Home › Forums › Guitar Techniques and General Discussions › Learning new songs
- This topic has 14 replies, 6 voices, and was last updated 3 years, 7 months ago by Dana M.
-
CreatorTopic
-
July 23, 2019 at 7:20 pm #138912
Just for fun and to try something new, I started learning a new AM song backwards. I learned the last measure, then the last two measures, and so on. This really works for me, and as you’re learning more and more, you’re reinforcing what you learned because you keep playing it through.
-
CreatorTopic
-
AuthorReplies
-
-
July 23, 2019 at 11:51 pm #138921
That actually might not be such a bad idea. You start with the hardest parts and then learning the whole piece becomes easier. You might be onto something, Frank 😉
🎸JoLa
-
August 9, 2020 at 9:30 am #186416
Hey I just tried this – when learning this week’s lesson, I split the song into phrases and then learned each of them individually. Then, started with the last phrase, after that I add the previous one, etc. Note that I’m working with phrases, licks, not measures.
I thought I had discovered a surprising new memorization technique (LOL) but I see I haven’t, as this thread proves at least Frank had thought of this first!
Then I googled about backwards memorization and found that’s it’s a thing, here’s an interesting read:
https://www.stringkick.com/blog-lessons/memorize-music-by-practicing-songs-backwards/
One of the ideas is that if you start learning from the end of the song backwards, the hardest part is always the new phrase that comes before the rest of the song. So once you unlock the new phrase, the rest is easier, so you’re much more motivated: it’s a hard part first and then it’s easier.
Try that, it worked great for me! Also, the interactive scores at ActiveMelody make it super easy, you just select the phrases and clicking on the space bar twice, you can go back to the beginning until you master the new phrase, and then let it flow to the end of the song.
-
August 9, 2020 at 11:46 am #186420
Jaime, yes – this is brilliant! I have been implementing some of those ideas, mainly by dividing a lesson into phrases and starting with the most difficult one first – which usually tends to be towards the end.
It was interesting to read the article you mentioned where you can see the math behind it. It makes sense! I have to try different things since learning methodically is very boring to me. I lose interest quickly, especially if the phrases keep getting harder and harder in a song/lesson.
And now that I think about it, I haven’t learned a whole lesson in a long time, as I’ve been “jamming” and creating my own stuff for the challenges. Better get back into it now 🙂
🎸JoLa
-
August 9, 2020 at 3:39 pm #186445
Frank and Jaime, thank you very much for suggesting this approach. Fascinating! I will read the article first and then will give it a go tomorrow. I am really curious how it is going to work for me.
-
August 9, 2020 at 3:59 pm #186452
I just read the article and somehow it all sounded familiar. Then I consulted my go-to when stuck book “The practice of practice” and sure enough, the same method is described in there, too! The author Jonathan Harnum calls it back-chaining. I had even highlighted it, but never applied…
-
August 9, 2020 at 5:11 pm #186456
Yeah, I find learning a fascinating topic! I’ll read The Practice of Practice book, for sure, Tremelow!
A book that I loved some years ago and I want to read again is Pragmatic Thinking And Learning. It’s on a collection of books for software developers, but it’s not about computers, it’s about how the brain (and learning) works, and tips to improve learning.
JoLa, creating your own stuff is what makes your challenges awesome each month! I’m forcing myself to focus on the weekly lessons, but sometimes it’s complicated to finish them before a new one comes around, not to say also learn past lessons or other stuff.
For the weekly lessons, I print the PDF so I can take notes on the paper – I mark the different phrases, annotate the logic behind them from Brian’s explanations, etc. I use the favorites list on AM to keep track of the lessons I’m working on and the ones I considered finished, usually when I record it.
I’d love to know your tips on how you organize your learning! How do you keep up with the AM lessons?
-
August 10, 2020 at 10:56 am #186518
Thanks, Jaime 🙂
My approach is very similar to yours and exactly what you said here:“I’m forcing myself to focus on the weekly lessons, but sometimes it’s complicated to finish them before a new one comes around, not to say also learn past lessons or other stuff.”
The way I study Brian’s lessons has somewhat evolved since I started 3 years ago. I used to print tabs and make notes on them but over time I realized that I never really go back and read them. I have a few thick folders with printed tabs and no use for them. So what I do now is I watch EVERY new lesson coming out. Even if I don’t play it, there’s valuable takeaways in each one. I make notes and organize the random “takeaways” on flash cards that I keep handy, like “cheat sheets” in school 😉 This way, I also don’t feel guilty about not learning the lesson because I took the “cream of the crop” and can apply it to my own playing anyway (hopefully) 😉
If I do learn a lesson, I work mostly with the Soundslice on the laptop screen and refer to the video of Brian playing to see the finger placement etc. I loop the difficult parts and play them over and over until I get it.
If recording is in the plans, I start recording once I have memorized it because that gives me a good reality check and highlights trouble areas.
I’d say my attention span is pretty short so I find it hard to stay focused on one thing for too long. Therefore I work on a few projects/lessons at a time at different stages of learning. For example, I have a few lessons that I play regularly on a daily basis, they’re good warm-ups etc. But then I have lessons that I have memorized somewhat but need work and then I have lessons that I am just starting. Aside from that there’s monthly challenges, jams and maybe “outside” projects as well. It seems like a lot but it works well for me and keeps me interested in grabbing the guitar and work on whatever I feel like at the moment 🙂
🎸JoLa
-
-
August 9, 2020 at 10:06 pm #186474
Im not sure i would limit a lesson learning time to the space of a week, kind of a cramped method for me.
Was mentioned on forum momth if not years back about playing 4 or 5 learned lesson in a back to back fashion, good as a warm up but also reinforces many of the licks, phrases, techniques which Brian ises on a regular basis.
Sorry, bit of a ramble there. I find the idea of learning the lesson backwards quite an interesting one so im just about to settle down and have a read at the posted link… if im not back in a day or two, send help...Billy..
-
August 10, 2020 at 4:58 am #186491
Thanks Billy, I don’t limit a lesson to a single week, normally the lessons stay around for weeks or months before I consider them “complete”. But I find that focusing on a single lesson for a few days, helps me in my progress, so normally when a new lesson comes out, I’m 100% on it for the first 2-3 days, and then I let it sit in the back of my mind while I practice different things.
Also, I think that backwards memorization is good just for that: memorization, but learning a lesson is not just about memorization, you need to understand the concepts, and learn the different takeaways, put them into practice in different situations (for example playing the licks in other positions, or in other tones), etc.
-
August 10, 2020 at 5:16 am #186492
So I’ve been practicing EP 372 with the new approach this morning. Probably too early to generalize, but I have the feeling that it works pretty well. It does not go entirely without some back and forth, but the wanted effect is visible. There is also a sense of curiosity that I like. The Soundslice tool is ideal for this. I wonder how long it will take to memorize the whole piece and if it stays longer in my memory that usually.
-
August 10, 2020 at 8:54 am #186506
Yes, I just finished with EP373 using this method, it was much easier!
-
August 10, 2020 at 11:08 am #186519
JoLa, thanks a lot for sharing your learning strategy!
Yes, probably accumulating notes on a lot of printed scores is not a good idea in the mid term. I’ll use flash cards, or a notebook, to write all those notes.
-
August 11, 2020 at 3:50 pm #186654
I started EP373 backwards today, I must say it is strange but I think I like it. I now know the last 10 bars which is more than I can usually get in one sitting!
-
September 7, 2020 at 4:36 pm #191279
JoLa,
I really appreciate your posts.
Dan
-
-
AuthorReplies
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.