100 Ways To Be A Better Guitarist
From setup to technique, presenting expert advice to improve your playing
There are no rules. But it is possible to make inspired choices, guided by experience. Every day in the Guitarist office we talk about the things that fire us up about guitar – but also the hurdles that stand in the way of playing and sounding better than we did the day before. As often as not, someone else around the table chips in with a neat solution or a handy shortcut that helps you on your way.
So, with a new year stretching before us like an open road, we thought we’d go further and tap into the knowledge of some of the world’s most experienced players, guitar techs and gear makers. We wanted to share with you the fruit of their long experience – from how David Gilmour’s guitars are kept in perfect fettle on tour, to acoustic-ace Tommy Emmanuel’s tips on improving your technique, fast.
Over the following pages, you’ll find 100 effective, easy-to-use nuggets of advice that will help you play better than ever before and get richer tone. You’ll also find roadtested tips on keeping your guitars, amps and effects running in top condition so they won’t let you down when it really matters. So soak it up, try it and apply it. We promise at least a few of these hard-won insights will transform your enjoyment of the guitar forever and for the better…
1 CREATE A DEDICATED PRACTICE SPACE
One of the barriers to starting a practice period can be locating the relevant materials and setting up. So why not invest in a small modelling amp, such as Vox’s Adio Air GT or Blackstar’s ID:Core BEAM that you can use as both an amp and a Bluetooth playback device. This will enable you to play along to tracks that you want to learn at any time. Leave it plugged in somewhere accessible along with a cable that stays with it, ready to go. Use it in conjunction with mobile apps such as Tempo that allow you to slow MP3s down, while keeping pitch the same as during normal playback. These can really help you untangle tricky licks and riffs one section at a time.
2 GET A GOOD SET UP
The setup of your guitar can make a big difference to both tone and playability. Light-gauge strings and a low action is great for fast legato, while heavier strings and a higher action is better for picking resistance and bending. Many factors contribute to the setup of your instrument so enlisting the help of a professional is worth the money. A good tech will adjust the truss rod, nut, pickup height, neck tilt, fret work, bridge saddles for height and intonation, and the vibrato-arm action if your guitar has one. Remember, if you fancy experimenting with string gauges your guitar may well need to be adjusted to accommodate this.
3 PRACTISE SLOWLY
Practising slowly is great for developing consistent, accurate results. Practising a lick or riff at a gentler pace often gets overlooked, as it’s not the most exciting way to spend time on the instrument and requires focus and patience. But, by practising slowly you are programming your brain with the correct information and, from this position, it is easy to up the tempo. Conversely, by practising too fast in the early stages there is more chance mistakes will be made and therefore learnt. A good way to set a slow-enough tempo is to take one that seems fast and then halve it.
4 REHEARSE LIKE YOU MEAN IT
This tip comes from acoustic guitar wizard Tommy Emmanuel. “I practise as if I’m playing a show. The same rule applies to my soundcheck. When it’s show-time, your blood’s up, you’ve got a bit of adrenaline, you’re excited, the crowd roars when you come out there. Everything goes into the red because you’re playing with so much more intensity. So you practise as if people are watching. And then when you come out to play, you’re totally ready. It’s an important thing – you practise with the fingering and everything, but then you play the song as if you were playing to a thousand people.”