Finding the right lesson here


NickFerra
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Joined: 09/09/12
Posts: 80
NickFerra
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Joined: 09/09/12
Posts: 80
10/14/2020 5:45 pm

Where should I begin if I want to start playing solos and lead guitar?

I'm into Slash, Synyster Gates, Noel Gallagher, Angus young, etc...

I'm more into melodic solos but im into all techniques. I have a good understanding of rythem and chords already


# 1
William MG
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Joined: 03/08/19
Posts: 1,631
William MG
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Joined: 03/08/19
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10/14/2020 6:33 pm

Where do you stand on theory?


This year the diet is definitely gonna stick!

# 2
ChristopherSchlegel
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Joined: 08/09/05
Posts: 8,328
ChristopherSchlegel
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Posts: 8,328
10/14/2020 8:12 pm

Hey, Nick. Long time no see! :) Hope you are doing well.

Originally Posted by: NickFerra

Where should I begin if I want to start playing solos and lead guitar?

I'm into Slash, Synyster Gates, Noel Gallagher, Angus young, etc...

[p]You should build your single note playing skills & start building a repertoire of licks. If you know which players you like, then learn their licks & mix & match them to suit your own purposes & make your own solos.

Read this article.

https://www.guitartricks.com/blog/how-to-play-a-guitar-solo

What is your current skill level? Can you play this?

https://www.guitartricks.com/lesson.php?input=27820&s_id=723

How about this?

https://www.guitartricks.com/lesson.php?input=20410&s_id=1614

Or this?

https://www.guitartricks.com/lesson.php?input=14200&s_id=914

Or this?

https://www.guitartricks.com/lesson.php?input=9540&s_id=185

The point is those are a series of progressively more complex lead licks starting with a basic idea & gradually getting more involved.

You could start working through the Rock course looking for lead playing tutorials & combine that with learning solos from artists that inspire you. But I'm trying to get an idea of your skill level to point you exactly in the right direction.

I remember at one point you were trying to take over lead guitar duties in a band you were playing in. You asked about some of the leads of the previous guitarist. I explained what was happening. It was pretty basic stuff. Did you ever get any of that under your command?

Hope that helps!


Christopher Schlegel
Guitar Tricks Instructor

Christopher Schlegel Lesson Directory
# 3
NickFerra
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Joined: 09/09/12
Posts: 80
NickFerra
Registered User
Joined: 09/09/12
Posts: 80
10/25/2020 12:05 am
Originally Posted by: ChristopherSchlegel

Hey, Nick. Long time no see! :) Hope you are doing well.

Originally Posted by: NickFerra

Hi Christopher! Yes its been a while. I'm doing well. Hope you are too!

Where should I begin if I want to start playing solos and lead guitar?

I'm into Slash, Synyster Gates, Noel Gallagher, Angus young, etc...

[p]You should build your single note playing skills & start building a repertoire of licks. If you know which players you like, then learn their licks & mix & match them to suit your own purposes & make your own solos.

Read this article.

https://www.guitartricks.com/blog/how-to-play-a-guitar-solo

What is your current skill level? Can you play this?

https://www.guitartricks.com/lesson.php?input=27820&s_id=723

How about this?

https://www.guitartricks.com/lesson.php?input=20410&s_id=1614

Or this?

https://www.guitartricks.com/lesson.php?input=14200&s_id=914

Or this?

https://www.guitartricks.com/lesson.php?input=9540&s_id=185

The point is those are a series of progressively more complex lead licks starting with a basic idea & gradually getting more involved.

You could start working through the Rock course looking for lead playing tutorials & combine that with learning solos from artists that inspire you. But I'm trying to get an idea of your skill level to point you exactly in the right direction.

At this point my skill level is just a basic understanding on how to play the minor pentatonic shape. 5-8 5-7, 5-7, 5-7, 5-8, 5-8

And so on and so on. I sound too much like im just playing scales up and down... so I think i should learn some actual licks? Maybe? I dunno!

I remember at one point you were trying to take over lead guitar duties in a band you were playing in. You asked about some of the leads of the previous guitarist. I explained what was happening. It was pretty basic stuff. Did you ever get any of that under your command?

Hope that helps!

I did take over lead for a little while but someone else came in that had a better understanding of lead than I did so he took over. That was very short lived for me. Soon afterwards the bass player and the drummer moved and long story short.... the band broke up. Singer got an ego and never appreciated the work I did to manage the band and get us playing shows and trying out new members. So I got fed up lol

I have some facebook videos of me playing some lead if you wanna check out how bad they are lol we played a show where I played Yellow Ledbetter, lead and everything... plus some lead on the original songs we did if you wanna see em. Maybe see a visual of where I'm at on my guitar journey. Is there a way to tag you in the videos? Or no?


# 4
ChristopherSchlegel
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Joined: 08/09/05
Posts: 8,328
ChristopherSchlegel
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Posts: 8,328
10/25/2020 3:04 pm
Originally Posted by: NickFerra

At this point my skill level is just a basic understanding on how to play the minor pentatonic shape. 5-8 5-7, 5-7, 5-7, 5-8, 5-8

And so on and so on. I sound too much like im just playing scales up and down... so I think i should learn some actual licks? Maybe? I dunno![/quote]

Yes, you should learn some licks. That will form the basis of your vocabulary, your repertoire of musical ideas you can play when it's time to play a lead. That's covered in the article I linked above.

By defintion that requires the physical skills required to play any given lick. So that's why I gave you a list of lessons. I'm trying to assess your current physical skills.

It sounds like you should work through the Rock Course looking for the chapters on lead guitar playing.

And you should learn some solos by players you enjoy. Just learn the simplest licks at first. You don't have to learn the whole solo. But you have to start somewhere. So start with the simple & basic licks. Learn one. Repeat it over & again. Play them along with a drummer, backing track or metronome.

As a specific concrete example, look at this tutorial.

https://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial.php?input=723

I show you a very specific, simple, basic lick you can use over blues or rock. I show you how to play it in a vareity of ways. Then you get a lot of backing track play alongs to get it under your command. Once you've got it under your command, you've started your repertoire of licks!

Look at this next one. This is a classic blues based rock used in leads from Chuck Berry style, to the Beatles, to ACDC, to Van Halen.

https://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial.php?input=1614

A little more complex lick, but again, I show you how to play it in a vareity of ways. Then you get a lot of backing track play alongs to get it under your command. Once you've got it under your command, you've got another lick for your repertoire!

Little phrases or musical ideas like these are the vocabulary guitarists use to play leads.

[quote=NickFerra]Is there a way to tag you in the videos? Or no?

The easier thing to do is just post a link from the video page in this thread.


Christopher Schlegel
Guitar Tricks Instructor

Christopher Schlegel Lesson Directory
# 5
NickFerra
Registered User
Joined: 09/09/12
Posts: 80
NickFerra
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Joined: 09/09/12
Posts: 80
11/16/2020 1:27 pm

Hi Christopher, I posted a video of me playing yellow Ledbetter and blister in the sun on the listening forum if you'd like to check it out and see where I'm at.


# 6
NickFerra
Registered User
Joined: 09/09/12
Posts: 80
NickFerra
Registered User
Joined: 09/09/12
Posts: 80
11/16/2020 1:32 pm
Originally Posted by: ChristopherSchlegel
Originally Posted by: NickFerra

At this point my skill level is just a basic understanding on how to play the minor pentatonic shape. 5-8 5-7, 5-7, 5-7, 5-8, 5-8

And so on and so on. I sound too much like im just playing scales up and down... so I think i should learn some actual licks? Maybe? I dunno![/quote]

Yes, you should learn some licks. That will form the basis of your vocabulary, your repertoire of musical ideas you can play when it's time to play a lead. That's covered in the article I linked above.

By defintion that requires the physical skills required to play any given lick. So that's why I gave you a list of lessons. I'm trying to assess your current physical skills.

It sounds like you should work through the Rock Course looking for the chapters on lead guitar playing.

And you should learn some solos by players you enjoy. Just learn the simplest licks at first. You don't have to learn the whole solo. But you have to start somewhere. So start with the simple & basic licks. Learn one. Repeat it over & again. Play them along with a drummer, backing track or metronome.

As a specific concrete example, look at this tutorial.

https://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial.php?input=723

I show you a very specific, simple, basic lick you can use over blues or rock. I show you how to play it in a vareity of ways. Then you get a lot of backing track play alongs to get it under your command. Once you've got it under your command, you've started your repertoire of licks!

Look at this next one. This is a classic blues based rock used in leads from Chuck Berry style, to the Beatles, to ACDC, to Van Halen.

https://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial.php?input=1614

A little more complex lick, but again, I show you how to play it in a vareity of ways. Then you get a lot of backing track play alongs to get it under your command. Once you've got it under your command, you've got another lick for your repertoire!

Little phrases or musical ideas like these are the vocabulary guitarists use to play leads.

[quote=NickFerra]Is there a way to tag you in the videos? Or no?

The easier thing to do is just post a link from the video page in this thread.

Thanks Christopher! I'm gonna be going through these lessons. I think it'll be good to record the process and let you see them. Is youtube ok as long as I don't show the lesson?

I posted a video on the listening forum of me to check out


# 7
ChristopherSchlegel
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Joined: 08/09/05
Posts: 8,328
ChristopherSchlegel
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Posts: 8,328
11/16/2020 1:50 pm
Originally Posted by: NickFerra

Hi Christopher, I posted a video of me playing yellow Ledbetter and blister in the sun on the listening forum if you'd like to check it out and see where I'm at.

Listening now. Your sense of timing is pretty good. So you have rhythm. :) But you definitely need to work on the lead guitar aspect. The solo in the first song needs better phrasing & solid bending.

1. Phrasing. This is what I mean by playing musical phrases. Not just aimless wandering through a scale like the pentatonic box. :) Learn, invent, play little melodic statements.

2. If you are going to bend a note, bend it up to a target. Don't just grab a note & bend it up some vauge amount. Bend it up to a specific pitch higher.

Any one of the tutorials I listed above is a great place to start building a vocabulary of licks to play. The rock course is a great place.

Build a repertiore of little musical phrases!


Christopher Schlegel
Guitar Tricks Instructor

Christopher Schlegel Lesson Directory
# 8
ChristopherSchlegel
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Joined: 08/09/05
Posts: 8,328
ChristopherSchlegel
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Posts: 8,328
11/16/2020 1:53 pm
Originally Posted by: NickFerra

Thanks Christopher! I'm gonna be going through these lessons. I think it'll be good to record the process and let you see them. Is youtube ok as long as I don't show the lesson?

Good deal. Sure, recording yourself is a grat way to assess your progress. Post the links in my instructor forum.

I'm not sure what you mean by show the lesson? If you mean the actual GT video, then yes, don't record that. But it's fine to post a video of you playing any given lick from a lesson.


Christopher Schlegel
Guitar Tricks Instructor

Christopher Schlegel Lesson Directory
# 9
NickFerra
Registered User
Joined: 09/09/12
Posts: 80
NickFerra
Registered User
Joined: 09/09/12
Posts: 80
11/27/2020 10:40 pm
Originally Posted by: ChristopherSchlegel
Originally Posted by: NickFerra

Hi Christopher, I posted a video of me playing yellow Ledbetter and blister in the sun on the listening forum if you'd like to check it out and see where I'm at.

Listening now. Your sense of timing is pretty good. So you have rhythm. :) But you definitely need to work on the lead guitar aspect. The solo in the first song needs better phrasing & solid bending.

1. Phrasing. This is what I mean by playing musical phrases. Not just aimless wandering through a scale like the pentatonic box. :) Learn, invent, play little melodic statements.

2. If you are going to bend a note, bend it up to a target. Don't just grab a note & bend it up some vauge amount. Bend it up to a specific pitch higher.

Any one of the tutorials I listed above is a great place to start building a vocabulary of licks to play. The rock course is a great place.

Build a repertiore of little musical phrases!

I'm mostly a rythem player haha

So I really had no idea what I was doing up there playing lead. I hope the guitar gods will forgive a noob such as me lol

I just looked for the pentatonic scale that the song was in and played whatever haha

I have a lot to learn

I'm not fully understanding phrasing. Did you post a lesson above on phrasing? I'm gonna get to these lessons this weekend and I saved this forum topic on my phone so I have easy access back to it.

Thanks


# 10
ChristopherSchlegel
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Joined: 08/09/05
Posts: 8,328
ChristopherSchlegel
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Joined: 08/09/05
Posts: 8,328
11/28/2020 3:21 pm
Originally Posted by: NickFerraI'm mostly a rythem player haha

So I really had no idea what I was doing up there playing lead.[/quote][p]Haha! No worries! We all start somewhere. :)

[quote=NickFerra]I'm not fully understanding phrasing. Did you post a lesson above on phrasing?

Phrasing refers to rhythm. Making phrases means playing a series of notes in a meaningful, organized & musical way. Little phrases or musical ideas like these are the vocabulary guitarists use to play leads.

Think about how you play rhythm guitar parts. You play specific notes in a specific order in a specific rhythm. If one of those elements was misplaced then the riff wouldn't sound right.

The same general principle works for lead parts. You have much more freedom & choice than your riffing or chords, but you still have to play musical ideas.

This brief channel lesson is aimed at describing this idea.

https://www.guitartricks.com/lesson.php?input=17399&s_id=1501

Here's the notation of that lick.

This is essentially a 4 measure phrase consisting of 2 parts of mini phrases. The red box contains the first part, the blue box contains the second part.

1. Red box establishes a musical idea.

2. 1st blue box is a variation or echoing of that idea but on the lower strings.

3. Red box returns for a restatement.

4. 2nd blue box answers again but with a different ending note for variety.

Obviously not every phrase has to be structured like this! It's just a simple example to demonstrate the principle. The idea is to tell a little story by having some series of organzied musical ideas that have a beginning, middle & end.

So, the tutorials I linked above are about learning little phrases.

https://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial.php?input=723

https://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial.php?input=1614

Make sense?


Christopher Schlegel
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Christopher Schlegel Lesson Directory
# 11

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