How to Play with Confidence

I was watching someone play guitar the other day, and I noticed how- although technically accurate- the performance lacked confidence. It just wasn’t convincing.

Guitar Technique

Now, I’ve talked quite alot on this blog about guitar technique- which is all well and good- but it’ll mean nothing to you if you can’t pull it off in a performance or recording! So I thought it was about time to talk about how to improve your playing confidence and, more importantly, your comfortability with the instrument.

Practice Routine

I’m going to start by outlining the “Three Point Practice Plan” (which, in case you haven’t heard about it, is my guide to organising your practice routine effectively). Basically, the plan divides into three points (surprised?), which are broken down as follows:

• Warm-up

The title of this section is pretty self-explanatory- use this time to go over all the basic exercises (to get the blood flowing to your muscles). Mostly you’ll be playing things you already know here, working on your co-ordination and speed/dexterity. Spend as long as you want on this section, but usually you’ll only spend 10 to 15 minutes here.

• Direct Learning

OK, so this one is slightly less straight-forward. This is where you’ll spend time on learning new songs, scales etc,. This is the section of your routine that is the real “learning” side of things, when you should be studying what your teacher has given you in your lesson that week (Don’t have a teacher or lessons? Don’t worry,  just get in contact!). Spend 15 minutes to half an hour here.

• Relaxed Learning

…and…relax. The intensive learning is over for today, and this last section is just for you to play around in. There are no limits or particular goals in this section, and you can spend as long as you want here- but that doesn’t mean it’s unimportant! This is the section I want to talk more about today.

Guitar Playtime

Do you ever find yourself just “freezing up” when you go to jam with others or play on stage? It might be because you haven’t been paying enough attention to the last section of the routine! Sitting down and focusing on playing and learning new things is great -don’t get me wrong- but sometimes we can forget why we play in the first place- because it’s fun!

Also, if you want a deeper explanation: this is the time that your brain gets to organise all the things you’ve learnt and where you become more comfortable with all the techniques you’ve used…although it might as well be called playtime! So, put your guitar on a stand, where it’s easily just “picked up” when you feel like it!

The good news is, of course, that the more you learn in the second point of the plan, the more you’ll start to use in the third section! I wouldn’t count anything as “learnt” unless you can play it when you want to. Just like you’ve not really learnt a word until you can use it in a sentence (in normal conversation, not just in a test!), just the same with a scale or a chord- it doesn’t count unless you can use it! That’s what this last section is for.

Experiment

So, knowing the right notes isn’t enough- you have to be able to use those notes in your music. Play around with different scales/chords and don’t just relie on what the “textbook” says should work, use your own ears! How has this worked for you? I’m interested to hear your responses!

Rob.
If you like my blog, please don’t forget to subscribe.

March 1, 2010 at 4:28 pm | How to, Practicing and Practice Routine | No comments