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Exercise Of The Week #1
Alternate Picking: Level 1
Our first exercise is a 4-note alternate picking pattern over the E and the B strings. We’ll play the top two notes of the pentatonic shapes up the fretboard in the Key of A. Don’t worry if this seems impossible to play at first; if you’ve never used alternate picking before, it will feel very strange, but I promise it gets better!
- Lesson Video
- Tablature
- Reference Demos at Multiple Tempos
- Click Track
Exercise Of The Week #2
Alternate Picking: Level 2
We’re going to add two notes to the previous exercise. This time, instead of just descending and then skipping back to the top, we’ll walk our way back up using the same path we came down on. This is more difficult than the previous exercise, but it is a good next step.
- Lesson Video
- Tablature
- Reference Demos at Multiple Tempos
- Click Track
Exercise Of The Week #3
Alternate Picking: Level 3
For this exercise, we’ll start with the same pattern as the previous exercise but with an extra note on the G-String added in. These drills are training our muscles to remember the string spacing and height of each string, so adding a new note on a different string makes the drill a bit more complicated.
- Lesson Video
- Tablature
- Reference Demos at Multiple Tempos
- Click Track
Exercise Of The Week #4
Alternate Picking: Level 4
For this exercise, we’ll add two more notes, including one on the D-String. In addition to making the drill more complex, it also makes the pattern harder to remember.
- Lesson Video
- Tablature
- Reference Demos at Multiple Tempos
- Click Track
Exercise Of The Week #5
Alternate Picking: Level 5
Once again, we’ll add two more notes and another string to the previous pattern, so we’ll be playing across 5 of the six strings.
- Lesson Video
- Tablature
- Reference Demos at Multiple Tempos
- Click Track
Exercise Of The Week #6
Alternate Picking: Level 6
In this exercise, we’re going back to our original 4-note pattern, but we’ll introduce a change of direction. We’ll backtrack and repeat our steps during each descent.
- Lesson Video
- Tablature
- Reference Demos at Multiple Tempos
- Click Track
Exercise Of The Week #7
Alternate Picking: Level 7
Now, we’re going to add a note on the G-String to the previous exercise, with a backtrack/repeat maneuver on the descent and the ascent.
- Lesson Video
- Tablature
- Reference Demos at Multiple Tempos
- Click Track
Exercise Of The Week #8
Alternate Picking: Level 8
This exercise continues the previous pattern, adding in two more notes and continuing down to the D string, with multiple backtrack/repeat maneuvers on each descent and ascent.
- Lesson Video
- Tablature
- Reference Demos at Multiple Tempos
- Click Track
Exercise Of The Week #9
Alternate Picking: Level 9
The final level of this alternate picking series extends the previous pattern all the way down to the Low E-String, with plenty of backtracking/repeat maneuvers on each pass.
- Lesson Video
- Tablature
- Reference Demos at Multiple Tempos
- Click Track
Exercise Of The Week #10
Box 1 Raking & Muting Exercise
In this challenge, I’ll give you a simple exercise to test your muting ability while raking strings. I’ll explain the basics of muting for each string, utilizing fingertips and your picking hand to keep all the strings muted except for the string you’re picking.
- Lesson Video
Exercise Of The Week #11
Hammer-Ons & Pull-Offs Without Picking Exercise
How good are your hammer-on and pull-off techniques? We'll find out in this challenge. I'll show you how to turn the patterns from our alternate picking drills into a new drill based only on hammer-ons and pull-offs. No picking allowed.
- Lesson Video
Exercise Of The Week #12
Vibrato Development Exercise
Developing a natural, controlled vibrato motion is one of the most challenging parts of every guitar player's journey. In this excerpt from my Vibrato course, I'll show you an exercise adapted from singing lessons to help you ease into the vibrato motion, transitioning from slow to fast and wide to narrow.
- Lesson Video
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This course is also included in the following bundle.