In Need Of Reassurrence

robbay · #1 01-10-2006, 11:20 PM

Ok. So...

I've been playing for about a year and 3 months now...

I'm 14 years old...

My whole school of like 5,000 kids thinks that I'm a prodigy? I guess...

I can play pretty fast right now...but I'm no Paul Gilbert...not even close...and basically my question to you all is...

Do I have to kind of be born with the ability to move my fingers extremely fast...or as I get older and more accustomed to the instrument and practice more will my ability to play fast (and clearly) increase...

The only reason I'm asking is because no matter how hard I actually TRY to move my fingers extremely fast I can't because it's like impossible right now...

So basically I just wanted to know if as I get better at the guitar will it actually become easier to play faster?

I know the guitar isn't about speed...that's why I listen to Vai a lot...because in his music he doesn't try to be the fastest. He tries to be the most melodic I guess.

Nordhauser · #2 01-10-2006, 11:24 PM

how modest.
ever heard, "practice makes perfect" before? you can be born with a natural ability to play, but you also can learn with time. once you are accustomed to playing faster, it should be "no sweat." sorry for being cliche.

robbay · #3 01-10-2006, 11:39 PM

Wow! I hope that modest thing was sarcasm...because I just read over everything that I wrote and it sounded SOOO concieted....SOOOOOO concieted to the tenth power squared...hahaha...

I'm not really like that...and the prodigy thing...I'm totally against...I think people here have just never seen some real guitar playing and jump at the first "good" :-/ player they see...

Even my parents think it...It's crazy...but it's pretty cool because due to their wild imaginations-(I think)-I have been able to come to own 13 guitars...THIRTEEN...thats a lot!!! INCLUDING A JEM...It's crazy...

but...I like it...some days more than others...

Nordhauser · #4 01-11-2006, 12:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by robbay

Wow! I hope that modest thing was sarcasm...because I just read over everything that I wrote and it sounded SOOO concieted....SOOOOOO concieted to the tenth power squared...hahaha...

I'm not really like that...and the prodigy thing...I'm totally against...I think people here have just never seen some real guitar playing and jump at the first "good" :-/ player they see...

Even my parents think it...It's crazy...but it's pretty cool because due to their wild imaginations-(I think)-I have been able to come to own 13 guitars...THIRTEEN...thats a lot!!! INCLUDING A JEM...It's crazy...

but...I like it...some days more than others...

you thought i was serious?

I didn't mean any harm though. no worries. but hell, 13? and i thought 3 was too many for me including jem (and i'm 18 )! Sounds tremendously excessive, but hey, maybe you are a prodigy.

Record some clips and send 'em here. love to hear them.

anyway, just keep practicing. when i was 14, i had the same problem. now that i have grown into my instruments, everything's easier haha. not that growing really had anything to do with it, but the habitual jam session never hurt. it will all become easier as you play.

again, "practice makes perfect." can't become a virtuoso overnight.

-Nordhauser

kennydoe · #5 01-11-2006, 12:28 AM

there is SO much more to music then how fast you can play.

To paraphrase 'white men can't jump', you can LISTEN to Vai, but at 14, i doubt you can HEAR Vai.

If you have natural musical ability, do everything you can to develop it. The most important thing you can do is develop your ears, and learn that the notes you don't play are just as important as the ones you do play. Music is a conversation of sorts...nobody wants to listen to someone who talks all the time and never stops. Listening is incredibly important.

Natural ability is a great place to start, but a horrible place to finish.

~K

Davey · #6 01-11-2006, 04:15 AM

I had the whole "next Jimi Hendrix" thing going on at school and with my friends and family when I was 14 and it was the WORSE thing that could've ever happen to me as a guitarist, seriously!

Almost everyone I knew (other guitarists included) thought I was going to be something special and I just ended not practicing because of it. I pretty much already thought I had "it"

Fast forward to 18 years old...

I then realised that all these chumps that'd been learning their theory (lol) and actually practicing to compete to become better than me (yes we all know it's not a competition, but I guess that what some young 'uns do) actual WERE better than me. It sort of knocked me for six and I sort of become disenchanted with playing, and with numerous other things in my life distracting me, I ended up giving up playing and not picking up a guitar for another 3 years. The 3 years passed and I finally ended up feeling like having a tinkle on the guitar, but because I wasn't surrounded by people thinking I was going to become a huge virtuoso I could really chill out and enjoy playing at my own pace. I think that's when I really started to learn that music isn't a competition, although I could probably shred those guys socks off now! lol

Yeah so if you have people telling you that you're a prodigy, just ignore it and get on with practicing, etc. I've wasted a lot of time because I acted on what others thought of me (HUGE mistake) and I've learnt more in the past 2 years than I would've in my first "stint" because I'm not in competition and I'm not trying to live up to anything.

Good luck!

Davey · #7 01-11-2006, 04:15 AM

whoops, double post.

Drew · #8 01-11-2006, 01:52 PM

Funny you should mention Gilbert... He felt like he had no natural ability when it came to alternate picking, and that it just didn't come naturally to him. He got increasingly frustrated, and finally sat down and practiced his (butt) off, and now, well, look at the guy.

I wouldn't worry about whether or not you have "natural ability," and instead spend time you would have spent worrying practicing.

You may think you're good, and a lot of people may agree with you, but I KNOW you can be better than you are. This will always be true. Remember that.

vette6600 · #9 01-11-2006, 02:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kennydoe

Music is a conversation of sorts...nobody wants to listen to someone who talks all the time and never stops

thats a good one.

lets hear some of your stuff. we'll be the prodigy judges

kennydoe · #10 01-11-2006, 03:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vette6600

thats a good one.

lets hear some of your stuff. we'll be the prodigy judges

That's not at all what i meant by that sentence.

~Kenny

tuggey · #11 01-11-2006, 04:08 PM

I can see that times have'nt changed that much since I was a teenager in high school. (I'm 32 now). If you have the natural ability, try to harness it. Practice it. Put the guitar down and come back to it when you feel frustrated. Guitar playing to me is like...sounds cheesy, but kind of like being a Samurai. It's not all about going into battle. There is a lot of mental warfare as well. Never give up.

Davey · #12 01-11-2006, 04:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tuggey

kind of like being a Samurai. It's not all about going into battle. There is a lot of mental warfare as well. Never give up.

HEY!! YOU!!

Are you the guy that keep selling these chinese knock off jems on the 'bay?

*shakes fist*

Davey · #13 01-11-2006, 04:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tuggey

I can see that times have'nt changed that much since I was a teenager in high school. (I'm 32 now). If you have the natural ability, try to harness it. Practice it. Put the guitar down and come back to it when you feel frustrated. Guitar playing to me is like...sounds cheesy, but kind of like being a Samurai. It's not all about going into battle. There is a lot of mental warfare as well. Never give up.

Only joking buddy, good way of looking at it

robbay · #14 01-11-2006, 06:14 PM

Don't worry...I mean I guess have somewhat of a natural ability...but mostly in the sense that I never had trouble picking the guitar up and playing it. Unlike a lot of people who I let play my guitars...if they've never done it before they pick it up like upside down and play it on their lap or whatever, just basically playing it in the most unusual ways that really make no sense...and if they are holding it the right way a lot of times they can't press the strings down right or anything like that...

My point is just that I never had to learn how to do that. I would just put my fingers in the shape of chords and play whatever sounded good.

And don't you people worry about the practicing thing. I can't remember the last day I didn't play guitar.

Generally speaking, I play guitar from about 4-6 hours a day...

CHEERIO!

Distantshore · #15 01-11-2006, 06:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kennydoe

Natural ability is a great place to start, but a horrible place to finish.

~K

Great words of wisdom!
I agree with the listening and actually hearing the music.. I find myself still hearing new things, or hearing things in a new way if you will, in music I've listened to for years.