#guitar diary

[phantalgia]

Getting Back Into Hobbies: Guitar, Introduction

Before I Even Begin

This is the start of a diary section of my blog dedicated towards learning guitar. I picked up my guitar after a few weeks still feeling confused as to what I was looking at. That throat tightness and shortness of breathe has come back. I have energy that came back despite the Long COVID to try and get back to it.

Anyway, there will be other diaries dedicated towards other hobbies. Drawing will be one, not sure if I'll ever share what I've been doing. But I will share my thought process and things I'm learning on the way. I also could have made a separate blog dedicated to just these hobbies. Honestly, I don't know. Perhaps I will if it seems like I should.

I think last night just reminded me of what really matters to me. I have alternating interests that cycle, never consistent. But I can work with that and attempt to work with my physical and mental health. The thing is, I got to start. So I want to at least pick up my guitar again. I will probably talk about how I'm gonna get myself back into drawing via another blog post but let's start with guitar.

Why Guitar?

To make things short and sweet, the American Primitive scene got me interested in guitar. It's probably a pipe-dream at this point to get to that point but I'll do what I can. I have other instruments that interest me but guitar seemed like a good place to start. I can save specifics about guitar and the genres of music that inspired me for a later time.

My Progress So Far

I don't really like to think about my progress, as when I look back I see a year or so went by and I feel like I didn't go anywhere. So I know my goal is in the fingerstyle realm but there has been something bugging me about the instrument that I HAD TO KNOW. This is part of my own perfectionism/anxiety and perhaps a very mechanical way of seeing things that I inherently have.

Guitar Theory/Music Theory Has Been My Focus

I'm really hellbent on guitar theory for the past year. I've pretty much abandoned fingerstyle practice for this. Honestly, what I want to learn is how to transcribe music and play along with songs. My goals have been the following:

"Memorize" all the notes on the fretboard or at least get relative knowledge about them.

Use CAGED to learn scales and chords and then how it can be used to relate to other systems and patterns of seeing the guitar, as well as theory.

Learn 3NPS

Understand how this all connects to broader guitar theory and music theory generally to have a more holistic view of the instrument.

The THEMES here have been holism, diversification, pattern seeking, connecting, relating, and theory (guitar/music)

I have thought about other goals to add onto this either during or after:

Chord theory

Chords and scales their relations

Others I can't really think of right now....

What I've Learned So Far

I initially started out learning fingerstyle but kept trying to find new ways to learn and see the instrument. What I gravitated towards has been transcribing and guitar/music theory. I really enjoy being able to play a song that's in the right key and figure out if the chords and scales are correct. I do need to also practice actual picking patterns too of course.

What eventually lead me to CAGED, memorizing the fretboard, and patterns and systems was because of how much CAGED tickled my brain in terms of how it allowed me to see the fretboard. I was excited and fascinated by the patterns and theory more than the act of playing itself. So that's where my focus has been. I don't know if this is indicative of how my brain operates or it's just "productive procrastination". I like systems and patterns and stuff. That took away from the actual art of playing.

Books I'm Using

I don't really like YouTube videos, they don't feel structured enough for me. Even books aren't perfect in this regard. But occasionally I'll use YouTube videos as a facilitator rather than the main mode. So books have been my go to.

Memorize and Master The Fretboard In 14 Days! - Troy Nelson

The CAGED System for Guitar - James Shipway

I'm also using a couple of courses on Udemy although they're not perfect. The Troy Nelson book has probably been the most interesting and the James Shipway book introduced me to a nice practice regiment I could apply to anything I do by going around the Circle of Fourths.

The Troy Nelson book has been really good for memorizing although, the memory seems to be muscle memory or relative memory rather than mental or absolute, perhaps I can use that to my advantage by incorporating other patterns and systems. Dropping the guitar for months after my surgery I came back pretty much oblivious to what I was looking at on the fretboard. But quizzing myself I realized I did remember quite a bit if I tried hard enough. After a few weeks still, I'm rusty again with the memory even though I tried to pick the guitar back up a week or so ago.

I want to add that Nelson offers not just a system to memorize the fretboard. No, it's more than that. It goes over theory and a whole host of other things with the emphasis on the goal being memorizing the fretboard. So you get a lot more out of it. It's a really good book IF YOU TAKE YOUR TIME WITH IT. Just because it's 14 days doesn't mean you have to or should do it in 14 days. I definitely am not, whether better or worse. In fact it might be for worse as I'm always feeling like I'm not good enough or haven't memorized it well enough.

The Shipway book is great for CAGED obviously, but offers multiple ways to tackle it and see it. So it's very varied in what it does. It does require knowledge of the notes on the last 2 or 3 strings though.

My Thought Process For Learning, Better or For Worse

So I'm a perfectionist, I'm very antsy about doing things the right way. That prevents me from doing a lot or moving along and progressing as I see things in a linear fashion. I have been trying to break from this habit but it's hard.

It's hard for me to see things as a process of just absorption over time. Instead it's all linear, structure, one thing at a time. So certain strategies for learning become difficult such as diversification.

So an example is this need to know the fretboard before moving on. I never finished that Nelson book, and managed to do that on top of the Shipway one and developed a regiment of practice where I went back and forth on top of self quizzing myself on note locations. It helped make learning the fretboard easier. As I had another way of seeing the fretboard and relating note locations to the CAGED system on top of this quizzing thing.

But perhaps I was only able to have this diversification as long as I slowly added new approaches over time instead of all at once. So I did this "fretboard memorization" book first for maybe a little bit, maybe get a quarter of the way through and go "ok I think I have made some room to add the CAGED book now" so I'm able to EASE my way into the CAGED book. And then BOOM I have built my system and didn't give myself much distress.

What Now?

Use this blog to document stuff and maybe get help? Perhaps slowly I can have a much better way of learning the instrument and make progress. I don't know what to do next. Perhaps today I will just take a break. I spent a lot of time writing about this and I'm drained and anxious about this. My mind is kind of bouncing around the drawing stuff too, so it's very active up there. I think I can at least be satisfied that I picked up the guitar for a little bit and did some writing today to talk about how I feel about it.

Future entries on my guitar progress will probably be after I make progress at a given day or even time of day, my thoughts, feelings, breakthroughs, emotions. I think my main worry is the feeling of being stuck or like I'm not going anywhere with this or things just taking too long.

Any Advice?

So I ask the person reading this, anyone with experience in fingerstyle guitar or in the American Primitive guitar space want to help give me some advice? Otherwise I could just go on Reddit and ask at some point.

[bambalina777]

[hanzajesthanza]

the witcher saga begins with dandelion being saved by yennefer and he tells her that he was wrong about her is indebted to her and that he will repay the debt to her in his songs, by making people know she is a good and fair lady . and later he also chronicles the journey of geralt’s company from brokilon to beauclair in his half a century of poetry, for posterity.

in the final act, the entirety of stygga castle is damnatio memoriae’d off of the face of the planet by the lodge of sorceresses who wished to write history in their favor, so the hanza’s graves (and… column) simply ceased to exist, it’s only a crater, dust, a nuclear blast site. even though it is the hanza whose questing alongside geralt made it possible for him to fulfill his (their) quest and whose sacrifices were in exchange for the return of ciri and yennefer to the proverbial realm of the living.

and furthermore, the battle of the bridge was not mentioned by any chronicles of history, and the old bridge itself, ruined from the battle, was replaced by a shiny new one.

and at rivia, yennefer’s presence was forgotten by all but one legend. but the majority of which said that triss stood alone on the “rivian hill” (… pile of refuse), and no one mentioned yennefer. even though she was the witcher’s eternal starcrossed lover and killed herself on top of his dead body hopelessly trying to ressurect him, and the two went off to avalon together.

but through the writing and song, “in the end,” dandelion made good on his promise to preserve their memory, and (alongside the folk stories) made sure people would remember them all as heroes… as families… a beautiful story…

even as monuments crumbled, and others tried to erase them.

[catdumpster]

the jd band au is real to me!!!

[veronicamalatesta]

Not anymore 💘🧚🏼‍♀️✨🦄💫🌓

[miky-joined-the-masquerade]

Become the star ☆

[slutisnotabadword]

Guitar Bonnie 🎸

[k-i-l-l-e-r-b-e-e-6-9]

Ozzy Osbourne & Randy Rhoads ♰

[cafe-sao]

友人が遊びに来てくれた

ヨガをして絵を描いて歌った

人が集まるってたまにはいいなと思った。

[ganymedesclock]

[Wild Hunter & Blaster] [Mechanic & Battlemage]

"I need to play the Blaster" I say, playing both Xenon and Demon Slayer instead

[vulcanette]

went on a knight’s quest… to obtain a holy relic.. many perils met on my way, perils, obstacles. annoyances. many miles traveled, however, I return home victorious

[storywriter12]

Omg I just wrote a Caroline and klaus chapter where she give him a make over she puts everything on him fake eyelashes and all that

And then I just wrote a chapter about bonnie and Enzo where bonnie is trying to do magic and she can't because Enzo is playing his guitar and she ends up shouting at him and then he sings her a song because he wants her to sit and listen to him

[beatheprincess]

What yall kno about perfume 👀⭐

[sennamaticart]

Playing Guitar Hero 3 with @finnimate

[doubleslashkarma]

A couple of DOATK drawings I've done recently! One was on my phone and one was on the iPad I borrowed from the university so if you're wondering why Mozart's has the proper background and I just made shit up for Moral Code. That's why.

[sirensskai]

NSYNC and Backstreet Boys obsessed Jill Smith who has a random girl crush on Ripp Grunt and blushes and giggles and shows off to him at every possible chance is real to me