TOPIC: As Easy As 1, 2, 3....

...25...50...100?? Whether easy or not, that's the plan.

At a lesson last month, my fiddle teacher reintroduced me to something that I hadn't seen in a very long time: the practice chart.
The concept is very simple: You fill in the name of the tune you're going to work on, and then check off a square for every time you've played through it beginning to end without a single mistake until you've checked off all 100 squares.
I can't say it's any easier to do now than it was when I was 10, especially because, while my patience has grown somewhat over the years, so has the length of the songs and, therefore, the chance for making mistakes.
None the less, it's a great way to practice, regardless of occasional frustration (can take me about four times through a section to get it perfect). But, in any case, wish me luck!!! Vivaldi's Concerto No. 1, 2nd mvt. perfection, here I come!!!

I know what you are talking about. The Fretmentor includes a practice chart in his guitar cd. It's a valuable tool that i don't use anymore, and should. Too many times i pick up my guitar to learn songs, and not really learn the guitar itself. I think many music students, if they are like myself, spend too much time trying to learn how to play actual songs, and not learn the instrument. A targetted chart with clear goals forces me to be focused in my practice. Practice sessions should have targetted goals, and lately i do more of everything else, instead of learning the instrument. For instance Fretmentor's homework for me this week is to take each of the chord forms in the CAGED system, and move them up the neck, and identify and play the basic triads in each form. The cool thing about seemingly boring tech is there is lots of cool stuff hidden in those forms---like box scales---that can be played and turned into riffs. I just have to discipline myself to dig deeper. I should be going to my lesson with the practice guide, take notes on it, write down the homework, work on it, and come back next week to demonstrate what i learned. I haven't done that very well, i recognize i need to.

Indeed. I have many different techniques that I need to focus on but am a little scared to work on them by myself. I'm afraid that if I suddenly switch up how I do my vibrato or completely change my bow hold, that I'll start back with lessons in the fall and my teacher will have to break the news to me that I've just made matters worse. And truth be told, I've slightly ventured away from learning the instrument, as I'm working more on my playing than on understanding what I'm doing. I'm working on getting back to that, though.

I have to agree with you, as far as the exercises go, no matter how much they may make you, yourself, feel CAGED. I have two different books of etudes that I'm going try to start back with soon. One is fun and the other drudgery, which means I should probably start with the latter of the two. But it is awesome to be able to look at piece and know how to not only play it but to be able to "read" it, to recognize the chord structure, and to be able to see a tune and then look through a book of etudes and pick ones that will help you by including, not just the same techniques, but the same key and chord structure; because, after all, once you have that, all the rest is just notes.

I look forward to being able to have back the imposed structure of the school year (mostly because if I don't imposed structure, then I will have none ).