The Harmonic Minor Scale

Good guitarists have a vast repetoire of harmonic material to draw from. Even in the pop, rock, and blues genres, where pentatonic and blues scales make up the bulk of scales used in improvising, there are times when those scales don't provide the correct color for particular situations. Nor does a 'typical' minor scale, like the natural minor (also known as aeolian). These are times when a guitarist might look to a more exotic sounding scale, like the harmonic minor.

THE NOTES:

The above example illustrates a C harmonic minor scale, constrasted against both the major and natural minor scales. Notice the harmonic minor scale differs from the natural minor scale in just one note; the raised seventh. This note contains the strongest color in the scale, in that it carries a certain degree of tension, and should be used with this knowledge in mind. Hanging onto the seventh degree of the scale, then resolving it up a semi-tone to the root is a nice way to create a tension-release scenario when improvising. The flattened third and sixth note of the harmonic minor scale would generally prevent it from being used against major chords with the same root note in an improvising situation (for example, a C harmonic minor scale would not normally be used against a C major chord).

THE SCALE:

When playing the scale, make sure to do all stretching with the pinky (4th) finger in your left hand. Notes normally played with the pinky should still be played with the pinky (do not stretch with your 3rd finger on the first and sixth strings to play the notes your pinky would normally play - there's no logical reason to do this.) Care should be taken to play the scale accurately and slowly, using alternate picking, until it can be played with reasonable precision. Only then should the scale be attempted at a slightly faster tempo. Using a metronome is, as always, the beneficial way of practising scales such as this.

Root notes of the scale are marked in red, and the last two notes are bracketed to illustrate that the scale is, at this point, extending beyond two octaves.

This illustration is just a jumping-off point for learning the harmonic minor scale. Once comfortable with the sound of the scale, guitarists should teach themselves to play the scale all over the fretboard in different positions, up one string, etc. either by using their ear to figure out the correct notes, or by following the scale steps illustrated above and below.

DIATONIC CHORDS OF:

Like the major scale, we can derive a series of chords out of each of the seven notes in the harmonic minor scale, by stacking each note with notes from the scale a diatonic third and fifth above it. Although the end process may not yield a set of chords as user-friendly as those derived from the major scale, they are nonetheless important to know and understand. Using the above illustration, for example, we can see if a progression moves from Vmaj to Imin, the harmonic minor scale would be an appropriate choice.

The harmonic minor scale can also be "forced" over a static chord progression that does not initially seem receptive to the harmonic minor sound. For example, a tune in the key of A minor, that vamps on Amin for a long time, can often be a good situation to use the harmonic minor scale. It will often create a sound that could be considered exotic, or unusual, so be prepared for this.

The harmonic minor is just one of many scales that can be used to provide different color to minor chords (others include melodic minor, phrygian, dorian, etc.) For every minute spent practising the scale itself, guitarists should spend another minute listening to each note of the scale against a repeatedly strummed minor chord (record a rhythm track of yourself playing), paying attention to the specific color each note gives, and where it wants to resolve to. Also, listen for the use of the harmonic minor scale by your favorite guitarist. Be able to sing the scale without having to think about it. Practise moving from a minor pentatonic into a harmonic minor scale, and back again. Learning a scale goes far beyond memorizing the shape on the neck of the guitar; it involves internalizing the sound of the scale itself.

Action

The action is when you raise or lower it to make the strings either closer or further away from the fretboard. Look where the strings are held in place on the body of the guitar... the bridge of the guitar and you can raise it or lower it usually with a screwdriver. So you can see the difference when you look at the guitar like this:

Altered and Open Tunings

The result of changing the tuning of one or more strings from standard EADGBE. So changing it to things like drop D or tuning the guitar to a chord will then be called an altered tuning.

Alternate Picking

Picking in alternate directions (down-up-down-up). 

Arpeggio

A broken chord, usually played evenly low to high and back again. Refer to my previous lessons for a detailed lesson on Arpeggios : Arpeggios

Arrangement

The setting of an original or standard tune for a given solo instrument or group of instruments.

Barre Chord

The most popular style of chords. The technique of placing the left hand's index finger over two to six strings in the fingering of a chord. The awesome advantage of using barre chords is that they are "moveable shapes" that can be applied at practically any fret. 

Bending

Pushing or pulling a string up or down across the a fret to raise the pitch of a note by a half to full tone or more. Used extensively in rock and blues playing as well as in jazz.

Bridge

The method of supporting the strings on an electric or acoustic guitar. 

Capo

One of my favourite tools, a capo is a mechanical barre that attaches to the neck of a guitar by means of a string, spring, elastic or nylon band, or a lever and thumbscrew arrangement. The capo can be used to raise the key of a song to suit a vocalist as well as to lower the action and shorten the string length. 

Closed Voicing

The term "voicing" refers to the vertical arrangement of the notes of a given chord. "Closed voicing" places those notes as close together as possible, no matter the inversion as opposed to "open voicing" which spreads the member notes of the chord at larger intervals. 

Cutaway

A concave area generally in the upper right bout of a normal right-hand guitar that allows the player easier access to the high frets. I personally love this and prefer guitars with cutaways.

Finger Picking

Playing with the fingernails or fingertips with or without fingerpicks as opposed to playing with a flatpick. 

Frets

Metal strips placed across the fingerboard to determine semitonal spacing.

Hammer-on

A note sounded literally by "hammering" down with a left hand finger, often performed in conjunction with a note first plucked by the right hand on the same string.

harmonics

Some peopl efind this really difificult to do. They're chime-like sounds achieved in two ways: 

1) Natural Harmonics - by touching a string at any equidistant division of the string length (typically 5th, 7th, and 12th fret), directly above the fret with left hand, and striking hard with the right-hand fingers or pick near the bridge where there is more string resistance; or 

2) Artificial Harmonics - touching a string with the index finger of the right hand twelve frets higher than any fretted note and plucking the string with either the thumb or third finger of the right hand. 

Headstock

Section for mounting the machine heads or pegs. 

Heel

A reinforced section supporting the neck where it joins the body. 

Nut

Point at which the strings are supported as they run from the fingerboard to the headstock. 

Open Voicing

A manner of chord construction in which the member notes are broadly separated. See closed voicing above. 

Pickup

A coil wound with fine wire which converts the sound into electrical signals. 

p i m a

Letters derived from the Spanish names for the fingers of the right hand: pulgar (thumb), indice (index), medio (middle), and anular (ring). Used to indicate fingering. 

Pull-off

The opposite of a hammer-on. Performed by plucking a note with a finger on a higher note and pulling parallel to the fret to sound a lower note on the same string. 

Rasgueado

Method of strumming used by flamenco guitarists.

Saddle

The point on the bridge for supporting the strings. 

Slide

A plastic or glass tube placed over the third or fourth finger of the left hand and used to play "slide" or glissando effects in rock and blues and other forms of traditional music. 

Transcription

To write a piece of music or a solo, note for note, off of a recording.

Transpose

To change the key of a piece of music by a specific interval. 

Tremolo

A technique performed with either a very rapid down-up movement of the pick or a pami plucking of the fingers.

What is Tapping?

Tapping is the technique that involves both hands to be doing something on the fretboard at the same time. It can be done using your fretting hand doing a hammer-on technique while your picking hand is tapping a fret. Speeds can vary between hands, for example the solo's intro on Ozzy Osbourne's "Crazy Train", it uses two quick taps and 1 hammer on with the fretting hand. 

I am not going to lie, it took me a little while to get the timing down between both hands, so be prepared to get a little frustrated with some things at the beginning.

Here's a step-by-step guide to getting tapping down, but, as a recommendation I would highly recommend that you look up some of the guys like Eddie Van Halen, its a big help to have the visual aid.

* alright, so if you're not holding your guitar right now, go get it and be ready to have your mind blown.

* get into a comfortable playing position and either you can use your pick or just one of your fingers on your picking hand to tap. 

* to reduce the hand strain from stretching and repeated hammer-on pull-off technique, place your fretting hand's index finger at the 10th fret of the B string.

* now perform a hammer-on *without picking* at the 12th fret of the same string.

* this is what your fretting hand will be doing , or some variation of it, while you tap.

* for the actual tapping, you have 2 choices, you can either use your pick turned sideways or your fingers. 

-first, place your hands index/middle finger or pick at around the 14th fret.

-second, literally press down onto the 14th fret with your finger or pick and slightly pull up towards you or push down away from you. This is a slight movement and should not be highly exaggerated unless you want random strings to be struck as you tap.

-third, now as you pull your finger/pick away from the string, hammer-on to the 12th fret with your fretting hand.

-finally, as you finish the hammer-on with the fretting hand, tap with your finger/pick and repeat steps 2 and 3.

     T         T         T         T         T

e--------------------------------------------------------

B----14p10h12--14p10h12--14p10h12--14p10h12--14p10h12----

G--------------------------------------------------------

D--------------------------------------------------------

A--------------------------------------------------------

E--------------------------------------------------------

Again I would highly suggest that you watch Eddie Van Halen doing "Eruption" live from I think 1984-85, it would only help with the technique.

Remember that you can be creative with your tapping, try using 3 fingers to fret notes while you tap, it can add a whole new sound to it!

This is a technique that takes a lot of practice and time to be really good at, you will hit the other strings around you, but don't be worried, eventually you will get to be accurate and controlled with your taps and will not hit anything you don't mean to.

LEFT HAND WARM UPS

First the trills. In my opinion trills are the best way to loosen up your fingers. They are also a great way to build up muscles in your fingers to decrease fatigue. I do them like so.

h=hamer on, p=pull off

e-------------------------------1h2p1--------------------------------------------|

B-------------------------1h2p1-------2h3p2--------------------------------------|

G-------------------1h2p1-------------------2h3p2--------------------------------|

D-------------1h2p1-------------------------------2h3p2-----------------------etc|

A-------1h2p1-------------------------------------------2h3p2-------------etc----|

E-1h2p1-------------------------------------------------------2h3p2-3h4p3--------|

try to make it all the way until your index finger hits the 12th fret. But if it hurts STOP!

after doing that do it again with your ring and pinky finger. You will find that your fingers feel loos and ready to play.

next comes finger stretching

This will help you stretch out your fingers so that you can make some of those more intense cords. This one starts with your index finger on the 12th fret and looks like this. 

e-----------------------------------------------------------------|

B-15-15-15-15-14-14-14--------------------------------------------|

G-14-14-14-13-13-13-13--------------------------------------------|

D-13-13-12-12-12-12-11--------------------------------------------|

A-12-11-11-11-11-10-10-etc-etc------------------------------------|

E-----------------------------------------------------------------|

keep going until your index finger is on the first fret or until you cant go any further. As the frets get farther apart you will stretch your fingers out more.

chord changing

This next one will help you move your hands easier when changing chords. 

e---------4-1-5-2-------------|

B-----4-1-3-2-4-3-5-2---------|

G-4-1-3-2-2-3-3-4-4-3---------|

D-3-2-2-3-1-4-2-5-3-4---------|

A-2-3-1-4---------2-5---------|

E-1-4-----------------etc-etc-|

Go all the way until you your index finger gets down to the 12th fret and then go back to the first fret.

moving up and down the neck

This one is to help move up and down the neck and keep the location of octaves are fresh in your mind.

e-------------------------------6-7-8-8-7-6---------------------------------------|

B-------------------------6-7-8-------------8-7-6---------------------------------|

G-------------------3-4-5-------------------------5-4-3---------------------------|

D-------------3-4-5-------------------------------------5-4-3---------------------|

A-------1-2-3-------------------------------------------------3-2-1---------------|

E-1-2-3-------------------------------------------------------------3-2-1-etc-etc-|

with this one go as far as you can on your guitar with the lat finger on the high e string and then come back to where you started.

RIGHT HAND

right and left hand synching exercise 

This one is simple. it is just chromatics going up and down the fret board. like so.

e-----------------------------------------1-2-3-4-5-4-3-2---------------------------------|

B---------------------------------1-2-3-4-----------------5-4-3-2-------------------------|

G-------------------------1-2-3-4---------------------------------5-4-3-2-----------------|

D-----------------1-2-3-4-------------------------------------------------5-4-3-2---------|

A---------1-2-3-4-----------------------------------------------------------------etc-----|

E-1-2-3-4-----------------------------------------------------------------------------etc-|

the first time you do this one start with a down stroke and continue on with alternate picking. Then do it the same way only this time start on a down stroke. This will make sure that you are ready for both inside and outside picking. Go all the way to the 12th fret and then go back to the first.

alternate picking exercise

this one is exactly like the last one except you only use three fingers instead of all four (so instead of 1-2-3-4 change it to 1-2-3) This makes it so that, if done with a strict alternate picking style, You alternate inside and outside picking. remember after starting with an up stroke do it again but this time start with a down stroke.

sweep picking

this time we try sweeps. like so. 

u= up stroke d= down stroke

  ddd uuu  ddd uuu

e--------------------------|

B--------------------------|

G--------------------------|

D---3-3------4-4-----------|

A--2---2----3---3----------|

E-1-----1--2-----2-etc-etc-|

do this on every group of three strings. 

RIGHT AND LEFT HAND WARM UP

String skipping exercise

This one is like the alternate picking exercise except you skip the string. like so.

e-------------------------------------------1-2-3--3-2-1-------------------------------|

B-------------------------------1-2-3--------------------------3-2-1-------------------|

G-------------------1-2-3-------------1-2-3--------------3-2-1-------------3-2-1-------|

D-------1-2-3-------------1-2-3--------------------------------------3-2-1-------------|

A-------------1-2-3--------------------------------------------------------------3-2-1-|

E-1-2-3--------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

same drill as the alternate picking one. all the way up, all the way back, once starting in an up stroke one starting with a down stroke.

This guitar was my first new purchase in a long time. Even though they're not made in American anymore, the Jackson DK2M still holds up to the company name Jackson Guitars. Jackson Guitars don't get the credit they deserve anymore.  Back in the day, any 80's metal player had either a Jackson or a Charvel (which were basically one in the same), or the classic Les Paul which is always a great choice for metal with it's sustain.  These days, a lot of metal players still play Jackson guitars but there are so many diversions of guitars for mainstream metal that it's hard to put a brand name on many of the guitars out there. The only other brand that I would consider playing is an ESP Guitar.   They are incredible with great sustain and playability but expensive, which moves them down the list of possible realistic options.

The first thing that attracted me to this guitar is that it looks great. I like the Ebony charcoal boady and maple neck.  I wish they had a model with the reverse head stock but that's more for looks than for playing. It comes with a standard Floyd Rose Tremolo. Because of the Floyd Rose, this guitar stays in perfect tune.

The neck comes unfinished, which means it is sanded down to a fine grain wood feel. This is great for playing when your hands get wet because your hands will not stick to the neck as they would if the neck were finished with a light urethane. Plays smooth and fast.

The great thing about this guitar is it's sustain. The guitar is heavy which is conducive to the sustain. Even for a neck through body or a two piece, you can feel the sustain just by putting your hear up to the body while playing unplugged.  If you can hear artificial/natural harmonics resonate then you know you have a winner.

The guitar is an ancient and noble instrument, whose history can be traced back over 4000 years. Many theories have been advanced about the instrument's ancestry. It has often been claimed that the guitar is a development of the lute, or even of the ancient Greek kithara. Research done by Dr. Michael Kasha in the 1960's showed these claims to be without merit. He showed that the lute is a result of a separate line of development, sharing common ancestors with the guitar, but having had no influence on its evolution. The influence in the opposite direction is undeniable, however - the guitar's immediate forefathers were a major influence on the development of the fretted lute from the fretless oud which the Moors brought with them to to Spain.

The sole "evidence" for the kithara theory is the similarity between the greek word "kithara" and the Spanish word "quitarra". It is hard to imagine how the guitar could have evolved from the kithara, which was a completely different type of instrument - namely a square-framed lap harp, or "lyre".

It would also be passing strange if a square-framed seven-string lap harp had given its name to the early Spanish 4-string "quitarra". Dr. Kasha turns the question around and asks where the Greeks got the name "kithara", and points out that the earliest Greek kitharas had only 4 strings when they were introduced from abroad. He surmises that the Greeks hellenified the old Persian name for a 4-stringed instrument, "chartar". The earliest stringed instruments known to archaeologists are bowl harps and tanburs. Since prehistory people have made bowl harps using tortoise shells and calabashes as resonators, with a bent stick for a neck and one or more gut or silk strings. The world's museums contain many such "harps" from the ancient Sumerian, Babylonian, and Egyptian civilisations. Around 2500 - 2000 CE more advanced harps, such as the opulently carved 11-stringed instrument with gold decoration found in Queen Shub-Ad's tomb, started to appear.A tanbur is defined as "a long-necked stringed instrument with a small egg- or pear-shaped body, with an arched or round back, usually with a soundboard of wood or hide, and a long, straight neck". The tanbur probably developed from the bowl harp as the neck was straightened out to allow the string/s to be pressed down to create more notes. Tomb paintings and stone carvings in Egypt testify to the fact that harps and tanburs (together with flutes and percussion instruments) were being played in ensemble 3500 - 4000 years ago.At around the same time that Torres started making his breakthrough fan-braced guitars in Spain, German immigrants to the USA - among them Christian Fredrich Martin - had begun making guitars with X-braced tops. Steel strings first became widely available in around 1900. Steel strings offered the promise of much louder guitars, but the increased tension was too much for the Torres-style fan-braced top. A beefed-up X-brace proved equal to the job, and quickly became the industry standard for the flat-top steel string guitar.

At the end of the 19th century Orville Gibson was building archtop guitars with oval sound holes. He married the steel-string guitar with a body constructed more like a cello, where the bridge exerts no torque on the top, only pressure straight down. This allows the top to vibrate more freely, and thus produce more volume. In the early 1920's designer Lloyd Loar joined Gibson, and refined the archtop "jazz" guitar into its now familiar form with f-holes, floating bridge and cello-type tailpiece.

The electric guitar was born when pickups were added to Hawaiian and "jazz" guitars in the late 1920's, but met with little success before 1936, when Gibson introduced the ES150 model, which Charlie Christian made famous.

With the advent of amplification it became possible to do away with the soundbox altogether. In the late 1930's and early 1940's several actors were experimenting along these lines, and controversy still exists as to whether Les Paul, Leo Fender, Paul Bigsby or O.W. Appleton constructed the very first solid-body guitar. Be that as it may, the solid-body electric guitar was here to stay.

Over the years, if there is one thing I have battled with it would be finding that perfect guitar tone.. I have been playing since the age of 15. I am now 47 years old. After years of buying just to selling myriads of equipment, going through this configuration and that configuration, I always find myself unhappy with my sound. Sure, even the same brand and model can sound different from one another but that's not what I am talking about here. I am talking about searching for "the" hard rock tone and the madness that drives us to extremes.

I remember going into music stores hearing someone jamming and saying to myself, "Wow. That guy sounds great. I love that tone." I approached him and asked him some questions and he was just like me. Searching for that perfect hard rock guitar tone. I said to him, "Dude. What you're playing out of here sounds fantastic." He just put his head down and silently disagreed with me. This is a situation that has happened to me countless times over the years.

There are times when our hard rock tone can't get any better, and times when our tone can't get any worse. Why is this? Well, there are so many variables involved which have a lot to do with the intangibles. Basically, the things we can't account for and put a name on. However, The main thing that decides whether or not a player is happy with their sound is all in their mind. They may think their sound is horrible when others think it's great. They may thing their sound is great when other's might not like it.

The guitar is an ancient and noble instrument, whose history can be traced back over 4000 years. Many theories have been advanced about the instrument's ancestry. It has often been claimed that the guitar is a development of the lute, or even of the ancient Greek kithara. Research done by Dr. Michael Kasha in the 1960's showed these claims to be without merit. He showed that the lute is a result of a separate line of development, sharing common ancestors with the guitar, but having had no influence on its evolution. The influence in the opposite direction is undeniable, however - the guitar's immediate forefathers were a major influence on the development of the fretted lute from the fretless oud which the Moors brought with them to to Spain.

The sole "evidence" for the kithara theory is the similarity between the greek word "kithara" and the Spanish word "quitarra". It is hard to imagine how the guitar could have evolved from the kithara, which was a completely different type of instrument - namely a square-framed lap harp, or "lyre".

It would also be passing strange if a square-framed seven-string lap harp had given its name to the early Spanish 4-string "quitarra". Dr. Kasha turns the question around and asks where the Greeks got the name "kithara", and points out that the earliest Greek kitharas had only 4 strings when they were introduced from abroad. He surmises that the Greeks hellenified the old Persian name for a 4-stringed instrument, "chartar". The earliest stringed instruments known to archaeologists are bowl harps and tanburs. Since prehistory people have made bowl harps using tortoise shells and calabashes as resonators, with a bent stick for a neck and one or more gut or silk strings. The world's museums contain many such "harps" from the ancient Sumerian, Babylonian, and Egyptian civilisations. Around 2500 - 2000 CE more advanced harps, such as the opulently carved 11-stringed instrument with gold decoration found in Queen Shub-Ad's tomb, started to appear.A tanbur is defined as "a long-necked stringed instrument with a small egg- or pear-shaped body, with an arched or round back, usually with a soundboard of wood or hide, and a long, straight neck". The tanbur probably developed from the bowl harp as the neck was straightened out to allow the string/s to be pressed down to create more notes. Tomb paintings and stone carvings in Egypt testify to the fact that harps and tanburs (together with flutes and percussion instruments) were being played in ensemble 3500 - 4000 years ago.At around the same time that Torres started making his breakthrough fan-braced guitars in Spain, German immigrants to the USA - among them Christian Fredrich Martin - had begun making guitars with X-braced tops. Steel strings first became widely available in around 1900. Steel strings offered the promise of much louder guitars, but the increased tension was too much for the Torres-style fan-braced top. A beefed-up X-brace proved equal to the job, and quickly became the industry standard for the flat-top steel string guitar.

At the end of the 19th century Orville Gibson was building archtop guitars with oval sound holes. He married the steel-string guitar with a body constructed more like a cello, where the bridge exerts no torque on the top, only pressure straight down. This allows the top to vibrate more freely, and thus produce more volume. In the early 1920's designer Lloyd Loar joined Gibson, and refined the archtop "jazz" guitar into its now familiar form with f-holes, floating bridge and cello-type tailpiece.

The electric guitar was born when pickups were added to Hawaiian and "jazz" guitars in the late 1920's, but met with little success before 1936, when Gibson introduced the ES150 model, which Charlie Christian made famous.

With the advent of amplification it became possible to do away with the soundbox altogether. In the late 1930's and early 1940's several actors were experimenting along these lines, and controversy still exists as to whether Les Paul, Leo Fender, Paul Bigsby or O.W. Appleton constructed the very first solid-body guitar. Be that as it may, the solid-body electric guitar was here to stay.

I don't consider myself to be a blues  player but I can play blues and yes, there is a difference.  Does that make any sense? When it comes to blues players such as Gary Moore, David Gilmour and even Eddie Van Halen, they are/were great blues players. It was a part of what makes them the guitar players they are. They were influenced by other blues players. Players that I probably wouldn't even know.  Other than Eric Clapton, who is one of Eddie Van Halen's favorite guitar players. I am more of an student of rock playing. Sure, that is derived from the Blues. That's why I say I am not a blues players but can play the blues.

The guitar is a popular musical instrument classified as a string instrument with anywhere from 4 to 18 strings, usually having 6. The sound is projected either acoustically or through electrical amplification (for an acoustic guitar or an electric guitar, respectively). It is typically played by strumming or plucking the strings with the right hand while fretting (or pressing against the fret) the strings with the left hand. The guitar is a type of chordophone, traditionally constructed from wood and strung with either gut, nylon or steel strings and distinguished from other chordophones by its construction and tuning. The modern guitar was preceded by the gittern, the vihuela, the four-course Renaissance guitar, and the five-course baroque guitar, all of which contributed to the development of the modern six-string instrument.

There are three main types of modern acoustic guitar: the classical guitar (nylon-string guitar), the steel-string acoustic guitar, and the archtop guitar. The tone of an acoustic guitar is produced by the strings' vibration, amplified by the body of the guitar, which acts as a resonating chamber. The classical guitar is often played as a solo instrument using a comprehensive fingerpicking technique. The term fingerpicking can also refer to a specific tradition of folk, blues, bluegrass, and country guitar playing in the US.

Electric guitars, introduced in the 1930s, use an amplifier that can electronically manipulate and shape the tone. Early amplified guitars employed a hollow body, but a solid body was eventually found more suitable, as it was less prone to feedback. Electric guitars have had a continuing profound influence on popular culture.

The guitar is used in a wide variety of musical genres worldwide. It is recognized as a primary instrument in genres such as blues, bluegrass, country, flamenco, folk, jazz, jota, mariachi, metal, punk, reggae, rock, soul, and many forms of pop.Classical guitars; also known as Spanish guitars are typically strung with nylon strings, plucked with the fingers, played in a seated position and are used to play a diversity of musical styles including classical music. The classical guitar's wide, flat neck allows the musician to play scales, arpeggios, and certain chord forms more easily and with less adjacent string interference than on other styles of guitar. Flamenco guitars are very similar in construction, but are associated with a more percussive tone.

In Portugal, the same instrument is often used with steel strings particularly in its role within fado music. The guitar is called viola, or violão in Brazil, where it is often used with an extra seventh string by choro musicians to provide extra bass support.

In Mexico, the popular mariachi band includes a range of guitars, from the small requinto to the guitarrón, a guitar larger than a cello, which is tuned in the bass register. In Colombia, the traditional quartet includes a range of instruments too, from the small bandola (sometimes known as the Deleuze-Guattari, for use when traveling or in confined rooms or spaces), to the slightly larger tiple, to the full sized classical guitar. The requinto also appears in other Latin-American countries as a complementary member of the guitar family, with its smaller size and scale, permitting more projection for the playing of single-lined melodies. Modern dimensions of the classical instrument were established by the Spaniard Antonio de Torres Jurado (1817–1892).All three principal types of resonator guitars were invented by the Slovak-American John Dopyera (1893–1988) for the National and Dobro (Dopyera Brothers) companies. Similar to the flat top guitar in appearance, but with a body that may be made of brass, nickel-silver, or steel as well as wood, the sound of the resonator guitar is produced by one or more aluminum resonator cones mounted in the middle of the top. The physical principle of the guitar is therefore similar to the loudspeaker. The original purpose of the resonator was to produce a very loud sound; this purpose has been largely superseded by electrical amplification, but the resonator guitar is still played because of its distinctive tone. Resonator guitars may have either one or three resonator cones. The method of transmitting sound resonance to the cone is either a "biscuit" bridge, made of a small piece of hardwood at the vertex of the cone (Nationals), or a "spider" bridge, made of metal and mounted around the rim of the (inverted) cone (Dobros). Three-cone resonators always use a specialized metal bridge. The type of resonator guitar with a neck with a square cross-section—called "square neck" or "Hawaiian"—is usually played face up, on the lap of the seated player, and often with a metal or glass slide. The round neck resonator guitars are normally played in the same fashion as other guitars, although slides are also often used, especially in blues.Electric guitars can have solid, semi-hollow, or hollow bodies; solid bodies produce little sound without amplification. Electromagnetic pickups convert the vibration of the steel strings into signals, which are fed to an amplifier through a cable or radio transmitter. The sound is frequently modified by other electronic devices or the natural distortion of valves (vacuum tubes) in the amplifier. There are two main types of magnetic pickups, single- and double-coil (or humbucker), each of which can be passive or active. The electric guitar is used extensively in jazz, blues, R & B, and rock and roll. The first successful magnetic pickup for a guitar was invented by George Beauchamp, and incorporated into the 1931 Ro-Pat-In (later Rickenbacker) "Frying Pan" lap steel; other manufacturers, notably Gibson, soon began to install pickups in archtop models. After World War II the completely solid-body electric was popularized by Gibson in collaboration with Les Paul, and independently by Leo Fender of Fender Music. The lower fretboard action (the height of the strings from the fingerboard), lighter (thinner) strings, and its electrical amplification lend the electric guitar to techniques less frequently used on acoustic guitars. These include tapping, extensive use of legato through pull-offs and hammer-ons (also known as slurs), pinch harmonics, volume swells, and use of a tremolo arm or effects pedals.

The first electric guitarist of note to use a seven-string guitar was jazz guitarist George Van Eps, who was a pioneer of this instrument.[citation needed] Solid body seven-strings were popularized in the 1980s and 1990s in part due to the release of the Ibanez Universe guitar,[citation needed] endorsed by Steve Vai. Other artists go a step further, by using an eight-string guitar with two extra low strings. Although the most common seven-string has a low B string, Roger McGuinn (of The Byrds and Rickenbacker) uses an octave G string paired with the regular G string as on a 12-string guitar, allowing him to incorporate chiming 12-string elements in standard six-string playing. In 1982 Uli Jon Roth developed the "Sky Guitar," with a vastly extended number of frets, which was the first guitar to venture into the upper registers of the violin. Roth's seven-string and 33-fret "Mighty Wing" guitar features a six-octave range.

There are many speed players where fast alternate picking is the main part of their style. As a metal/hard rock player, speed is a huge part of my playing style as well. Even though I've been playing for 35 years, I practice my alternate picking religiously. I have watched many videos on alternate picking from players such as Paul Gilbert, Yngwie Malmsteen and Tony Macalpine. Still, I find myself falling short of their instructional videos.

The Stylus Pick is a speed/sweep pickers dream. Some use the Stylus Pick not only for practicing but for playing fast, period. I came across this pick many years ago but never used it until now. The main reason I use it is to practice my alternate picking and let me tell you; Don't get upset when the pick let's you know you're not picking correctly. Don't get frustrated as the pick is designed to pick out major flaws in your picking. You will be discouraged at the begininng but after you take the time to learn how to play with the pick, you'll notice a huge difference in your picking.

How does it work? Well, it has a very fine point, just like a stylus on a turntable. If you only use the very point correctly while playing, everything will work smooth. If you attack the string at an angle that is not parallel with the string, the pick will get stuck, notifying you that you're not playing parallel to the strings. It's that simple!

As guitar players, we all approach practicing differently. Some play for speed, others for tone and feel or any combination. Even if you're not into speed, we all practice on our alternate picking style. This pick is for every player who wants to become a more precise picker.

The guitar is a popular musical instrument classified as a string instrument with anywhere from 4 to 18 strings, usually having 6. The sound is projected either acoustically or through electrical amplification (for an acoustic guitar or an electric guitar, respectively). It is typically played by strumming or plucking the strings with the right hand while fretting (or pressing against the fret) the strings with the left hand. The guitar is a type of chordophone, traditionally constructed from wood and strung with either gut, nylon or steel strings and distinguished from other chordophones by its construction and tuning. The modern guitar was preceded by the gittern, the vihuela, the four-course Renaissance guitar, and the five-course baroque guitar, all of which contributed to the development of the modern six-string instrument.

There are three main types of modern acoustic guitar: the classical guitar (nylon-string guitar), the steel-string acoustic guitar, and the archtop guitar. The tone of an acoustic guitar is produced by the strings' vibration, amplified by the body of the guitar, which acts as a resonating chamber. The classical guitar is often played as a solo instrument using a comprehensive fingerpicking technique. The term fingerpicking can also refer to a specific tradition of folk, blues, bluegrass, and country guitar playing in the US.

Electric guitars, introduced in the 1930s, use an amplifier that can electronically manipulate and shape the tone. Early amplified guitars employed a hollow body, but a solid body was eventually found more suitable, as it was less prone to feedback. Electric guitars have had a continuing profound influence on popular culture.

The guitar is used in a wide variety of musical genres worldwide. It is recognized as a primary instrument in genres such as blues, bluegrass, country, flamenco, folk, jazz, jota, mariachi, metal, punk, reggae, rock, soul, and many forms of pop.Classical guitars; also known as Spanish guitars are typically strung with nylon strings, plucked with the fingers, played in a seated position and are used to play a diversity of musical styles including classical music. The classical guitar's wide, flat neck allows the musician to play scales, arpeggios, and certain chord forms more easily and with less adjacent string interference than on other styles of guitar. Flamenco guitars are very similar in construction, but are associated with a more percussive tone.

In Portugal, the same instrument is often used with steel strings particularly in its role within fado music. The guitar is called viola, or violão in Brazil, where it is often used with an extra seventh string by choro musicians to provide extra bass support.

In Mexico, the popular mariachi band includes a range of guitars, from the small requinto to the guitarrón, a guitar larger than a cello, which is tuned in the bass register. In Colombia, the traditional quartet includes a range of instruments too, from the small bandola (sometimes known as the Deleuze-Guattari, for use when traveling or in confined rooms or spaces), to the slightly larger tiple, to the full sized classical guitar. The requinto also appears in other Latin-American countries as a complementary member of the guitar family, with its smaller size and scale, permitting more projection for the playing of single-lined melodies. Modern dimensions of the classical instrument were established by the Spaniard Antonio de Torres Jurado (1817–1892).All three principal types of resonator guitars were invented by the Slovak-American John Dopyera (1893–1988) for the National and Dobro (Dopyera Brothers) companies. Similar to the flat top guitar in appearance, but with a body that may be made of brass, nickel-silver, or steel as well as wood, the sound of the resonator guitar is produced by one or more aluminum resonator cones mounted in the middle of the top. The physical principle of the guitar is therefore similar to the loudspeaker. The original purpose of the resonator was to produce a very loud sound; this purpose has been largely superseded by electrical amplification, but the resonator guitar is still played because of its distinctive tone. Resonator guitars may have either one or three resonator cones. The method of transmitting sound resonance to the cone is either a "biscuit" bridge, made of a small piece of hardwood at the vertex of the cone (Nationals), or a "spider" bridge, made of metal and mounted around the rim of the (inverted) cone (Dobros). Three-cone resonators always use a specialized metal bridge. The type of resonator guitar with a neck with a square cross-section—called "square neck" or "Hawaiian"—is usually played face up, on the lap of the seated player, and often with a metal or glass slide. The round neck resonator guitars are normally played in the same fashion as other guitars, although slides are also often used, especially in blues.Electric guitars can have solid, semi-hollow, or hollow bodies; solid bodies produce little sound without amplification. Electromagnetic pickups convert the vibration of the steel strings into signals, which are fed to an amplifier through a cable or radio transmitter. The sound is frequently modified by other electronic devices or the natural distortion of valves (vacuum tubes) in the amplifier. There are two main types of magnetic pickups, single- and double-coil (or humbucker), each of which can be passive or active. The electric guitar is used extensively in jazz, blues, R & B, and rock and roll. The first successful magnetic pickup for a guitar was invented by George Beauchamp, and incorporated into the 1931 Ro-Pat-In (later Rickenbacker) "Frying Pan" lap steel; other manufacturers, notably Gibson, soon began to install pickups in archtop models. After World War II the completely solid-body electric was popularized by Gibson in collaboration with Les Paul, and independently by Leo Fender of Fender Music. The lower fretboard action (the height of the strings from the fingerboard), lighter (thinner) strings, and its electrical amplification lend the electric guitar to techniques less frequently used on acoustic guitars. These include tapping, extensive use of legato through pull-offs and hammer-ons (also known as slurs), pinch harmonics, volume swells, and use of a tremolo arm or effects pedals.

The first electric guitarist of note to use a seven-string guitar was jazz guitarist George Van Eps, who was a pioneer of this instrument.[citation needed] Solid body seven-strings were popularized in the 1980s and 1990s in part due to the release of the Ibanez Universe guitar,[citation needed] endorsed by Steve Vai. Other artists go a step further, by using an eight-string guitar with two extra low strings. Although the most common seven-string has a low B string, Roger McGuinn (of The Byrds and Rickenbacker) uses an octave G string paired with the regular G string as on a 12-string guitar, allowing him to incorporate chiming 12-string elements in standard six-string playing. In 1982 Uli Jon Roth developed the "Sky Guitar," with a vastly extended number of frets, which was the first guitar to venture into the upper registers of the violin. Roth's seven-string and 33-fret "Mighty Wing" guitar features a six-octave range.

This is the first of an ongoing free guitar lessons instructional series about techniques to increase your speed and dexterity using alternate picking. Base on my experience i will teachyou and  demonstrate a short riff built up of four parts. The entire riff is broken down into four parts. I play each part slowly with the guitar tablature underneath showing you which notes to pick.

Alternate Picking is when we attack each string in a consistent up down fashion, picking every single not in the scale. As a guitar player, this has been one of the riffs I have practiced over the years and it has greatly helped me, increase my speed, dexterity and precision.

Alternative Picking is obviously a very important part of playing guitar. That's why I think it's extremely important to focus on practicing your alternate picking. It's also important to note, that you should always practice with a metronome. Also - do not practice your alternate picking with distortion. Practice everything on either an acoustic guitar or an electric guitar without distortion. That is extremely important.

The guitar is a popular musical instrument classified as a string instrument with anywhere from 4 to 18 strings, usually having 6. The sound is projected either acoustically or through electrical amplification (for an acoustic guitar or an electric guitar, respectively). It is typically played by strumming or plucking the strings with the right hand while fretting (or pressing against the fret) the strings with the left hand. The guitar is a type of chordophone, traditionally constructed from wood and strung with either gut, nylon or steel strings and distinguished from other chordophones by its construction and tuning. The modern guitar was preceded by the gittern, the vihuela, the four-course Renaissance guitar, and the five-course baroque guitar, all of which contributed to the development of the modern six-string instrument.

There are three main types of modern acoustic guitar: the classical guitar (nylon-string guitar), the steel-string acoustic guitar, and the archtop guitar. The tone of an acoustic guitar is produced by the strings' vibration, amplified by the body of the guitar, which acts as a resonating chamber. The classical guitar is often played as a solo instrument using a comprehensive fingerpicking technique. The term fingerpicking can also refer to a specific tradition of folk, blues, bluegrass, and country guitar playing in the US.

Electric guitars, introduced in the 1930s, use an amplifier that can electronically manipulate and shape the tone. Early amplified guitars employed a hollow body, but a solid body was eventually found more suitable, as it was less prone to feedback. Electric guitars have had a continuing profound influence on popular culture.

The guitar is used in a wide variety of musical genres worldwide. It is recognized as a primary instrument in genres such as blues, bluegrass, country, flamenco, folk, jazz, jota, mariachi, metal, punk, reggae, rock, soul, and many forms of pop.Classical guitars; also known as Spanish guitars are typically strung with nylon strings, plucked with the fingers, played in a seated position and are used to play a diversity of musical styles including classical music. The classical guitar's wide, flat neck allows the musician to play scales, arpeggios, and certain chord forms more easily and with less adjacent string interference than on other styles of guitar. Flamenco guitars are very similar in construction, but are associated with a more percussive tone.

In Portugal, the same instrument is often used with steel strings particularly in its role within fado music. The guitar is called viola, or violão in Brazil, where it is often used with an extra seventh string by choro musicians to provide extra bass support.

In Mexico, the popular mariachi band includes a range of guitars, from the small requinto to the guitarrón, a guitar larger than a cello, which is tuned in the bass register. In Colombia, the traditional quartet includes a range of instruments too, from the small bandola (sometimes known as the Deleuze-Guattari, for use when traveling or in confined rooms or spaces), to the slightly larger tiple, to the full sized classical guitar. The requinto also appears in other Latin-American countries as a complementary member of the guitar family, with its smaller size and scale, permitting more projection for the playing of single-lined melodies. Modern dimensions of the classical instrument were established by the Spaniard Antonio de Torres Jurado (1817–1892).All three principal types of resonator guitars were invented by the Slovak-American John Dopyera (1893–1988) for the National and Dobro (Dopyera Brothers) companies. Similar to the flat top guitar in appearance, but with a body that may be made of brass, nickel-silver, or steel as well as wood, the sound of the resonator guitar is produced by one or more aluminum resonator cones mounted in the middle of the top. The physical principle of the guitar is therefore similar to the loudspeaker. The original purpose of the resonator was to produce a very loud sound; this purpose has been largely superseded by electrical amplification, but the resonator guitar is still played because of its distinctive tone. Resonator guitars may have either one or three resonator cones. The method of transmitting sound resonance to the cone is either a "biscuit" bridge, made of a small piece of hardwood at the vertex of the cone (Nationals), or a "spider" bridge, made of metal and mounted around the rim of the (inverted) cone (Dobros). Three-cone resonators always use a specialized metal bridge. The type of resonator guitar with a neck with a square cross-section—called "square neck" or "Hawaiian"—is usually played face up, on the lap of the seated player, and often with a metal or glass slide. The round neck resonator guitars are normally played in the same fashion as other guitars, although slides are also often used, especially in blues.Electric guitars can have solid, semi-hollow, or hollow bodies; solid bodies produce little sound without amplification. Electromagnetic pickups convert the vibration of the steel strings into signals, which are fed to an amplifier through a cable or radio transmitter. The sound is frequently modified by other electronic devices or the natural distortion of valves (vacuum tubes) in the amplifier. There are two main types of magnetic pickups, single- and double-coil (or humbucker), each of which can be passive or active. The electric guitar is used extensively in jazz, blues, R & B, and rock and roll. The first successful magnetic pickup for a guitar was invented by George Beauchamp, and incorporated into the 1931 Ro-Pat-In (later Rickenbacker) "Frying Pan" lap steel; other manufacturers, notably Gibson, soon began to install pickups in archtop models. After World War II the completely solid-body electric was popularized by Gibson in collaboration with Les Paul, and independently by Leo Fender of Fender Music. The lower fretboard action (the height of the strings from the fingerboard), lighter (thinner) strings, and its electrical amplification lend the electric guitar to techniques less frequently used on acoustic guitars. These include tapping, extensive use of legato through pull-offs and hammer-ons (also known as slurs), pinch harmonics, volume swells, and use of a tremolo arm or effects pedals.

The first electric guitarist of note to use a seven-string guitar was jazz guitarist George Van Eps, who was a pioneer of this instrument.[citation needed] Solid body seven-strings were popularized in the 1980s and 1990s in part due to the release of the Ibanez Universe guitar,[citation needed] endorsed by Steve Vai. Other artists go a step further, by using an eight-string guitar with two extra low strings. Although the most common seven-string has a low B string, Roger McGuinn (of The Byrds and Rickenbacker) uses an octave G string paired with the regular G string as on a 12-string guitar, allowing him to incorporate chiming 12-string elements in standard six-string playing. In 1982 Uli Jon Roth developed the "Sky Guitar," with a vastly extended number of frets, which was the first guitar to venture into the upper registers of the violin. Roth's seven-string and 33-fret "Mighty Wing" guitar features a six-octave range.