Congratulations on making it to the last lesson. I will be discussing more difficult playing techniques.
I'm sure that, by now, you've all played with two finger power chords. They are the foundation of most of todays music. Well, there's a way to play a series of power chords without moving your left hand more than two frets. It's called 'position power chords.' Take this example:
|---------------------------------| |---------------------------------| |---------------------------------| |---3-5-----3-6-5-----3-5---5-3-3-| |-5-1-3---5-1-4-3---5-1-3---3-1-1-| |-3-------3---------3-------------|Now look at the same riff using position power chords:
|---------------------------------| |---------------------------------| |---------------------------------| |---3-5-----3-6-5-----3-5---3-----| |-5---3---5---4-3---5---3-----5-5-| |-3-6-----3-6-------3-6-----6-3-3-|A lot eaiser if you're good at this technique.
Another way to deal with fast power chords is to use 'spider fingering.' This uses all four fingers. Take a look at these examples. The fingers used are shown above the tab.
3 4 3 3 4 1 2 2 1 1 2 |------------------------| |------------------------| |------------------------| |---------------4--------| |-7-8----2-3----2-5------| and so on... |-5-6----0-1------3------|Again, a lot easier if you've practiced.
This next technique is a lead technique that deals with your picking hand, called circular picking. It is used in playing three notes to a string. Look at this ascending run in E dorian:
|-------------------12-14-15---| |----------12-14-15------------| |-11-12-14---------------------| |------------------------------| |------------------------------| |------------------------------|Now look at with the picking shown (u-upstroke d-downstroke)
d u d d u d d u d |-------------------12-14-15---| |----------12-14-15------------| |-11-12-14---------------------| |------------------------------| |------------------------------| |------------------------------|This uses two downstrokes to cross over strings and is a lot faster than alternate picking everything.
The last technique is one of the hardest in guitar playing, sweep picking. What this is playing arpeggios but not letting each string ring. You do this with one downstroke or upstroke. Look at this A major sweep arpeggio:
d-------- u d u-------- 4 3 1 2 1 4 4 1 2 1 3 4 |---------9-12-12-9-------------| |-------10----------10----------| |-----9---------------9---------| |---11------------------11------| |-12----------------------12----| |-------------------------------|The trick is to lift each finger, damping the string, just after the note sounds. Here is an A minor sweep arpeggio:
d------------ u------- |------------12-17p12-----------------| |----------13--------13---------------| |--------14------------14-------------| |------14----------------14-----------| |-12h15--------------------15p12------| |-------------------------------------|On sweeps like these you need to roll your third finger on the fourteenth fret.
Well that's it. Hope I helped!