Group 1
Breaking Your Scale Speed Limits with Eduardo Inestal!
Virtuosity and speed go hand in hand when it comes to freeing your musical expressiveness from technical limitations. One key element in classical guitar performance is the ability to play fast scales with ease. Together, we will explore exercises that will enable you to push your speed limits and improve your scale skills while retaining relaxation in both hands and gaining a richer tool set to express your musical ideas.
- Sign-Up Period: August 11 - 14
- Course Period: August 15 - 26
- Class Size: 4 Groups á 10 Participants
- Optional check-In via Zoom: August 23, 11 am PST
Assignment for the first week:
Play the first exercise (Slow) while paying attention to the following:
- Keep the tempo
- Always alternate i-m
- Be "lazy” (move your fingers, both right and left hand, and yourself as less as possible) to keep the relaxation
Do the same with the 2nd exercise (Faster tempo)
Once you control this exercise, you can gradually choose your tempo, increasing the bpm. Pay attention not to lose your relaxation!
Have fun!
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exercise at 120bpm
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Nick It's a pretty nice instrument. My wife actually bought it for me before we were married so that's at least '98. It's funny I've never seen another one until now.
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Nick Pretty much the same here as I said in the previous video. Also try to be a bit more precisy on the tempo. Be as precisy as a metronome. Its hard and require a lot of concentration, but it is important.
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This is my first posting of the exercise. 120bpm. Not as easy as it seems!
Mike
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Mike Hi Mike! Great job!!! I like you keeping the tempo.
There are a couple of things we can work. The one that concerns me is you LH. Try to put your thumb exactly in front of the other fingers (just as if you would do the ok position with you LH, but instead thumb and index, thumb and middelfinger - Imagine you put the tip of you fingers together.). That is going to give you more stability on your LH and precision.
If you see your video, you can see pretty much the thumb rising above the brett. We should be able to see it.
Also try not to move your wrist at all.
Regarding your RH, pay attention to your Pinky finger. Sometimes it seems to be with extra tension (it rises). But the rest is good!! now try to correct this things, and speed it up a bit.
Cheers!!
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Eduardo Inestal - Thank you for the feedback. You point out two things that I struggle with regularly. I am aware that I have the problems, but I have not been able to maintain the proper technique as I progress through the music. The LH thumb needs a lot of focus. Usually, the RH pinky always wants to move up and away from the other fingers as I play and I can begin to feel the tension. Any suggestions? Maybe, play slowly to focus on these problems? I'm afraid they are old habits that will take time to fix.
Thanks again for your contributions to the Tonebase community
.Mike
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Mike
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Mike Hi Mike, one tip it can help you to control your Thumb. Put a pencil on your guitar (see picture). You are going to feel a physical barrier and is going to allow you to be more aware of it!
Let me know if it helps!
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Mike Here a video with Thumb topic I did for another guitarrist of group 2 with the explanation of this problematic. Cheers
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Here is the next assignment video for all of you!
Goals:
- Keep the tempo
- Be as "lazy" as possible (move your fingers (an also your body) as less as possible).
- Increase the tempo gradually. -Start with 50 bmp and speed it up till 100 bpm
Submit 2 videos with both tempos (slow and fast)
scales group 1
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Here's an attempt at the first exercise. I need to relax more with the camera rolling!
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Derek Hi Derek, thank you for your video. Great job.
There is one thing you can improve, and is the concentration. In order to give the right orders to our fingers, we have to execute the exercises right, otherwise our fingers are going to learn the "wrong" movementes. My advise is you to practise slower in order to master the rhytm patter.
Your hands and fingers are moving very good, that means you dont have any technical problem.
Everything is in the head :)
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Hi!
Here's my attempt on the first exercise with 120 bpm.
Is it my impression or my body looks a bit tilted to the left side? I have never noticed that. :)
Thanks!
Walter
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Walter HI Walter, thanks for sending the video. Good Job!!
There are many ways to play scales. Rest or free stroke, i-m, i-a, i-m-a, p-m, etc. what I suggest in this exercise it to play rest stroke i-m. I saw you are playing tirando (free stroke). Is not a problem at all, indeed, we should practise all the combination posibles. :)
There is one thing we can work. Your left hand. I saw that you 4 finger is a bit tense and tend to hide. Try to keep it as close to the strings/frets as possible. Also the angle in your left wrist sometimes changes, for example when you shift position. Try to keep it as stable as posible.
But great control, great sound and tempo control. Good job!
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Eduardo Inestal and regarding your question about tilting to the left... yes, maybe a bit... try to play in front of a mirrow to control it.
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Eduardo Inestal thanks! I’ll try to send a second version later today.
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Exercise 2
My comments:
- I did it rest stroke this time.
- I think my left hand is a bit tilted to the left. Maybe if I move the whole hand closer to the fretboard it'll allow me to move less.
Thanks for your comments! :)
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Exercise 3
My comments:
- It looks like my hand is a bit better positioned this time. Since I recorded both exercises before looking into the videos, I think this is more related to the exercise itself (the pinky starting), than me fixing anything.
- Is the guitar position ok? Sometimes I think it's too upright.
martin This is for you: I think I have a lot of nail noise in the recording. Do advices on how to reduce that? You can see how the Zoom H5 is positioned from the video.
Thanks again! :)
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Walter Hi Walter, Awesome job!!! thank you for the videos.
So lets work:
1. Regarding the position of the guitar. I do find that it is a bit high. Usually I tell my stundents the have to think that the head of the guitar should be a the same heigh as their heads. If not, your Left harm is going to be a bit high, what means tension and your shoulder would be aswell stressed... and then the chain starts: harm, shoulder, neck, head, back, etc...
2. I find you LH very good. The fingers movement is great. no worries!
3. Sometimes your precision is not the best. The rhytm is not accurate. I and M should move at the same time. When one finger play the string, the other is released and goes "outside" in order to be prepare to strike again. Sometimes I feel both finger are on the string and is going to take a bit more time for the finger next to play to be ready. Do you know what I mean? and thats why it sounds not precise.
4. In order to reduce nails noise, i suggest you to watch the zoom call video where we adressed this Issue.
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Eduardo Inestal thank you very much! I’ll keep practicing and will watch the zoom call.
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Here's exercise 4 with two different speeds.
Thank you very much for the feedback, I'm way more aware of some positioning issues and I'll probably keep recording exercises and looking at them even if don't have to post it here.
Thanks!
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Walter Awesome job, Walter, Terrific! Love how relax you are and the mov of your fingers!
Now I will suggest you to practise it with rest stroke (apoyando) and to increase the lenght of the scale, up to the 5th string.
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Eduardo Inestal I'll do that. Thanks!
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Attached is a second attempt at the first exercise a little faster as well as a slow and faster recording of the second exercise.
Thanks again for all the feedback.
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Steve Price Hi Steve, Great improvement!!!
Lets talk separately about the videos:
Ex 1 fast: Great tempo, clean sound and coordination. very nice. One thing is going to help you is to keep your LH fingers on the strings. They should leave the string. Imagine your finger is a train and your strings the rails. If they dont leave, we reduce drastically the posibility of making mistakes.
Pinky RH is a bit tense. As you see is a bit straight but actually is not a big deal.
Ex 2 (both slow and fast) : Same thing reagarding Pinky RH. It is very good nice coordination. Lets try to keep the 4 finger a bit closer. Is going to come faster to the string and reduce the posibility of mistake. Also let the 1 always on the board.
Great job!!
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scales group 1
Please find login information for Eduardo's Zoom Check-in on August 23, 11 am PST here. Feel free to post questions before the Check-In in the forum so Eduardo can prepare those.
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88539131031
Meeting-ID: 885 3913 1031
End of the Year Challenge: Finish Strong!
