes with stylish - and ultimately cool - writing, then your lyrics will appeal to everyone. They'll be simultaneously accessible and abstract. That's the thing: you can ground lyrical weirdness with standard rhyming couplets.
For this next technique, I was thinking about what I haven't shown you to do with rhyme. And here's something that I like to call extended rhyming. The basic idea, (or my understanding of it), is more or less rhyming over more than one verse. For example, ABCD-ABCD, or ABBC-DEEC. You should be able to grasp this concept a bit more fully, whenever I give a proper example. So here we go?
Example #3.
The example below is the first two verses of Damien Rice's, "Older Chests". I have divided it into lines in the most obvious way I could see which would illustrate the point I'm trying to make.
"Older chests
Reveal themselves
Like a crack in the wall
Start off small
But grow in time
And we all seem
To need the help
Of someone else to mend that shelf
With too many books
Read me your favourite line"
Let me try and find a rhyme scheme in the way I have laid out the lyrics. ABCCD-EBBFD seems to cover it. Obviously the form of these lyrics is highly unconventional, so it was hard to illustrate fully what I mean. The one thing you should notice is how - in the second verse - he goes back to rhyming words that he used in the first verse.
Hmm?maybe you don't find that as interesting as I do, but still, be aware of the technique. It's one more piece of knowledge to add to your armoury, which will increase the flow of your work immensely. For example, you may have already noted that it's a good technique to use if you want to closely link your verses together, or perhaps you want to give off a story like feel - which is caused due to the repetition of the rhymes.
Closing Comments.
I think now you should have learnt how to manipulate rhyme to your advantage, and to the benefit of your lyrics. So all I have to say is experiment. The only things that can really teach you how to write are practice and analysis. I learnt through practice, but I'm still learning.
You'll never finish learning, but your skills will always develop if you practice and analyse on a regular basis. Find the time and be dedicated. Remember that when you are using rhyme, you should do it in a creative way. Use rhyme wisely. Do not force it.
Finally, do not forget to pick up a pen, and try out your newfound knowledge. You have been reading another of my lessons, and all I hope is that it has inspired some more creativity on your behalf. Hopefully you will be enthused to develop your skills to an even greater extent, and show the world of UG how prolific and talented a writer can be whenever there is dedication and an insatiable desire to improve.
Throughout this lesson, my main intention is to teach you how to use rhyme so that it is beneficial to your work, like enhancing flow and other reasons, (like grounding weirdness; giving off that story-like effect; verse linkage etc).
Soon I'll give some examples and using those as my starting point, I'll start to explain what you can do with rhyme, and what you should never do with rhyme. (That may make this sound like it is a "Do/Don't" article, but it will never be as clear cut as that).
Before you read my thoughts on whether the rhyming was used to better the work, and how it did so, it would be advantageous for you to read the examples and form some opinions of your own.
Example #1.
This example of, what I believe to be, cringe-inducing rhyming is the first verse of the Pink Floyd classic, 'Time'.
"Ticking away the moments that make up a dull day
You fritter and waste the hours in an off hand way
Kicking around on a piece of ground in your home town
Waiting someone or something to show you the way"
So what's wrong with it? Well, my main problem with it is all the similar syllable sounds. Really, though, it makes me cringe when I hear it. (Which is really a shame, as the melody is wondrous). Look closely at the lyrics and you'll see it says "way" twice and "waste" once. And these words sound almost identical when sung.
Now, you probably think I'm making a big deal out of nothing, but one of the things that you really should avoid in songs is ending two or more lines with the same word. I sincerely mean that, because the majority of the time a repeated word will sound idiotic. It's as if the person who was writing the lyrics couldn't think up an additional word that rhymed with - in this case - 'way'.
Another thing to be wary of - unless you're lyrical ability is highly advanced - is conventional rhyme schemes and rhyming couplets. You should look at the rhyme pattern here; it's a ridiculous AABA. It doesn't even sound abstract, it just sounds like the lyric writer (Roger Waters) was stoned or drunk or having an out mind experience when he wrote it.
To be fair though, it's not all bad and therefore I shouldn't be so negative. I have found positive things to comment on in these lyrics such as that third line. Look at it. From a lyrical perspective, it's a truly sublime piece of writing. Mainly because of the observation - which appears to be comparing us to animals - and also because of the 3 internal rhymes. (Internal rhyme - two or more rhyming words contained within one line. )
Another positive aspect of this particular verse is that the rhyming couplet is almost cliched, and therefore fits the topic perfectly. (I'm not being sarcastic). It seems like the rhyming couplet - due to the simplicity of it - was intended to give off that 'dull' feel that is talked about within the verse, and even if that is not the case, it's an interesting technique that you could take into account when working on your own writing. Following on? I said earlier that you should be wary of rhyming couplets until your lyrical ability has advanced to a supreme level. Well now, I'm going to give you an example of simple, standard rhyming couplets used perfectly.
Example #2.
This example is from a Jeff Buckley song, entitled "Eternal Life".
"Eternal life is now on my trail,
Got my red glitter coffin man, I just need one last nail
While all these ugly gentlemen play out their foolish games
There's a flame on the rise that screams my name"
What is there to say about it? Well, for starters, that first rhyming couplet is unusual and very original, and then the second one is more conventional - possibly even cliched. But the thing is, if you surround conventional rhymes with stylish - and ultimately cool - writing, then your lyrics will appeal to everyone. They'll be simultaneously accessible and abstract. That's the thing: you can ground lyrical weirdness with standard rhyming couplets.
For this next technique, I was thinking about what I haven't shown you to do with rhyme. And here's something that I like to call extended rhyming. The basic idea, (or my understanding of it), is more or less rhyming over more than one verse. For example, ABCD-ABCD, or ABBC-DEEC. You should be able to grasp this concept a bit more fully, whenever I give a proper example. So here we go?
Example #3.
The example below is the first two verses of Damien Rice's, "Older Chests". I have divided it into lines in the most obvious way I could see which would illustrate the point I'm trying to make.
"Older chests
Reveal themselves
Like a crack in the wall
Start off small
But grow in time
And we all seem
To need the help
Of someone else to mend that shelf
With too many books
Read me your favourite line"
Let me try and find a rhyme scheme in the way I have laid out the lyrics. ABCCD-EBBFD seems to cover it. Obviously the form of these lyrics is highly unconventional, so it was hard to illustrate fully what I mean. The one thing you should notice is how - in the second verse - he goes back to rhyming words that he used in the first verse.
Hmm?maybe you don't find that as interesting as I do, but still, be aware of the technique. It's one more piece of knowledge to add to your armoury, which will increase the flow of your work immensely. For example, you may have already noted that it's a good technique to use if you want to closely link your verses together, or perhaps you want to give off a story like feel - which is caused due to the repetition of the rhymes.
Closing Comments.
I think now you should have learnt how to manipulate rhyme to your advantage, and to the benefit of your lyrics. So all I have to say is experiment. The only things that can really teach you how to write are practice and analysis. I learnt through practice, but I'm still learning.
You'll never finish learning, but your skills will always develop if you practice and analyse on a regular basis. Find the time and be dedicated. Remember that when you are using rhyme, you should do it in a creative way. Use rhyme wisely. Do not force it.
Finally, do not forget to pick up a pen, and try out your newfound knowledge. You have been reading another of my lessons, and all I hope is that it has inspired some more creativity on your behalf. Hopefully you will be enthused to develop your skills to an even greater extent, and show the world of UG how prolific and talented a writer can be whenever there is dedication and an insatiable desire to improve.
inspiration
What is inspiration? As always, first things first: what is inspiration? I'll consult the dictionary for that one, and then I'll give you my definition, (in that order).
Inspiration: Something that gives you new ideas and enthusiasm to do something. Inspiration: An experience, emotion or thought that sparks off a creative flow. In the context of writing lyrics, inspiration is the thing that arouses a desire to convey your feelings and thoughts in the form of lyrics.
Where can inspiration be found? Well to put it quite simply: life. Most lyrics are written from one person's experiences, and therefore inspiration and where it is found, differs for each individual. Now, however, I'll just give some examples of experiences that may cause inspiration.
Example #1: Say you broke up with your girlfriend of 2 years; well then you'd be feeling all kinds of different emotions, and the easiest way to put the past behind you and move on is to write about these feelings.
Example #2: Maybe you saw some news coverage about the war on Iraq, and you have particular thoughts on it. Like say, you were suspicious of America's motives for going to war. Or perhaps the opposite is true. Maybe you were in full support of the war and you wanted to write about why it was necessary to go to war.
Example #3: Your father has just died and you want to write a heart-felt ode to him. Perhaps saying all the things you never said. Telling him how you really felt about him, and how you really loved him. Or perhaps you hated him but now you feel remorseful that he's gone, and you want to write about your confusion over this drastic change in emotion.
Of course, all of these deal with experiences. What about conveying thoughts and original ideas? Perhaps, you've thought of a storyline for your lyrics. Now all you have to do is keep the story flowing, make sure it never gets dull (I. e. keep the suspense on full), and make sure it comes to a complete and justified end. My point is this: you will find inspiration everywhere. In art, in experiences, in novels, in music?the list goes on.
What now? Good question. You see; inspiration is nothing without an artist (painter, sculptor, lyrics writer, novelist etc) to do something with it. The one thing that everyone must work on as a writer is channelling this inspiration. Being able to convey thoughts and feeling in nothing more than words. And also discovering how to do it in an easily relatable way.
Accessibility is a key thing in lyrics, because if no one understands the lyrics, then no one will fully enjoy them. I mean, I'm sure there are a lot of writers who like to have extremely intelligent songs, with lots of amazing metaphors and everything else that is regarded as 'intellectual'. But I'm not trying to tell you how to write intelligent songs which no one but intellectuals will understand. Nor am I trying to teach you how to write nursery rhymes. All I'm doing is teaching you the fundamental things, which are absolute necessities in writing lyrics. It's up to you what you do with this knowledge.
So let me get back to the point: Inspiration can be found everywhere, and will come to you at anytime, but the first thing you must do is learn how to recognise it, and the second thing you must do is learn how to manipulate it. Craft a thought, feeling or experience into a set of lyrics and do it often. Then you may call yourself a lyrics writer.
Inspiration: Something that gives you new ideas and enthusiasm to do something. Inspiration: An experience, emotion or thought that sparks off a creative flow. In the context of writing lyrics, inspiration is the thing that arouses a desire to convey your feelings and thoughts in the form of lyrics.
Where can inspiration be found? Well to put it quite simply: life. Most lyrics are written from one person's experiences, and therefore inspiration and where it is found, differs for each individual. Now, however, I'll just give some examples of experiences that may cause inspiration.
Example #1: Say you broke up with your girlfriend of 2 years; well then you'd be feeling all kinds of different emotions, and the easiest way to put the past behind you and move on is to write about these feelings.
Example #2: Maybe you saw some news coverage about the war on Iraq, and you have particular thoughts on it. Like say, you were suspicious of America's motives for going to war. Or perhaps the opposite is true. Maybe you were in full support of the war and you wanted to write about why it was necessary to go to war.
Example #3: Your father has just died and you want to write a heart-felt ode to him. Perhaps saying all the things you never said. Telling him how you really felt about him, and how you really loved him. Or perhaps you hated him but now you feel remorseful that he's gone, and you want to write about your confusion over this drastic change in emotion.
Of course, all of these deal with experiences. What about conveying thoughts and original ideas? Perhaps, you've thought of a storyline for your lyrics. Now all you have to do is keep the story flowing, make sure it never gets dull (I. e. keep the suspense on full), and make sure it comes to a complete and justified end. My point is this: you will find inspiration everywhere. In art, in experiences, in novels, in music?the list goes on.
What now? Good question. You see; inspiration is nothing without an artist (painter, sculptor, lyrics writer, novelist etc) to do something with it. The one thing that everyone must work on as a writer is channelling this inspiration. Being able to convey thoughts and feeling in nothing more than words. And also discovering how to do it in an easily relatable way.
Accessibility is a key thing in lyrics, because if no one understands the lyrics, then no one will fully enjoy them. I mean, I'm sure there are a lot of writers who like to have extremely intelligent songs, with lots of amazing metaphors and everything else that is regarded as 'intellectual'. But I'm not trying to tell you how to write intelligent songs which no one but intellectuals will understand. Nor am I trying to teach you how to write nursery rhymes. All I'm doing is teaching you the fundamental things, which are absolute necessities in writing lyrics. It's up to you what you do with this knowledge.
So let me get back to the point: Inspiration can be found everywhere, and will come to you at anytime, but the first thing you must do is learn how to recognise it, and the second thing you must do is learn how to manipulate it. Craft a thought, feeling or experience into a set of lyrics and do it often. Then you may call yourself a lyrics writer.
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