Today I started practicing the next three combinations of 1234s, repeated the scales and All of Me at the same speed as yesterday and started to play Autumn Leaves.
1234 exercise
As always it’s fun to start practice new combinations, because the brain and muscles just don’t behave at the beginning and there is a way I need to go through until they get used to these new movements.
Surprisingly, for these it was harder to move up the strings, not down. But I think I managed to teach myself how to play them. Tomorrow I’ll increase the speed.
4123 on the 5th fret
8th notes @ 120 bpm
4132 on the 5th fret
8th notes @ 120 bpm
4213 on the 5th fret
8th notes @ 120 bpm
Scales
Still trying to improve my performance at that speed. Step by step.
Major scales
16th notes @ 90 bpm
Minor scales
16th notes @ 90 bpm
Strumming
Module 17 pattern [All of Me]
Trying to clean up the sound, especially with the barre chords. I think a few more days and it’s gonna be clean enough.
Open chords
150 bpm
Barre chords
150 bpm
Module 18 pattern [Autumn Leaves]
Just started playing this one, nothing special. The chords themselves aren’t that hard to play, but remembering the whole progression is a task and a half.
Without the metronome
70 bpm
Songs
MGMT – Kids
Well, 1-2 days ago I started learning the solo for Kids by MGMT. My friend and I want to cover this song and my part includes it. Well, now I only managed to play it at the half speed of the original, and not very consistently. So the next few days/weeks/months I’ll be practicing this solo in order to increase the speed to the speed of original.
Anyway, here’s me playing it at 123 bpm as 8th notes (in the original it’s played as 16th notes).
And here’s one of the takes in which I managed to play the whole solo at once.
Summary
Everything is slowly but surely moving forward, which is great and how it’s supposed to be. The solo thing is very interesting yet really tricky. It’s harder than everything I played before. So it will be a giant leap forward in my skill when I’m able to finally play it at the original speed.
Routines
4123 – 5th fret – 120 bpm – 8th notes – 3 min
4132 – 5th fret – 120 bpm – 8th notes – 3 min
4213 – 5th fret – 120 bpm – 8th notes – 3 min
Major scales – 1-12 frets – EADG strings – 90 bpm – 16th notes
Minor scales – 1-12 frets – EA strings – 90 bpm – 16th notes
Strumming – All of Me – Open chords – 150 bpm
Strumming – All of Me – Barre chords – 150 bpm
Strumming – Autumn Leaves – 70 bpm