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30 Minute Practice Routine


NeilES335

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The question of a solid practice routine comes up many, many times, from dedicated students who wonder, "What should I practice ?", "How often should I practice", "How do I keep track of my progress?" ...  Steve Krenz created this video (Taken from the Tips of the Pros Series), to address this often asked question... (about 7:31 minutes long ... You'll also find this in the Tips of the Pros sub-forum) 

 

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Hello all.  I recently saw this video even though I'm on session 4 of the main course (and I'll probably dip into session 5 a little bit before I feel 100% in 4).  I've been following a routine for awhile now that uses most of the tips Steve has in the lesson books, but this is the first time I remember the Creative free Play section being mentioned and I'm not really sure how to go about doing it. 

Usually the last few minutes of my session have been devoted to running through sharps and flats to try and get those solid.  Every once and awhile I'll maybe try to figure out some song melody by trial and error.  

I was just wondering if anyone had any suggestions on where to start for the creative free play part?  Or is this something I should worry about after a few more sessions?

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@costancr Sure, I have a couple of ideas for you or someone around Session 4. One is to start from a random string and fret (say, fifth string, third fret), and play a major scale from ear. Do, re, me, and so on. Just experiment until you find it. And don't worry about fingering, just find the notes, even if you stay on the same string. Then look for another. Something else you could try is to play a simple riff from a favorite song -- just a few notes -- without looking it up on YouTube first. Try to find it with your fingers and ear. Then tweak it; change a note here and there, and see what happens. This is not "noodling around", this is exploring your instrument with a purpose. No, it's not too early for this. 👍

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Good advice Diane!

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Thank you for the ideas!  I'll give them a try today.

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Thanks for the tips Diane! Simple and endless... I need to put play back in too. Lately I've been warming up by playing the frets up and down, then complete with sharps and flats, then on to session 4 practice. It's coming sloooooowwwly. I'm on my third or fourth nine volt battery for the metronome.

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@DianeB  The only riff I've tried sounding out was the intro to "Windy" but I have to say trying your major scale idea was one of the most interesting things I've ever done with a  guitar.  Between going through the first 4 sessions and now starting on session 5 along with that suggestion you made actually makes me feel like I'm gaining some sort of understanding for the instrument, not just the how-to of playing.  (even though I have barely scratched the surface) That was a fantastic suggestion thank you!

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