Wide Interval Stretches

Here is an interesting video of Shawn Lane that I saw today:

Did you know that he is doing something that about 95% of guitarists don’t do? That’s right, its something that most of the guitarists I’ve ever seen manage to miss completely. Can you tell what it is?

I’ll give you a clue: its not wide interval stretches; its not something musical; its not even something he mentions in the video- but he does it in every single video, even every time he plays guitar! In fact, its something so small, but something so very important that I’m surprised that its so often missed off the list for most guitarists!

Details are Important!

Well, in the words of Rolf “Tie me kangaroo down” Harris: “Can you tell what it is yet?” Hehe you’ll be surprised! Look at his hands.

That’s so important, I’ll say it again look at his hands!

Hand Position

The position of his hands is perfect, specifically his fretting hand. You wouldn’t go far wrong to copy this position yourselves. See how his fingers are parallel to the frets? It’s much easier for his fingers to reach the fretboard with this position- which results in a faster top speed (as I’m sure you also heard).

Playing Technique

Imagine this: you’re playing a game of “snap”, and you know, to win you must call out “snap!” when two cards match. The twist is, or at least this is how we play it, when you call out “snap!” you must move your hand to cover the deck- to prove that you were first. So, do you play this game with your arms in the air, hands waving about, well away from the table? Or do you play with your hands next to the tabletop, ready to strike?

The answer to the above question should be obvious! With your hands closer to the table, they are closer to the deck and quicker to cover the deck to assure victory! Well, playing the guitar works on the same idea. If your hands, or fingers are miles away from the fretboard, you will be slower. However, if your hands and fingers are arranged as Shawn’s are in the video, each finger is already quite close to the fretboard and ready to “snap” onto the string.

Wide Intervals

Oh and the intervals that hes playing are…

Diminished- 3 frets
Augmented- 4 frets

He plays three notes (two intervals) on each string, so the diminished fretting might go like:

–9–12–15–

for each string. Similarly, Augmented:

–9–13–17–

on each string. Obviously this is just another example of the kind of idea he is talking about, and not exactly what he plays.

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August 19, 2009 at 5:38 am | Guitar Technique and Exercises | 3 comments

3 Responses to “Wide Interval Stretches”