Rob Luft on how to practice exercises

Practice Tips for Mastering Tempo

One thing I've always thought about practicing is that if you do the slower tempo, practice first with a metronome, really nail it and be accurate. You will develop the faster tempos without hesitation.

The Key to Fast Tempo

That is to say, practice things slowly and accurately, and the faster tempos will take care of themselves. Let me give you an example.

C Major Scale Practice

Let's take the C major scale, C Ionian, the most simple scale on an instrument like the piano.

1. Set Up Your Metronome:

   • Use a metronome app on your phone.
   • Start at a slow tempo: 60 beats per minute.

2. Playing the Scale:

   • Practice playing the C major scale with:
     • Two strokes per note
     • Three notes per stroke
     • Four notes per stroke
     • Five notes per stroke, etc.

If you take care of these slower tempos and work on things at the base tempo, when it comes to playing fast, these things will take care of themselves.

Slower Practice Equals Easier Fast Playing

That's what I've got to say for you here. In relation to these grades and in relation to the songs in this course, I really have to say that if you work on these at a slower tempo, the faster tempos that are on the records and recordings are going to be so much easier for you.

If I were at an earlier stage in my development and I looked at a piece such as Dark Matter, I would work on each phrase extremely slowly and methodically. With a metronome, it allows me now, at my current stage of development, to just look at the piece and play it straight away.

Importance of Developing at Your Own Pace

This is really helpful. When you're a professional guitarist faced with new music all the time, it's extremely important to have developed this skill.

So just take it slow, enjoy yourselves, and develop at your own pace.