Practicing tips

guitarboy2828

This isn't a lesson, but a lesson needed ?

I'm trying to figure out what's the best way to learn songs. Let's say I have 2 hours a day to practice, an hour in the morning and an hour at night.

Is my time best spent working on 3 songs for 20 minutes each in the morning and evening? or is it best spent learning 1 song for the full 2 hours?

The songs are not songs I can just pick up and play, but am slowly learning them. They are songs by Tommy Emmanuel, Trace Bundy, Andy Mckee, etc. So, hardish songs which require some time to learn technique.

Thoughts, ideas? How do you guys practice songs such as this?

ActionArnie

Paul E wrote: Tommy Emmanuel, Trace Bundy, Andy Mckee, etc.

Yoh you don't mess around hey! ???

guitarboy2828

ActionArnie wrote:
Paul E wrote: Tommy Emmanuel, Trace Bundy, Andy Mckee, etc.
Yoh you don't mess around hey! ???

Like I said, I'm still practising, but those artists are my hero's, LOVE their music! Hope to post vids in the next few weeks with some covers to see what you guys think ?

DaFiz

I would work on just one new song for an hour and when my mind gets too boggled start jamming a few old songs and then go back to that one again. 8)

FruitarGeek

+1 to Dafiz

Except

I'd work on the one song UNTIL your gatvol of it, and its getting the better of you, then move to other songs which reinspire you, and then come back. Dont set a limit to how long you should learn a song.

arjunmenon

Agree with FG.
I usually take a song and start working on it bar by bar, i.e. learn the first bar, move to the second bar, nail the second one and then start from the the first bar all over again. I know it seems very pedantic, but it really works for me and builds my fluency.

Cheers

[deleted]

I'm pretty much the same as Arjun, although I learned a pretty good tip from one of my piano teachers and that's to learn the song bar by bar, but move backwards through the piece. Once each bar can be played well you can move up one bar. Once those two can be played well you add another bar. By the end of the piece you've played through the whole thing a kajillion times and you get the reward of playing through the piece from the beginning. Okay, this is more of a polishing type of practice. I suppose try learn it forwards first so that you can enjoy it for a little first.

Another good reason for learning it backwards as well is that when you're learning the piece you start to learn the mistakes you make. Once you take the song out of context and learn it from a different angle you unlearn the mistakes.

So it's about clever practicing, the last thing you want to be doing is practicing your mistakes.

arjunmenon

Thanks for the tip Viccy. I'm going to give your method a shot.

[deleted]

Cool Arjun!

guitarboy2828

Arjun Menon wrote: Thanks for the tip Viccy. I'm going to give your method a shot.

+1, me too Viccy, thanks! I've actually been trying to think of ways to get better at some of these pieces, I think you have just given me a way ?

[deleted]

Awesome!

Wizard

With violin I also learned to play the song from the last bar backwards.
There's a devious angle to this as well though.
People tend to remember more how you end a piece than how you begin it ?

Highway-Chile

Viccy wrote:Another good reason for learning it backwards as well is that when you're learning the piece you start to learn the mistakes you make. Once you take the song out of context and learn it from a different angle you unlearn the mistakes.

Is that kind of like.......if you get dizzy from spinning round and round, you spin round and round the other way.......and unwind yourself up? ? :rolleyes: ?

Jack-Flash-Jr

Viccy wrote: I'm pretty much the same as Arjun, although I learned a pretty good tip from one of my piano teachers and that's to learn the song bar by bar, but move backwards through the piece. Once each bar can be played well you can move up one bar. Once those two can be played well you add another bar. By the end of the piece you've played through the whole thing a kajillion times and you get the reward of playing through the piece from the beginning. Okay, this is more of a polishing type of practice. I suppose try learn it forwards first so that you can enjoy it for a little first.

Another good reason for learning it backwards as well is that when you're learning the piece you start to learn the mistakes you make. Once you take the song out of context and learn it from a different angle you unlearn the mistakes.

So it's about clever practicing, the last thing you want to be doing is practicing your mistakes.

You should see her drink... starts at the bottom of the glass!

Good advice... am going to give it a bash, might work for transcribing too - my 'knowledge' of a song often gets in the way of getting a transcription right...

[deleted]

You should see her drink... starts at the bottom of the glass!

Excuse me? Are you referring to me spilling my coffee in the saucer most of the time?

Another good aspect of this technique is that people spend so much time polishing the beginning of the song, but in a performance the crunch is at the end, when your fingers and nerves are tired and tested. The last thing you want to be feeling is "oh shucks, I got their attention, but now I can't follow through".

arjunmenon

Viccy wrote: Another good aspect of this technique is that people spend so much time polishing the beginning of the song, but in a performance the crunch is at the end, when your fingers and nerves are tired and tested. The last thing you want to be feeling is "oh shucks, I got their attention, but now I can't follow through".

So true.

guitarboy2828

Just to add to this post, something I'm finding is working for me.

I have learnt one of my songs to the point where I can play it from start to finish (not perfectly though), but I have it memorised and I can play it. So now, I am continuing to work on it and am focusing on the difficult parts. HOWEVER, at the same time as that, I am starting to memorise a new tune and am working through the basics chord shapes and techniques for that song.

I am finding that this keeps me learning new songs and not getting stagnant or comfortable playing the same song over and over again.

Now to start playing em backwards ?

arjunmenon

Paul E wrote: Just to add to this post, something I'm finding is working for me.

I have learnt one of my songs to the point where I can play it from start to finish (not perfectly though), but I have it memorised and I can play it. So now, I am continuing to work on it and am focusing on the difficult parts. HOWEVER, at the same time as that, I am starting to memorise a new tune and am working through the basics chord shapes and techniques for that song.

I am finding that this keeps me learning new songs and not getting stagnant or comfortable playing the same song over and over again.

Now to start playing em backwards ?

Good on you Paul.
Something i've noticed when i practise is that certain tunes help with improving my technique as well.
An example of this Eric Johnson's Manhattan. EJ is very fussy about how he plays certain notes and he doesn't always go for the notes that are easiest to reach.