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10
Ways To Get Out Of A Rut
by Steve Martin
Ever
find yourself trying to solo or play something original
but always end up churning out the same stuff you
always play?
It's
very easy to get stuck in a rut like this and be
at a total loss for new ideas. So if you find yourself
in this situation where you need some inspiration,
try out my 10 hot tips to get out of a rut.
1.
Take a break
The worst thing you can do is to keep repeatedly
trying to force new ideas to come to you. If you
do this you will just get more and more worked up
and will be even less likely to come up with something
original. So take a break, listen to some new music
and come back to the guitar later with a refreshed
mind.
2.
One string wonder
I know it souds drastic but if your serious about
your guitar playing you will see the benefits. Try
removing all your strings except one and then playing
only on that string. This will force you to play
in a way that you probably have never done before
and this will help you come up with new ideas. Try
doing this when you change you strings. Be careful
not to damage your tremolo system if you have one
though.
3.
Intros game
Find some music that you have never heard before
and with your axe at the ready play just the very
first part of the intro. Then pause it, and on your
guitar try and write write what you think should
come next. You can also try this at parts in the
middle of the song.
4.
TV adverts
When you're watching TV and the advert break starts,
grab you guitar! This is a great opportunity to
be creative. Most adverts have music or jingles.
Try copying the music on your guitar. If you get
it wrong you may come up with something you like.
If you get it right then it's good for you ear training.
If you're stuck in a rut, it may be beacuse you
always play in the same environment. Changing this
could lead to a whole new world of new ideas.
5.
New music
Listen to new music. It sounds simple but it's very
important. If you listen to the same music all the
time, it is likely that you guitar playing will
go in that direction. If you listen to a wide variety
of music, you will be influenced in many ways, and
your guitar playing will reflect this. Many guitarists
don't listen to enough music. They're too busy trying
to play stuff that they don't have time just to
sit back and enjoy listening to what they are trying
to do.
6.
Reverse Psychology
Try playing left handed! Or if you are left handed,
try playing right handed. This is very tricky, especially
without reversing the order of the strings. You
will find that when you try and play something,
you will try and play it how you would normally,
but it will sound completely different because the
high string is where the low string is and vice
versa. This is great for coming up with new ideas,
and also improving the dexterity of you fingers.
7.
Reverse Psychology 2
If you found that number 6 worked for you, try reversing
the order of your strings so that it has the same
effect as when you try playing the other way round.
The advantage is that you will be picking and fretting
with the same hands you use normally, but what you
are playing will not be familiar to you.
8.
Change style
If you narmally play blues, try playing some metal
guitar songs. If you normally play metal, have a
go at some classical guitar. Playing in a different
style to what you normally do is a great way of
getting out of a rut. You will also find that you
may be able to use some of the ideas you learnt
in this new style in the music you normally play.
Just look at the neo-classical metal genre that
is becoming increasingly more popular.
9.
Fancy Fingering
One of the reasons a lot of people end up playing
the same stuff over and over, is that they always
use the same fingering. I don't know if you've noticed,
but all the notes on the guitar neck can be played
on just the E strings. There are dozens of ways
of playing the same thing on the guitar neck, just
by altering the fingering. If you are using a certain
scale, try a different fingering for that scale.
This may feel wierd at first, but that is because
it is different. Isn't that the whole point?
Learn the new fingering and you will soon be playing
new stuff using exactly the same scale, just because
your fingers have to go to different places!
10.
Backing tracks
Using backing tracks is very important. It allows
you to play freely in an environment in which you
are comfortable. Just sticking on a backing track
and playing whatever comes into your head is the
best way of being creative and it's also a lot of
fun! Check out our Cosmic
Jam Tracks CD in our shop,
for a great selection of backing tracks, plus free
lessons!
Well there it is! My 10 ways to get out
of a rut. I hope you find this useful! I'll be back
soon with some more free lessons!
Steve
Martin.
Intermediate
lessons - All lessons
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