Emotions and good guitar playing

[pvfederico]

I've heard several guitarists talk about how one "attacks" the guitar. That got me thinking about how important the emotional side of guitar playing is. I am an older, retired man who has been playing for only 7-8 years. I'm self taught, and mostly finger pick folk and pop songs written before 1980. I also strum or finger pick a few traditional Mexican songs -- boleros and huapangas. I live in a relatively isolated area of Mexico, and though I am a US citizen, my principle daily language is Spanish, which I learned here. I have no contact with other guitarists.

I'm very pleased with my playing and with my rapid improvement. However, I seem to lack the ability to consistently play more difficult pieces without making mistakes. I have thought about this a lot, and I feel that my problem is trying to reach two necessary (for me) states at the same time.

1) relaxation
2) sufficient level of concentration

These two states seem to be somewhat contradictory.

I play only for myself, and have no intention of changing that. (I am a widower, and live alone.) My favorite guitar is my Larrivee LV-10 with Elixir 80/20 Bronze 10/47 extra light strings. I also have a Taylor and a Martin, and several classical guitars that I seldom use.

Any thoughts or similar experiences?

[musicman1951]

A lot to unpack here. I agree with you, although I dislike the concept of attacking the guitar.

Relaxation is certainly important. There is very little muscle tension involved with activating a guitar string, and increasing tension unnecessarily is generally a poor plan. Tight muscles are slow muscles.

Concentration is definitely necessary, but it won't replace preparation.

How difficult are the difficult pieces - near the edge of your current ability or just beyond that level most days? Or are two bad notes ending your joy? Impossible to tell from the post.

Generally my belief is that if you can't play a piece well enough YET (always add the yet) you simply have not played it enough times yet.

And when you've played it well slowly and then gradually increased the tempo so you know it's under your fingers - then use your concentration to get into the flow of the music. And don't get too excited about a wrong note here and there - people are not perfect. It's more important to play musically. My computer will play every note perfect every time - and nobody wants to hear it.

[rick-slo]

"Attack" is probably a poor choice of a word. Pick the strings with purpose and control. Sometimes you hear someone play where everything
sounds tentative and where lack of control of individual string tone and volume makes the notes being played blend together into a mush.

[Arthur Blake]

I would suggest focusing on the idea of "discovery" that is, consistently finding ways to improve your playing by improving your technique.

One of the most astonishing and enjoyable aspects of learning guitar is always finding some tiny way to improve the sound.

I am always striving for perfection in every single note, so there's always almost something you can discover to take you closer.

Could be the way you strike - attack - angle - lift - the string with the fingers on the right hand.

Could be the way you touch the left hand finger near the fret.

Could be a different left hand fingering transition.

Could be noticing the way the string feels when it touches your finger prior to bending a note.

Mostly, all the focus is on tone, and the technique follows.

If I ever do get everything perfect, I often get so absorbed in the experience that I forget the next note and the music stops. I find that amusing. Relates to the different parts of the brain you described. I just start over.

[Su_H.]

When I'm stressed or simply preoccupied with thoughts other than the guitar, my playing is never at 100%. When I have little to no stress, my playing is close to 100%. 100% does not mean perfect. It simply means at my best.

From my experience, if you think about not making mistakes while playing, you will be more susceptible to mistakes. The easy way to conquer those mistakes is to play and practice them at very slow tempo.

One thing to also consider is often times we think we know something or have something down but the reality is we don't know it well enough or have it down enough. I'm not saying you have that problem but I think it's safe to say many practicing musicians have had that problem.

My advice is to keep practicing and practice slow when needed and don't think too much about making or not making mistakes. This advice comes from a guy who has stage anxiety....so I know a lot about emotions and how it affects performance lol.

[Su_H.]

As far relaxation and focus go, I am a better player when I'm intense. When I'm in that mode, I don't see or hear anything other than my guitar and the piece I'm playing....and maybe that's because I haven't achieved an advanced level of playing. World class guitarists look relaxed...and IMO, many of them don't look focused because that's how good they are.....and they only put on an intense focused look when they are about to play something intricate and of high level difficulty.

[Norsepicker]

I found this post and the responses very useful for my own playing, I would add two things, 1. Guitar has a lot in common with meditation, or can. I find, like in Tai Chi and Buddhist meditation practice, the mind wants to wander off topic and the discipline is to stay with the music. 2. If you are in Mexico and speak Spanish it shouldn’t be too hard to find somebody to play with. I play once a week with a really good, and good natured, guitarist, who has been playing for thirty some years. His skill lifts me and also let’s me know where I am in each particular piece. I think of it as a kind of middle step to public performance. I spent my life as an actor and theatre teacher and was surprised, amused, and horrified to find that I had performance anxiety playing in public. When I play with my guitar partner the anxiety is there, but at a much more manageable level.

[Mbroady]

Practice, play, play, play, practice, play, play

[JonPR]

Originally Posted by pvfederico

I've heard several guitarists talk about how one "attacks" the guitar. That got me thinking about how important the emotional side of guitar playing is.

Yes. But the "attack" is really about "playing like you mean it". You don't have to feel any specific emotion, you just have to play as if the music is important. It's the only thing you care about at that moment.

Doesn't matter if your dog died that morning, or you've been given three weeks to live. Forget all that - the music you're playing is all that matters.
You don't play to express emotion. You play to escape all that, because music is a world of its own. You play it the same way whatever emotional situation - stressed or calm - you may be in outside of (before and after) the music. I.e. you give yourself to the music 100%. The music has its own meanings, which are there regardless of what you're feeling. You can't have any emotions getting in the way. You have to be calmly in control.

Ideally, that is. You can't always make it work like that.

Originally Posted by pvfederico

I have thought about this a lot, and I feel that my problem is trying to reach two necessary (for me) states at the same time.

1) relaxation
2) sufficient level of concentration

These two states seem to be somewhat contradictory.

Not really. It depends on being totally confident with your technique, and completely familiar with the piece you're playing. That enables you to both relax and concentrate. You know it so well you don't have to think about the notes or the chords or the structure. You know what you're playing, so you can apply yourself to the expression, to how you're playing.

[FrankHudson]

Originally Posted by pvfederico

I'm very pleased with my playing and with my rapid improvement. However, I seem to lack the ability to consistently play more difficult pieces without making mistakes. I have thought about this a lot, and I feel that my problem is trying to reach two necessary (for me) states at the same time.

1) relaxation
2) sufficient level of concentration

These two states seem to be somewhat contradictory.

Yes, I think that's about right. There's a book I read many years ago that pointed out some tips and observations in this area that might be useful for you to read.

Kenny Werner Effortless Mastery

Now I haven't gotten to the level of being a solid musician myself, but that's not the book's fault.

Some in the thread have mentioned practice as the cure. In my view necessary, but not sufficient in itself, at least for many people. Werner's concepts help make practice more powerful I think, but what one needs to do when performing (even for one's-self) is engender another state, one that for some of us needs to be learned. This goes double in the instant composition world of improvising.

As to your aims regarding attack and emotion. Yes, there's a element of intent that adds something to a musician's performance. There's an old musicians' joke that holds a lot of truth: "If you make a mistake, play it again twice, and louder, as if you really meant it." That's a joke, not a technique to be aimed for, but if you're still not in the right zone you won't be able to present the best expression onto the correct notes either.

[Mr. Jelly]

Learn to play through your mistakes. Nobody truly plays a piece perfectly. Only perfect people play music perfectly. It's how you deal with them that makes the difference.

[islandguitar]

Not really. It depends on being totally confident with your technique, and completely familiar with the piece you're playing. That enables you to both relax and concentrate. You know it so well you don't have to think about the notes or the chords or the structure. You know what you're playing, so you can apply yourself to the expression, to how you're playing.
_______
Boy is that "on the money"! In my own tunes, I spend quite a bit of time after I get a tune down and then explore/discover how it "wants" to be played. A lot of time listening so that I can "apply myself to the expression". Really valuable points given here. Certainly not saying it works all the time! (when recording)There are days! But the goal remains the same nevertheless.

[DukeX]

Originally Posted by JonPR

Yes. But the "attack" is really about "playing like you mean it". You don't have to feel any specific emotion, you just have to play as if the music is important. It's the only thing you care about at that moment.

Doesn't matter if your dog died that morning, or you've been given three weeks to live. Forget all that - the music you're playing is all that matters.
You don't play to express emotion. You play to escape all that, because music is a world of its own. You play it the same way whatever emotional situation - stressed or calm - you may be in outside of (before and after) the music. I.e. you give yourself to the music 100%. The music has its own meanings, which are there regardless of what you're feeling. You can't have any emotions getting in the way. You have to be calmly in control.

Ideally, that is. You can't always make it work like that.

Not really. It depends on being totally confident with your technique, and completely familiar with the piece you're playing. That enables you to both relax and concentrate. You know it so well you don't have to think about the notes or the chords or the structure. You know what you're playing, so you can apply yourself to the expression, to how you're playing.

Well said, JPR! You put my feelings to words better than I could.

[pvfederico]

Lots of good advice to think about here. Thanks for taking the time to help me.

[rmoretti49]

I recently started to work on a song that I had always wanted to learn, but thought it to be beyond my skill. I wanted to play it exactly like it was played by its author in the original recording. Fortunately, I had a note-by-note transcription in tablature.

I have now played this song close to 350 times over the past 4 months or so (I am keeping count). It sounds quite good. Yet every time I play it, I make some "mistake". I put that in quotes, because these mistakes are merely deviations from the original in some way, not something a listener would be aware of. The more I concentrate on playing exactly as it was written, the more likely I am to fail to do so. If I forget about the goal of a perfect duplication of the original, the odds of a smooth performance increase. I believe this is because I am allowing my own feeling/interpretation of the song to come to the fore, which it seems to want to do.

Maybe it would be worthwhile for you to work on "owning" a song you are learning, instead of a technically perfect performance. Why not try this. By itself, this approach may help you relax more while playing. I agree with the post that stated that trying to not make mistakes actually increases mistakes. Timothy Gallwey has written about this in his book, "The Inner Game of Music."