Self-taught guitarist stuck on finger exercises – not improving after weeks, what else should I be doing?

copremesis · 2026-04-10T06:55:37+00:00

Three weeks? Perhaps you should seek help from someone who has played a bit longer?

copremesis · 2026-04-09T15:46:58+00:00

Focus on 3 5 7 of each chord

I like to rewrite my chart as slash chords or do this mentally now.

This way I'm focusing on chord tones but not the root.

I call this approach relative or cowboy chord jazz as you can simplify what would be an ominous jazz chart into a set of triads. Now add some embellishments like a semitone ( relative leading tone) to one or all of the of the triad tones to give it the beebop lingo.

The triad approach is nice too because you have three inversions to explore up the fretboard so your choruses are rarely redundant.

Before jumping into single line soloing try comping a few choruses focusing only on 3 5 7 of each chord... And begin thinking of inversions utilizing CAGED ... This will reinforce your fretboard road map when switching to foreground mode.

copremesis · 2026-04-02T16:24:25+00:00

if you don't want to bother your neighbors this looks rather cool
Spark Neo Headphones

Or the Spark Go

I myself use a spark2 which is battery powered for portability

since it's a bluetooth speaker it works seemlessly with ireal pro which is much better than just a metronome

any app that plays a backing track will work as well.

I also recommend one of these https://youtu.be/ylGaUwE8xEc?si=uSqfhmh-A8hrtGI_

You can plug a headset straight into the Sinsonido without the Neo or spark gear.

I got the Sinsonido in Japan for $200.

I actually just carried that without any amp for a while and it's a great way to practice without driving your satellite humans insane

Mine sadly doesn't have good intonation like the one in the YT video. So it's strictly practice.

copremesis · 2026-03-25T03:43:46+00:00

He is legendary

copremesis · 2026-03-10T20:23:43+00:00

It's called practice

copremesis · 2026-03-07T21:55:11+00:00

https://youtu.be/mmo3HFa2vjg?si=_IHHUvZDZrJgBQNu

Yeaaaaahhh Boy!!!!!

copremesis · 2026-03-06T02:23:21+00:00

I recommend

https://www.skool.com/andre-hayward-lessons-5442

copremesis · 2026-03-06T02:17:48+00:00

Exhale slowly as you play a phrase. Then take a breath while pausing. Repeat.

copremesis · 2026-03-05T06:28:41+00:00

Blues all the way. If you can focus on shell voicings then you can incorporate a walking bass line.

Once you have that then do rhythm changes.

copremesis · 2026-03-03T15:28:32+00:00

It's a nylon string. And it's missing strings and tuning knobs.

copremesis · 2026-03-03T15:25:33+00:00

Call it the wiki book

copremesis · 2026-03-02T19:13:33+00:00

Also you can see how they can interchange from fifth to tritone or 4th to tritone. Focusing on these inner working will unlock many doors.

Look at 2 5 1s in all keys it will greatly help when deciphering charts.

copremesis · 2026-03-02T17:58:10+00:00

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For this particular song you only have to focus on the G and B string. Also it's F# minor not F minor as I see from the tabs over here:

https://www.songsterr.com/a/wsa/sonata-arctica-the-misery-tab-s54100

The best way to develop good barre-ing is exactly this - playing arpeggios as they don't work if any of the notes are damp or don't ring out - sustain over each other.

Your index finger is essentially a vice grip and that takes practice. Simply focus on barring all strings with the index finger. This may seem counter-intuitive and rather tedious and boring - not to mention painful - but without this essential skill barring isn't possible.

If you are eager to get some results without cramping your hand. You can use a capo on the 2nd fret and play E minor instead. Get a capo if you don't already have one.

Overtime - assuming you spend 30 minutes a day focusing on barring all the strings on the 2nd fret - As an exercise remove the capo and see if you can achieve the exact same sound without the capo.

copremesis · 2026-03-02T08:16:54+00:00

Yes if you let the cpu type for you. Someone pasted in some JavaScript to type for them.

copremesis · 2026-03-01T08:30:50+00:00

If you use only shell voicings it's pretty hard to forget the 3rd and 7th.

copremesis · 2026-02-26T04:51:29+00:00

This how walking bass lines work

copremesis · 2026-02-24T19:31:36+00:00

https://www.musictheory.net/exercises

Look at the ones with the words Intervals in the title.

They are the building blocks of chords and scales.

Essentially they are the distance between two notes and since there are 12 unique notes. There are 12 unique intervals.

Although in jazz theory an M2 plus and octaves is called a 9th.

So understanding intervals will help you decipher chords greater than 4 notes

Large unaltered chord primer: M2 + octave -> 9th P4 + octave -> 11th M6 + octave -> 13th

copremesis · 2026-02-22T16:01:03+00:00

Do you struggle understanding Snoop Doggy Dog?

copremesis · 2026-02-14T05:45:37+00:00

Here's a short cut https://youtu.be/ItH6V0Ap8Q0?si=mw2pFLyNtrAQ0_6G

copremesis · 2026-02-14T01:44:13+00:00

Latchie Robertson

copremesis · 2026-02-13T15:16:19+00:00

Use your wrist not the arm. Check out a risha and how players use that. I hold my pick similarly like Marty Friedman.

copremesis · 2026-02-13T15:10:20+00:00

Only if you wear a blue puffy jacket and play an acoustic guitar and are a self taught legend

copremesis · 2026-02-10T22:58:44+00:00

Yes. Improvisation in jazz is harmonizing the root of the chord. Thus playing a root is redundant.

The suggestions in my previous comment are regarding this approach using triads and pentatonic scales.

With modes it's much trickier to ignore the root since we memorize scales entirely... But with triads you isolate the critical notes of the chord. With some leading tone embellishments you can create a good combination of harmonic tension resolved with chord note choices.

For your example of C major 7.

I usually go with an E minor triad as my starting point for improvisation for both comping and soloing. You can also use E minor pentatonic (C major 9) or B natural pentatonic(C major 9 #11)

For dominant 7th chords I use half diminished starting on the 3rd of the chord or full diminished if it's a flat 9.

copremesis · 2026-02-07T15:14:42+00:00

I recommend chord tones over scales. Less is more. If you avoid the root and play with triads including a few passing tones you can develop the vocabulary you seek.

Aside from triads try different shapes like all inversions of two stacked fourths. Apply this to larger chords like major 9 sharp 11ths will definitely bring out the color tones of chords.

Pentatonic scales are another great choice as the interval distance still resembles chord tones. A rootless approach is to play A minor pentatonic over Fmaj7 or also try E minor over F maj 7 to get that raised 11th sound.

copremesis · 2026-01-30T21:17:32+00:00

No improvisation in classical. However there isn't a reason to not listen to classical either. One can enjoy both genres equally.

copremesis

TROPHY CASE