For some guitarists, playing the lead guitar is one of the most enjoyable parts of playing the guitar. This means soloing, playing cool licks, exploring different scales and much more. However, being a great lead guitar player does take lots and lots of practice, especially if you want to play in a band or group. Playing the lead guitar can mean a variety of things for different genres such as jazz, rock and blues, but there are some things you can practice to make yourself a better overall lead guitar player. Here are some ways to improve your lead guitar playing.
LEARN SCALES:
Learning guitar scales is one of the top fundamentals that will make you a better lead guitar player. While there are an abundance of different scales to learn, there are a few that are a guitarist’s bread and butter when it comes to soloing and coming up with lead guitar parts. The minor pentatonic scale will help with soloing over rock music and can easily be transferred over to blues music as well. In addition, each of the major scales are good to know to make you a better all around lead player.
PRACTICE YOUR TECHNIQUE:
Practicing your technique can also mean a variety of different things, but it will greatly improve your lead guitar playing. One thing to practice is playing along with a metronome. This will help with getting your fingers used to playing at different speeds and with your timing. As you progress, you can increase the speed of the metronome to further your skills. Another thing to practice is alternate picking. This may seem minor, but it will make playing lead guitar that much easier.
LEARN TO READ MUSIC:
Learning to read music is another way to improve your lead guitar playing. Reading sheet music will help learn the notes on the guitar neck, help you to identify patterns within different lead guitar parts, which may ultimately help you in coming up with your own. In addition to these things guitar players that read music tend to learn other concepts related to the instrument faster than those who do not.
Learn Your Favorite Solos
Learning solos is a very beneficial way to improve your lead guitar playing. Understanding how your favorite guitar players phrase their own lines using scales and arpeggios brings you one step closer to having full command of the neck and being able to express yourself freely.
Improving your lead guitar playing will open many more doors and opportunities for you in the guitar world. That is why it is best to pick up your instrument and start practicing! If you are struggling to put it all together or you can already play but not sure what your your doing call us for a FREE TRIAL LESSON and we can help you to solo like a pro!