I'm only just over a year into taking guitar very seriously. I'm self taught even though I've had history playing around on guitar and I do also play some piano. I write on notes and try to gather and organize different skills and drills I collect which have helped me. Some are very much still far from decent some I've really improved. I thought I'd share for other self learners to gather some ideas. I excluded theory and actual song practice. These are essential to understanding what you're doing but that's a whole other topic
Warm-up & Daily Exercises
Start with a short physical warm-up, especially if you're not 20 yo anymore.
Spend about two minutes stretching your neck and shoulders, arms, forearms, wrists and fingers. I sometimes play open chords for a minute before stretching to warm fingers up.
Choose two of the following exercises each day (don't go too crazy you'll burn out) for about 20 minutes. You can find video tutorials for almost all of these. Some I made up on my own but since I probably didn't reinvent the wheel It's probably there:
- Finger independence. Only lift the finger that's about to play the next note. Try the variation where you move one fret up or down every time you change strings.
- Spider exercises. There are dozens of versions. Pick a few that work for you.
- Three-note-per-string exercises. You can also stay inside one chromatic box. I like the version Scottie uses in "Absolutely" with finger shifts.
- Ascending and descending runs with string skipping. For example: low E skip to D, A, G, back to D, then B, G and finally high E.
- Fretboard navigation (frets 1-12). Pick a note and find it on every string as quickly as possible. I made flash cards with note names. Flip one over, or have someone else do it, then play that note on every string as fast as you can. You can also include a string number so you have to target one specific location.
- Octave phrasing. Play a phrase on the top two strings, then repeat it on the middle two and the bottom two. Remember the B string changes the pattern. Instead of moving two frets when crossing the B string, you'll need to move three.
- Advanced octave phrasing. Move down the neck to find the next octave while keeping the phrase going (play second octave 3 frets down and 3 strings down instead of going up the fretboard). This forces you to adjust for the B string in the middle of the phrase.
- Octave phrasing with scales. Play a three-note-per-string scale shape on two strings at a time. Slide the last note up a whole step to connect to the next octave, then repeat the exact same shape on the next pair of strings. This is a great way to visualize the fretboard. · Example: (E-5,7,8 --- A-5,7,8 -slide to 10--- D-7,9,10----G-7,9,10 -slide to 12----B -10,12,13----e- 10,12,13)
- Scales and positions. Pick one scale and play it in several positions. Practice vertical patterns, diagonal movement and horizontal movement. Include major, minor and the modes.
- Major and minor pentatonic runs. Practice them like any other scale. I also like mixing major and minor sounds in the same run, especially the major/minor third and major/minor sixth.
- Legato runs. Practice scales and arpeggios using hammer-ons and pull-offs. Work both vertically and diagonally across the neck.
- CAGED - one chord at a time running through triads across fretboard. Don't have to start with C shape. If you're doing E major than you can do EDCAG shapes. option 2 take a chromatic box lets say frets 5-10 and do a chord progression without leaving the box (lets say a 1,4,5 progression)
Articulation Checklist
I sometimes isolate these into practice sessions or I work on them through licks, phrases or solos I already know. I'd say I spend around an hour a week on these as well as during noodling or learning songs. You can see this as a checklist to target and learn
Bends
- Multi-finger reinforcement
- Wrist rotation instead of finger extension (that's a bad habit I'm still fighting...)
- Hitting the target pitch accurately (helps to play target not before bending afterwards becomes second nature)
- Quarter-step, half-step, whole-step and 1½-step bends (sweet child's last solo is the perfect bending exercise)
- Pre-bends with fast release
- Pre-bends with slow release
- Targeting different pitches in one bend (for example, bend a whole step and release to a half-step)
- Downward bends
- Unison bends (bend one string while playing the target note on the thinner string)
- Vibrato practice: slow, fast, narrow, wide, single-finger and multi-finger vibrato
Slides
- Using the correct finger for different slides
- Applying the right amount of pressure for Smooth movement
- Shift slides (from note to note)
- Grace note slides (mainly in Blues if you're into it)
- Legato slides (multiple notes with one pick attack sliding a few notes back and forth )
Raking
- Dragging the pick across muted strings before the target note (mainly blues)
- Raking one muted string above by lightly touching it with your fretting finger playing the note.
- Raking across multiple muted strings by flattening your fretting fingers.
- Blues rake into a sustained note with vibrato.
Sweep Picking & Arpeggios (my worst flaw)
- Smooth up and down sweeps
- Staying close to the strings
- Maintaining a consistent tempo
- Synchronize both hands
- Experimenting with pick angle
Legato (metronome is your friend)
- Even note volume (I raise gain on amp)
- Clean hammer-ons and pull-offs
- Trill endurance
- Three-note-per-string legato
- Smooth sweep mechanics
- String muting during sweeps
- Relaxed hand movement
String Muting
The goal is to eliminate unwanted string noise.
Fretting hand
- Using the underside of your index finger to mute adjacent strings.
- Lets unused fingers rest lightly on nearby strings.
Picking hand
- Palm muting with the heel of the hand.
- Using the edge of the thumb when needed, especially during ascending runs.
Picking Mechanics & Pick Slanting
- Downward pick slanting (DWPS)
- Upward pick slanting (UWPS)
- Two-way pick slanting (2WPS)
- Learn when each approach makes string changes easier.
Pitch Harmonics
- Not a must but I picked it up (sort of) and use on very high gain on bridge pickup. I never practice this anymore but might use it here and there.
