4 Tips to Make Electric Guitar Shredding Easier
July 28, 2009
Teachig yourself how to play electric guitar is very difficult for most people. Making it to the next level and shredding on your guitar is a goal that many striving guitarists fall short of. It doesn’t have to be this way though. There are a few simple tips that can help anyone master the art of shredding.
Repetition - Tip # 1
The single best way to increase your speed is to use a metronome or drum machine. Start by playing the lead, solo or lick slow and cleanly. Little by little, increase the tempo using your metronome or drum machine. Remember to be patient. This process will take days or even weeks to learn and play the piece of music perfectly at tempo. Remember, this is repetition and it could take hundreds or possibly thousands of times for you to master it at full speed and still play it cleanly.
Fingering - Tip # 2
No matter what speed you play guitar, your fret hand fingering is important. But, it becomes absolutely crucial when you are shredding. A guitarist can usually get by with sloppy or even bizarre fingering positions when playing slowly. If you try to increase the speed of the song using that same sloppy or bizarre fingering, you will no doubt run into problems. You will always reach the limit of your speed very quickly.
Now it is time to study your fret hand fingering choices and make some adjustments. To shred, you must be efficient with your frethand fingering decisions. You will probably have to relearn the lick or phrase applying these new options, because it changes how your subconscious mind performs the lick.
Picking Technique - Tip # 3
If you really want to shred, the music you are learning will have to be analyzed for the most effecient way to pick the notes. This can include alternate picking, hammers and pulls, sweep arpeggios along with many other techniques. The main thing is effeciency. Minimize the movement of the pick as much as you possibly can.
Definitely do not flick the pick when attempting to shred. Shredding requires an extremely effecient motion, almost machine like in nature. When you are shredding, the emotion is conveyed through the choice of notes, not the way you play the notes. It is very different from playing the blues or jazz which requires more subtle nuances.
Teaching the Subconscious - Tip # 4
This is going to be a very important part of you learning to shred. You have to be capable of playing a lick, lead or phrase without consciously thinking about the choice of notes. A great way to accomplish this is to distract your conscious mind by viewing TV or something else while repeating the lick over and over with a metronome or drum machine. An even better test is if you can read a book or magazine, and comprehend what you’re reading while playing along to a metronome. This will no doubt be difficult at first. But, once you get the lick firmly embedded in your subconscious, the dividends you reap will be well worth the time and effort.
Try implimenting all of these techniques and you will be amazed how quickly you will progress as a guitarist and shredder.
Auggie Hill is multi-instrumentalist that plays in praise/worship bands. To learn more techniques and improve your guitar playing check out his web site —>> http://www.howtoplayelectricguitar.org
