Over the last decade and change I’ve gone from a completely private one-on-one environment to almost a “coaching” role as I now guide most people through a more “self directed” journey of guitar discovery…
Of course I create lessons and materials, but in many cases my students have not only several of my offerings, but several from many other instructors as well (I’m not so naive as to think I’m the only person out there teaching guitar on the internet š
And, of course, with that plethora of materials comes the overwhelm of, “what should I work on next?”
Now, granted, I may be a little more connected to my students through the Blues Guitar Unleashed Member Forum, so I hear about this stuff more than… say an Amazon seller just selling books and DVDs…
But I would wager that most folks guiding themselves through this journey of guitar discovery find themselves at a point where they’re not sure where to spend their time.
So I made a little video about it, and maybe it’ll help give you some clarity. You can put your guitar down and take 5 minutes and watch it… it’s not long, but it’s something that I think needed to be put out there.
24 replies to "What To Practice Next Using “How Vs. What”"
It is great if one can simply stumble onto some cool thing . It just has to be the lessons here I have watched. Forming or honing skill in practice .
Griff, I was just dealing with this very issue and feeling overwelmed on where I should go next in my learning process! You have just given me the answer! Awesome lesson and advice!
Thanks soooooo much Griff!
Dave
Boise, Idaho
Thanks Griff. You make some good points. I’ve been trying to learn to play blues for a while. Technically the guitar is starting to really make some sense to me from a technical aspect, ie scales , chords, understanding the fretboard. Learning to turn this into music has been a surprising challenge. I am a expert level banjo player and I am used to learning to plan songs by ear in a group setting in jams. I am learning/playing guitar in isolation due to COVID. Do you have any suggestions?
great lesson
The how/what thing makes sense. My question is how do I know when it it is time to move onto the next lesson, next course etc. Usually I focus in being to play the slow version of the material I am working on along with the recording. I hit roadblocks, at times, when I try to play along with the full speed version. Should I make sure I can play the full speed version before moving along or be satisfied with being able to ply along with the slow version?
Hey, I struggle with the same thing that you are. What has helped me is 1st learning to play with the slow track and then moving to the regular speed. I seem to always have trouble with certain licks or phrases and I will take time aside just to work on those licks or phrases with a drum machine or a metronome or whatever you have. After a certain amount of time if I donāt get it that way then I move on and believe it or not a lot of Times when I go back to play it later after Iāve moved on Iāll be able to play the look better and then at some point I can usually play it right and if I canāt I just move on. I hope that helps.
Keep playing,
Dave
Griff do you have a course which specifically addresses counting? I have a lot of your courses but I have not seen one where you go over a lead and address how you would count it out in different feels straight feel triplet feel etc. By the way the how and what idea seems to be a good naming convention for organizing your musical endeavor…Thanks
Richard–I recommend Griff’s “Blues Solo Construction Kit”. There are 2 versions, one is a “shuffle” feel and the other is “slow blues” feel. While I acquired the “Slow Blues” version, I would recommend the “Shuffle” version just because I like that style better. But you can’t go wrong with ether one. I just didn’t appreciate the difference when I made my initial buying decision. To be real, there’s nothing wrong with the “slow blues” version. In fact, it’s pretty cool. I like it.
While these courses aren’t dedicated “counting” courses, per se, they WILL teach you how to count if you follow the program sequence. You learn the licks using a 4-step methodology which is mostly counting with your guitar in your hand and again with no guitar at all! Believe it or not, you will be able to practice counting even if you are not holding a guitar meaning you can “practice” just about anywhere/anytime if you are relatively free of distractions. If you follow the steps and internalize the process, you will become a “natural” at counting. And you’ll be playing stuff and sounding way cool quicker doing this than any other thing I can think of.
Your instincts to hone your counting skills are spot on. The courses I recommend will get you where you want to be faster than anything else you can do. Guaran dam tee-ed.
Griff, great advice. Iāve played guitar for many years (58) and was OK but felt the need to go deeper. When I stumbled across your videos on playing the blues I fully knew my pentatonic scales and was working with a few other on-line teachers as well as an accomplished in person teacher. I signed up for your all access class and have enjoyed the breath of material for the past 6 months. Your questions on how and what are right on. One of my āhowsā is your favorite, counting out loud while playing. Iāve focused very hard on it over the past 2 months and am improving to my surprise and my wifeās chagrin. Thanks for your helpful lessons, at least from me. Bob
Hey Griff, True to the word advice.
I have simply set my goals for 2018 and established a list of 24 songs that I want to learn to play from A-Z as lead & comping or chords etc. I have split them up into 4 stages of 6 songs starting from Stage 1 with what I feel are easiest working to much harder stages. But I am still working on songs in Stage 1 primarily as I am also going through the BGU Courses as a refresh and now finding that I understand them 10 times better than before. Learning different types of songs helps me to progress in Bar chords, Sus chords, 7th Chords as well as play the solo and sing with it. My BGU courses are very important to me because they are providing me with the musical structure & the feel for the Blues guitar. So the What for me is Section 1) BGU Courses and 2) Learn to play songs that I like. Making sure each section gets 1 hr per day of my time for at least 3-4 days per week..The How the BGU courses set the foundations to enable me to understand the learning of the songs which include Johnny B Goode by chuck Berry, Roll Over Beethoven. 12 Bar Blues & 8 Bar Blues include a large range of songs..
Great advice as usual Griff.
Michael-Sydney-Australia Oct 12, 2018
hey Griff, Just another note: I have noticed that you are posting some of your lessons up on FB BGU Students which is excellent. Each time you do that you could show which BGU Course addresses in more detail that lesson or advice. Then students can purchase the BGU couse that reflects what they want to learn more of.
Michael-Sydney-Australia- Oct 12, 2018.
As I already wrote before in this site, I believe that you are a fantastic educator and communicator. At 70 I will start next week to learn guitar with a very good maestro. I sing and play drums and percussion, but I always missed the versatility and portability of guitar, so better late than never, although I must confess that I am terrified about what seems to me an overwhelming complexity of flowing finger positions. On the other hand, in jams and concerts I am surrounded by guys who seem very comfortable with that so, if others can, why shouldnāt I? Well, wish me luck!
I second Todd’s remark. Once I began learning your way Griff, other instructors no longer fit my needs. You have a unique teaching style that is personal and effective.
As always….great stuff
Ok, heres one. What should I be practicing?
What do you want to play? When that question is answered, it’s likely you’ll know what to practice on.
Important stuff! Thanks Griff!
Even if I can form a what question, I get stuck on order. If there are several skills I need to work on to answer the what, what order do I work on them? Is it going to be easier to learn item 1 if I master item item 3 first, etc?
Any order will usually do. It’s very rare that one skill depends on another, and if it does it’ll be obvious almost immediately. If you’re a TOTAL beginner, single notes are easiest, then open chords, then barre chords. Past that, doesn’t matter.
Very well explained. I find myself at a roadblock for practice sometimes….I’m going to apply this thinking and see where it leads me š
Excellent video! Probably the best I’ve seen for those who get frustrated and
Start wondering if you are progressing or just wasteing your time.
Just keep asking yourself the questions – How,What,where,and when!
My problem is I’m just kind of directionless – should I work my way through a BGU course? Should I learn a favorite classic rock solo? Should I learn all the parts to a song and do a “one-man-band” video? Or maybe just buy another guitar LOL.
Griff’s “Flagship” course, BGU 2.0 is a great answer to the “what” should I learn first. It’s comprehensive. You can apply the lessons to just about any blues song you can think of. So learning a song is all well and good. But after you learn that song, all you know is one song. If you learn using the BGU 2.0 course you’ll learn how to play the guitar. And in the time it takes you to learn a couple of songs, if you use BGU 2.0 you’ll be able to play dozens, probably 100s of songs, including the couple that you wanted to learn. Best use of your time without a doubt. Don’t get distracted by the next “bright shinny object” you see because you don’t thing you’re improving fast enough. Remember: You’ll never learn as much in a day as you want. You’ll learn more in a year than you ever thought possible. Stick to a daily practice schedule (with 1-2 days break each week), and you’re good to go.
Look forward to your comments every day for about 2 years now, coffe…griff, then whatever from there. At first, yes I watch other instructors but once I found your site, the BGU 2 …Iāve had no need to go back, youāve provided so much,so well, that if I follow anyone else it just gets confusing! Love your course,well courseās and my guitar journey is coming along great. Many thanks and keep it up please!