Ideas for your next practice session
Choose a topic from your practice. Each tip includes a two-minute task to try on your guitar.
Posture
Start with the chair
An armrest can push the guitar sideways. A stable seat makes it easier to keep the shoulders level. The right foot rests flat.
Today · Today, compare your position with the drawing in the first lesson.
The open-hand test
A falling neck puts the left hand to work before the first note. The body needs a stable support. The neck then stays in place between movements.
Today · Today, open the left hand three times after setting up the guitar.
The weight of the forearm
The right forearm meets the rim of the body. The elbow stays free. A raised shoulder is a reason to try a different height.
Today · Today, find where your forearm rests before playing a note.
Equipment
Support or footstool
A support raises the guitar on the thigh. A footstool raises the thigh itself. A good setup leaves the left hand free.
Today · Today, try two heights for one minute each.
Check the string type
A classical set is labelled as such on the packet. Bass strings can have a metal winding over a flexible core. Check compatibility with your model.
Today · Today, read the label on your spare string set before opening it.
Try the seated position
The body shape affects where your arm rests. Support height affects neck height. A seated trial lets you check both shoulders.
Today · Today, use a mirror to check that your shoulders stay low when your fingers touch the strings.
Right hand
Four letters, four fingers
The thumb is p. The index, middle and ring fingers are i, m and a. Each letter identifies the finger that plucks.
Today · Today, name each finger as you place it on its string.
Room for the thumb
The thumb travels on the neck side of the index finger. Each finger then has its own path. A collision can be heard or felt.
Today · Today, alternate thumb and index eight times on two adjacent strings.
Find the string before playing
Placing the fingers prepares a precise start. The string becomes a tactile reference. Landing too heavily makes a small thump.
Today · Today, prepare four silent p-i-m-a starts.
The finger after a crossing
After i comes m, even on a new string. Three strokes on the first string make the crossing easy to hear. The new string begins with the other finger.
Today · Today, say i-m-i-m through one string crossing.
Left hand
Leave the next string clear
A flat finger can mute its neighbour. The fingertip makes a narrower contact. An open string reveals the problem immediately.
Today · Today, test open string 1 while holding C on string 2.
Where to fret a note
The note stops at a metal fret wire. The finger sits just behind it, on the headstock side. Too great a gap can encourage buzzing.
Today · Today, compare two index-finger placements within one fret space.
Just enough pressure
A note can stay clear with little pressure. The first buzz marks an audible threshold. Going just above it gives the hand a reference.
Today · Today, find the minimum pressure on the same F three times.
Release during a rest
A barre uses the index across several strings. Pressure is needed while the notes sound. A rest gives the finger time to release.
Today · Today, alternate a partial barre and a rest for four bars.
Tone
Two colours on one string
Plucking near the bridge brightens the sound. Near the fingerboard the sound becomes rounder. The pitch stays the same.
Today · Today, play the same note in two places with the same finger.
Find the snag
A tiny rough spot can scrape the string. The noise is audible at the start of the note. Polishing a small area helps identify the edge involved.
Today · Today, compare one finger’s sound before and after light polishing.
Listen above the thumb
A strong bass can mask the melody. A smaller thumb stroke changes the balance with the treble. Humming the top line is a useful test.
Today · Today, record two bars with a lighter bass.
Rhythm
Keep the pulse
The click marks the beat. A half note lasts two quarter notes. The second click falls while the note rings.
Today · Today, play eight half notes on string 1 at 50 BPM.
Count the rest
Your hand can pause during a rest. The beat continues. Counting aloud locates the next attack.
Today · Today, alternate a quarter note and a quarter rest for eight bars.
Three sounds in one beat
A triplet splits a beat into three equal parts. The click lands on the first. The other two are evenly spaced.
Today · Today, say “one-two-three” eight times with one slow click per group.
Daily practice
Choose a target you can hear
One bar is enough to observe a movement. A precise target gives repetition a purpose. You can hear a bass cut short.
Today · Today, play two bars three times and listen to the ends of the bass notes.
Practise the join
Two passages can work in isolation. Moving between them requires a movement of its own. A short loop makes it audible.
Today · Today, loop the final attack of one bar and the first attack of the next.
Write down your starting point
A bar number identifies a precise spot. A tempo records how you practised. Together they help you resume tomorrow.
Today · Today, write down the bar, tempo and finger change to revisit tomorrow.
Memory
Recall the first attack
A phrase has a starting point. The string and fret help you find it. The first note gives your ear a check.
Today · Today, name the string and fret before playing a phrase from memory.
Start in the middle
A phrase opening gives you a landmark. Several landmarks provide several starting points. They help you restart after a hesitation.
Today · Today, start your study at three different phrase openings.
Hear what comes next
Aural memory follows the shape of a phrase. Singing the shape calls it to mind. The guitar then lets you check it.
Today · Today, sing the start of your phrase, then check it on the guitar.
Stage fright
Record a complete take
A recording gives you a beginning and an end. Continuing after a slip takes practice. Listening back reveals changes in pulse.
Today · Today, record eight bars in one take and listen for one change of tempo.
Play for one listener
One listener changes the playing situation. A familiar phrase keeps the technical demands manageable. Choose your ending in advance.
Today · Today, play a short phrase for someone you trust.
Reading music
Read the string and fret together
The line gives the string. The number gives the fret. Zero means an open string.
Today · Today, name the string and fret of the first four notes in your tab.
Spot simultaneous attacks
Two numbers in a vertical stack share a starting time. They sit on different strings. Preparing them together helps synchronise the attacks.
Today · Today, find two stacked numbers and sound the two strings together.
Instrument care
Wipe the strings
Fingers leave residue on the strings. A soft dry cloth removes it after playing. Wipe each string.
Today · Today, wipe all six strings with a soft dry cloth.
Read the hygrometer
A hygrometer measures relative humidity. Wood responds to changes in humidity. The maker gives the recommended range for your instrument.
Today · Today, compare your hygrometer reading with the range recommended by the maker.
Choose a storage spot
A heater warms the air close to it. A sunny window also heats a case. A spot with a stable temperature protects the instrument better.
Today · Today, find a place for the case away from heaters and direct sunlight.
Glossary
Arpeggio
A chord contains several notes. In an arpeggio their attacks follow one another. The notes can continue ringing together.
Today · Today, pluck strings 5, 3, 2 and 1 in order with p, i, m and a.
Barre
In a barre one finger stops several strings at the same fret. Usually it is the index. A small barre can cover two strings.
Today · Today, place the index across the two treble strings at fret 5 and listen to each separately.
Ascending slur
The right hand attacks the first note. A left finger lands at a higher fret on the same string. This produces the second note.
Today · Today, play string 1 open and sound fret 1 with the left index.
Position shift
A position locates the hand on the neck. A shift takes it to another position. Looking ahead helps you find the target fret.
Today · Today, shift your index from fret 2 to fret 5 on string 2, then return.
Rest stroke
The right finger moves through the played string. It comes to rest on the adjacent lower string. That landing gives the stroke its name.
Today · Today, play a rest stroke on string 1 with the index and check that it lands on string 2.
Free stroke
After a free stroke the finger clears the adjacent string. That string can keep vibrating. The stroke is common in arpeggios.
Today · Today, sound string 2, then play string 1 with a free stroke while string 2 keeps ringing.
Subdivision
A beat can be divided into shorter sounds. Two even eighth notes split a quarter note in half. The click can stay on the quarter note.
Today · Today, alternate one and two attacks per click on string 1 at 50 BPM.