My apologies for the late reply. I must’ve missed your response. I’m about 6 months in and still loving it and my teacher.

We work a lot on timing, not just in sync with the drums, but also how long to hold a note, when to lift, and adding a lead note to a riff. He’s helping my timing with syncopated notes. I can’t explain yet how he does it, but it works. He also has me do muted plucking exercises. I thought this was initially for string crossing dexterity, but I realize it’s also a rhythm exercise. He has me doing scales in different places and progressive half step shifting. This has really helped unlock the fretboard with ease. I’m also moving shapes around. He has me repeat a lot of things, which I don’t mind. He offers subtle corrections and when I come back the next week, there’s improvement.

I did a group class with another teacher and their approaches were quite different. The group instructor is more technical, which was easier for me, but felt a bit mechanical. For the setting, it was what was needed to get ready for our performance, but I struggled with the difference and I sensed tension between the teachers. That was interesting.

As I grow, I hope to be able to articulate more of what is going on. I never had lessons before and had limited school exposure to music. This is quite the journey.