Use of the Fret Hand

[just strum]

I thought the subject deserved a thread of its own.

excerpts taken from another thread.


It sure is different playing one of these. For one thing, you can't see the fretboard without leaning out over the guitar. The neck however, plays just like my LP Custom.




Stop looking at your fret hand. You'll play better and with more confidence.

Advice passed down from Rocket.


As mostly a rythmn player, I make a lot of fast and distant (up to ten frets sometimes) chord changes with some of the covers I play. I have to watch most of the time to make sure I hit the fret. All the practice in the world has never changed that about my playing. It's been like that for more than 30 years and I don't imagine it's going to change anytime soon. I know the chords, I know where they are, but my arm can't remember how much to move to hit the fret 100% of the time. I'm usually just watching the dots on the top of the neck. I still glance over the top though.

For simple three chord I IV V stuff I don't have to watch so much until the turn around or for a different inversion.




Try to force yourself... practice blindfolded or in the dark. As long as you feel like you must watch, you will need to watch. Allow your muscle memory to work for you.

My own personal experience has been that it was tough to not look away. A couple of things I found as I put the practice into use.

1) It was tough at first. It was probably a case of confidence although I found that the more I did not look, the more my confidence grew.

2) I realized that looking is a timing killer. When I look at my fret hand it tends to cause a delay - the visual makes me lose track of timing, it becomes sort of a "check off" which is time.

3) My visual fought my muscle memory. My hand/fingers know where to go, but it was as if my visual would fight it as it tried to override movement.

I'm not so good that I don't have to look (all guitarist occasionally glance). I also revert back to looking when learning new positions.

The bottom line - the playing is smoother and it allows me to feel the music and to listen to the note being played. I want to recognize mistakes by sound, not by sight. If my fingers are not in the right place and it sounds good - there is no mistake, only accidental creativity and it becomes mine.

[Lev]

I ran into this problem recently when I started giging. I have a Strat with a rosewood board and Abalone dot inlays. When playing in a dark pub/club the fret markers became invisible against the rosewood. As a result I played several bum notes in the first few gigs. I've tried to perservere and just concentrate on the markers on the top of the fretboard when I need to look but it still throws me off.

I don't look that much at the fretboard but I like to glance down and immediately know where I am. Because I've been so used to looking at the fretboard for the past 20+ years the split second adjustment in my brain to look at the side markers is still causing me to miss notes.

It's fine retraining yourself if you have lots of time to practice but I can't afford that luxury when playing gigs so I'm experimenting now with stickers over the abalone markers. If that works I may leave the guitar in to a tech to replace the Abalone markers completely.

[MichaelE]

I'm going to try looking less. When I am looking it is mostly at the top markers like Lev said. I still will glance at the fretboard now and then, though it's nearly impossible with the ES-175.

I guess I'm more of a visual sort of player rather than a 'feeler', but I'm willing to try something different.

[just strum]

I don't want to give the impression that I can get up and down the fret board without looking. I can move around the 1st thru 5th without problems. I can maneuver around the 10th thru 15th without too much problem. Moving from one end to the other, I have to look and use the top markers more and more.

I've tried to eliminate the looking over the fret board and using my ears more than my eyes. Am I good at it, no - am I better at it than earlier in my playing journey, hell yes!

The other thing I have to get much better at, is knowing the fret board by sound, that should help the movement as it relates to muscle memory.

[Robert]

Focus on playing well first and foremost. That is the ultimate goal. If that means looking at the fretboard, fine. Nobody's going to watch you play and say, "he didn't play so well but at least he didn't look at the fretboard." The opposite is also true, nobody's going to say "he played really well but he's looking at the fretboard way too much". It's all about playing good music, whether you stare at the ceiling or your fretboard.

Naturally, if looking at the fretboard hinders you playing in some way, by all means, practice not looking at it.

Personally, I look at the fretboard quite a bit, and absolutely need to see the dots on the neck, or I would quickly be lost. Paint the black keys white for a piano player, and I think the same thing will happen there.

[just strum]

Robert, true. It is all about what works for you. My suggestions are ones that were passed along to me and they provided improvement in my playing.

When I am learning or using a new chord or trying something new, I have to look. I guess my suggestion could best be offered by saying - if muscle memory can get the job done, by all means rely on it and let it become as natural as possible.

The key is for it to be natural.

It's like playing a chord - there is more than one way to do it.

[Heywood Jablomie]

Needing to look at one's left hand can be a real problem, especially if one is singing into a microphone. It's a long time ago, but I remember forcing myself not to look at my left hand to avoid the obvious mic problems. Now I don't even think about it. Not to say that I never look; I just don't need to do it very much.

[pes_laul]

I usually don't do this much (unless I'm soloing or in the studio) but when I play out I have to keep focused on my mic so I dont get closer or farther away to change thou sound,

[pes_laul]

Focus on playing well first and foremost. That is the ultimate goal. If that means looking at the fretboard, fine. Nobody's going to watch you play and say, "he didn't play so well but at least he didn't look at the fretboard." The opposite is also true, nobody's going to say "he played really well but he's looking at the fretboard way too much". It's all about playing good music, whether you stare at the ceiling or your fretboard.

Naturally, if looking at the fretboard hinders you playing in some way, by all means, practice not looking at it.

Personally, I look at the fretboard quite a bit, and absolutely need to see the dots on the neck, or I would quickly be lost. Paint the black keys white for a piano player, and I think the same thing will happen there.
I know alot of classical guitars have no dot on the fretboard and I tend to get quite lost

[Rocket]

Not to say that I never look; I just don't need to do it very much.
Well, that's it... everybody looks. The point is that, with practice, the need to watch no longer exists. I look/peek/sometimes watch from boredom or lack of anything else to do... but I'm confident that I don't need to.

[Heywood Jablomie]

Well, that's it... everybody looks. The point is that, with practice, the need to watch no longer exists. I look/peek/sometimes watch from boredom or lack of anything else to do... but I'm confident that I don't need to.
Also, I can't look at my own hand because I'm too busy looking at Dave's to see what the darn chords are:D

[ibanezjunkie]

I ran into this problem recently when I started giging. I have a Strat with a rosewood board and Abalone dot inlays. When playing in a dark pub/club the fret markers became invisible against the rosewood. As a result I played several bum notes in the first few gigs. I've tried to perservere and just concentrate on the markers on the top of the fretboard when I need to look but it still throws me off.

I don't look that much at the fretboard but I like to glance down and immediately know where I am. Because I've been so used to looking at the fretboard for the past 20+ years the split second adjustment in my brain to look at the side markers is still causing me to miss notes.

It's fine retraining yourself if you have lots of time to practice but I can't afford that luxury when playing gigs so I'm experimenting now with stickers over the abalone markers. If that works I may leave the guitar in to a tech to replace the Abalone markers completely.


thats why i love my Sharktooth inlays

you can feel them if you feel hard enough, and you blaaddy cant miss them, even in low light.

[Lev]

thats why i love my Sharktooth inlays

you can feel them if you feel hard enough, and you blaaddy cant miss them, even in low light.

Yeah, it just wasn't something I considered when I bought the guitar. I've since discovered that it's a common complaint with abalone on rosewood.

I'm not quite sure if I'm a shark tooth kinda guy though.

[ibanezjunkie]

well, it would be a large step away from the USA fender HSS side of things :rotflmao:

the bonus of RGs is, not only do they sound hard as nails and metal as hell, they also look it (usually)

this is mine...

http://www.lamusic.ca/pics/23453.jpg

you couldnt miss it, reguardless of the lighting :rotflmao:

Edit:

BTW Lev, i wouldnt mind adding your amp to my ever growing collection of stuff. Hot Rod Deluxe = win.