|
|
The
Principles of Practice
Based on "The Principles of Correct
Practice for Guitar"
by Jamie Andreas
|
| IN
THIS ISSUE |
September
30, 2001 Volume 62
|
The Proper Use of Exercises: Get Sharp, Stay Sharp!
A
big problem we aspiring guitarists have is dealing with the ever growing number of exercises that come our way, from books, friends, websites and so forth. After awhile, it seems we are drowning in an ocean of exercises claiming our attention; each one seeming to be necessary to be done every day, if we hope to become a good player. So, if we are really diligent, we do our best to try to do as many as we can, which usually means we are so worried and hurried that we get little or no benefit from them.
Of course, there is the opposite extreme, the player who never does any exercises in a formal sense at all. They just work with whatever music they want to play, and "go for it". This method CAN work for some people some of the time, but not for all people all of the time, or even most people all of the time. For most players there comes a time when they realize that the only way to raise the level of their playing ability (Vertical Growth), is through the use of exercises which focus on a particular aspect of technique. I believe, and I think most teachers would agree, the safest course to take to guarantee your continuous development as a player, technically speaking, is to make technical exercises a regular part of your daily practice regimen.
As always, the first thing to understand about exercises is this: if you don't know how to practice, you will get no real benefit from exercises. By this I mean that when you first begin to practice an exercise, it may seem to be doing you some good. But to the degree that you are not doing correct practice, it will also be doing you harm, building in limiting tension into your body.
Eventually what will happen is that you will experience a "wall" you cannot go beyond, in terms of the speed or quality of the exercise. In reality, at any speed, your actual performance of the exercise (or music) will be flawed, when considered by professional standards.
For the player who does know how to practice, the right exercises, at the right time, done in the right way, will be a source of unlimited growth.
With that understood, I would like to make a few other points. First of all, for any given player at any stage of their development, it is never true that you need to do all exercises every day! If you think you do, then you are either incredibly mis-informed, or you suffer from an overwhelming compulsion to achieve a state of absolute perfection, which you think you will achieve if you somehow master every exercise out there. And don't laugh, I have met many people like that, including me at one time!
No, at any given time there are certain exercises that are just right for us, and right for us in two ways: they are what is needed for our next step in development as players in a general, overall sense, and/or two, they are right for the demands of particular short term goals, such as mastering a particular solo, chord change, lick, etc. You must be intelligent about this matter, to discover what is right for you at any time. Ask your teacher, think and analyze for yourself, and you will get better at this as time goes on. For instance, finger independence such as is gained by the Walking Exercises from The Principles should be brought to the point of controlled playing with good form before scales or hammers and pull-offs are developed.
If you feel you are not benefiting from a particular exercise, you are probably right, in which case you must analyze what the exercise is working on, and break it down further. We should analyze exactly what we are asking our fingers to do, and then we should realize that, if we are not able to do what we are asking, we should ASK THEM TO DO LESS! That means devising a new exercise, or set of exercises, that will more particularly focus in on selected aspects of the movements that make up the exercise. This would involve practicing just the movements that make up one, two, or three notes, and practicing them extremely slowly, with great attention to minimizing tension and establishing absolute precision at every speed.
Another point I want to make is that, in addition to acquiring new levels of technique, exercises for musicians are also the best way of maintaining the technique you have acquired. A big mistake players will make is stopping doing exercises after they have been "mastered". Exercises are never mastered! They are open ended. Speed studies can constantly be worked on for more speed, if you so desire. But if you are not interested in pushing a certain technique to new speed levels, you should still use that exercise to maintain the speed level you have reached. How often you need to do so is a matter of your own observation.
Essentially, exercises should be looked at as "sharpening stones". You use a sharpening stone to get a blade sharp, and to keep it sharp. Exercises can be used as much as you want, depending on how "sharp" you want your technique to be, and that depends on the demands of the style you are playing or want to play. Don't make the mistake of thinking of exercises for guitar players as if they were, for instance, exercises in a math book. When I was in first grade, my math book gave me "exercises" for learning addition. I can add quite successfully at age 46 even though I don't do those exercises anymore. However, I still do the most elementary exercises on the guitar even after 32 years of playing on a regular basis (the Foundation Exercises, and similar ones). That is because, unlike math exercises, guitar exercises are PHYSICALLY based. The physical body, muscle and nerve reflexes, is a living, dynamic system, growing new cells constantly, and destroying old cells constantly. Reflexes, nerve connections, muscle tissue, will deteriorate over time, if left unused. They get "rusty" and "dusty".
Actually, they get dusty first, then, if you really don't practice for awhile, they get "rusty". For myself, I keep mine dusted off regularly. I like to spend about two hours a day on exercises. Based on what I have said here about the subject of exercises, do what you feel is right for you and your goals. Even 10 minutes a day of good practice on selected exercises will get you sharper, and keep you sharper, if you practice them correctly, of course!
Memory Lapses While Performing
Dear Jamie,
Currently, I play exclusively in the classic style and solely for
my own enjoyment. Since more people are finding out that I have
taken up the guitar, I am sure that eventually it will be necessary
to play in front of other people.
I have read all your articles on memorization and performance. While
they have been extremely helpful, I am encountering a problem which
I have not been able to successful resolve. I have accumulated approximately
twenty classical miniature pieces which have been memorized. I am
able to play any one of these pieces without major errors most of
the time and in a fashion I would find acceptable if I were playing
in front of someone. On certain days, however, without warning,
I will be playing a piece which was "flawless" the day
before and completely forget where my fingers are supposed to go
next. This happens even though I can clearly hear the next phrase
in my head. If I lay the guitar down for awhile, I am able to play
the piece again without any problems.
The fear of this kind of lapse happening without warning, has kept
me from playing in front of any one. Can you give me any insight
on why these lapses occur. How can I best avoid them or at least
minimize them. I suppose I would also like to know if this situation
is common among guitarists.
Dick Schmidt
Hi Dick,
There could be many different reasons why you lose your focus and
forget what to do next while playing a piece. However, based on
what you have said I will hazard a guess as to the reason. I will
also make some comments on your essential position in relation to
your feelings about yourself as a player.
First of all, when this memory loss occurs, there is some kind of
internal "motion" going on in you, most probably of an
emotional nature, which is sabotaging your muscle memory. Muscle
memory is strong, and very self-sufficient. It can run on and on
by itself. But, as I mentioned in my essay on Memorizing,
it is quite stupid. If it loses its place, it cannot find it by
itself, and must re-wind to the beginning, and hope for the best
on the replay. Assuming you have done the necessary amount and quality
of practice to make your muscle memory strong enough, then some
other factor, this internal "motion", is creating static
that is disrupting your muscle memory.
In any case, as I stated in my essay on muscle memory, in order
to be properly protected from memory loss while playing, you need
the back-up of "head memory", or "mental memory",
the conscious awareness of what the notes actually are. The ability
to say them out loud in order, and to see them internally, in your
mind's eye, as well as the ability to internally imagine yourself
playing them. Professional players throughout history have used
this mental practice technique to strongly solidify music they will
be performing. It is done by closing the eyes and mentally rehearsing.
I describe it in the essay. Make sure you are doing this, and if
you are finding it difficult, no big deal, it gets easier with time
and practice.
Now Dick, the point I really want to make is this. You say "the
fear of this kind of lapse happening has kept me from playing for
anyone". I will bet that this fear is actually causing, or
contributing to your memory lapses even when you are simply playing
for yourself! What you need to understand is that EVERY player goes
through this in some form, and the ones who make progress with it
are the ones who go play in front of others ANYWAY!
I remember times in my life when, before walking out on stage, I
would feel like there was a hangman's noose over the chair I was
about to sit down and play in! I was scared to death. I did it anyway.
I refuse to be controlled by my fear, I refuse to take it seriously,
I refuse to allow it to keep me small and limited. Whoever the "me"
is that is afraid of something as stupidly inconsequential as making
a playing mistake in front of other people, whoever that is, I don't
want to respect his fear anyway. In fact, if there is a part of
me that is so afraid of being embarrassed that it will attempt to
control my life and actions through fear, I will deliberately go
out of my way to defy that part, to offend that part, and embarrass
the hell out of it! And I have done that.
Most people don't do that. When they have a "fear" part,
they defend that part. That is what you are doing. You are keeping
it safe. I say, "Don't defend yourself, offend yourself".
As you do, as you show that "fear" part of you that you
will no longer respect it's concerns, it begins to lose power. You
must learn to "walk through your fear", not wait for it
to leave the neighborhood, it never does.
The essay you really need to read is the one on "Stage Fright".
I will quote a few paragraphs which speak directly to your situation:
From "Stage Fright":
Don't Fight Fear, Ignore Fear
Many people make a big mistake by trying to "fight"
their stage fright, or to trick by performing little mental maneuvers,
like imagining the audience naked or in their underwear. Well, I
do believe in doing whatever gets you through the night, but don't
confuse it with getting to the heart of the matter. When Fear, when
Stage Fright arises, it is because deep inside yourself, you are
devoting a large part of your attention on YOURSELF, and not the
music. In fact, here is something very interesting to ponder. It
can be just as detrimental to your performance to be sitting there
performing and be feeling really good about yourself as it is to
be feeling bad about yourself. Most of us performers have experienced
playing really well, and then sitting there patting ourselves on
the back (in our heads), when we should be busy playing. Guess what
happens? Bam, there goes that passage! Either it gets messed up,
or just suffers from a lack of feeling or involvement, because we
were to busy thinking about ourselves, this time in a "positive"
sense.
There must be no "self" when you play. There must be only
the music.
When we do make that inner error of putting self before music, whether
"positive" or "negative", the thing to do is
to become aware of what you are doing. Take hold of your attention,
and place it on the music, and feel your passion for it (which is
what you are supposed to be doing, it's what the people came for).
Fear (which is the result of your inner error) is like an unwelcome
visitor who just pops in to see how miserable he can make your life.
He stands there and starts saying nasty things to you to see if
he can get your goat. Like any bully, if he sees he starts to get
a reaction from you, he gets more power, he gets bolder. Pretty
soon, he'll have you on your knees. However, if he sees you are
ignoring him and playing your guitar instead, he gets all deflated.
It's no fun, he hangs around a little bit, gets bored, and leaves.
The way THROUGH stage fright is to stay centered in that passion,
to be with it, to lose the sense of DOING the music, and stay with
the sense of BEING the music. This is the responsibility of the
performer, just as it is the responsibility of the audience member.
When this is done, there is no stage fright, because there is no
one there to be afraid. When Attention is where it should be, on
the music, instead of on the self, you cannot be "self-conscious",
you can only be "music conscious". Then, the magic can
really take place.
You can read the whole essay here.
So, my advice is this Dick: follow all my instructions in terms of
fortifying your memory as stated in my essay on Memorizing. Then,
do not wait for your fear to disappear before you act. That never
happens. Act even though you are afraid. That is how those who achieve
great things act.
Follow these steps:
1) Prepare yourself as best you can to play a piece or two for a friend.
Explain to your friend that this is an exercise designed for you to
make yourself stronger as a player, and he or she is helping you.
This way, you will not feel obliged to be "perfect".
2) Then go and do it. Make an agreement with yourself that whatever
happens is perfectly okay. If you totally screw up and make an idiot
out of yourself, that's fine, no big deal. That is just the step you
need to take now to get to a better place.
3) Afterwards, analyze where and how you screwed up. Go back and do
some practicing on those parts, and GO PLAY FOR YOUR FRIEND THE NEXT
WEEK. Keep doing this, it will get better and better, each time you
do it.
I will leave you with another quote from the book I mentioned before "The Power of Focus":
"Everything you want is on the other side of Fear".
Think about that, and act accordingly, and you will get whatever you
want out of life.
Mirror, Mirror on the Wall, Who's the Tensest Player of All?
I told you last week when I wrote about the student with the runaway
left hand pinky, and the anchored right hand pinky, that a lot of
you would see yourselves as you watched the video! I got a letter
from someone who wanted to change the picture, and so decided to
become a Principled Player. Here is his letter, and I want to make
a few comments after:
Hi Jamie,
I'm really looking forward to reading your book. I read on your
website that anchoring the right-hand pinky on the guitar was a
sign of excess tension. I have been doing this for years, and have
always been plagued by right hand picking errors. Once I became
aware of this, I noticed that my right hand becomes very tense when
I play a complicated passage. I tried relaxing the right hand and
just lightly brushing the guitar with the pinky, and I noticed a
significant improvement in my playing. That tip alone was worth
the price of the book.
Keep up the great work.
Charles H
Great Charles. An important thing I want everyone to understand
is that if you have been playing with this tension associated with
pressing the pinky onto the face of the guitar, that tension is
now locked into your muscle memory. The longer you have been doing
it the more locked in it will be, and the longer you will have to
do the kind of practice necessary to remove it. Also, the more careful
you will have to be about the process. Don't underestimate the situation.
People often expect that simply coming to an understanding about
how tension occurs and gets locked in to the muscles will somehow
enable them to play without it!
No, it will take months of careful practice, but that is no big
deal. I go through it all the time, and the good part is that you
will begin to see results right away, and then it will just keep
getting better. As I am always trying to convey to you, that IS
the process of getting better. The essentials are the same for everyone,
the details may change.
Also, understand that the tension you need to remove is not just
in your pinky, it is in the whole arm, shoulder area, and probably
upper back, chest and side area! All of these areas contain muscles
attached to the upper arm bone, so make sure you focus your attention
there also as you apply posing, no tempo practice, and the Basic
Practice Approach to remove the tension.
When the tension re-surfaces at times in your playing, just realize
that this is the power of muscle memory. With proper practice, you
are going to make this power work FOR you, as you give your muscles
some new memories!
For more insight into this, read my essay "Changing
Bad Habits".
A Reader Gets Past My "Ego"!
Jamie,
Actually I've been watching your site and receiving your newsletters
for so long I honestly can't remember how I found you. Frankly,
in the beginning I found your articles very informative, but it
was hard for me to get past what I interpreted as your ego. My personal
bias prevented me from jumping aboard the guitar principles train.
As I've continued to receive your newsletters for over a year now
I realize that what I interpreted as your ego was actually your
confidence and genuine enthusiasm in the principles you profess.
Your desire to help guitarists improve their abilities is sincere
and your dedication to that task is unrelenting. I think it's safe
to say that no other guitar teacher on the worldwide web works so
tirelessly week to week to communicate ideas to other guitar players.
You're the real deal.
I look forward to working the "Principles" into my own
guitar practice.
Thanks.
Skip
Well Skip, I appreciate your hanging around long enough to figure
that out! Believe me, I get the same reaction in my personal life
all the time. I learned a long time ago the difference between what
people normally refer to as "ego", and what I am about.
This bad "ego" people usually refer to is characterized
by someone going around with the attitude " I am great, you
are not. If you think you are, I will try to convince you you're
not. I can only feel great if I know you are not. Of course, I will
not try to help you be great, or feel great, because then you won't
need to hang around and admire me!"
Now, that is not where I am at. I am in this place, "I am great,
I know I am great. I work very hard at being great. I want you to
know that any greatness I have attained is attainable by you also,
if you know certain things, and if you do certain things. It is
my desire, and my pleasure to show you how to do this, because one
of the things I know is that the more I help other people find and
develop their greatness, the more I find and develop mine".
(THAT is simply a Universal Law.)
You see, I am always accused of being arrogant. Arrogance is NOT
the recognition, use, and expression of one's powers and abilities,
arrogance is the FALSE PRESUMPTION of such power. In other words,
arrogance is not saying "I am great at this or that",
arrogance is saying " I am great at this or that", when
you're not!
I just happened to read an excellent little piece in a book I would
recommend to anyone who wants a powerful dose of "correct attitudes"
in terms of learning some fundamental truths about functioning in
life, and becoming a powerful person. The book is called "The
Power of Focus" by Jack Canfield and Les Hewitt. This is a
quote taken from a book by Marianne Williamson and used by Nelson
Mandela in his 1994 inaugural speech:
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our
light, not our darkness that frightens us. We ask ourselves , who
am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?
Actually, who are we not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing
small doesn't serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about
shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We
were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us.
It is not in just some of us, it's in everyone. And as we let our
own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to
do the same. As we are liberated from our own fears, our presence
automatically liberates others.
There you have it. It is everyone's responsibility to find and develop
there own greatness, and offer it to other people, thereby helping
them to develop their own greatness. Personally, I don't hang around
people who are not busy going about being great and developing their
greatness in daily life. I find them too boring!
All
material copyright © 2003 by Jamie Andreas, GuitarPrinciples.com |
