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This is a pretty basic exercise that is
easy to learn whether you are
an advanced player or a beginner an acoustic or electric player. You can
also use this on other plectrum stringed instruments like the
mandolin. If practiced regularly it will improve your
finger dexterity, speed and picking technique. It
also makes a great warm up exercise for when you first pick up your
guitar.
Each note should be played with same
duration and pick attack at first.
The following is standard tab notation
with the exception that I am
indicating the finger that you should be using above each indicated
note. The fingers are identified as:
i = index finger
m = middle finger
r = ring finger
p = pinky finger
Use strict alternate picking starting
with the down stroke for the first note.
i m i r i p m r m p r p
E---1--2--1--3--1--4--2--3--2--4--3--4--------------------
B---------------------------------------------------------
G---------------------------------------------------------
D---------------------------------------------------------
A---------------------------------------------------------
E---------------------------------------------------------
Now that was pretty easy wasn't it? You should take the
above and start out on the low E string at the first fret and
play the exercise across the neck on each string in sequence.
You should use alternate picking starting each new string
with a down stroke.
Now we want to walk back across the
neck from the high E string to the low E string only reversing the the
fingering sequence as shown in the following examlpe.
Continue using strict alternate picking only begin each
string with an up stroke on the way back down.
p r p m p i m r m i r i
E---4--3--4--2--4--1--3--2--3--1--2--1--------------------
B---------------------------------------------------------
G---------------------------------------------------------
D---------------------------------------------------------
A---------------------------------------------------------
E---------------------------------------------------------
Great. You should
play this sequence slowly and evenly (using a metronome if you have one)
at first and gradually build up your speed. Once
you feel like you have it mastered at the first fret. You
should start moving the exercise up up the fretboard. After
you have mastered some speed on this, you should be able to start at
the first fret going back and forth across the neck and moving up the
fret board to the 12th fret in a matter of minutes.
Good luck and always remember just a
few minutes of practice each day will make you a more consistent player.
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Strings
Straps
