swingdoc wrote:IMO, the pitfalls of spinning your wheels:
1. Being too vague as to the style you want to achieve.
2. Reading instructional books instead of playing. (actually doing anything instead of playing)
3. Focusing on scales or exercises.
4. Being too vague as to what you want to achieve each time you pick up the instrument. ie doodling.
Im sure there's more, but I gotta practice..
hey swingdoc... i agree with most of your pointers. however, i would respectfully disagree with the idea that you can't just learn guitar without a style. i love everything. rock, jazz, folk, blues, i like a lot of different stuff from different eras. there is nothing i would want to restrict myself to. i don't just want to learn to play rock guitar. as with drums... i don't just have one specific style i am proficient in. i love all sorts of music, and it therefore reflects in my drumming to where it's almost a combination of all of them. i think it is quite possible to learn any instrument without any specific style in mind... afterall, my goal is not to learn to play a type of music, but just to play the instrument in whatever style i want.
on #2 - i don't even have money for instructional books. i haven't a single one. everything i've learned this far is either on accident, from a friend, or an occasional internet site. i would agree that you're right on this... playing is the most important thing. but i do play, a lot! i pick up a guitar several times a day and just jam on it. the reason i'm looking for advice is because i feel stagnant in my progression-- as if my just playing everyday isn't going anywhere fast. i just want to reenergize myself with some
again, i think the biggest problem really is easy chord changes, and being able to proficiently apply what i do in one key/scale/area of the guitar... to another.
i'm really starting to hate the fact that i'm poor & post often means to everyone that all i do is sit around talking and not playing instruments. but then why would i even bother being here? one of my biggest pet peeves in a lot of other people is the way all they do is talk about ideas but never put forth the effort to realize them. i'm probably the most direct person to work with ever... as soon as friends come over, i make everyone grab instruments and WRITE.
sorry, this is not directed towards anyone... it just feels like time and time again the sentiment from others here is "get off your ass, go outside, and get a job! then you can pay for guitar lessons and by playing the guitar you just might improve". this gets to me in that no one knows me and my life, no one knows how hard and how much i work, and how much more often i am away from computers than i am on them. no one knows how often i play several instruments a day. it's my favorite part of the day. tapeop is about the only website i go to, and pretty much the only reason i do is to learn and hopefully in return attempt to teach others and pass on knowledge that has been shared with me. i will agree the best way to learn something is by DOING, of course! but sometimes it's very useful (especially when you're stuck) to be able to discuss and ask questions. i don't have time to teach myself the meaning of some crazy terminology, or to figure out the science of electronics. i'm the kind of person that just wants to get straight to making the music.
capisce?