New Rhythm practice regime

Branshen

It dawned on me that the most obvious difference between pros and amateurs is that pros usually have really tight rhythm off the bat without needing to ease in to a tempo, whether they are playing lead or rhythm. So, I decided to work on my rhythm playing.

I've come up with a new way to practice my rhythm guitar which I wanted to share. I've set up an ableton session with slowly increasing tempos every 9 bars. This allows me 1 bar to take in the new tempo, 1 bar quarter note strums, 1 bar 8th notes, 1 bar 8th note triplets, 1 bar 16th notes and then back down. I also record while practising and can review my practice either by listening back or visually checking how well my strums line up with the grid lines.

Anyone do something similar? Do you gurus recommend adding quarter note or 16th note triplets? I haven't put that in my regime yet and am thinking if I need to. 

Lestratcaster

Rhythm playing is 90/95% of guitar playing and its essential for everything whether its scales, chords, riffs or strumming.

Everything I do is to either metronome or a backing, and if recording in 4/4 I will set the metronome counter to accent the first beat of the bar.  Learning to subdivide is crucial so you can split the number times you pick/strum notes/chords in time for the right duration with a set pulse. Many learners I see for the first time can't do this very well and highlights the point you made about not being able to easing into a tempo.

Branshen

Lestratcaster said:

Rhythm playing is 90/95% of guitar playing and its essential for everything whether its scales, chords, riffs or strumming.

Everything I do is to either metronome or a backing, and if recording in 4/4 I will set the metronome counter to accent the first beat of the bar.  Learning to subdivide is crucial so you can split the number times you pick/strum notes/chords in time for the right duration with a set pulse. Many learners I see for the first time can't do this very well and highlights the point you made about not being able to easing into a tempo.

So right about the splitting! Just a few days of this practice and I am seeing the benefits already. Instead of just feeling my way around a guitar solo, I can more precisely aim for the rhythm I am going for which is alot less sloppy! For example, going from a 8th note line to a 8th note triplet one.. Still got alot of work to do and I only wish I had realised this earlier!

Lestratcaster

Yeah all rhythm basically is how much you're meant to play within a framework, with a steady pulse the ability to play it for the right length at the right time is key. Also where in the bar the beat occurs, if its on or off the beat, its important to be able to hear and play that!

Branshen

Lestratcaster said:

Yeah all rhythm basically is how much you're meant to play within a framework, with a steady pulse the ability to play it for the right length at the right time is key. Also where in the bar the beat occurs, if its on or off the beat, its important to be able to hear and play that!

Do you have a fixed selection of divisions that you ask your students to do?

Lestratcaster

Branshen said:

Lestratcaster said:

Yeah all rhythm basically is how much you're meant to play within a framework, with a steady pulse the ability to play it for the right length at the right time is key. Also where in the bar the beat occurs, if its on or off the beat, its important to be able to hear and play that!

Do you have a fixed selection of divisions that you ask your students to do?

Mainly go from whole to eighths and break it down there making sure they can play 4 whole bars of all those subdivisions without messing it up or falling out of time.

So I will start a metronome or drum track and ask them to play 4 bars of whole notes, then half, quarter, eighths etc.