The metronome is one of the most underrated devices (especially among the guitar players community) in the music world. We don’t like using it, we don’t understand why we need to use it and, the worst part, it is hard to use it.
So if you are not familiar with the metronome, do not know its benefits or are intimidated by it you have come to the right place.
In this post I will explain why, when and how you should use the amazing device known as the metronome.
Why is it important?
The first question you should ask yourself is: am I going to play with other people? If the answer is no, then feel free to exit this post, but if the answer is yes then the metronome should be your best friend.
I am a strong believer that music is supposed to be played with other people and to do that you need to play in time.
When you play alone you only need to keep your internal time and, unfortunately, usually we do not keep a steady tempo… But when you play with others everyone needs to keep the same time and, for this specific ability, the metronome is the best guy I know that can help you.
The best thing about the metronome is that he will never let you down when counting the beats. Sometimes it can be a hard reflection of your ability to keep time, but don’t let it get you down. The more you play with the metronome the better you will be! It’s just a matter of time. The metronome will help you to keep a steady and tight tempo and it will teach you to make interesting phrasing using not only different variations of notes but also different rhythm structures.
When should you use it?
You should use the metronome every time you have the chance: when warming up, comping, improvising, learning new licks or just playing a song/standard you like. The metronome should be there at all times, counting the beats in the background.
How to use it?
The first thing to do is, obviously, to get yourself a metronome. It can be an analog one, a digital one or an app on your phone or computer. The second will be to understand for what purpose are you using the metronome right now.
If you are using the metronome to build up your playing speed with different left and right hand exercises, you should start with a tempo that feels comfortable for you, then slowly raise the metronome by 2 to 5 BPM. If you do that every day you will notice a big improvement in your playing speed and time keeping.
On the other hand, if you are using the metronome for working on your comping skills, then you should set it to a comfortable playing speed, set it to play on the 2nd and the 4th beats and, voilà, you are ready to get comping! Note that if you don’t feel comfortable yet to only have the 2nd and the 4th beats marked on the metronome, let it play all beats.
You should try to count with the metronome so you can always know on what beat and measure you are at any giving time.
When you use the metronome for learning new licks you should start very slow, then ramping up the speed as you feel more and more comfortable with the lick. Once you feel good with the lick on one position on the guitar, try to play the same lick but in a different place, and also in different keys.
If you are using the metronome to play a standard, I recommend you to use only the metronome without a backing track. I know that this is a very hard exercise but the payoff is huge!
When you get to the point that you need nothing else but a metronome to play a standard, playing the melody, comping, improvising or playing a chord melody, then you can be sure that you know that standard by heart.
The metronome is not an easy friend. He does not lie, he does not hide the truth about your time keeping skills and he is consistent in his counting. It is not easy to be friends with him. But when you do make peace with the metronome, he only gives and gives.
For more information, contact me today.
Gal Dornay
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